Hey All,
I've just about finished my chassis, and am getting ready to start my body work. Those of you who have seen my gallery can stop laughing!
My problem is that the guy I got the truck from had some really weird ideas, and never finished any of them! My front end is just sitting on my frame, I have the rad support, and I see it bolts to the frame......... thats all I have. Were else does the front end mount. I've been guessing that the inner fenderwells must mount to the cab, but like I said, his half finished creation doesn't indicate any mounting location.
Any help in this dilema will be greatly appreciated!
Mike

 

Mike -

I just happen to be fitting up new air dams and valance on my 56 and adjusting the fit of all the front end sheet metal, so I am intimately familiar with this area. (Later, I'll re-use that last remaining gray cell, so I'll forget everything.) Sorry I don't have a good illustration handy. Maybe someone else (George?) will post one.

Thank God you have the radiator support because, believe it or not, that's the whole nine yards.

Angle brackets (with three holes) on the face of the firewall secure the aft end of the inner fenders. (There is a fourth attach hole inside the tranny tunnel). Fenders share a top hole with the inners and bolt to the cab at a bracket under the stock hood hinge mount. The inner and outer fenders mount to each other along their upper seam with (4) bolts and to the air dams at the front. The air dams bolt to the radiator support.

There are no attach points between the inner fenders and the frame, the fenders and the frame, the air dams and the frame, etc. All of the front end sheet metal hangs off the radiator support. Needless to say, the positioning of the radiator support is pretty critical to proper alignment of the front end sheet metal.

The valance (Gravel Shield) attaches to the inside of the fenders and accross the lower edge of both air dams. There are sheet metal supports that run diagonally between the middle lower attach hole of each air dam (common to the valance) and the inside of the fender at the lower edge near the front of the wheel opening. These are important to stabilize the fender from flapping. Use them.

There is also a brace that goes accross the top of the radiator support, in front of the radiator top tank, where three bolts on either side fasten the upper edge of the air dams to the rad support. There also is a support that houses the hood latch that runs accross from the upper front corner of the fender to the other fender. (Mine is missing that piece.)

Wierd, huh? So, if you did well with word problems in school, that was all very clear, right? If not, like I said, we need a picture.

 

Here are a couple of illustrations. I don't know if they have enough detail to help you out with the assembly, though.