Projects My Shoebox Dash Metalflaking + Hidden Radio Laid Off $0 build

Yikes. Well, at least it wasn't your jugular vein or the artery in your wrist. Thanks for the cautionary tale! I will definitely armor up before trying a shrinking disc. Especially with a fixed-speed grinder.

 

Ouch,you were lucky.I've never cut myself so far in some shop accidents,but that reminds me a bit about that case when i got stabbed by a pretty wasted pillpopper when i was a kid.That hit stopped to arm bone,flesh and other stuff popped out from that hole.Luckily no tendons were damaged.That was a kind of weird anatomy lesson for a young man.

 

Yes everyone Thank you I was very lucky indeed. The head surgeon couldn't explain how it wasn't worse than it was other than luck. I'm a carpenter by trade to it's going to be a few days that I can do things with my hand again. I tried I can't hold the dolly against the metal in order to hammer the rest of the dents out.

 

Damn, that sucks on the disk.. but glad you got good treatment !! let the body heal.. you will be better than trying to rush it and have problems later. Sucks about your neighbor also.. You are a better man than me.. i would be in jail.. haha

 

Car looks great. Maybe I'll see it around town.....

 

I am super bored so I went outside to the garage and the neighbor that called the cops on me is smoking weed on his back porch got to love that.

I am trying to take it easy. I am just not a good sit in the house and do nothing type of person. I did drive for the first time today not fun at all. The shifting isn't the problem it's holding the steering wheel and turning. 1966 GMC daily driver I am rethinking that one.

Anyways bored to death I made this since I can't hold the dolly yet. It's the remote keyless entry bracket not exciting but kept me busy for 15 minutes.

I am going to rewire the car while I am recovering. Outer stitches come out next week inner ones dissolve.

 

Damn man, you do good work! When you told me to make my inner fenders, "it's not hard," you're in a different league than I am! What's not hard for you will be nearly impossible for me, but I'm going to give it a shot. Beefed up my HF bead roller, and am building a bending brake right now. Should get started on the floorboards by tomorrow.

Sucks about the injury. Hopefully it didn't do any lasting damage.

 

Thank you fine sir. It should be fine. It's swollen pretty bad and I can't make a fight or hold things yet. Driving about killed me and it was only a block to the store and back.
On your skills have faith in yourself. It comes with time and practice. I started with floorboards. If you have a planishing hammer with a flat hammer die use that before your bead and the metal will cup less. You dont have to go crazy with it just a few passes where the beads will go. I have the super cheap old HF one that cost $29 a few years ago that you fill with sand. The new one they make is way nicer but cost $99. Take templets and it's easier to trim then to make new ones or weld pieces back on. If you get started and have questions PM me I'll try to answer them if I can.

 

So out of boredom I made the bracket for my keyless entry for my door solenoids and wired it up minus to the doors. I'll do that once I install my new wiring harness. I'll take a picture of what the wiring looks like before and after. It's a rats nest for sure. I am just biting the bullet and rewiring the whole car while I can't do crap with my hand.

 

So against doctor's orders I worked on the Shoebox for a bit today! Not much as my hand started to swell up so I had to call it quits. I will blame it on mowing the lawn and not working on the car. At least I shaved the trunk emblem holes and put the 50 hood back on and shaved the emblems on it too.

 

Started to take a part the rats nest after getting my stitches taken out.


From this

Made the bracket so the harness doesn't sit right against the firewall and with 2 bolts can be taken off and seviced if needed.

I'll take pictures along the way to help people out. Pulled the rear wires up the A pillar to the rear of the car. That wasn't fun before there were only two wires not the 8 it has in there now. Thought for an hour it wasn't going to make it. More tomorrow!

 

The way I wire a car might not be the same way the internet experts that have never built anything say to do it but it works for me and the people I have showed. So here goes I'll post the pictures over the next couple days as stopping to take pictures slows up the process.

I take each area at a time. First I pulled all the wires to the spots they go( front to front, rear to rear, Dome lights to middle, Dimmer switch to front floor,ect) After I get the areas pulled I split each branch to the side they belong (Left or Right).

Starting up front I split the low beams to a left and right side I shrink tube them after I split it off over the connector. It looks like a "Y" Some harness' come with them pre split this one did not. But for $149 to the door I won't complain. The group that comes thru the firewall is front lights, coil, tach, battery, ingition, starter, alt.

I plan to run a horn relay so I branch it out and run it back up to the firewall it will make more sense once I add the relay.

Split each side into a branch

This is the Driver/ left side branch. It is the high beams, low beams, parking lights and left turn signal

This is the GM switch that plugs into most universal wiring harness. Don't ask the Pep boys workers questions just tell them it's for a 66 Chevy C10 less crap they have to say it's not in the computer about.

