1958 Apache Big Window Loooooong Bed "Lucky"

[daveshilling]

I installed the Ididit 4.5" drop column mount and mocked up my trimmed-down C10 Motorhome steering column and wheel. I'm not certain if this is the final position, but it seems decent. Adding a tilt column shift definitely forces the steering wheel forward a bit so finding the right balance between steering wheel position, column shift arm position, etc was and still is a challenge.



The holes for the factory mount and the dash holes are both elongated, allowing for fast installation and adusting true back in '58. The Ididit posts are not adjustable, so the sloppy mount holes in the dash done by Chevy didnt work. I used a round file to elongate the left side hole until I could get the mount centered below the instrument cluster.



I used a piece of bicycle inner tube as a gasket between the two pieces, and this allows for a clean, tight fit that will also help resist vibration. Inner tube rubber is VERY handy in the shop, I find myself using it often!

[_Ogre]

nice to see your hydroboost setup, did you ever finish it? with two brackets i assume a rod between pedal linkage and hydroboost. i rarely make it to the builds section cuz too many builds that drag on, that from me whom took 8 years to build truk

unless your 5 feet tall that column drop will be tearing your knees up. truk column is butt up to the dash, actually had to grind the speedo bezel for final fit n finish. even then i knock my knees, granted i'm an 6'4" ogre

[daveshilling]

Originally Posted by _Ogre

nice to see your hydroboost setup, did you ever finish it? with two brackets i assume a rod between pedal linkage and hydroboost. i rarely make it to the builds section cuz too many builds that drag on, that from me whom took 8 years to build truk

I still need to get the high pressure lines made... trying to figure the best way to go about mocking some up for the shop. I need to get some bailing wire probably, or use off cuts from brake line and some rubber hose to mock up. I know once I do it I will wonder why it took me so damn long.

Originally Posted by _Ogre

unless your 5 feet tall that column drop will be tearing your knees up. truk column is butt up to the dash, actually had to grind the speedo bezel for final fit n finish. even then i knock my knees, granted i'm an 6'4" ogre

I'm hoping that when I have the seat redone I can sit further back in the cab a bit and use the tilt to bring the wheel forward. The shift handle was too close to the dash where I had it. I can always go back to the stock mount if it doesn't work out. I don't really like the chrome anyways, i might brush that down so its not so shiny.

[_Ogre]

napa made all of my hoses. get the ends and some hose from them. cut hose to length on the truck and clock the ends and mark them. my napa was real good at working with me, even crimped my va ac hoses for free.

the seat back hits under the window, even eliminating all padding will only move you back a couple inches. if you need more leg room, i gained an inch or two by raising the seat. i get you on chrome, other than the grill and front bumper not much shiny on truk

[daveshilling]

Originally Posted by _Ogre

napa made all of my hoses. get the ends and some hose from them. cut hose to length on the truck and clock the ends and mark them. my napa was real good at working with me, even crimped my va ac hoses for free.

the seat back hits under the window, even eliminating all padding will only move you back a couple inches. if you need more leg room, i gained an inch or two by raising the seat. i get you on chrome, other than the grill and front bumper not much shiny on truk

Unfortunately my NAPA doesn't carry the fittings... I can bring them the fittings and such and they'll crimp them for me, at $50-75 a line... def not free. Looks like we have different NAPAs out here

How much slack did you leave in your lines? Add 6 inches to make install easier/cleaner, perhaps?

[svr]

When I did my Hydroboost i got fittings i thought i wanted along with hose that goes with the fittings cut a little long. took it all home and routed the hose to the fittings and cut it to length and slide it onto the fittings and marked the clock position i wanted fittings to end up. Then i took it back to the hose place and had them crimp the ends. If one end is straight and the other is a 90 its no big deal but if you have 2 90's they need to be clocked right.

[layinrocker65]

My local Napa is no good their. I had the local hose place make the hoses at $70 a pop

If I were to do it again, id make some AN line.

[daveshilling]

Okay, I'm posting up another mini Tech Tip:

How to get cheap and attractive Aluminum 6AN hose frame clamps


They sell these aluminum hose clamps on eBay, Amazon, etc made for braided lines, but they also work well for rubber fuel line if you order one size up (Order 8AN for a 6AN rubber hose)

They're about $10 for a set of 4:



Well I ordered a pack of these and decided to modify one to use as a frame clamp. It worked very well.


Step 1. Replace the screw that comes with it with a longer one.

I had to sand down an m6 socket head cap screw a bit for it to squeeze into the hole made for the original, but not by much. Use a longer screw that protrudes past the clamp.




Step 2. Drill out the bottom threaded piece of the clamp to remove the threads, allowing the longer bolt to pass through freely



Step 3. Drill and tap your frame in the desired location of the clamp

I used an m6 tap since I had a metric socket head cap screw. You could use a 1/4" tap instead.

