'65 Longbox repair
#1
10-30-2011, 09:20 PM
'65 Longbox repair
Time to start a new thread for my box repair. Its in rough shape, but pretty straight still. The plan is to replace the sections of the outside that are swiss cheese. Cut off the bad sections from the inside wall of the bed, and replace them with new steel. The floor will be a ladder work of 1x2x1/8 C channel, which is nice and light, but strong enough. I have new wheel wells, and will be ordering some corners this week. The bottom of the bed will be put in after the entire truck has been painted and will be aluminum diamond plate. Once that is done, I will have a liner sprayed over it all.
Heres the start of it:
The box and steel to fix the box on the trailer. I buy my steel from a local manufactur<wbr>ing company. They give me a decent price, $180 for all the steel I need to fix the box, and cut it all down for me. I ordered a 4X8 of 20g, a 1X8 of 16g for the rear roll pan, and 3 20' sticks of 1X2X1/8 C channel for the box.
You can see I have already cut the bottom bed corners and wheel wells off, as they are being replaced anyway.
Pretty much the worst of the panels, but really an easy fix. I can roll these pieces up at work pretty quick, then its a cut/clamp/weld thing to replace them with new steel.
I need some help with some measurements. My box even though its fairly straight, needs some love. I have marked my measurements on the lines. If someone with a longbox can verify these, and fill in the blanks for height from the floor to the top of the rail, and width between the tailgate posts I would be very grateful!
Heres the numbers as I wrote them down when I measured it up:
between inner panels 69 7/8"
between wheel wells 48"
total bed length 99 1/4"
between upper rails 65"
Hopefully the box wont take me as long as the cab did.
I hope to have it wrapped up by January at the latest.
Heres the start of it:
The box and steel to fix the box on the trailer. I buy my steel from a local manufactur<wbr>ing company. They give me a decent price, $180 for all the steel I need to fix the box, and cut it all down for me. I ordered a 4X8 of 20g, a 1X8 of 16g for the rear roll pan, and 3 20' sticks of 1X2X1/8 C channel for the box.
You can see I have already cut the bottom bed corners and wheel wells off, as they are being replaced anyway.
Pretty much the worst of the panels, but really an easy fix. I can roll these pieces up at work pretty quick, then its a cut/clamp/weld thing to replace them with new steel.
I need some help with some measurements. My box even though its fairly straight, needs some love. I have marked my measurements on the lines. If someone with a longbox can verify these, and fill in the blanks for height from the floor to the top of the rail, and width between the tailgate posts I would be very grateful!
Heres the numbers as I wrote them down when I measured it up:
between inner panels 69 7/8"
between wheel wells 48"
total bed length 99 1/4"
between upper rails 65"
Hopefully the box wont take me as long as the cab did.
I hope to have it wrapped up by January at the latest.
#2
10-31-2011, 12:28 PM
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#3
10-31-2011, 05:07 PM
Logistics Pro
Time to start a new thread for my box repair. Its in rough shape, but pretty straight still. The plan is to replace the sections of the outside that are swiss cheese. Cut off the bad sections from the inside wall of the bed, and replace them with new steel. The floor will be a ladder work of 1x2x1/8 C channel, which is nice and light, but strong enough. I have new wheel wells, and will be ordering some corners this week. The bottom of the bed will be put in after the entire truck has been painted and will be aluminum diamond plate. Once that is done, I will have a liner sprayed over it all.
Heres the start of it:
The box and steel to fix the box on the trailer. I buy my steel from a local manufactur<wbr>ing company. They give me a decent price, $180 for all the steel I need to fix the box, and cut it all down for me. I ordered a 4X8 of 20g, a 1X8 of 16g for the rear roll pan, and 3 20' sticks of 1X2X1/8 C channel for the box.
You can see I have already cut the bottom bed corners and wheel wells off, as they are being replaced anyway.
Pretty much the worst of the panels, but really an easy fix. I can roll these pieces up at work pretty quick, then its a cut/clamp/weld thing to replace them with new steel.
I need some help with some measurements. My box even though its fairly straight, needs some love. I have marked my measurements on the lines. If someone with a longbox can verify these, and fill in the blanks for height from the floor to the top of the rail, and width between the tailgate posts I would be very grateful!
