Jesses' 48 PU

[Jesse49chevy]

one thing I learned is that you never have enough magnets!! Wish I had more small magnets...

[Jesse49chevy]

Last Xmas my wife asked what I wanted, I asked her to look at my wish list in Eastwood. So she bought me the 24" slip roller and a bead roller. They have been stored in the original box since. So it was exciting to finally unbox it and use the roller. I built a stand for it, put it on wheels so I can move around with ease. I even painted it Eastwood blue!

[Jesse49chevy]

I cut my metal, planned to use 16gauge because that's what I have. So when I go to roll it.... The $&@$!? Thing doesn't work!! Damn you Eastwood! The darn gears don't engage, the rear roller is stuck in place, the top roller won't spin.
Aaaaahh so disappointing and angry! I worked most of the day building the stand and for it not to work!! I even put my Harbor Freight metal roller on the same stand...
Well it's still under warranty, so guess I'll go through the exchange process.

[dsraven]

uuugghh. frickin frackin frockin dough headed#@%&*!
you gotta HATE that. it would drive me crazy.

[Jesse49chevy]

It did, I was looking forward to it... A new toy/tool... Like who doesn't get excited.... Then to find out it's broken or simply a POS. The darn gears are not aligned, I tried to adjust them but nothing worked. I'm no engineer but I believe it has the wrong gear setup, as soon as they come together it locks up.... Well I'll try something different today.

[Jesse49chevy]

This is what I did last weekend. I started working on the firewall, since I pushed the engine back I cut the firewall for clearance.
I used 16 gauge metal, bent it using a pipe I had laying around and trimmed it to fit.

[Jesse49chevy]

Kept it simple

[Jesse49chevy]

[Jesse49chevy]

[Jesse49chevy]

Well not a bad weekend after all. I looked in my pile of metal and found half a sheet of 18 guage metal. Not sure where it come from or what it was left over from, but I'm glad it was there and why I never throw left over material away. It had surface rust so I took a wire brush to it and cleaned it as much as I could. Still upset over my roller but determined not to let it stop me from accomplishing my weekend goal of installing the trans tunnel.
I clamped an old 4 wheeler break drum to my table and used it to form the tunnel. Between that and gentle massaging, I was able to shape it and mock it up before tack welding.

[Jesse49chevy]

Some adjusting here and there

[Jesse49chevy]

Once I trimmed it and was happy with it, I tack welded it in place.

[Jesse49chevy]

[dsraven]

nice. looks like a cutaway of a rocket. take care welding the seams so it doesn't warp.
keep posting those pics, we all love to see the progress.

[8man]

Nice work.

[joedoh]

perfect!

[edgeleycanuck]

Well done! That's another piece I have to complete myself. I like how you sectioned it to keep it as low as possible. Good work.

[Jesse49chevy]

It's been a bit since my last post. Been busy with work and very little time to work on my truck. But I have been working on it an hour here and there. Today I pulled the cab off and finished welding the firewall insert and trans tunnel. Not perfect but I say it gives the truck character... Lol.

[Jesse49chevy]

[8man]

Nice.

[Jesse49chevy]

It was a beautiful day so decided to work on my truck. With the cab complete I decided to throw on the front fenders. It went well until I ran into my first issue. I trimmed the inner wheel wells and found out the core support won't fit. I either have to trim the bottom or custom fit it on an angle. Guess the right thing to do would be trimming it. My problem is that not thinking ahead several years back I bought a direct replacement aluminum radiator with electric fans. I have run across several threads in which the radiator is placed on an angle due to the steering box being in the way.
The way I see it I have three options.
1. Install it on an angle and use the radiator I have. Not sure if this has a negative affect on radiator performance.
2. Trim the core support, order another radiator and spend more money!😡
3. Remove the steering box, figure out how to install a rack and pinion. Use the radiator I already have and still spend more money.

I need suggestions, advise... Help!!!!

[Jesse49chevy]

[Jesse49chevy]

[Jesse49chevy]

[Jesse49chevy]

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