Here awhile back i asked about using luan for headliner. Well that is what we did, and it was a son of a gun to install. I don't think a person could put it in without help and some cussing. I personally would not do that again.

This is the only shot i have of it right now

 

Im back with another update with more pictures. I belive i stopped with the installation of the headliner.

Here is a look at the inside of the bed completed, if this is a repeat please forgive me.


Now it is time to work the tailgate. I have been avoiding this due to the amount of rust damage. The whole upper part of the gate is in pretty bad shape.

I cut pretty much all of it off, then treated what was left. And a few pin holes welded closed.


This is the piece i cut off. Now what use as a replacement? I needed a piece of pipe with 1 3/8 od. Took a bit but finally found it. The upper pipe for a chain link fence. For 20.00 bucks got what i needed and some cheater pipe to boot.

 

This phone only lets me do so much at a time.
no for some tailgate pictures.

Im terrible about remembering to take pictures while doing something so there are gaps in the progress. I did not take pictures of just the pipe installed. Here is where i was welding in a 1 3/8 strip to close in the bottom side of it.

And with a little filler applied

A the back side partially primered.

I was trying to straighten one of the latch pieces and the little ear piece broke off. So i cut out some replacements. That is alot of little cuts with a metabo blade.

Here they are mounted on tailgate, then wet sanded and primered. Let cure ready for paint.

Wrong paint gremlins got me again, but only on the front side of tailgate

Sand it down again.

 

Great progress

 

Thanks redroad
i actually had more to post last night but the phone said not happening.
we did get both of the steps painted.



We did get the tailgate mounted and painted finally. And not a moment to soon.

Had to cut up paint can to get all i could out of it.

After painting this is all of the paint that was left over, if that ain't cutting it close i don't know what is.

 

Well most of the body work is done now.
I started working on the electrical stuff. The wiring harnesses that was in the truck was in really good shape so i reused it. The biggest brain teaser i had was from putting the 78 steering column in the truck. I had read that the wiring had changed between 77 and 78 and did not play well together.
in the end i only had to add one wire for the horn to work.
all of the electrical system worked fine after that.

 

Let's see if this thing will let me update with some pictures.
to start with had a few engine problems, when trying to start for the first time some of the valve train components broke.
so the investigation starts. Some of the parts where not the correct parts. Had a little difficulty getting the right parts, as the three suppliers i used had all merged into one. Eventually got the parts and motor reassembled.
Motor started and ran with about a round and a half. This #%&$, thing is still not letting me add attachments.

 

trying a different device
maybe this will work
i have a couple of videos, but i can't upload them as they are the wrong file type.
we have done a few shake down runs and everything seems to be working great for now.
still have few odds and ends to complete.
tomorrow new tires and windshield if all goes well.
man came to install windshield but it broke, but it is good enough to get to town for him to try again


side view, different rims and new tires are scheduled for tomorrow

from this

to this

 

Wow, what a difference. Looks like everything went together well.
The new wheels & tires will really transform your truck.
Lots of work but the results are awesome.
There's different "grades" of windshields, if you can afford to splurge a little...

 

light blue oval thanks

i don't know what grade glass he used, but i am sure that this is the first one of this kind he has done.
He tried doing it in reverse order and cracked it. after he left, me and my wife installed it anyway so i could wash the truck.

 

Nice job on the truck.
I started at the end and went back a page or 2 and saw the metal ribbed Floor and wanted to know how you came by it
So I went to the first post and went through them all.
As for the gap between bed sides and floor the wood would have taken up I did not even think of that.
Because mine is a 81 the body lines on the rear fenders had to line up with the lines on the doors and front fenders.
With the fenders bolted on and the sides placed on the metal floor I ran a string front to rear and the body lines lined up.
If they were low I would have put blocks between frame and bed floor if the other way who knows?

The tail gate bolts to the rear of the bed sides as do the latches so that would not have been a issue.
The bottom of the front panel was rusted away so I used part of a bed cross member left from shorting the floor to fix the panel.

So why did you need to raise the bed sides?
Was it for the steps? Mine also lined up so I don't see why the filler?
Still a great job on the truck now enjoy it
Dave ----

 

Fuzzface2
i didn't raise the panels they are the same as factory hieght.
i used the original cross members under the bed and everything else matched up correctly. I just had to make up the difference in the wood thickness and the metal thickness.
front and rear of bed panels are sitting on the cross members like they are supposed too.

 

I like the color on your truck. I remember seeing it on Lincolns and Mercurys, as well as Mustang IIs!


I guess I'm lucky or perhaps good, because I got my windshield in, in one piece, on the first try. It took me probably an hour and a half or more, but that is exactly what it takes - TIME and PATIENCE. In some areas, you are literally gaining only 1/64th" to 1/128th" of 'ground' with each action, especially in tight places like the corners. The biggest key is going slow, especially when the going gets tight. When you hit a tight spot, that might be a good time to move to the other side of the 'rope' and SLOWLY see if you can get some more done on that end.
I'm thinking that the glass guys of today, who have only ever worked with glued-in windshields, probably try to go too fast, and are maybe overconfident since they work with glass every day. Plus, I don't think that installing the glued-in glass induces much if any flex into the glass, unlike these dual-groove grommet-style seals which our trucks have.

And I'll say again that rear cab windows are the best place to practice - you can even go to the junkyard and experiment on their trucks. That said, I actually did my windshield first, and when I did my rear window right afterward, It seemed like it took 15 minutes, even though it probably took 30-40 to remove it from the old cab and install it in the new one...

 

Fuzzface2
i think the biggest difference between ours ( your thread is the one that inspired this part) is that i used the original cross members for a flair side bed. And as i read it you used the cross members from a fleet side bed and modified those( grafted what you needed.)
i didn't think about the wood thickness until later and it was like WTH. that ain't right lol

 

Meangreen92
his biggest problem i think was he installed the seal into the frame and then tried to install the glass. But this one does not have the trim that you put in the outside of the seal to tighten it up.
me and the wife put the seal on the glass and roped it into the frame