i started down this road with what i thought was a 1 year project now i have a truck that dosent have one bolt or screw in it fri i was going to wire bursh the frame and found all the shakel bushing shot so now i have a bare frame sitting on saw horses. went to shut up the garage and realized i have to put a whole truck togather from scratch is being overwhelmed at this stage a common problem

 

Let me be the first to tell you YES !!!!!! Then go get another truck and do it all over again cuz the first frame is too rusted....ok that part may just be me, but yes, it's a long roaad ahead, but oh what a journey it will be...and the end result will be well worth it.

 

A famous person (Havi maybe) said that “Anyone who can take a truck apart, can also put it back together better then it was before”! <O</O

 

Reassembly is the fun part....keep everything in perspective........if you got a 59 Vette for free and it had bum-shackles.......would you be upset??????Sheeeesh,.......they're only shackles.......now - back to the fun !!!

 

like they all said, welcome to the great family of fun. my 49 went the same path as your truck.i have redone the whole frame and suspension,put a 9 inch in it,and went with power disc brake's and the toyota power steering box.and all i was going to do at the start was paint it. need help just ask.

 

Dang, some people just have ALL the fun!

 

create a picture of finished project, then put it on the wall. now, every time you start to "fix" a part, look at the end result on the wall. nuff said!

 

As Havi said...."Yes"

...but (and I doubt this will make you feel any better) you can take a little solace in the fact that you are at rock bottom and probably won't get any worse. Its all uphill now.
I know the feeling you have right now, heck, I'm pretty sure we all do. Oh, and here's a nother tidbit that probably won't make you feel any better.....you will probably fall into this rut several times over the course of this build.....lol

There are several things you can do; the first and easiest is to walk away for awhile. The truck won't even notice and will still be there when you get back to it. Second, try not to focus on the big picture (its too overwhelming) break it up into some smaller tasks and then focus on those, maybe even make a list. For example, focus on the rear springs, then maybe the front springs. Its amazing how good the sense of accomplishment makes you feel when you reach one of your small goals. It helps to keep you going.

Another thing that kind of helps is to hit some local caar shows or swap meets, come on this site and check out other peoples trucks, etc. I get alot of motivation that way.

Don't worry too much, it happens to all of us
Bobby

 

My frame is close to where yours is. Only the back end is on sawhorses. This past weekend I cleaned up and painted the outer cases of my heater. That made me feel better. I might even bring them in the house and display them for a year or so! Little victories.
Mike

 

Yes it can be overwhelming if you let it be.
Start thinking smaller. Just concentrate on the frame and then the engine etc. If you run from frame, to fender, to seat, glass etc. You will tripping over yourself and losing parts in the process.
After a little time and constant work you will see it coming along. My first year I managed to work on mine everyday and it really was moving along. Now I have a 17 month old son and I work on it 2-3 days a week weather permitting. While my neighbors set in their back yards taking it easy IM full go. By the time Sunday night arrives IM wore out, but I keep driving at it. I have to finish what IM doing.
I wanted to have it on the roa dthis syummer but in reality it will probably be next summer.

 

OK let's do the math here; Truck 50+ yrs old, little or no maintenance. Jump in there, take your time, do it right. Shackle bushing aren't that hard to replace and like all have sadi above, the finished product will give you pride.

 

Joel, as you can see, I guess we have all been in this position. My problem in the past was, once there, I had a habit of not progressing and finally selling the project. Bobby has some good advise, take baby steps, the big picture will overwhelm you. I know myself well enough that I do my work in small pieces now. The drawback to this is that you have to remove and replace the same pieces several times to get at the next piece. But it works for me. I like to drive my truck so I haven't disassembled it enough to keep it out of commission for more that a couple of week. I'm sure that will change as I get further into it.

Gil

 

Joel,

welcome to FTE. Listen to all this good advice...baby steps... small bites... smaller goals. Don't ever think of it as putting together a whole truck. It's like building a house of cards (and almost as stable) You don't think about the top room that uses card # 49-52. You think about the first four cards when you're starting.. the same is true with the truck. think about the frame and get it like you want it. Then the suspension... then the brakes... build each room right and you won't have a problem.

I've had mine from bare frame up to cab and bed installed and tilt front end working... then tore it all back down and started over... so I've been where you are two times

We're all here to help you, encourage you, laugh at you and brag on you when you finish each part and post the pictures

One more encouraging thought... you'll actually put this truck together about 3 times before you complete it and drive away.... just thought I'd cheer you up a little, bunkie.

Just don't let it get to be a chore that has to be done... it's supposedly enjoyment... including all the blood and stitches and thrown wrenches and lost parts...and over balance Visas... it's all fun...

enjoy it...

later
John

 

I run into this allot when a customer has a huge list of things they want done on their racecars. I try to set goals for the day in your case set a goal of cleaning and painting the frame. Then getting your spring bushings done and the suspension back in. If you brake it down to smaller things it is not too bad. I tell people it is easy to take them apart but it takes determination to put one back together and driving.

Now you are doing what I call thank less work, you will work for weeks and get all of the suspension done just to cover it up with the body so no one can see it unless they lay on their back.

Take plenty of pictures so you can see just how far you have come when you get to feeling like you are not making any progress.

Hope this helps, Mike

 

Joel,
I too am in the same position as you. I feel like I'm not making enough progress or I'll be sitting on the porch drinking a frosty beverage and I'll get to thinking about all the little stuff to do on a project like this and a feeling will come over me like "are you kidding yourself? you'll never be able to do all this!" Then I make myself only focus on what I am working on and I will look at all the before pics and realize how far I have already come. Mine has been tuff from the very begining. The PO gave me false info on the type front clip and rear end that was under the truck and an old 351W out of a van that was beyond worn out! All I got out of it was a block! So yeah it will over whelm you but just concentrate on one thing at a time and before you know it you will be broke! BUT you will be riding around in a truck that YOU built from scratch! Lakota