1947 Panel Truck Frame swap with ’88 k2500

[Second Series]

Before I started paint I set up a utility shelf. I have been using the back of the panel truck for supplies. Now it’s masked off for paint and I needed everything in one place. I had purchased a good respirator, and then picked up the cartridges and filters as I found them available. The time came to replace the filters, and I found that the cartridges wouldn’t come off the respirator. I had to get a new respirator that works with the replaceable cartridges.
The primer really brings out all the blemishes. This area on the rear door looked fine with the patina, well that is until I welded some fractures and the paint bubbled. After primer I sanded down the transition between paint and no-paint. Primed again and it looks a little better, but the pock marks are still visible. I proceeded with paint and it doesn’t look great. I had selected Cream medium and had a half pint for a test spray. It looks very yellow. The pock marks are still visible under the paint. I had the paint shop modify the formula a little to try to be less yellow. After I applied more paint to the dried paint, the pock marks were less noticeable.
In the end this will not be a pristine paint job. I’m really happy with the big flat areas of the roof and sides. The rough spots are on the doors and fenders. I’m not going to obsess over the fine details, I could work on perfecting the body for the next year of two. Instead I’ll be driving every day soon. I was showing my 9 y.o. son the primed truck and he asked me “What are you? Are you a Farmer? Are you an Engineer?” I replied “I’m an Artist.” I would have preferred to leave the old patina paint, but there were places that were rusty, places that were shiny steel where the paint flaked off, places with body filler. I’m o.k. with some imperfections showing through the new paint. Classical oil paintings look good, but when you look close you can see the chunky gobs. These classic trucks have their chunky gobs too, particularly the welds in the door jambs for example.
I sprayed the Cream Medium on the top half and fenders. The Cream Medium looks more like buttermilk, but I’m going for the period correct colors. Although two-tone wasn’t available in 1947 a custom order could have been an option. I had originally wanted a very dark purple that looks black, but decided to go with a more family friendly color scheme. Top half is done and masked for the bottom Windsor Blue.
The test Truck is very yellow in the sunlight, but subdued in inside lighting.

[daveshilling]

Originally Posted by Second Series

Top half is done and masked for the bottom Windsor Blue.
The test Truck is very yellow in the sunlight, but subdued in inside lighting.

It must feel amazing to get that color on! Well done sir.

[olcarguy]

Looks goood.....You have to show some driving shots when the time comes....

[dsraven]

post 157, looks great. sure went from primer to paint fast, wow. curious though, what kind of trees are those in your driveway? the leaves LOOK HUGE!
LOL

[Second Series]

Originally Posted by dsraven

post 157, looks great. sure went from primer to paint fast, wow. curious though, what kind of trees are those in your driveway? the leaves LOOK HUGE!
LOL

Maple leaves, Eh?


The Windsor Blue went on easy. I had a friend help move the hood in to place. I wrangled with the hood for awhile and got it mounted. I decided the old front emblem was too far gone and got a new one. I had previously purchased a mounting pad, but it is too big, so I just went without.
Put the front doors back on, and installed the striker plates and latch mechanism with outer handle.
Attached weatherstrip to the rear doors. I was struggling with the rear door hinge grommets, so I called my friend over again. We gave up after about 10 minutes. I had installed the grommets on the truck and then mounted the hinges on the truck. Installed the grommets on the doors and was trying to get the hinges through the grommets. I removed everything and installed grommets and hinges on the doors. Installed grommets on the truck and was able to get the hinged doors through the grommets on the truck. It was not easy, soapy liquid helped. The grommets tried to roll in on themselves.
My 9 y.o. son offered to help me with the windshield. I got everything ready and removed the new glass from the bubble wrap. He took the bubble wrap and proceeded to pop as I continued to assemble the glass in the weatherstrip. He helped me carry the glass to the truck and tip it into place, before he was off playing with a stick. I worked the glass in to place, it didn’t take too long. The center divider was a struggle, my son pushed on the outside while I turned the screw on the inside. We got the upper 3 screws in. I went to the hardware store the next day and got some more fasteners. I made tool to help install the center divider. A longer bolt got through to the divider and a nut cinched it down. I used duct tape to hold the divider in place while swapping out the bolt. The window trim was next followed by the mirror. Headliner went under the trim, it needed to be modified for the screw holes of the center retainer. I tried to install the second piece of headliner, but it seemed like It needed three arms. I moved on to the sun visor. I used some cord to hang it in place above the truck. I don’t know what kind of visor it is. I got some end mounts for a Dieterich visor. They bolt on to the visor and clamp on to the drip rail. I struggled with those for too long. I got one bolt on each side. The gap on the passenger door was too tight and the visor bracket interfered. I tried to hammer the bracket, but it popped off.

