What did you do last year?
Crikey its June well nearly July to be precise and I cant believe its not finished yet. Its not only not finished its no where near finished
.. Jeez.. Ok then lets now aim for Drayton Manor 2008.
So what's I been up to then? I have been mostly redoing stuff I had thought was finished.
I have finally sat down and written a proper list which is 4 sides of lined A4 paper, so quite a bit left.
But at least now when I do a job I can tick it off and see progress. I don't have to keep trying to remember all the jobs to do either now as they are all there before me on the list.
One job that kept staring me in the face was the 3rd brake light, it just wasn't a great fit it was Ok but I knew people (read Rod builders) would pick up on its poor fit. So I set a day aside to do nothing but that, its done and now I am finally happy and can forget about it fully it is one job that I can say is finished. I had to slightly curve the lens as the edges were a bit proud so with the aid of a heat gun and my knee it fits as close to cock on as I am capable.
I really do quite like it now from absolutely hating it when I first did it, it just took a bit more thought and a shed load more work to get it right.
I am not enjoying this job so I do a bit and then go do something else then come back to it again. These are what are
called air deflectors. They wobble everywhere and are well warped so not sure how or even if I can get these straight
enough for paint. Though most of them wont be seen *Hum?* I had to do major work on the edge where the rad fits it was every shape bar the right one. These will do my nut in for a while longer yet I am sure.
This was a job I couldn't quite get my head round how best to solve, air takes the route of less restriction and the top of the slam panel had a big gap above the rad as I am using an aftermarket Mustang one that did really need filling? You can just maybe make out the air damn I fabbed out of mild steel. It looks quite neat and should direct the cool air from outside down onto the rad top just got to fill where I welded it on and prep for paint.
Another job that was on my mind a lot was what to fill the great big void behind the grill?
I saw this mesh at a steam fair I was at last year and thought ahh haa that will just do the job. Though I had no idea how I was to shape it. But as if by fate Ross Morrison did a tech article on the NSRA message board and it was just such a job. Make a former in the desired shape clamp it and bend to former cool eh.
It shaped real easy as it is expanded ally.
It is still a bit flimsy so I have added some ally angle round the entire edge and now is very rigid and taken out any ripples. This job is not 100% finished yet as I don't like how I have fixed it to the rad horseshoe so more work yet on this one. Should work well with the gold grill though most will be covered it is much nicer that seeing the gap that was there before.
I have started getting into doing a real easy job when I start the day's work on the truck as that way I get one job done
at least each day and also it gives me a confidence boost. This annoying hole was today's easy job. I guess there must of been an ariel mounted here or maybe a spot light?
But anyhow I traced a template held it in place with a magnet and tacked then welded it in filled and now it is all made good. I was wondering why the welder splattered and its the magnetic clamps they cause some kind of interference with the mig welder... I found it out doing a bigger job with the big magnets hey ya live and learn eh.
I spent some more time on the cowl vent prep it is now very very close about as good as I can do and the front edge where the bonnet fits is cock on now to, I am glad that job is now done.
Well what ya think ;o) I am a git sometimes in case you hadn't already noticed. But I kept looking at the Oak that Craig Dixon very kindly source'd for me for free and try as I might, I just could not see it working, as it was bowing up in the centre as it was really so badly warped, it would do but not going to be as perfect as I was wanting.
So I enquired about buying the proper wood but the firm in the US advised I get the plans and then get a local place to make them up for me. Now a very good mate of mine just happens to be one of the finest joiners or more apt a description would be a first class carpenter. He was just doing a very big job with mega bucks of English Oak being involved ;o) "Hi Mate!" we came to a deal and I am now the proud owner of some of the finest solid English Oak and its beautiful all machined and drilled ready to fit. I also ordered a full set of stainless runners so should look a treat. But of course I now have to refit the LPG tank some how ;o) and I am not having a trap door for the rear axle, I will simply slide the wood out if I need access.
