1958 Apache Big Window Loooooong Bed "Lucky"

[dsraven]

c'mon 59, its from a newer chevy truck. duh.
just kidding.
what I would doif I were you, if you like the look and larger pedal pad, is look at a newer truck that parts are easily available, like in stock at canadian tire or auto value's "help" section etc, then go to pick n pull and find that truck, remove the pedal pad and take a pattern of the steel part of the actual pedal. then you can either keep the used pedal pad or order one for a vehicle of that year/series. when it arrives you can fab a steel pedal part for it and weld it onto your existing pedal. or get the complete pedal from the donor truck at the wrecker but you need the whole pedal as a hacksaw isn't gonna cut it well and they don't usually let you in the yard with any soet of power cutting tool. trust me, those pedal arms are hardened or treated steel. when I was working the rescue truck we avoided cutting the pedals if we could because they took the edge off our jaws of life tools, or they took a piece out of the cutting edge.

[daveshilling]

Originally Posted by dsraven

....or order one for a vehicle of that year/series. when it arrives you can fab a steel pedal part for it and weld it onto your existing pedal.

This is exactly what I did. I ordered a larger pad, made a new steel pedal using the pad as a template, and welded it to the shortened factory bar.

[daveshilling]

Working on the Drivers door, and decided that hey, I have sheet metal here, lets repair the bottom of the door. Patina trucks can still have this bit replaced without the absolute travesty of fresh metal and paint showing somewhere (=

I cut out the nasty bit and did my best to form a patch... its not perfect, but it's here, and it was free!

I also found the old window... it was rattling around inside this door along with 5 pounds of dirt!

Then I realized easy access like this is great for fixing the rest of the door... the hinge side was all pushed in, the lower hinge area is a disaster and was farmer-fixed... so this led to that.

[G&R's57GMC]

For not being a body man Dave you sure tackle the sheet metal work and get good results … well for a patina truck .
But the more you work the more experience you gain and the better the results .
Won’t be long and you’ll be ready to go for a primed finish and then the fun begins.
Yah I know you’re going for patina finish on this truck, but some day the next project you’ll be that much closer with your skills to go to the next level.
Congratulations keep at it.

[daveshilling]

Originally Posted by G&R's57GMC

For not being a body man Dave you sure tackle the sheet metal work and get good results … well for a patina truck .
But the more you work the more experience you gain and the better the results .
Won’t be long and you’ll be ready to go for a primed finish and then the fun begins.
Yah I know you’re going for patina finish on this truck, but some day the next project you’ll be that much closer with your skills to go to the next level.
Congratulations keep at it.

Thanks, Glen! I'm definitely just jumping and getting some lessons learned. I don't have a body work mentor here so I'm just going at it. It's fun AND stressful, but I WILL get this truck on the road!

The drivers fender eyebrow is essentially non-salvageable unless you were fully equipped with tools and skills to form patches and I'm not. But it will hold headlights now, and I may tinker with it a bit to improve the looks a touch more.

[daveshilling]

While I had the door apart, I was able to fix some "creative" body work done by previous owners and get the hinge side jamb area to more closely resemble what it should be, vs. being all caved in.

I had a piece of steel bar stock to use as a dolly that was the right width. You can see in the second photo how wide this area had become by past hammering, vs the lower portion of that photo showing how narrow it should be.

[daveshilling]

The hinge corner on this door was BAD. Someone before me used C channel, steel rod, and some nuts to repair it, which wasnt too bad considering it was basically a quick fix, but it wasnt good enough for me.

I cut that garbage out, and I'm welding in some slightly better garbage

My donor was much better, but still broken, so I first made a thick, strong backing plate to hide behind the cracked sheet metal. After I drilled and bolted it in, I welded it to the back of the hinge support in multiple places (not pictured) From the outside, it will appear to be in dire need of repair, but magically strong somehow!

[daveshilling]

Once this hinge was fixed, I could take HOURS to get it positioned the best I could based on measuring another spare door in like 20 places... It's probably not a perfect positioning but its better than what I had!

I also had to replace a little corner of the door but I didnt photograph that bit.

I'll have to experiment with blending this paint in, but the good news is that I can do that some other time, when I have a running, driving, stopping truck.

[Rickysnickers]

Nice job on the repair!! That ought to hold for a few years

[daveshilling]

Originally Posted by Rickysnickers

Nice job on the repair!! That ought to hold for a few years

Thanks! I think it will keep the door on, at least...we'll see if it closes.

[daveshilling]

Before I could continue on, I needed to add a corner to the door... there was simply just no metal here whatsoever. I cut it clean, made patch and did my best to be patient with the tacks. it wasn't a smooth area to begin with, but I didn't want to cut more painted surface away than necessary.

[daveshilling]

The lower corner I attached seemed to be at a bit of an angle to the rest of the door. The missing sheet metal at the bottom certainly wasnt helping with rigidity... so I came up with this solution. I clamped bar steel on both sides until the corner and door were flush with each other, and tacked the door to the steel on top to keep it there while I attached the door bottom patch.