For the 50 Ford the bump fits the dimmer and plug without having to cut the wires or change anything and you have a part that is $5.99 and should be in stock at all auto parts stores.

I also ran the alternator wire to solenoid and solenoid to starter and battery wire to trunk and main power from solenoid to panel.

 

Looks pretty good. A couple of suggestions:

1. You might want to put the headlights on relays as well. They will probably shine a little brighter without the resistance of the switch and wiring between them and the battery.

2. For any wrapping that occurs in the engine bay, you might want to use "friction tape" instead of the sticky kind. The glue seems to decay really fast in the heat, and then it's just a gooey mess if you ever have to unwrap it for any reason.

Inspiring progress, even though you are semi-laid-up!

 

Wiring isn't exciting so I'll post the knobs from Trashn'l Thank you sir they look pretty nice on the dash.
Would be done with wiring but my son has the croup! And is staying home with me so it's lots of pretend driving in my old truck and playing in the backyard looking up at the sky for airplanes. So back at it in a few days!

 

While I was out by Dr's orders to have hand heal. I got the car wired. I only have to swap the stock headlight switch out for the new one that came in the mail today. Drove yesterday to the guy's down the street that bought a tri 5 Chevy that asked me to help out and give him a attack plan. Started the 51 hinges and my douche bag neighbor that complained before came over after 15 minutes of work at 12:30pm and threated to burn my house and car down. Or have the car stolen! Left came back said he was going to have someone beat me up. I said "if your such a man do it yourself tough guy! Go back in your house and stop causing trouble! Before I call the cops for you threating me" He spit at my car missed and left. Came back said a bunch of other crap while I was on the phone with the cops and went back in. I guess I was distacting him from his video games. I could hear him playing Madden when I pulled up cause he had it on full blast. Monday the 51 hinges should be done. I'll take pictures I am real close to being able to hold a dolly by Monday I think I will be able to. The doctors are shocked I am as far along as I am. 95% movement back. Hand specialist said they should had used double the stitches on the out side and his guess is 5 more on the inside. He said he would have put me in a hard cast for 3 weeks if he was the person on duty when I came in but I am way ahead of schedule as far as rehabbing it.

 

Good news, brother! Glad you're healing so quickly.

I sent one of my front fenders and a patch for it to the guy that quoted me $3500 for all the metalwork, so I can see what he's capable of. I've kinda hit a wall on my passenger side floor because I also need to fix the lower A-pillar where it meets the outer rocker. The rockers EMS sent me are completely wrong, so I end up sitting at the car and staring at it, trying to figure out how to proceed.

 

Kelly
I got the driverside's with the car it was off ebay. I have the passenger side I made on post 49. I can try and look for more if you need them. I just made a cardboard templet and bent it on the brake. I made the front patch and the bottom A pillar too.

 

I made the floor patches, and have no problem making the patches for the a-pillar. It's the outer rockers that are wrong. The inners I can fix pretty easily. The problem with the outers is I ordered 4-door outer rockers. They initially sent me 2-door rockers. I called them and they told me that they don't really have 4-door rockers, and sent me the "rear rocker" for the 4-door. All it is, is a cut-down rear section of the same 2-door rocker I already have, and it's wrong for the 4-door. It would take a LOT of fabrication to make them work. So my options are remove what I have and attempt to make these work, or just cut out the various bad parts of my stock rockers and cut up the EMS parts for patches. I'm going to call EMS Monday and see what they can do for me before I start cutting anything.

 

Looks Kool, srry about the employment deal tho...

 

Make your own patches and send their wrong stuff back. I bought the tunnel kit it came smashed the UPS guy opened it I looked at it and sent it back. Wasn't what I was expecting I thought it would be nice like the factory one.

 

Thank you sir! It's been rough and great. I had been collecting parts for the car since I bought it and worked way to much to ever work on it like I do now. Even the hand set back hasn't been that bad. I'm super excited to finish this car. I really didn't know what I was undertaking when I started. Time off has given me the chance to get to know my wonderful Wife and Son! And finish a dream car of mine.

 

Three VERY noteworthy accomplishments, excellent view of priorities.... in my opinion. Keep up the "family values".

 

I love watching your progress, but wish I could give you a solution regarding your neighbor. Sounds like you've done everything a reasonable, polite, and kind neighbor could do to keep the peace. Hopefully you keep the car garaged when you're not home so the ass hat can't vandalize it.

You're a better man than me, because at this point I would do everything I could to piss him off without breaking the law.

I had a disrespectful neighbor a few years back who was an ass to everyone in the neighborhood. I took the high road, tried to reason and rationalize with him. He had a trailer full of construction equipment on the empty lot next to my house (lot wasn't his), and when a neighbor's kid got hurt on it we finally had words.