Heres the numbers as I wrote them down when I measured it up:
between inner panels 69 7/8"
between wheel wells 48" Should be 49"
total bed length 99 1/4" 98.7"
between upper rails 65" Tailgate opening is also 65" Box height 19.2"
Hopefully the box wont take me as long as the cab did.
I hope to have it wrapped up by January at the latest.
Heres the start of it:
The box and steel to fix the box on the trailer. I buy my steel from a local manufactur<wbr>ing company. They give me a decent price, $180 for all the steel I need to fix the box, and cut it all down for me. I ordered a 4X8 of 20g, a 1X8 of 16g for the rear roll pan, and 3 20' sticks of 1X2X1/8 C channel for the box.
You can see I have already cut the bottom bed corners and wheel wells off, as they are being replaced anyway.
Pretty much the worst of the panels, but really an easy fix. I can roll these pieces up at work pretty quick, then its a cut/clamp/weld thing to replace them with new steel.
I need some help with some measurements. My box even though its fairly straight, needs some love. I have marked my measurements on the lines. If someone with a longbox can verify these, and fill in the blanks for height from the floor to the top of the rail, and width between the tailgate posts I would be very grateful!
Heres the numbers as I wrote them down when I measured it up:
between inner panels 69 7/8"
between wheel wells 48" Should be 49"
total bed length 99 1/4" 98.7"
between upper rails 65" Tailgate opening is also 65" Box height 19.2"
Hopefully the box wont take me as long as the cab did.
I hope to have it wrapped up by January at the latest.
#4
10-31-2011, 11:44 PM
Thanks for the measurements Boss! Im I close on the interior panel dimensions from inside to inside? I just need to double check.
I have this tendency to fix things because people tell me I cant. Hell, part of the reason this project was started because someone told me I couldnt.
Besides, finding a solid 65 bed in WI, not gonna happen. I can fix this one for less than what it would cost me to have one shipped up from down south, and I have the pride of knowing I did it.
I have this tendency to fix things because people tell me I cant. Hell, part of the reason this project was started because someone told me I couldnt.
Besides, finding a solid 65 bed in WI, not gonna happen. I can fix this one for less than what it would cost me to have one shipped up from down south, and I have the pride of knowing I did it.
#5
11-01-2011, 12:31 AM
Logistics Pro
Thanks for the measurements Boss! Im I close on the interior panel dimensions from inside to inside? I just need to double check.
I have this tendency to fix things because people tell me I cant. Hell, part of the reason this project was started because someone told me I couldnt.
Besides, finding a solid 65 bed in WI, not gonna happen. I can fix this one for less than what it would cost me to have one shipped up from down south, and I have the pride of knowing I did it.
I have this tendency to fix things because people tell me I cant. Hell, part of the reason this project was started because someone told me I couldnt.
Besides, finding a solid 65 bed in WI, not gonna happen. I can fix this one for less than what it would cost me to have one shipped up from down south, and I have the pride of knowing I did it.
Now my gettup and go got up and went.
70.0 inside. Let me know if you need any other measurements.
I have a laser measurement tool thats accurate to .100 @ 600' and have measured all my trucks and simply found Ford was not so perfect back then..
slap and spot them together i guess.
#6
11-04-2011, 10:09 PM
But the repairs on this thing are testing my patience.
#7
11-04-2011, 10:38 PM
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#8
11-09-2011, 09:34 AM
/wave Bill
Heh, not as bad as it looks really. At least I dont have to do the amount of work on this that I had to do on the cab. Its all fixable, the trick is figuring out how to do it! Plus my welding skills are alot better now than they have been in years.
Anyway, mostly did a bunch of cutting and cleanup this past weekend. A few pics:
This is pretty much the same for all 4 fender areas. Lots of holes. The box is heavily pitted on the back side, but only really down by the edge/bottom. These pieces will take care of most of it. Any other little pinholes, I will just weld them closed. The other small holes are really unusual, as its almost like someone drilled holes through the panel and the surrounding metal is rusty, but almost untouched.
After cutting. If you look at the bottom of the picture at where the fender meets the upper rail, you can see an area that was a major concern. I didnt take any close-ups of these before I started repairs.
