My Oldest Sons Frankentruck Project

[JRBECK64]

Originally Posted by ixnay

Who did your bench seat? Now your son's rig is not only beautiful, it's classy and beautiful. Were I looking at it, it would rust because I'd be salivating all over it. With this resto, you could start a wholesale return to 67-72 rigs. Too bad Detroit can't/won't retool to start production again.

Meanwhile, before your fine-painting wife decides to kill you, let her know that my wife's kitchen remodel is now at $44,000 and we're not half done. I'm sending $21K out the door this weekend. Pick-ups are cheap. I think I could order that bench seat of yours without any comments.

ixnay,
The guys name is Tony and the name of his Upholstery Business is Right On Upholstery. Let me know if you want his number and I will PM it to you. Thanks again for the Compliments on my Sons Pickup. I rolled up to a beautiful 67 Long Fleet 4X4 this morning and its Gold and White. I couldn't believe how nice that truck was. I wasn't real hot on the color but the bodywork was dead on. On the Kitchen Subject, your going to have more money in your kitchen than it cost to build my 30X50 shop including the 200 foot driveway. Maybe you should send pictures of that and your truck.

JRBECK64

[JRBECK64]

Been a while since I posted last but I got a little busy with the 67 GTO Conv. I am now back into finishing my Sons truck. Here are a few pics of the progress. I pulled a real bonehead, I put the seat in and forgot to put the seat belts in so it looks like the seat needs to be taken back out. Oh Well. Here are the pics. The bed wood came in today so we can get it finished then we can complete this truck. Cant do anything till the bed is put together and the bed is shimmed to the cab.

JRBECK64

[VA72C10]

looking great!

[marks1972]

lookin good

[JRBECK64]

Thanks for the Compliments. We really need to throw this Build into Overdrive. I want to get to work on the 67 Short Fleet. I probably shouldn't hurry because thats when I usually screw up.

JRBECK64

[JRBECK64]

Here are a few pictures of the wood being preped to go into the truck.
JRBECK64

[VA72C10]

Nice!!!

[Jacfourteen]

keep up the good work, it is looking great!

[JRBECK64]

We made some forward progress yesterday. We got the bed wood installed, the brakes in, hooked up and bled, and some of the front sheet metal hung but not all the way. We are going to finish installing and shiming the fenders today and hopefully get the front fenders buffed out. Weve still got to install the grill, front bumper and the hood, oh yeah and the PIA Panel. PIA stands for Pain in the A__ Panel because no one wants to sand it when its time for High Build primer. I guess you would call it the Vent Cowl Panel. I hope maybe this weekend we might get this thing running that is if we can get the local auto parts store to get us the right parts for this thing. This last month seems like its taken forever to get the things we needed to get this thing together but it looks like its finally coming together. My Son is getting realy stoked about this thing coming to the end of the resto. I think he is ready to get in this thing and drive it. He told me he wants me to drive it for a little while and smooth out all the bugs before he takes it. I Dont really mind but dont tell him that. Here are a few pics of it as of yesterday.

JRBECK64 and Sons

[67cheby]

man that paint is SICK !!!and SLICK !!!

[VA72C10]

looking GREAT! Nice progress guys!

[JRBECK64]

Originally Posted by 67cheby

man that paint is SICK !!!and SLICK !!!

67cheby,
Thanks for the Compliment. Were finally seeing the finish line.

JRBECK64

[JRBECK64]

Originally Posted by VA72C10

looking GREAT! Nice progress guys!

VA72C10,
Thanks for the Compliment. I was having breakfast with my Wife this morning and she told me to call the Upholster and have the door panels redone. She actually told me they look like Crap and I have to agree with her. He put to much padding in them and they wont push up under the Chrome molding without bunching. So it looks like its back to the Upholster.

JRBECK64

[JRBECK64]

Funny Story, My Sons and I worked on aligning the front fenders for the last two days and without much luck. You might say that if Frustration was Gas and there would have been a spark in the shop we would have all been blown to the moon. So I call WES up at Classic Heartbeat in Olympia Washington. He kind of laughed when I told him about our previous two days. He then explained to me how to align the fenders. One of my Sons and Myself went out and aligned the fender perfectly in 15 minutes. All me and my son could do is laugh at that point. So here is a Hats off to WES and this just goes to show you that Experience outweighs Sticking to it most of the time. We hope to have this thing fired up early this coming week, then its off to the tranny shop with it to get the 200R4 Dialed In. So is there any tricks to putting the tailgate back in? Figure this time I should ask before I leap into it.

JRBECK64

[67cheby]

mind sharing the aligning info with us ??

