You guys are amazing. What did i get myself into.

[lyrikz]

I started the teardown on my 71 today. All i have to say is WOW. You guys are amazing. I have never rebuilt a car before. I have fixed and painted some hondas in my life. This is NOTHING like that at all.

Im looking at all these parts and just cant comprehend how im goign to be able to put it ALLLL back together without scratching something. Or how you removed everything with just one person. Getting the hood off by myself i almost killed myself. ahhaha..

I spent about three hours on the truck today and all that i got done was:
1) removed one door.. ONE
2) removed pass. side fender
3) removed the hood.

That was it.. Took me about 3 hours to get that far. Is that about standard? I snapped off 2 bolts in the process which i have no idea how im going to get those out. Here is just a pic of where im at. After a week or so im going to post my rebuild thread and just update. But this is what took me 3 hours to do today.


Any tips on this process would be appreciated....

[dan42]

Hang in there, dude - Just remember it's gonna take a while, especially the first time through, and especially by yourself. This site and these guys have inspired me to do things I would have never tried before, because now I have a source for answers that was never there before if I get stuck. Right now I'm getting a motor ready to put in my '67, and there have been tons of stuff I would have missed had it not been for these guys, and even just the encouragement is great. BTW, take tons of pictures with a digital before and during taking things apart, I have found they are a great reference tool - my brain is not so fast anymore.

[lyrikz]

Originally Posted by dan42

Hang in there, dude - Just remember it's gonna take a while, especially the first time through, and especially by yourself. This site and these guys have inspired me to do things I would have never tried before, because now I have a source for answers that was never there before if I get stuck. Right now I'm getting a motor ready to put in my '67, and there have been tons of stuff I would have missed had it not been for these guys, and even just the encouragement is great. BTW, take tons of pictures with a digital before and during taking things apart, I have found they are a great reference tool - my brain is not so fast anymore.

I just dont know how im going to get it back together without scratching the **** outta everthing ya know....

I just purchased a welder also. I do like to try and do my own stuff, but taking off that hood by myself hurt.. I think im oing to need neck surgery. ahahha

[toomanytoyz]

Take Lot's of Pics & Note's, Video would be even Better. Put everything in Baggies with Lables for there Purpose, Try to set a Time line Goal .

As far as to working by yourself, First of all be Patient & do not hurry thing's. Try being creative with a Cherry Picker if you have one, If not i would say you should invest in one.

I have seen post's where they have been used for bed removal, Door's, Cabs & Hood's................

Persistance & Patience will be your Best Friends During this Period.

Good Luck & Have Fun

Rick

[lyrikz]

I used a floor jack to get the door off.. But putting it back on i dont think i can use the floor jack. ahaha.. I do have a cherry picker though.

[xshadow]

from that pic it looks like the cab is in pretty good shape....I would suggest lots of pictures. If you have a digital camera I would take a ton of pictures and put them on your computer. Then if....or should I say WHEN you need them You can look to see what you have. I did a body swap. Not a total restore and took pictures. they came in handy. If nothing else to see how well the body lined up before I took it apart.

[xshadow]

how about posting some pics of the whole truck? Keep in mind that even if you don't have much help at home you do have the help of all the guys on here to answer questions. If you think it was hard to get the hood off by yourself wait untill you get to the bed.....
Also its a good idea to keep your bolts together. try the baggie idea. I don't know how many times I find myself saying now where did I put......or what bolts go to....

[A.P.]

Good luck.

[HtownPapiJc]

Yea def. do the baggie thing lol ive lost nuts & bolts myself. Surprised the engine and tranny havnt fell out in mines lol. Good luck and look foward to seeing updated pics thru the process bro.

[lyrikz]

Originally Posted by HtownPapiJc

Yea def. do the baggie thing lol ive lost nuts & bolts myself. Surprised the engine and tranny havnt fell out in mines lol. Good luck and look foward to seeing updated pics thru the process bro.

I am doing the baggie trick now. My wife marks and bags everything.

Few questions on reassembly.
When im putting the fenders on, any tips on not scratching everything? Is there a particular order to putting the front back together??

Bolt holes. Some of the bolt holes have rust in em and the bolts were pretty hard to get out. Anyone recommend running a tap through them to clean them up before putting the bolts back in?

Should i use anti seize on the bolts when im reinstalling everything so nothing rusts up??

Thanks guys, i will have more pics later, my neck is pretty sore. Picture me laying over the engine facing down, both arms outstretched like an eagle and then just lifting with my neck and back. ahaha IT had to look hilarious.

[tclaremont]

Put a layer or two of masking tape on the edges of the body panels before you put them back together.

Also, since the panels are not refinished yet, practice putting them back on NOW, before new paint or primer, etc. It should only take you a couple tries to find a method that will get things together without scratching.

[dastuck]

just a suggestion im not an expert by any means but when you are taking body panels or the doors especially off. Drill one or two small holes in the mounting points (hinges on doors) this will save a lot of headache when putting them back together and trying to get everything aligned again. These will work like alignment holes. It makes aligning doors much easier if they were where you wanted them before you started your tear down.