Gary,
You can see the slots on opposite sides of the head.

The wide upper slot is the punch.
The lower slot joggles the body. Just fit it all the way to the bottom of the slot.
Working around inside radius's can be a little challenging, but the head swivels on the tool
The patch is cut with about 1/2" overlap on all sides

When you flange the body, the panel that fits in over it is fully supported from behind.

 

You flange the body and not the patch? If you did the patch wouldn't you be working with outside corners?

 

If you didn't flange the body, the patch seam would be above the surface!

We're not working from inside the door or rocker here...

 

I was thinking of the floor, and flanging the insert such that it hangs from the seam. But, I see what you are saying about the body.

 

You could do that, I suppose.

Well, look at the direction the dies joggle and you can see that it flanges down where it is deep.

 

Well, the exhaust system is finally done, one week after getting it "95%" done. Turns out that the last 5% is time consuming and, flat, hard. As you can see in the first picture, I had to to cut one of the tailpipes part way off at the muffler so I could reposition it inward as it was sticking out a bunch on the passenger's side and hitting both the frame and the spring. Then I rewelded it, under the truck because it wasn't easy to get out, and ground the weld down to ensure it didn't have holes - as shown in the 2nd picture.

There's a hanger ahead of the muffler about 6", one at the exit of the muffler, and one on each tail pipe just ahead of where the 3" pipes start. With all of that support it doesn't move, and there is no chance of it hitting anything. And, I didn't have to reroute the brake line since changing the angle on the passenger's side pipe allowed me to move the whole thing slightly to the driver's side and miss the brake line. In addition, the drive shaft misses the muffler - but not by much.

I like the way the pipes just poke out from the side. They are 4" below the bottom of the bed side. I hope it sounds as good as it fits.

 

Looks great ! Please tell me that it is ready to drive....

 

Ok, if that's what you want: "It is ready to drive". NOT! Currently lacks the clutch linkage and a cooling system. Oh yes, and a seat, and battery, and starter. But, one thing at a time and I'll get there.

 

Wow... talk about me having a lapse in memory. I forgot you still haven't got the linkages hooked up. Coolant might help too . Sorry for trying to rush this great experiment. Can't wait to see it run !

 

You aren't nearly as anxious as I am to see, and hear, it run. Seems like I've been working on it forever. Sure glad that I'm doing it as a series of projects instead of one big restoration. I don't see how those guys do it.

 

It just occurred to me that I forgot to mention a few of the reasons it was an exhausting day:

• Spare Tire Carrier: I needed to take the spare tire carrier off on the driver's side, but Ford used a funky bolt that requires an Allen wrench with a hole in the center. While I don't have one of those I could make it, but why not just take off the whole bracket? Oh, the rear tank's skid plate has to come off first, or at least that'll make it easier. And, it is close to the tail pipe, so off it comes.
• Skid Plates: Turns out there are actually two pieces to the skid plate - one on the left and one on the right. And, lots of dirt on top of them. But, the impact made short work of the bolts and the right-side plate literally jumped off. Turns out they are what holds the rear gas tank in and the tank dropped down and ejected the skid plate when the 2nd nut came off.
• Gas Tank: Yuk! That gas tank looks awful on the outside. Someone took the skid plates off at some point and used inner tube rubber between the tank and the plate. The rubber held moisture and the tank rusted badly. Oh well, I don't use it anyway and the gas smells like turpentine. Boy, what a dirty job! Oh wait, the tank is larger than the opening between the arms of the trailer hitch.
• Trailer Hitch: Bummer, the saftey stand is holding the gas tank up so how do I hold the hitch up to get the last bolt off? Put it on my back and grab it when the last nut comes off. Man, oh man did I get dirty!

So, Dad's truck is now running one tank, the mid-ship one. That lightened it up quite a bit as there must be 7 or 8 gallons of awful stuff in that tank. And, that hitch is heavy, so all in all I probably took 200 lbs off the truck with the skid plates, tank, and hitch. Yes, the hitch will go back on at some point, but right now I'm enjoying the huge open space behind the rear axle.

 

So, Gary will you be putting the second tank back in your dad's truck or will it be extra weight shedded ?

 

There's no need for a second tank. At 19 gallons on the other tank and the hope-for 16 MPG I'll have a range of about 300 miles, and that's plenty. And even towing I'll bet I'd have a range of 200 miles. In addition, Dad quit using that tank for some reason, although he couldn't remember why. So, it isn't going back in.

 

I hope you like the sound of that Magnaflow better than the flushmaster. I think it will be much more subdued, due to the design, plus the longer length of the muffler.

 

Yep, me too. Been lots of work to get to this point, not to mention the expense, so I hope I like it.