[3drburb]

The panel is looking very good, I see you are making the best out of this nice weather.
I hope to see you on the streets soon.
Great work!

[6DoF]

based on the painted toy, i'll admit i was not sure about the color choice ... but that last pic there looks solid and i now i really want to see a full shot in the sun. i think i'm starting to see your vision and get on board with it!

[Second Series]

Originally Posted by 3drburb

The panel is looking very good, I see you are making the best out of this nice weather.
I hope to see you on the streets soon.
Great work!

Thanks! I was commuting to Auburn about 10 years ago in this. I’ll be glad to get it back on the road.

Originally Posted by 6DoF

based on the painted toy, i'll admit i was not sure about the color choice ... but that last pic there looks solid and i now i really want to see a full shot in the sun. i think i'm starting to see your vision and get on board with it!

I’m not 100% sure about the color either. It’s not exactly what I wanted, but I’m happy with it being closer to done.

I took another stab at the 2nd headliner piece. I set it in place on the passenger side and put a screw in the back. I tried to push the driver side into place and was able to line up the dome light screw holes, I put in those screws. The next day I got the driver side in enough to look good and used single screws in all the mounting holes. Then spent an hour inventorying the rear door fasteners. Next day after work I was at the hardware store for 2 hours picking out fasteners. I painted the heads of some of the bolts.
I was ready to get something done, so I trimmed the headliner and installed the 2 small retainers on each end. The rear retainer went on and it looks good. The front headliner is short on the ends and won’t make it to the windlace retainer, bummer. I decided to ditch the sun visor end brackets and screwed directly to the cab. I used a clamp from one of the center supports and I am happy with how it turned out.
During teardown the left rear door lower lock rod broke in the trunnion of the lock lever. I cleared the bits from the trunnion. I used O-A to weld a bolt onto the lock rod. I heated it up and it fused together. The spring on the lock lever was broken, I got something close. I thought to myself how it’s a good thing that all springs are wound the same way right before I noticed that is not the case here. I made the new spring work. I painted the door latch pieces and installed them. The left rear door closes nicely. The right rear door, I installed the latch mechanism and the handle. It latches but doesn’t close as far as I’d like and the bottom is sticking out. I had found the upper hinge hole was bent on that door. I don’t know how that could have happened since there have always been keepers on both doors. I’m thinking the hinges got bent after teardown. I’ll look at that later.

[Second Series]

Installed windlace on both doors. I was wondering what the hole at each end of the dash was for. Now I know it’s to get at this one windlace retainer screw. The rear glass went in easy. The hood was up a little. I loosened the two bolts under the dash on both sides, loosened the one hinge bolt on the outside a little, and used a hammer and chisel to knock the hinge down on each side. Good results. Rain was forecasted so I had to get the fenders and grill under cover. I mounted the right fender, it will need to be moved up a bit. In anticipation of assembling the doors, I painted the window hardware. The window rollers include a rivet, so I ordered a rivet tool. While I wait for that to arrive I proceeded with the driver side key lock. I compared both latches and hogged out a copy of the key mechanism. I’m still figuring out how to make that work.
Awhile ago I was looking into the card panels in the cargo area. I had located two automotive upholstery shops that said they could get me some cowl board, they even had some with the Rhino texture, like the original. Now neither one of them is playing nice, but one did suggest I get it from Keyston Brothers. They are a local distributor and were happy to supply me with some cowl board. It does not have the texture, so I decided to get some Grey Tolex from a guitar amp supply house. I’ll glue the tolex to the cowl board and with a sound deadening material the cargo area should look and sound good.

[olcarguy]

Looking good......