Step 4. Screw in the clamp and marvel at your ingenuity!

If you use the right length screw or trim your down, it can sit flush with the frame. an M6x1.25 was a perfect fit for me.

[daveshilling]

I also got my homemade frame bracket installed. I like this one because it was completely free, and I can customize the design to include a longer mounting post.







In addition, I whipped up a little bracket for the breather coming from the fuel pump, and used an existing hole in the rear crossmember to mount it.



Not big jobs, but things that need to get done. An hour here and an hour there and one day I will wake up to a finished project! **Plus these are good for when you only have a couple hours and you cant get covered in grease because you have things to do later.

Let me know what yall think!

[daveshilling]

Originally Posted by layinrocker65

My local Napa is no good their. I had the local hose place make the hoses at $70 a pop

If I were to do it again, id make some AN line.

I've looked at this option as well, but it appears that it costs about the same. I guess that will at least give me the opportunity to build them at home in my flip flops and just get it done and over with!

[daveshilling]

I've been humming and hawing on what to work on next... I'm a weird spot in the build where everything seems like it depends on something else to be done first in a strange chicken-or-the-egg circle!

I decided to make a home for my LS PCM in the Glove Box area for now. I don't if / how long it will stay here, but it will be easy to access while the build is fresh, and once the truck is running, driving, and shaken down, I can perhaps find a more elegant solution.

That being said, the tray is very sturdy for being a single piece of sheet metal, owing to the curved sides giving it strength as well as matching the curves of the opening.
I cut out a section of the rear to make room for wiring to easily reach the PCM.

I welded some nuts to the bottom since you really cant reach in there to hold one. This makes it much easier to install. Lately I've been doing this to many custom fabbed items.




I can grab ahold of the PCM and shake the entire truck, its that solid in there.

[dsraven]

Looks solid.
If its fabled up, mounted and done why change it?
When I get to a place in a build like you have I just make a list of things to do. Pick something and work on that to finish. I try not to do something that I will need to come back to at some point to rehab, change or finesse. Lately I have decided to start at the rear bumper and work forward, finishing everything as I go, like ready for paint kinda finishing. I will leave it in epoxy primer when done and drive it that way to make sure all the bugs are ironed out before a final paint job.all bodywork will be done so when paint time comes it will be less of an ordeal. I find lately that's what works for me to keep a forward motion going. There is too much going on these days to say I will do an hour a day so I try to keep the jobs manageable and not have a huge array of parts laying around disassembled. I pick a job and follow through till finished then start another job and do the same.

[daveshilling]

Originally Posted by dsraven

Looks solid.
If its fabled up, mounted and done why change it?
When I get to a place in a build like you have I just make a list of things to do. Pick something and work on that to finish. I try not to do something that I will need to come back to at some point to rehab, change or finesse. Lately I have decided to start at the rear bumper and work forward, finishing everything as I go, like ready for paint kinda finishing. I will leave it in epoxy primer when done and drive it that way to make sure all the bugs are ironed out before a final paint job.all bodywork will be done so when paint time comes it will be less of an ordeal. I find lately that's what works for me to keep a forward motion going. There is too much going on these days to say I will do an hour a day so I try to keep the jobs manageable and not have a huge array of parts laying around disassembled. I pick a job and follow through till finished then start another job and do the same.

I might change it up if I decide to install A/C down the road, but aside from cleaning it up and painting it, it should be good for now.

I like that approach, just start at one end and keep working towards the other! I do sometimes end up with multiple half-finished jobs just due to inexperience.. halfway through I didn't realize that I needed to order new bushings/bits/seals/etc and then I'm waiting for parts, so I start something else while I'm waiting...and that has its own considerations, so then I need parts, or I realize I cant finish that until I do something else too...I'm trying to break out of that, do my research, order parts, and don't start until I can finish.

[gigamanx]

Originally Posted by daveshilling

I've been humming and hawing on what to work on next... I'm a weird spot in the build where everything seems like it depends on something else to be done first in a strange chicken-or-the-egg circle!

I decided to make a home for my LS PCM in the Glove Box area for now. I don't if / how long it will stay here, but it will be easy to access while the build is fresh, and once the truck is running, driving, and shaken down, I can perhaps find a more elegant solution.

That being said, the tray is very sturdy for being a single piece of sheet metal, owing to the curved sides giving it strength as well as matching the curves of the opening.
I cut out a section of the rear to make room for wiring to easily reach the PCM.

I welded some nuts to the bottom since you really cant reach in there to hold one. This makes it much easier to install. Lately I've been doing this to many custom fabbed items.




I can grab ahold of the PCM and shake the entire truck, its that solid in there.

