I'm so proud of my self and just had to tell someone other than the wife. I seriously thought that there was a good chance that my ol 48 wouldn't see the road this year.....Been working on it feverishly for the past week and now I think there is a strong chance that we should be on the road mid summer. I have one more day on the cab and then everything up to the bed should be ready for media blasting as soon as the weather smartens up. A friend says he will blast the whole thing for me if I supply the media and the frosties.

My next big challenge will be the bed and is a relatively serious hurdle since I had to cut the fenders of the old bed the PO warped and now have to remanufacture the flange where the fender bolts to the bed and make them fit the 53 bed that I got.....should be interesting...

 

Big congrats!!!! Any forward progress is good progress, I really hate the rearward progress.

 

As indicated in my signature.....every day is a good day....some just aren't as good as others.

Me and a buddy got into the rewards last night, while sitting in the shop reviewing my progress. I don't know if my welding helmet will fit today........

 

Ah, ya get used to the rearward progress, lol. Good deal, Kusto.

 

Yes, progress is sweet. I STILL havent been able to start on my truck, Ive been chasing a phantom electrical problem on my '69 Cougar. About 7 hrs. of total repairs. Now I need to get the dash back together and hope I figured this mess out.

 

Congrats, progress is good!

 

Yeah, buddy! Great feeling, ain't it?!?

R

 

Here is the steering column bracket I built today for a 80's GM tilt column. First picture is the fit up under the dash so I could tack it all together in place. The second photo is the completed bracket ready for final test fit.

 

Nice fab work Kusto. Do the vice grips go with it??? Just kidding, I couldn't resist.

 

Actually, vice grips are for steering - saw a guy who had a pair clamped on the steering wheel spline, had been driving it for close to a year, with just the vice grips!

Not the craziest I've seen but close...

R

 

Wow.....Nice job on the bracket.....it's amazing what effect progress will have on one's attitude.

 

Boy you're not kidding.....I was running around the garage all day yesterday got tons done and got a pile of stuff ready for sand blasting and primer as soon as the rain/snow stops.

I am looking for some advise on gas peddle location and I'm thinking of putting the battery in the cab behind the seat and running some remote leads back under the hood. I'll post some more progress pictures later today in my gallery.

As for the vice grips.......it's kinda like going for surgery, ya never know when their gonna leave a tool in there somewhere.....

 

I saw some really neat connectors for taking the cable through the sheetmetal. Leak-proof, rubber insulated. I think maybe Speedway had them. If I were to put my battery behind the seat, that's what I will be using.

I love the fabrication end of the hobby, myself. I end up making a lot of "custom" tools, etc. I'm going to tackle BobJ's side mirror mounts, when I get that far. I'm hoping by then to have one, that I can copy, instead of winging it. But either way, I'm going to do it.

I find that when I'm out of money for parts, that I can spend a day fabricating, and it's almost like taking a break from the truck, but still getting something useful done.

R