Had my son Caleb work on some of the cleanup work. Have to stress with him the importance of 2 hands on the die grinder, and to pay attention at all times with him as he has really bad ADHD. He got the hang of holding the grinder at a slight angle after I showed what will happen if he sets the grinder flat on a piece of flat steel. Spin outs are bad!
After a quick cleanup. Not in as bad a shape now once I cut the really nasty sections out. You can see a little pitting on the inside, but honestly could be far worse.
Removing the rest of the wheel well was a pain. About 30 spotwelds a side. This side has some minor damage, and will require a little heat, a hammer and dolly, then some welding to get it back to good before I can weld the new wheel wells on.
One of the 5 spots that I needed to fix where the fender and upper rail meet. Went better than I thought. For these I used a piece on the backside to give myself something solid to weld to. Trying to weld this without that would have been a nightmare. This pic is after a quick knockdown with the grinder before it gets hit with the die grinder to finish it.
After all the grinding is done. It was intentionally left a little hollow and rough for the filler to get a good grip on it. Doesnt look too shabby for a couple of hacks like me and my buddy Rodger.
Still have lots of little things that I need to sort out on this. Im considering removing the stake pockets all together and closing the area above the inner box up entirely. Need to examine as to whether or not this is really viable though. The other thing is circling all the little holes that need to be touched up and taking care of them.
I have a few more pics here of all the work done thus far on the box: https://picasaweb.google.com/1081911...67975018396290
I hope to have all the pinholes patched, and major cutting done by the weekend.
Heh, not as bad as it looks really. At least I dont have to do the amount of work on this that I had to do on the cab. Its all fixable, the trick is figuring out how to do it! Plus my welding skills are alot better now than they have been in years.
Anyway, mostly did a bunch of cutting and cleanup this past weekend. A few pics:
This is pretty much the same for all 4 fender areas. Lots of holes. The box is heavily pitted on the back side, but only really down by the edge/bottom. These pieces will take care of most of it. Any other little pinholes, I will just weld them closed. The other small holes are really unusual, as its almost like someone drilled holes through the panel and the surrounding metal is rusty, but almost untouched.
After cutting. If you look at the bottom of the picture at where the fender meets the upper rail, you can see an area that was a major concern. I didnt take any close-ups of these before I started repairs.
Had my son Caleb work on some of the cleanup work. Have to stress with him the importance of 2 hands on the die grinder, and to pay attention at all times with him as he has really bad ADHD. He got the hang of holding the grinder at a slight angle after I showed what will happen if he sets the grinder flat on a piece of flat steel. Spin outs are bad!
After a quick cleanup. Not in as bad a shape now once I cut the really nasty sections out. You can see a little pitting on the inside, but honestly could be far worse.
Removing the rest of the wheel well was a pain. About 30 spotwelds a side. This side has some minor damage, and will require a little heat, a hammer and dolly, then some welding to get it back to good before I can weld the new wheel wells on.
One of the 5 spots that I needed to fix where the fender and upper rail meet. Went better than I thought. For these I used a piece on the backside to give myself something solid to weld to. Trying to weld this without that would have been a nightmare. This pic is after a quick knockdown with the grinder before it gets hit with the die grinder to finish it.
After all the grinding is done. It was intentionally left a little hollow and rough for the filler to get a good grip on it. Doesnt look too shabby for a couple of hacks like me and my buddy Rodger.
Still have lots of little things that I need to sort out on this. Im considering removing the stake pockets all together and closing the area above the inner box up entirely. Need to examine as to whether or not this is really viable though. The other thing is circling all the little holes that need to be touched up and taking care of them.
I have a few more pics here of all the work done thus far on the box: https://picasaweb.google.com/1081911...67975018396290
I hope to have all the pinholes patched, and major cutting done by the weekend.
#10
11-09-2011, 02:50 PM
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I just wanted to say you sir deserve all the props you get for pulling that whole truck back together. Nice work. With all the welding and griding and smoothing you are doing I certainly hope that you have heard that there is a welding wire that is softer just for doing panels and body work. I saw it in a copy of custome truck mag a few months back if you like I will dig it up and see if it may be some help to you. If not my hat is off to you anyway.