He puffed out his chest and tried to intimidate me (did that to everyone in the neighborhood) but that shit doesn't phase me. I told him if he wanted to play the asshole game he'd lose, because I can be a much bigger asshole than he. Gave him 24 hours to move the trailer (it had been there for more than a year) or I'd call the city attorney.

Also told him I wouldn't tolerate any of his shit, and would stand up for any neighbor who had a run-in with him. Never, ever, EVER had another problem with him and nobody else in the neighborhood did. He moved about a year later.

Sometimes peoples egos get so big they think they can intimidate and control those around them. Sometimes you've got to grab those reins and give them a good tug. I'm guessing all of the other neighbors think this guy is an asshole too? Might be time to lay it down for the nerd. Just don't do anything illegal, and have witnesses.

Next time he steps in your yard get him on trespassing and make it stick. His threats against you and your property are a crime. File against him, get a restraining order. Keep him away from your house (and his own for 30 days!). Be vigilant, but be smart. Protect your family, yourself and your assets.

Sent from my DROID device using the TJJ mobile app

 

Daddio
I called the cops. They want me to press charges against him. I'm trying to take the highground I really am. But it's pretty hard. We have a mutural friend that I have been helping with his tri 5 chevy. When it happened I told him what is going on and he said he is going to have a talk with him before he ends up in jail. The police detective told me I should give him one chance to stop with this bull and drop it or have charges filed against him. This is the problem I am one of only a few white people in the neighborhood. It's an upper middle class black neighborhood. I don't have a problem with this fact. I love where I live have some car guy neighbors and friends here. He however used racial slurs towards me so if he does anything it becomes an automatic hate crime felony. The officer told me if our friend won't or doesn't want to get envolved that maybe our wives should talk to each other. He said make the offer one time and don't threaten him with it. Tell him this is the way it's going to be if you have a problem with that then this is whats happenning. They called it felony making terrorist threats.

 

Update today. Got the roof 70% bumped out. Used the replacement shrinking wheel of death and lived to tell about it. When I striped the roof it had spots that had 2" of bondo plus 8 layers of high build primer. It did look pretty straight minus one small dip in the center rear by the window. I had been dreading doing it as I wasn't sure if my hand could handle holding the dolly yet but I'm glad to report that I'm in a little pain but overall I'm great. When I was out with my hand injury I debated doing a roof swap/ chopped and was waiting for a sedan roof to come up on craigslist. It's funny after I decided to not chop one came up. I just want a mild Kustom.
Cops were at my house twice today. Once when I was working and once when I was getting out of the shower. Got to love all this BS.

 

As long as they're still on your side press charges. Once you're on the wrong you won't have their support, and things get a lot more difficult.

Glad to hear the hand survived and you're still making progress.

Sent from my DROID device using the TJJ mobile app

 

Plugging away on the roof. Hammer and dollied it out. And used the shrinking disc of death and lived to tell about it. I am over all pretty happy with how it turned out and slapped some primer on it. I will block it and primer it again in a few days. Lots of cop visits. I decided to not press charges against my neghbor as they are felony charges he would lose his job. I think he might have a mental problem.

Anyways

Overall I am super happy I did it but wouldn't want to do this roof again. I really would have bought the sedan roof off craigslist and chopped this thing.



It's a winter miracle! The car for the first time since I bought it has a package tray! all welded and like new! While doing it the fire department came and asked if I was welding and yup you guys guessed right Mr Douche called the fire department on me. Not that the cops aren't coming anymore he is trying really hard to get me in trouble. I did get big props from the fire crew for having a bucket of water, a charged hose and a welding blanket. I had the deck lid off at the time and was welding it in the driveway out in the open! They asked me to come take pictures at the fire station when it's done. Also neighbor should be getting a $201 bill for false alarm call.

Had two real bad spots I had to fix on the front window opening so out came the windshield.

Other spot that needed to be cut out and a new piece welded in.

 

Really nice work - despite the distraction!

I'm enjoying following along with your build.

Dave

 

Dave
It is hard sometimes. I haven't flet like I have to look over my sholder since I got out of the Marines. I just try to plug away and get things done.
And speaking of getting things done a special thanks goes to lostn51 http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/member.php?u=47898 who made todays work possible. I bought the 51 hinges from him.



50 deck lid hinge pocket cut out and new plates welded in! I took 1/8 flat stock I made a computer server bracket out of for the old job and welded nuts to the inside to mount the hinge to!

THANKS LOSTN51!!!





Spot primed! Fit is really good minus the top middle. I think I have to push the rear of body up like the green bible shows with the jack. The rest of the lid fits super nice now. Trust me it was a lot of work to get a deck lid to fit on the car. I have to finish weld everything still. Overall very happy.

Rear package tray looking happy and it's funny how much more solid the car feels.

 

So just in the rear we have : shaved hinges, license plate pocket,fender seams, peaked lower seam, frenched taillights, shaved license plate light and rounded lower deck lid corners.!