Analysis paralysis. Been there.... sometimes you just gotta pick something and start doing instead of wondering. I recently ran into this where I knew I needed to install a dashboard because I needed to know where to put a steering column. Before I could do that, I needed a dashboard support rail. Before that I needed to repair the body enough from a previous crap job on the rail so I could install it. Before that, I needed to mount the windshield frame so I could align the dash rail with the windshield. Before that I needed to cut 2" from the windshield frame.

Knocked most of it out over two nights by just getting out there and cutting bits of metal. Oh, I also fabbed up a radiator mount that I thought I'd save till later.

[BC Toy chest]

Sweet project

[OKGMC4]

Like the truck so far. Any progress lately?
Posted via Mobile Device

[daveshilling]

Originally Posted by OKGMC4

Like the truck so far. Any progress lately?
Posted via Mobile Device

Thanks! Progress has stalled...I had the engine mounted tight to the firewall but then the brake pedal would hit the exhaust. I could either move the brakes to the firewall, or redo the mounts. I chose to redo the mounts, and made some adjustable plates but haven't figured out where the engine needs to sit yet and whether or not I can re-use my old mounts. If I can't, then I need to pull the engine out, cut off the old tabs, grind away the paint, make new mounts, figure out where they'll go, etc.

In the meantime, I have a 56 GMC Suburban next to it that I was working on, just maintenance after it sat for 15 years, and then I bought a 59 because I couldn't help myself. The GMC is mostly done for now, its running and driving again but it needs a new power steering box, so we'll see.

I do need to get back to this truck though, I have so many hours in it already and I refuse to sell a project. In theory, since I have the ecu mounted and harness redone, fuel tank installed and fuel line mostly done... Once I mount this engine I can do some wiring and see if this thing is any good. It's a completely untested engine/trans, so should be interesting!

Thanks for reminding me that I need to git er done!

[G&R's57GMC]

The Sub looks like you did some rubbing on the paint before you installed the trim .

Looking good .

I see you left off the rubber tips . What are you going to do about the holes ?

The reason I put them on is to protect the delicate edges of the bumper ( Dagmars ).
It took a lot of work to get the edges ready for chrome .

[daveshilling]

Originally Posted by G&R's57GMC

The Sub looks like you did some rubbing on the paint before you installed the trim .

Looking good .

I see you left off the rubber tips . What are you going to do about the holes ?

The reason I put them on is to protect the delicate edges of the bumper ( Dagmars ).
It took a lot of work to get the edges ready for chrome .

It's the lean over polish...where you keep leaning over the fenders while you're working and clean them off with your clothes.

Leaving the holes for now, I have more drivability-related tasks to accomplish with this truck. I'm sure I'll find a solution I like if I'm patient about it.

Now get out in that garage and work on your project!! Start a build thread in the off-topic section.

[daveshilling]

By coincidence, ended up tagging along with a buddy to the metal store, grabbed some thick sheet, and knew I needed to tackle this engine mount situation.


I originally went with a straight tubing mount, but I ended up not liking those, as well as hacking them up because I moved the engine and needed to redo the mounts.

I went back to my LS Flatout mount thread where I asked for help the first time. Almost 3 years later, I took another look at Dans mounts, and decided the 3 wall style, attached to my original tube/bushings at the frame would be my best bet. I liked Dans Ford flathead mounts better, but I already had this so I worked with what I had.

I mocked up with cardboard and a wood dowel as a steering rod, then refined the cardboard, then started cutting and welding. My air compressor is on loan so I couldn't use the plasma cutter which made it take awhile.

Slapped them together and they're waiting for paint now. This was a huge roadblock...nothing moved forward until I dealt with engine position. Glad to have it behind me!

[dsraven]

Torch, grinder, file,. Welcome to everybody elses world, plasma boy. Haha
Nice work.

[daveshilling]

Originally Posted by dsraven

Torch, grinder, file,. Welcome to everybody elses world, plasma boy. Haha
Nice work.

Ha, well I've been in that world for awhile and I do love my plasma cutter. I don't have an oxy torch, so its cut off wheels for me. Less high speed spinning things= less likely I hurt myself.

[dsraven]

Yeah, me too. Got the scars and pieces embedded from blown apart zip discs etc. Been thinking of a plasma cutter lately.
When I do cardboard patterns I always try to use poster board or cereal box type cardboard that is single layer because the patterns turn out more precise. Less flex than the thicker box style corrugated cardboard. Especially if there are drill holes to mark.

[OKGMC4]

Those mounts look great. And…poster board here, too. Anytime I ask my wife to pick some up she’s like “What color?” I just laugh. Won’t matter about 10 minutes after you give it to me. Also…same on cutoff wheels. Sooo many cutoff wheels.

[dsraven]

I built a set a lot like but used camaro ls clamshell mounts and made the part on the frameabolt on as well so the whole assembly can be totally removed if needed for spaceto pull engine and trans as an assembly.