[VA72C10]

care to share the fender alignment tips?

we just did the gate on my blazer. Put one of the lower trunions in. Leave the other side off. With LOTS of tape on the inside, lift the gate at an angle and get it within the bedsides. Slide it down. Put the other trunion on as you're going down with it. We actually had to use some force on ours because I believe it was a repop gate I didn't get a chance to test fit (got the day primer went on) We put some scratches in the paint on the passenger side the painter said he could easily fix....but it hurt to scratch the fresh paint. Hopefully yours goes in easier

[VA72C10]

great minds think alike

[67cheby]

lol, i know i will be needing them soon, my thing is do you try to line up the doors first ?? to fit the door hole and then try to line the fenders to match the doors ... what is the sequence ?

[VA72C10]

I am planning to line my doors up first (but I have a blazer) that way they line up with the bedsides and the rockers and then I'll make the fenders line up from there. But I'm interested in any tips/hints. I'd imagine checking the core support would be one tip because mine was way off which was making the hood to fender line not work out correctly on my blazer.

[Redneck72]

Wow..it has been a joy to watch this project come together. I really love the look of that wood bed. You did a great job there. Keep the pictures rolling. I am loving this build.

[JRBECK64]

Originally Posted by Redneck72

Wow..it has been a joy to watch this project come together. I really love the look of that wood bed. You did a great job there. Keep the pictures rolling. I am loving this build.

Redneck72,
Thanks for the compliment. I like the wood be to but I am looking forward to not having to do a wood bed on my 67 Shortwide which is my next build. That one is going to have the same paint scheme except a Deep Blue Metalic where the Black is on this one. I told my Wife I was going to build it and sell it but I think I am going to end up driving it for a while. Again Thanks.

JRBECK64

[JRBECK64]

Originally Posted by VA72C10

I am planning to line my doors up first (but I have a blazer) that way they line up with the bedsides and the rockers and then I'll make the fenders line up from there. But I'm interested in any tips/hints. I'd imagine checking the core support would be one tip because mine was way off which was making the hood to fender line not work out correctly on my blazer.

VA72C10,
When I was originally trying to line up the fender at the bottom where it had a huge gap and hardly non at the top I was using the Core Support bolt in the front to suck it down so the gap would disapear at the bottom back of the fender. Well I had the tention on that core support bolt to the 10th degree of rediculous when I told my sons that I had, had enough of this and went in and called WES at Classic Heartbeat Up in Olympia WA. He told me to loosen all the bolts on the fender enough were you could manipulate the fender but it wouldn't slip. Then he told me to loosen the cab support bolts in the front of the Cab and then jack the cab (ON THE CAB SUPPORT) up until the gap disapears at the bottom of the fender and then manipulate the top of the fender until the gap is uniform from top to bottom. Then tighten the fend down everywhere (OF COARSE SHIMING IT WHERE IT NEEDS IT). Then tighten down your cab supports properly and your all done. It took me and my Son longer to gather the jack and tools to do this then it took to actually do it. Oh I forgot to mention that I loosened the Core Support bolts before I started this and then thightend them again after I got done aligning the fenders. I hope this is clear enought for you to understand and thanks for the procedure to install the tailgate. As far as the door goes, I think if you got the spacing right in the back of the door and the gap at the bottom is uniform and it aligns with the front of the Rocker Panel it should be strait enough to align the fenders to. Good Luck with your Alignment. I hope it goes as easy as ours did, well at least after we talked with WES.

JRBECK64

[JRBECK64]

Originally Posted by 67cheby

mind sharing the aligning info with us ??

67cheby,
I know im doing this backwards but I wrote to VA72C10 and was actually answering both of your questions. The thing I just noticed is that he has a Blazer and Im not sure if the sequence I just wrote for him will work on a blazer. What I would do it call WES at Classic Heartbeat and see if he has anymore information on how to align Blazer Fenders. I kind of think it might work but Im not sure. Good Luck with your Door and Fender Alignments. This has definitely made doing this job a lot easier. I still cant stand aligning door LOL.

JRBECK64

[JRBECK64]

Buffed out the front fenders, installed the radiator short of hooking up the tranny lines, installed the Lockup pressure switch and the wiring for it on the 200R4. Installed the overhead lite in the cab, loosely installed the grill, took out the crappy looking door panels and there being re-upholstered along with the dash pad. Installed a TV cable linkage to the Edlebrock Carb. Installed the side marker lites on the front fenders. Its coming together. FINALLY. Looks like tomorrow the Tail Gate is being installed.

JRBECK64

[VA72C10]

Truck is looking great! Can't wait to get my grille on...they really look like a truck with the grille on