mornin' all. it's cold here in texas.

this is what i'm doing. before i tear into this truck very much, i'm building a resource book. i'm putting catalogs for the various things i want in it, along with articles from magazines that pertain to what i want. i'm even printing out the posts here that will help. you guys have given me alot of help so far, and i will have many more questions as this project progresses.

so what do you think of this idea? any suggestions for my resource book? thanks in advance for any input. :-X12

 

It's just "chilly" here in Fort Worth!
I think you have a good idea. I am doing the same thing, but I have expanded to two binders and a file box for catalogs as I have accumulated so many.

I use 3 ring binders, so that I can add/remove things easily and also used some of those dividers with tabs for labels. I have sections for engine, electrical, body, suspension, interior, magazine articles, posts from this board and miscellaneous.
The books sure are handy when I'm sitting here in front of the computer and the truck is out in the garage!

Good Luck,
Kent
56 F-100

 

Stay warm, Ragman! Regarding the book, I think it's a good idea if for no other reason than to research the best part(s) for each step of your project truck. Also, you can look back easily and pull out info you might need later. I broke down my notebook into sections like this: motor; trans; rear end; frame; bed; cab; suspension; electrical; glass/windows; tires/wheels; and so on....

Key for me was to do one aspect of the project at a time and see it through to finish. A couple of times I got ahead of myself and got excited about another part of the build. As a result, my attenion would go away from the project at hand, and when I went back to it, I forgot stuff or wanted to change this or that. Costly and poor time management on my part. Oh well, live and learn!

I did the mechanical stuff first, then worried about the aesthetics. I'd rather have an ugly truck that runs than a pretty truck that sits!


Hope this helps. And oh yeah, get a LARGE notebook or binder. My 2" is OVERSTUFFED !!!!!


If I can help with suppliers or "heads up" info.... let me know

C-ya!
Daryl

 

thanks again. i can always count on you guys to give me your thoughts and ideas. :-X12

 

[updated:LAST EDITED ON 10-Dec-02 AT 07:30 PM (EST)]Hey ragsman, cold is relative! We won't get into how cold it is in various parts of the world, will we! The first liar wouldn't stand a chance in that thread.

WRT keeping track of stuff for your truck I think it's an absolute must if you are serious about doing a thorough restoration. Kent and Daryl gave you some really good info and you should use whatever format works for you.

I've been keeping photos, scanned images, copies of good info from posts, financial information, web sites, and even some catalog pages on my computer. Going digital isn't best for everyone but for me it works very well. Got a big, munchin computer with a digital camera so I can just snap a shot of a catalog page or whatever, edit it with my own notes either before or after photographing it, and load 'er up on the system. The best part of the digital system is I can REALLY organize things and find stuff in a snap no matter when I saved it. I'm hoping to produce a video with all the images, etc. from the restoration so I can play it on my laptop for folks when I take Earl out to shows or wherever.

One other thing - force yourself to disassemble a SMALL section of the truck, put ALL the parts in one container, and LABEL IT! We did pretty well with Earl but I have to admit there are still a couple of areas where I have too many fasteners or parts in one container. Trust me, after four years I don't recall if the sixteen 1/4-28x1" bolts go around the fender or the sixteen 1/4-20x7/8" bolts do. Since I'm halfway back through the restoration I can say with some authority that ziploc bags are just about the best container you can find.

* they're clear so you can see the stuff in them
* they seal so oil and crud isn't leaking out all the time
* you can get 'em with white label areas perfect for permanent marker
* places like McMaster-Carr have 'em in all sizes
* you can get 'em heavy (thick) enough to hold small castings, etc.

The heavy paper labels with tie-on strings were also indespensible. We tagged everything with it's name and location including right or left, top or bottom, etc. Made reassembly a WHOLE lot easier.

Good luck - save and label EVERYTHING! ;-)

 

just to add to what everyone else has said make sure that you have a file in your binder, computer or file folder that has the exact kind of car and year and model of any donor parts that you use trust me it will save you hours matching parts or digging through all you files for something (like the title to your donor car was it a park avenue or a montery) makes a big difference at the parts store provided that the person that is helping you knows how to use the books and not just the computer and if you are storing all your info on a computer back it up on a disk or cd computers have a habit of frying just speaking from experience on all the above things and good luck on your project



gee ooh:-X12