#11
11-09-2011, 08:22 PM
Vic
This is what I use:
http://www.amazon.com/Hobart-H305406...0891200&sr=8-2
Except I buy it for cheaper from a local store, about $28 per roll IIRC. The welder I use has to use .30 wire, because I dont feel like buying parts for the welder so I can use a thicker or thinner wire. Thinner would probably work better for sheetmetal though I would imagine because it requires less voltage and working at lower voltage would be easier on sheetmetal. I do find that the welder I use when I get the setting below 30 on the voltage no matter the feed speed the welder has a hard time holding a nice bead and tends to build up alot. The thinner wire would probably work better for that.
Its probably just me sucking at welding though, heh.
This is what I use:
http://www.amazon.com/Hobart-H305406...0891200&sr=8-2
Except I buy it for cheaper from a local store, about $28 per roll IIRC. The welder I use has to use .30 wire, because I dont feel like buying parts for the welder so I can use a thicker or thinner wire. Thinner would probably work better for sheetmetal though I would imagine because it requires less voltage and working at lower voltage would be easier on sheetmetal. I do find that the welder I use when I get the setting below 30 on the voltage no matter the feed speed the welder has a hard time holding a nice bead and tends to build up alot. The thinner wire would probably work better for that.
Its probably just me sucking at welding though, heh.
#12
11-15-2011, 10:41 PM
Got some work done this last weekend. Mostly just messed with the front of the box on the one corner. Ran short on time, and had some family stuff in the afternoon, so not alot got done.
I did get all the steel for the inside of the box repair bent Friday afternoon at work. The roll pan for the rear is 16g, the rest of the pieces are 20g.
After cutting off the bad stuff. Still looks bad.... I just very carefully removed the old portion with a cutoff wheel about 1/8" in front of the corner.
I had to add a backer behind this to give me enough solid metal to weld to. Now to put a new corner on that will fit the profile of the curve. Thankfully there is about 3/16" between the original front of the box and the side fender. This gives me enough room to add a piece like this without any issues.
New corner in place, body seam welded from top to bottom, all pinholes filled, and ready for a very light skim coat of filler.
Im hoping to get the other side nailed down next weekend. Should be an easy repair compared to this side as its alot more solid.
A few more pics of the backer piece and initial welding can be found here:
https://picasaweb.google.com/1081911...40505463122354
Thanks for watching!
I did get all the steel for the inside of the box repair bent Friday afternoon at work. The roll pan for the rear is 16g, the rest of the pieces are 20g.
After cutting off the bad stuff. Still looks bad.... I just very carefully removed the old portion with a cutoff wheel about 1/8" in front of the corner.
I had to add a backer behind this to give me enough solid metal to weld to. Now to put a new corner on that will fit the profile of the curve. Thankfully there is about 3/16" between the original front of the box and the side fender. This gives me enough room to add a piece like this without any issues.
New corner in place, body seam welded from top to bottom, all pinholes filled, and ready for a very light skim coat of filler.
Im hoping to get the other side nailed down next weekend. Should be an easy repair compared to this side as its alot more solid.
A few more pics of the backer piece and initial welding can be found here:
https://picasaweb.google.com/1081911...40505463122354
Thanks for watching!
#13
11-16-2011, 04:40 AM
Postmaster
One thing I noticed earlier in the pics...that the tailgate hinges and hardware are all still on...I would remove it all and lube the heck out of those threads...dont use WD40...it eventually rusts things together...I learned that the hard way on my tailgate hardware...of which I still havent removed the leftover bolt where the heads sheared off....use some anti seize stuff on the threads once everything is all cleaned up...
- cs65
- cs65
#14
11-16-2011, 08:39 AM
#15
11-16-2011, 01:08 PM
cs65: My hardware is very very rusted. The hinge for the tailgate I should be able to get off easily, but the upper pieces are going to be a bear. I planned on heating them up a little with a torch, and using an impact screwdriver (the kind you hit with a hammer) to get them loose.
Thanks Huck. Truck keeps getting heavier everyday, heh.
Thanks Huck. Truck keeps getting heavier everyday, heh.