Alright well I put my whole front end back together on my 51. I put that black tack stuff in between all the panels to eliminate any squeaks. I installed the valance last and I fought it and finally got all the bolts started. I had to loosen all the front end bolts to get it done. Now the rear of both front fenders stick out about an inch and a half away from the cab. I dont like this at all. I can push them back but Im afraid to because after a while of jolts and bumps I am afraid that the pressure might cause my mud to crack. Now i dont know why the front end is tight like that all the seams line up, but those fenders have pressure on them for some reason. Could it be that brace under the fenders are too long? I would not think so but i dont know..

 

And the first question is, what metal is original and what is replacement? Is replacement aftermarket or OEM? Glass or steel? Do you have all the bolts loose? Search will find a good article by AXracer about setting up the front end.

 

all the steel in the front is from 1952 or 1952. Now just about every piece came off of a different truck which i thought could be an issue due to different stresses, but i am unsure

 

I assume that you mean brace 16272 which is the same for all 48-52 trucks? Those braces are tight, and where they attach seems to be a weak spot as I have seen a lot of 48-52s with fender cracks along that seam to the lower fender panel where the brace attaches, particularly on the RF (see image from a vehicle on eBay). Mine looked fine when I got it but after putting all the missing bolts in place (and there were a lot of them) and then driving it a bit I noticed a crack developing there. Someone had just hidden it with mud. I have not fixed it yet but it probably will need some sort of additional brace welded in behind the crack to reinforce it. I'm afraid that welding it might just cause the crack to appear next to the repair as it certainly is a stress point.

So the point is that it will probably crack anyhow so you might as well bite the bullet fix it right. This may not be the spot that you are concerned about but the principle is the same.

 

I thought that that cracked there because water got trapped behind that brace and rusted it. I figured that made it weak and that is why it cracked, but the issue right now is that it wont line up at the rear correctly

 

I think there should be a lot of us that have worked on fender alignment but pictures would help us a lot.

 

I'd assume you know about the rubber filler strip at the rear fender-to-cab joint? The fender should be about 1/2" away from the cab.

There are some differences between 51 and 52 inner fenders, in how they attach at the firewall. Are you using 51 or 52 inners?

 

What is the black sticky product that stops bumpers, and how was it recommended to you?

I hope that it is as simple of a fix as Ross points out...

I purchased some metal fenders that came with new inner fenders off craigslist... only these had a space for the battery and were rounded, unlike the flat ones that came off of my truck (52)... I have both sets... but will the rounded inners work so I can have the extra room for my motor swap? I am guessing they are from a pre 51, but the outers have the markings from the 52... they are the same color but I guess that does not guarantee same truck/year.

I will try to take plenty of pictures of my mockup process, which I hope to have done by the end of the month.

 

I am using 51 inners with a 51 cab. The black sticky stuff is called strip caulk. You can buy it at macs. It is really sticky and smashes down really thin when you bolt it all up. Yes i know about the rubber pieces. They are on there, but there is an extra inch of gap and when i push it in you can see it flex the whole fender and I dont like that at all.

 

If I read what you're saying correctly, it was fitting ok before you loosened everything to put the valance in the front and retightened everything? If so, I'd suggest going back and redoing what you did, and have the running boards on so you can use that mounting area to hold the fenders in place when you retighten again. You've got something in a bind, it's just a matter of 'unbinding' it.

 

There is supposed to be some gap but not an inch. The T shaped rubber gasket covers mine up nicely. The rear of the running board, the cowl and the small panel part #16040 should be controlling that dimension at the rear of the front fender. After tightening all the bolts the rear of the fender that should not move.

Your description makes it seem like your fender profile is not matching the cowl profile or one of those pieces is not set properly.

 

i just wonder if the strip caulk is holding stuff from moving when i loosen it

 

Not likely. Your fenders are way heavier than the strip caulk is strong. As I said above, you've got something in a bind and until you loosen everything back up and start over, you're going to struggle. That's jmho, fwiw.

 

I don't see how you can do much to change the gap at the back. Is there a difference top to bottom at the back? The fender is attached to the slanted surface of the inner fender, the inner is attached to the seam on the cab, there's no in-out adjustment there. Spreading the front of the fenders out doesn't seem likely to help either, because the front is also attached to the inners which are bolted solid to the radiator saddle. Could the saddle be bent?

 

I dont think the saddle is bent. The original brace in the front of the radiator that runs side to side is perfectly straight and never been messed with. but when i put the valance in, I had to pull both doglegs in. it was kinda tough they were out there and that is why the bottoms of the rear are out.