[Second Series]

The driver side key lock works, I made several versions to finally get to something that works consistently.
I mounted the rear lights, somehow I forgot to paint the door mounted rear light.
After paint I attempted to attach the side cowl door and found it wasn’t closing all the way. I removed the bracket. With the vent door in the closed position, I measured door to hinge at 55°. A simple template helped position the bracket. The original attachment was a weak design. I put Two long bolts through inner and outer cowl. The cowl vent door works good now.
Installed the outer garnish molding on both front doors. On the passenger side I installed the rear window channel and the felt channel. I attached the inner window molding with new cat whiskers to make sure the channel was positioned correctly. I tried to drill through the channel to attach with screws, but kept loosing the hole in that black fuzz. Finally I placed a piece of tape in the channel and drilled through that so I could see where the hole was. The surface of the window opening beneath the felt channel is mostly flat, but angles away toward the inside. The drillbit kept hitting that angled part deflecting instead of cutting. After awhile I removed the inner molding to discover the issue. I biased the drillbit towards the outside and achieved success.
I wrangled the glass into the door for awhile. Also the spring on the regulator broke while wrestling with it. Turns out there is no replacement for that spring. O-A fixed it and I read about how to get it back on. It was not difficult to install the regulator spring with the right set-up. I did everything wrong getting the window and regulator in the door before figuring out the right way. Install the glass first, next the regulator, then put the roller channel on the rollers, last attach the roller channel to the glass. The driver side went smoother, but it was still a struggle.

[Second Series]

The driver side Fender went on easier than the passenger side. I didn’t like how the fender isn’t wide enough to span across the bolt holes. I made some anti-squeak gasket with roofing tar paper for the fender to body. This is a 1 ton truck so the bumper mount is not like the smaller trucks. I had purchased a fender bolt kit awhile ago. Those bolts are too small, this needs the ½” bolts. I got some ½” stainless to get me by for now. I might replace them with something with the chrome caps later. Most of the vendors list them as bumper bolts, but without the size. I did find one vendor that does list the size. I had to reconfigure the Bull Bar supports for the modified frame ends. Still need to paint before assembly.

I installed the running board to body seal on the passenger side and then decided to paint the bolts black. I painted the rest of the bolts and swapped them out. Painted the removed bolts and installed the driver side. It was a struggle to get the running boards on in front of the seals so I tucked the running boards behind the seal with the plan of moving the rubber back later. The rear fenders, running boards and front fenders are in place with all bolts loose. The hood is adjusted and the hood latch works well. Next I’ll adjust the front fenders and tighten everything up. The running boards attach to the rear fenders, but not the front fenders, still I wanted some wiggle room.

I used some spray adhesive to attach Tolex to Cowl Board for the cargo panels. For the first set I slipped the panel under the rear rib and then slid into the lower and front channel so it was a tight fit. For the rest of the panels I added Boom Mat. All but the last rearward panels are installed. The rear lights need to be wired before the last panels can go in. I cleaned up the routing of the wiring harness that goes to the back of the truck, then I proceeded to connect it to the wires at the bulkhead.

I haven’t started the truck in some time. I tried to start it, but the battery was down. I let it charge for an hour and the truck started right up. It ran awhile and then shut down. The battery light and the CEL were illuminated. I started it up again, it ran o.k. but was not as responsive to the gas pedal as it should be. I’ll charge up the battery and add some fresh gas before checking for trouble codes.

[Second Series]

The alternator was bad. I replaced it. The new one had a six rib pulley, my belt has 4 ribs. I swapped out the pulley from the old alternator. I made a trip to the parts yard, but all the trucks were picked away. I found one truck that had some parts left. I got a handful of obsolete junk for $5.00 including and EGR valve and fuel pressure spring. I’ll keep that stuff until it’s needed. I also picked up a timing light and a fuel pressure gauge. I was going to test the fuel pressure, but the truck finally would not start. I put 4 gallons of gas in a year and a half ago. It had ran out, I added another 4 gallons and it started right up and ran strong. It’s starting to get cold and rainy here so I’m trying to get all the crawling around on the ground work done before it turns into a mud pit. Painting weather is over. I mounted the fuel charcoal canister up on the inner fender. The Headlight sockets from the ’88 GMC are the same as the ’47 Chevy, so I can use the donor harness. I did have to cut the harness to feed the headlight wires through the bucket grommet and extend the wires. I painted the buckets, but the weather was not good for that. The headlight adjuster was missing on one side so I’ll have to order one, also might order new turn signal sockets. I had modified the parking lights with two filament bulbs 20+ years ago. I think I can do a better job of it now, I had mounted the sockets with one bolt instead of two as I did not want to drill an extra hole at the time.
There were a couple 70 degree days that I was able to paint the bull bar. I modified the supports to go onto the modified donor frame. I took a break from crawling around on the ground and finished installing the cargo panels, and the wood strip.