It worked well, and held just fine while I got the lower patch fitted.

[G&R's57GMC]

Any more progress lately ?

[daveshilling]

Originally Posted by G&R's57GMC

Any more progress lately ?

I've been on vacation for a couple of weeks, so nothing has really been done. Before I left, I fitted the patch I made and started tacking it in.

I realize that I didn't fit any drain holes, so I'll have to sort that out, somehow. I still need to clean up the corners, but I think it will be a functional door at least, and I'm glad I can hide my beginner-quality work under a door!

[dsraven]

looks good.
when I do patches I fit the part and hold it in place with magnets, then do small tacks starting at one end with a tack, then go to the other end with a tack and then one side then the other side. this ensures the part doesn't get moved as the welds pull the metal when they heat and cool. I try to tack not too close to a magnet as the magnetic field disrupts the mig welder. then once it's tacked in a few spots I ensure the fit is still like it should be and adjust as required. then I place a tack half way between the existing tacks. letting each one cool, an air blow gun can help this along. tack, cool, tack, cool, placing the tacks half way between the other tacks and working at opposite areas between tacks and checking fitment. if I have access easily to the back side of the panel sometimes I will hammer on dolly right on the tack weld when it is still cooking hot. this expands the weld and when it cools the panel doesn't shrink or pull so much.

[daveshilling]

Originally Posted by dsraven

looks good.
when I do patches I fit the part and hold it in place with magnets, then do small tacks starting at one end with a tack, then go to the other end with a tack and then one side then the other side. this ensures the part doesn't get moved as the welds pull the metal when they heat and cool. I try to tack not too close to a magnet as the magnetic field disrupts the mig welder. then once it's tacked in a few spots I ensure the fit is still like it should be and adjust as required. then I place a tack half way between the existing tacks. letting each one cool, an air blow gun can help this along. tack, cool, tack, cool, placing the tacks half way between the other tacks and working at opposite areas between tacks and checking fitment. if I have access easily to the back side of the panel sometimes I will hammer on dolly right on the tack weld when it is still cooking hot. this expands the weld and when it cools the panel doesn't shrink or pull so much.

Thanks for sharing the tips!

[daveshilling]

Since I didnt want to cut into the door front too much at first, this section had very little integrity, looked like crap, and needed to be replaced. This also let me smooth out the line at the bottom of the door where the replacement corner meets the rest of the door.

Nothing too exciting, but I'm documenting the steps!

[dsraven]

if you plan to grind the welds smooth I would recommend a grinding disc, like a hard carborundum one, because the flap discs that lots of guys use, including myself lots, tend to remove metal from surrounding area when you get close to the parts being level.

question, why does your thread come up smaller than every other thread I keep track of?

[OKGMC4]

Originally Posted by dsraven

if you plan to grind the welds smooth I would recommend a grinding disc, like a hard carborundum one, because the flap discs that lots of guys use, including myself lots, tend to remove metal from surrounding area when you get close to the parts being level.

question, why does your thread come up smaller than every other thread I keep track of?

I have the best luck with a 36 grit 3” roloc disc very very slow to get the metal smooth at the weld joint and then a fine grit one to smooth it up, then a file to get flat if possible. Speed has never really worked out for me in welding work.

[daveshilling]

Nearly done with this door, it's patched up and should be serviceable! I think the next door is getting a repop skin because I don't have the skills to use the primitive metal shaping tools I possess to make a suitable patch. If I had a mentor here and was taking metal shaping classes, maybe? But they'd get me on machines anyways, I'm over here using techniques from the 1920's or something (=

[slammed57]

very nice work!

[daveshilling]

Originally Posted by slammed57

very nice work!

Thanks, I think it's not too bad for just saying to hell with it and giving it a try. I could stand to own and learn how to use a shrinking disc i bet... they seem like magic for sheet metal!

[slammed57]

Originally Posted by daveshilling

Thanks, I think it's not too bad for just saying to hell with it and giving it a try. I could stand to own and learn how to use a shrinking disc i bet... they seem like magic for sheet metal!

your doing a fine job. each time you fabricate something you get a little better and gain more experience....as for that shrinking disc....I have one.it works, but the pros make it look easy, its something that takes time to get good at it.like everything else, its also not something you used on everything. but its another tool thats nice to have

[Rickysnickers]

Originally Posted by slammed57

...each time you fabricate something you get a little better and gain more experience..

Wanna bet??? HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

[my56chevytruck]

Originally Posted by daveshilling

Nearly done with this door, it's patched up and should be serviceable! I think the next door is getting a repop skin because I don't have the skills to use the primitive metal shaping tools I possess to make a suitable patch. If I had a mentor here and was taking metal shaping classes, maybe? But they'd get me on machines anyways, I'm over here using techniques from the 1920's or something (=

you do good work!