this may or may not have been covered i searched the key words above and got zip!! i have a really clean ,solid original 36 ford pick up and the wood mounts that run along the frame under the cab are really nice no damage or rot at all are there pros and cons to leaving them in am i going to encounter any issues? if i should replace with steel now is the time thanks merry christmas !!
You know..after 79 years some of my wood body to frame blocks were in great shape, others were not so great..79 years is nothing to sneeze at, but i do believe when i put the body back on I will be using some of the benifits of development over the years and go with something different, maybe a hard rubber block..the only reason i feel i would do this..is one fact..Wood absorbs water and moisture (eventually) even if they are coated and wood can split..and up here in the north country water and metal are just not friends.
very good point i was kinda leaning on doing something different ,we will see i may leave alone for now and try it and in the spring if it seems it needs it i will fab up something new ,thanks for the response !
I'm not familiar with what those mounts look like but if they are what I am picturing how about using hockey pucks for new mounts?? My son has an 89 Ford Ranger, all the mounts were shot along with the metal braces...after welding in new metal for the mounts to set on we used plain ole hockey pucks for the mounts...Drill the appropriate size hole through the pucks and slide them in place...They can be shaved down if needed on a table saw or band saw....The cab and radiator support is very solid now and those pucks will last nearly forever.... The main reason for using the pucks on his truck was the Ford replacement rubbers were over $200 for all of them and we got the pucks for around $1 each at Dick's sporting Goods... Cheap yet effective Just an idea......
thanks for the reply , the puck idea i kow has worked well for later model applications like f body gm stuff, but the older stuff like my 36 actually has contoured wood which follows the cab and frame shapes and curves the pieces i am looking at on mine are 18 to 20 inches long and pretty thick 3 to 4 inches at least but thanks for the post its a goog fix for later stuff
decayed...your are correct in that the body mounting blocks for a PU are very big and an odd shape. they couldn't be replaced with just a piece of rubber. if your originals are in good shape...clean them up and seal them , maybe with polyurethane . if you need to replace them , they are about $200 do you have a friend who is a wood worker that could make some new ones using your old ones as patterns?
If you want wood to last, it needs to be sealed with a penetrating sealer. Be careful what you buy, because the common wood sealers (like Thompson's and Duck's Back) don't allow paint to stick. Read the directions, and make sure it says "allow X amount of time before painting", sometimes as much as two weeks. I would then apply some oil base enamel, and lots of it.
Ok I guess it shows I definately don't know what these mounts look like LOL...Is there a chance that you could get a thick piece of soild nylon and trace out the mounts and make them from the nylon sheet (slab)?? these would last forever and would be good and solid...OR if the stock ones are good just use them and since they probably wont ever see salt and snow they should last for more years to come..... Like I always been told: " If it ain't broke, Don't fix it"
well given the great shape mine are in i think i will go with the preserving route ,i was just wondering with todays drive line if they would not like stress,but then again the roads back then were probably more stressfull than any small block could be today...so i guess this adds something new to the list ......sex and welding are now not the only things where penetration is important we shall now add wood preserving!!
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