[6DoF]

is the bull bar something you made new or something from back in the day? it's rad

[Second Series]

Originally Posted by 6DoF

is the bull bar something you made new or something from back in the day? it's rad

Thanks! It came with the truck. I've seen similar on one or two other trucks. It may have been a dealer option. Each one I've seen is slightly different so I don't know if there was a document of the design, or if a company was producing them.

[vintovka]

I am impressed with your perseverance!! Keep it up. BTW your build makes me thankful mine was in a dry environment for most of its life!!

[Second Series]

I re-modified the parking lights for dual filament, painted the housings and installed/wired up.
Connected the headlight wiring harness to the wires at the firewall. Next is to wire up under dash, the headlight switch, turn signal switch, and brake light switch. I’m cleaning up the original headlight switch, it should work. I modified a wiring diagram to incorporate the original light switch into the donor circuit to help me understand what needs to get connected.

Time to mount the seatbelts. I cut an access hole in a panel for the shoulder harness. The seatbelt kit included some 3” washers so I glued a nut and lockwasher to that and with that taped to a wrench I was able to place it inside the panel. For the retractor I drilled a hole and removed an access plate to feed the hardware into the panel. I ran a fish tape from the hole to the access, pulled a string through. Placed the washer with nut onto the string and tied a screw to pull the washer. Held the washer in place with magnets, removed the string and screwed on the retractor. This was a one-shot process, get it right the first try. I succeeded.

[nvrdone]

I dont blame you for not working on the truck. I'm in Yakima and right now its 15 deg and snowing. And I have a heated garage !!!

[Second Series]

With the warmer weather I’m getting back at this. I’m using the original steering wheel on an ‘80’s column. When I tighten the nut, the steering wheel gets tight and hard to turn. I trimmed it to fit. The pass-through spring contact is at the 12 o’clock position on the ’47 steering wheel, so I installed the cancel cam in that position. The ‘80’s steering wheel has the spring contact at the 10:30 position. So now the left turn cancel cam is shifted. My plan is to build up a new cam in the correct location so it will work here. I’m getting continuity when I press the horn button. I have the ‘47 light switch connected and working. The brake and clutch switch mounts have the switch operating opposite of the ‘80’s such that when the pedal is at rest, the switch is depressed, and when the pedal is stepped on, the switch is released. I found some four pin switches that work where 2 pins are normally open and two are normally closed. The brake switch uses the normally closed contacts for the lights, and the normally open contacts for the 4x4 circuit(or could be used for the automatic transmission application). The clutch switch uses the normally closed contacts for the start circuit. Turn signals work. I’ve removed the cluster connector, and am in the process of extending the wires for gauges and dummy lights. I did wire up the volts light and resistor temporarily. I dismantled the donor gauges. The plan is to use the dummy lenses mounted in a box below the dash. I test fit the A/C unit, and then decided to fit the heater controls and dummy lights between the dash and A/C, test fit picture attached. I’m not thrilled with the A/C brackets. I’ll make one hanger.

