I did a search for this, and found lots on info on some that were done, but nothing on how to properly do it. Also, what about making the whole front clip one piece by welding and filling those places where everything bolts together? I have a pretty good idea on how to do it, but was wondering if anyone has any tips or pointers, or any "don't do it this way" bad experiences. That's a lot of work to do, and I only want to do it once...

 

Remember to space out to factory gaps and add fill strips if welding the doghouse parts together. If you just butt the part together the unit will come out too small to fit. Realize the steel clip is quite heavy and flexible. Don't leave out the inner fender panels unless you don't plan to drive in the wet. You'll be surprised at how little extra access a tilt front end will gain you with the fenders over your head and the inner fenders in the way will block the front 1/2 of the engine, a real problem with front distributor (Ford) engines. The inner fenders and the outer fenders will need to be cut to swing up, then some sort of alignment and latching devised unless you like the looks of flapping fenders getting ready to take off and fly south. My truck was once flip up front. fortunately it was bolted together. and the owner before me returned it to original operation. I have a pair of chrome hinges for a 53-56 flip front if you are interested PM me.

 

I'm not wanting a flip front end, but I do like how they look with the seams filled. I thought about a flip front end until I saw a truck with one, changed my mind really fast when I saw what a pain it was.

 

What do I need to use for fill strips, or I guess the real question is, how much space do I need between the dog house pieces? 1/16th? 1/8th?

 

So you want to weld the whole front end together? Wow, considering that there are something like 50 bolts in all sorts of places holding all the pieces together, I'm at a complete loss to understand how a capable welder - of which I am not one- would go about this. I'll just listen in....

 

The biggest challenge is getting all of the sheetmetal to line up. Take the upper/lower front fender seam....if the radius of both pieces is not exactly the same, you will need to cut and shape them to fit each other. If not lined up properly it will take gallons of mud to hide it. Major PIA for little gain in my opinion.
What level are your bodywork/welding skills?

 

My body work skills have improved quite a lot over the past few months. I don't think it would be much harder than forming and installing patch para eps, and all the panels already line up fairly well. I really like the smooth look of the trucks I've seen that have had this done. I do have some panels from the part truck that I could use for practice...

 

Exactly which seams do you want to weld?

 

The cab seams and all of the seam in the front clip.

 

Cab seams, no big deal except for warpage. Front clip seams to include welding the fenders to the cab and the hood closed??? As said big problem is getting the panels to line up perfectly with each other. 1/16" missalignment across two bolted panels no big deal, between two welded and smoothed panels, a bodyman's nightmare. If you include welding the fenders to the cowl, I hope you never need to take them off. Welding the hood closed? well the problems should be obvious. Filler strips are not needed unless there is a gap.

 

Don't want to weld the fenders to the cowl or weld the hood closed, just the seams between the upper and lower fender, and possibly the lower fender to front valance and upper fender to the center piece ( where the hood latch is). The hood will still function normally, and the front clip would come off as one piece (which is how I removed and installed mine).

I'm thinking if I install everything and get everything aligned I could then weld it together and get everything smooth. If I treat all the welding as I would a patch panel there should be minimal warpage.

 

Sounds like you are on the right track. Post pics when you get it done!

 

Yes, the work is going to be in the aignment or the panels, in the stamping of the day exactly matching the contours along a seam was not a major objective. Lay the edge of a at least 18" long straight edge across the seam and slide it along to see what I mean. 1/16" difference will need about 3 feet of filler on each side and careful blocking to blend it off without a dip or hump. if there is any misalignment, it would be best to cut the flanges off the panels and butt weld them so you can align them as you go along and be able to hammer weld out any shrinkage along the seams. Making two panels into one makes any waves much more apparent. I highly recommend using 0.024 ESAB Easy Grind wire. If the metal on the edges of the panel are rusted thin, you might want to cut out a 2- 3" strip centered on the seam to get into solid metal and weld in a strip of sheet.

 

Filling a seam with weld will be difficult to metal finish because you won't be able to get a dolly behind it...there is a bolted flange back there, remember?
If you want a challange to test your skills then i would leave the seam and but make it perfect in every respect. If you weld the seam and then spend 200hrs metal finishing it'll look exactly like a seam that some kid packed full of mud, right? But if you make the factory seam perfect then it'll showcase your skills and add to the quality of your truck. To illustrate, the next tiime you look at a '40 ford look at the gap where the hood meets the fender, most are 1/4" at one end and a 1/16th at the other - many are so bad that they leave the hood off - a properly built one has a consistant gap, an 1/8thish. The difference between right and wrong is hundreds of manhours and when you see a properly aligned one it is a thing of beauty. The seams in your truck can be the same way.

 

IMHO seams add body lines to an otherwise plain metal body. Filled seams makes it look like it's vacuumed formed plastic with no character, kinda like those plastic forms they use for showing paint colors.