This is the front bed crossmember and see the hole arrowed this lines up with the holes in the stainless runners.... er only it didn't. The part arrowed should be over the drilled hole to the left. I am not sure how this has come about maybe different years changed the position. I dunno! but I had to drill out the spot welds and re-spot weld in the correct position.
While I was looking at the bed sides I thought fuk it they are so simple in construction and will take so much work to get straight enough for paint, I have gone to a local fabrication shop and I am getting some new sides, front stake pockets and some tube to form a rolled edge, which I will weld up to make a complete new bed. That will save some prep work but means all the hours I spent straightening and sorting the old bed was wasted. Ha Ha typical.
While the bed sides and parts are being made I turned my attention to the cab I want this bugger in paint soon as poss. I have now finished prepping the roof and it feels absolutely bang on to me, I intend to take the cab up to the body shop get it primed with plenty of coats on it, then cover it in black and then rub back to the primer so it is perfectly flat asI do not trust their prep see why at bottom of the page.
I finally welded up all the holes in the dash that are not going to be used.
The dash is now all prepped ready to prime, still plenty of work to do on the cab but I am making progress and also I am happy with what I have done which is very satisfying. The bulk head will take some fettling though.
You know I was mentioning that I like to start the day with an easy job, well this is one such job again. The window winder and door lock lever splined shafts were knackerd, having been drilled so the splines were ruined. So I got some new ones that are 1/4inch longer so they clear the door panels when they get trimmed.
I remember reading somewhere about this job, and it saying about a spring that tries to escape and to be careful as the spring cannot be replaced whooo. So I was very careful and ground the rivets off and held it in a vice so it couldn't boiiing.
Here is the spring look no way you can loose that.
I separated it and there was no boiiiing so I couldn't see what the fuss was about. I put it back together and Huh? it wouldn't work?
So I searched for the instruction I had read a while back and whaaa whaaa it said watch out for 2 springs and a very small cap... Bugger if you look at the photo, the spring you can just see in the side yet to do, is the one that booings out and has a small top hat style cap in it to.. I have spent about 3 hrs searching my very untidy garage to no avail its lost.
So I did the other side, I intend to gut the garage very soon and hopefully find the buggers some easy job to start the day with eh.
This was an easy job the window regulators just grind off the rivets, pop in the new shafts and tack weld Voila.
I thought I had done the heater but it wouldn't come out so I had to re-design. I made up a little bracket and now it is bolted with 5mm stainless button head bolts with rivnuts and comes out easy now but not until after more grinding was done, I just have to make it look a bit neater and finished weld it..
I have drilled and fitted the demist nozzles but they are fiberglass and look real crap, so I may try and get some after market ones as I really don't like them, but that's the heater and demist system sorted again ;o) That's about the state of affairs at the mo at 16th June.
Well, the paint job? *Hum?* the guy who did the hood made a cracking job but he has since been sacked. I took the wings up and a few other bits to get them sealed with paint and for them to finish prep.
Steve the boss at the body shop said, that Kev his painter was taking them home to work on them in his spare time. Steve would pay him overtime as his miss's didn't like him working over so doing them at home would be ok..
When I got them back, I have no idea why they keep putting top colour on, as it all needs doing at the same time to get the colour matching its a gold Candy so you cant simply add more top colour as it will go darker and a totally different colour I sure hope they know what they are doing as they have lost me..
But anyway they have, the prep on the drivers wing me and Pete did is very good bar one pin hole, the prep on the other wing I did but told them needed more work is fuking crap and I mean absolute crap.
There is no way any more prep has been done to either of these wings than when I gave them to them. The boss came up and agreed with me and said he would get back to me. Kev the painter says he has just covered to seal and will prep fully once the truck has all the panels on and up at their shop as one unit, I am not happy about prep work going on top of paint. Steve said not to worry as he wants it perfect like I do and he says he is so confident, that if I don't like it when its finished I don't have to pay. I have seen work they do it is fantastic, they know what they are taking on and what I expect, so here's hoping. Steve wants it as a rolling advert for his shop and also he is really into it and the does understand the Street Rodding scene so we will know for sure fairly soon I would say.
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