[Second Series]

I’ve got the lights working as they should. There was a 50/50 chance I wired up the rear lights correctly, I lost that bet. I had to remove the rear interior panels to swap the wires. Now the brake and signal lights are brighter than the running lights. While I had the interior panels out, I replaced one that was under cut. The spray adhesive that I used had failed so I re-did all the panels. I think I needed a longer setup time before applying the two surfaces, this time I waited two minutes after spraying the adhesive. I just re-used the panels and tolex, it was difficult to line up the two pieces, but it came out o.k. The first time around I had glued the cut panels to uncut tolex and then trimmed after for a perfect fit.
The light switch is wired to keyed power so the battery won’t drain if I forget to turn off the lights. I modified the profile of the steering wheel so it transitions to the ‘80’s column, and painted it and the horns with some single stage black paint. Steering wheel is mounted, and the horns are too. I have the original horn relay in place but just as a mounting lug for the two horn wires and the wire from the donor relay. Horn works with the button on the steering wheel. All the lights work as they should. The final light is the single rear light above the license plate. I mixed up 4oz of the Windsor Blue and painted the rear light housing. I’ve also removed the car tent and the panel truck is out in the open from now on.

[Second Series]

I drove the truck! A short trip to the auto parts store. The first attempt I pulled onto the street and the steering wheel didn’t feel right, so I backed uphill and turned back into my drive. The steering wheel seemed to be re-clocked 45 degrees off. I checked all the connections on the steering column/shaft and underneath after the steering gear. Everything looked good. I re-clocked the steering wheel, still eyeballing the front tires pointing forward. On the drive to and from the store the steering seemed loose, but not uncontrollable. The tires are LT215\85R16 at 38psi, and the steering wheel is big for the setup. The other issue was the gear shifter didn’t feel right. It’s not grinding, but it feels shallow when shifting into a gear, that’s the only way I know how to describe it. I have adjusted the clutch pedal linkage so I’ll feel how it is next drive. This has the 5LM60 transmission, so it’s not going to feel like a rock crusher while shifting.
Some of the things I have been doing since my last post. I installed the inside sun visors.
I found a plate on the donor truck under the dash that has some resistors for the heater motor speed switch. This was mounted to the duct. I got an electrical box and mounted it so I can use the original heater motor, now with 3 speeds.
I finally got the speedometer motor driver working good enough. I had previously made a video of the first version, this one has smooth operation. I need to troubleshoot a signal that is causing the speedometer needle to move, some kind of line filter needed.
The trip to the auto parts store was to get a longer serpentine belt for when I add A/C. This truck has a 4-Rib belt. With the smog pump and power steering I’m using the longest 4-rib belt readily available. The trucks with A/C appear to use the 6-Rib serpentine belts. I did find a 101-9/16” 4-Rib belt on-line that would work, but I’m thinking it would slip. It looks easy enough to replace all the 4-Rib pulleys on the front of the engine with 6-Rib. Does the project ever get done?

[Second Series]

The transmission is shifting fine now, I went on a second test drive around the neighborhood and got a thumbs up. I put a piece of tape on the steering wheel where I thought it should be centered. Re-installed the steering wheel and now it seems centered. The third test drive was to the tire store, my son rode with and said he was hating me. He’s never ridden in it and I’ve been working on it for four years, it wasn’t too bad. The salesman wanted to sell me some 235/75R16 tires, but had to order them. I made an appointment for next Monday. The old tires were LT215/85R16 and measure 30.4”x8.5” rated for D-Load. A firm tire that sits under the front fender. The modern equivalent comes in E-Load range = stiff ride and I wanted all terrain. The only tire in that size ad D-Load was one called commercial traction. Next width up tire I found with the softer load rating is the P225/75R16 standard load measuring at 29.3”x8.9”. The Tire salesman said inches look like feet and I should go with the 235/75R16 at 29.88”x9.25”. I accepted his suggestion, but later noticed the estimate was for 225/75R16 and not the all terrain tread I wanted. Later that week I went to get a new spare tire to see how it fit. The shop that sells used tires gave me an estimate for 4 new tires. The spare tire fit well so I got the new tires the next day. They are Patagonia Milestar. From what I read about them on-line they are made with a hybrid compound, softer rubber along with tread pattern, a softer and quieter ride. Rated at 50,000 miles although everything I read suggests they might last 40,000 as the softer rubber wears faster. My steering is noticeably firmer with the new tires. The 215/85R16 tires were just under the front fenders, the 225/75R16 tires .4” wider are about ¼” out of the front fenders. I’m glad I didn’t go with the 235/75R16 .75” wider as they would be out more and the tire salesman was right that inches do look like feet. I enjoyed the short trip back from the tire store and looking forward to more driving. Still a few more things to do before daily driver.