Projects fixing a smashed 31 model A pickup cab.

gap on the passenger side looks even now top to bottom.

 

Love this thread! Stuff like this just reenforces my pigheaded ideals that ANY classic is worth saving. The scrap pile you turn your nose up at today is the project you're left with tomorrow.

And incorporating the oak tree is legendary.

 

Kudos... , you are good!.
Marcus...

 

coming together nicely

 

I don't remotely have the skills it would take to do something like this. I'd have likely been the meathead going at it with a ball peen hammer! (Kidding!) But I really enjoy seeing how something like this is done.

I like the door graphics being saved too. Can't wait to see the rest of it come together. Thanks for the informative posts.

 

Nice work fellas!

 

thanks for all the compliments. it is fun.
Charlie has decided on a 2.5" chop........so stay tuned.

 

You guys do really nice work! Thanks for sharing all of the steps you’re going through on this project.

 

Today me and Charlie fixed the front mounts. I started by removing the angled toe board braces. I then removed the rivets holding the inner brace, then cut out the rotted section. the front mount has a lot of different angles and bends so I needed to make it out of three pieces. here is a photo of the first piece.

 

I bolted and welded the piece in and cleaned up the welds.

 

I used a piece of card board to make a template of the top plate piece that ran up the side. cut out the metal and welded it in.

 

I then put what was left of the inner brace back in and made a new lower piece and bolted and welded it in.

 

the driver side was not as bad so I just bent the inner support up and cut out the rotted area. I then made the two pieces the same way.

 

while I was doing that Charlie was bead blasting the toe boards and made a pan for under the seat. we then coated all the mating surfaces with the "weld through" primer and welded them in.

 

Well done. I’m impressed with your thought out repair plan and it shows in the way the cab is coming together. Too many have the ball peen hammer mentality, without thinking about the next step. Good teaching.

 

Looking good Ted. Looking forward to the chop!

 

Did someone say chop?

 

A s look great to me with no chop.

 

Charlie said the same thing when I showed him the photo posted by @Dago 88 "see how good it looks unchopped"
" it is chopped two and a half inches"
"that looks good let's chop it like that"

 

Ted, Don't forget to drill the hole for the socket to fit through to attach the nut on the bottom of the cowl band. West Coast Bob

 

ted no doubt you will do a quality chop job .

 

we have been making some very slow progress. Charlie is working on backing plates and brakes, and he primed and painted a set of 36 wire wheels. I mounted a set of tires he had on them.
I also had a job to replace a top header piece and filler on a model A truck. so I have a good template and some practice.

 

I have done nothing with the body, but Charlie has been busy rebuilding, the tranny. he has been cleaning the fenders and aprons and making patches for them. the axle and hubs are ready to go.

 

Charlie has the front and rear ends ready to on this chassis, and is wrapping up the final details on the brakes.
I tested the wood with the moister meter, the ends are drier than the centers.

 

I started prepping the chunks I cut to repair the top header. roughed them out with a hand planer and my skill saw.

 

.. kinda' funny .. & dunno' the ifs or why nots. Had a Mexican guy whose father built boats & wood repair on old vehicles, before my time.

Measuring moisture in a flood damaged home .. using driers, desiccants, mold removal sprays & ozone generators .. .. I had moisture creeping within the structure. Here one day .. there the other.

In passing, he said .. "too bad we can't soak this sucker in motor oil".

????? ( !!! )

He claimed his dad would steam fit & dry the fitted stringers in place or whatever .. & thereafter soak them in oil to seal the "end grains".

I'm thinking a linseed of sorts. I can't imagine motor oil .. but hell who knows ? I've been surprised by Mexican tech' before.

Example :

every time somebody would get sick - tequila. Thinking bullsh*t on that forever .. & then an I'll be damned moment .. what alcohol lowers your blood sugar ? Yep .. tequila. By itself .. no margaritas .. & no bazillion shots. Say 1 or 2.

Dunno' if it cures sickness .. but if heretofor diabetic --> BINGO. Tequila.

 

I had a neighbor who finished the furniture in his house using used engine oil. it looked great and did not smell that I noticed. I have seen junk yard trucks that delivered parts/engines/ trannys etc.. the beds would be an oily mess but the wood didn't rot.
moving the Tequila bottle to the medicine chest...

 

got the wood cut down to size, then traced out the shape and cut it on the bandsaw. used the belt sander to get it to the final shape. I also made the end filler pieces but didn't take any photos of the process.

 

Fighting the good fight to save that truck. Great job! You do some nice work both in wood and steel.