I see in the catalogs that you can buy the sheet metal, the glass and weather stripping for a 5 Window cab. Is it realistic to cut the rear window section out of a 3 window and replace it with the 5 window parts? I'm not afraid of the body work or the welding. Is there any experience with this transformation? Good idea - bad idea? Not diving into this but curoius. I really like the 5 window look. Cheers!
Yep, just cut the factory spot welds and seams, remove the panels, replace the new panels and voila! you can see. Sounds simple, doesn't it? I'm sure much swearing is involved....
A Popular Conversion .....Usually done by lopping the top off a donor cab . It's a good/bad deal in that GM used a pinchweld under the body moulding~ God because it allows you much leeway in welding and boo-boos . Bad as the darned pinchweld is where the tin worm likes to hide and rust is not fun . Best bet is to find a BIG 'Bolt with a Nu-View cab and get that , Big 'Bolts are usualy cheap even if running and many came equipped with the Nu-View option as GM pushed it as a safety item.... Big 'Bolts tend to have less floor rust issues too and yes , the _cab_ is identical to your little 1/2 ton pickup's . Or , if you're confident in your welding skills , buy the panels and have at it , please take lots of pictures and remember to measure THRICE , cut / weld but once .
I like the nuview much better for visibility, especially since that is what they are for. The other thing that I have found by being a student of Ebay and watching the "other pickups" section of Chevrolet is that the 5 window will bring about $1,000 more everything else being equal. Gater
I actually think 3 window trucks look better. The more I look at my 5 window, the shape of the rear window bugs me. I think it needs to be the same height as the corner glass. My next truck will be a 3 window (I already bought it).
3 Window Vs. 5 Window Cabs Just do your homework before you buy ~ everyone I know was flabbergasted when I bought a 3 window plain jane pickup but since I spend a lot of time way the hell and gone in the desert and I'm fair complexioned , I knew I don't like all that sun streaming in the back of the cab and toasting my neck after a hard day's work .
I think I read where someone is offering a conversion kit, including the glass. If your good with computer searches you might bring it up. I'd check with Dynacorn, the company making the repro cabs and ask if they know who is maybe offering this kit. If they are decent guys and since they are in a related business they very likely would know. I chase down a lot of parts by touching bases with those in a similar line and having them steer me in the right direction. It might take several calls to zero in and occasionally you run into a butthole but even that is educational since you can cross them off any future purchase list.
Thanks for the thoughts. Since I live in TX the issue of the sun and heat makes sense. The other issue is that I have a zero rust cab right now. I have a hard time leaving things alone... This is a fun truck to dream about. I'm pretty sure that it will continue to be different year after year.
' LeVING tHINGS aLONE " LOL ! I hear you Bruce ; That's the joy of these old Chevvies , even when you've ' finished ' it , there will always be some tinkering , fiddling or adjusting needed , that's the nature of 1040's technology Just don't forget to take it out and DRIVE it from time to time !
I completely agree. I'm ready to get the big stuff done so I can spend more time driving it than working on it... The gas tank is out right now. The Phosphoric Acid and BBs and a big chain are in there. WOW - it's pretty nasty in there. While I've got all this out - I'm thinking about cleaning the floor up and putting down a few coats of bed liner.
Fuel Tank Fun Remember : If you strain the nasty Phosphoric Acid juice back into a jug through some clean felt lain in a BIG funnel , you can re - use it a few times to remove ever more rust and crud until it's 1000 % squeaky clean , then consider buying a tank liner kit from POR or Red Kote or even your local Moto shop , YOU will do a better job than any radiator shop will because you'll stay on top of it turning and turning and turning.... BTW : Yesterday I passed a '54 5 window cab pickup with a '53 grille on it , that looks pretty nice , maybe I shoulda bought a 3 window '54 / '55.1 and slapped an early nose on it , safer doors , VENT WINGS , that B I G panoramic windshield I coulda slapped a shaded glass in there and maybe a sun visor too...... Hmmmmmmmm
Yeppers! Strained it once already. Will do it again tomorrow. I fixed up a sling to one of the rails to my garage door. I put the tank in the sling and I can shake the bigeebers out of it all by myself. Rotate it a 1/4 turn and shake again. Keep rotating and shaking and then let it soak for an hour or so. Hopefully it will get cleaned to a point that I can salvage it.
DANG IT! I've been searching and I've figured out that Big Bolts are, I think, 1 1/2 ton and up old trucks. Correct? But, why are they called Big Bolts???
I can guess. These old trucks are called Stovebolts. The big trucks are bigger so they are called Big Bolts? Simple explanation but I am a simple guy. Gater
Correctamundo ! And the nice thing about Big 'Bolts is , that crusty old one you barely see over in the treeline across that meadow , usually has good doors , gauges & dash parts , seat frames , a heater , hood hinges and other high wear items , all in VGC although the engine , tranny etc. are all long gone . Give 'em a look when you find 'em .
Brought my gas tank to the rad shop to have them clean it out. Wanted to charge me over $300.00 to clean and line it. Just had them clean it for $70.00. Figured it was the best $70.00 I spent on the project yet. didn't figure it needed to be lined as it's inside the cab and wasn't rusty and couldn't see it being rusty. Had gas in it already and there were no leaks, so I didn't have it lined. Probably easier than phosphoric acid, BB's, chains and hanging it from the ceiling LOL. Guy at the rad shop was all about me having it lined, though. Said the stuff in the tank would plug up my fuel filter, but I have been running it (although not driving it) since July and don't see any junk in the fuel filter or in the screen of the glass bowl fuel pump. I think the fuel pump is giving me problems though. Found the pump on the shelf of a really old timey FLAPS. Airtex that had been sitting in the store for 30 plus years. Initially, it seemed to pump very well, but now it seems to be getting weaker and weaker, barely filling the fuel filter enough to soak the bottom of the paper element. I'm thinking that the diaphragm in the pump is just old from sitting for so long and/or can't handle the ethanol in today's gasoline and is giving up slowly but surely. I have a rebuild kit I picked up at the Hershey meet in October. I am going to try and rebuild just the top end of the pump as the vacuum side looks good (don't ask why I took the vacuum side apart). However, I'm also thinking that maybe the guy at the rad shop was right and the tank is giving off debris because it wasn't lined and that debris is now clogging up the pickup screen in my original gas tank sending unit. I've noticed that the replacements don't have a screen on the pickup in the tank like the original ones did. Any thoughts on this fuel delivery problem? I watch the fuel filter when the engine is running and fuel barely dribbles out of the line into the filter even though the glass bowl on the pump is full to the top. When first installed, the pump filled the filter with no problem and seemd to pump great. Watcha all think? Andy
Andy ; If they did a good job there'll be NO junk to clog up anything . If you're using a late model top typ fuel pickup instead of the original bottom feed AD tank , you're in luck ! you can easily make up an intake screen out of some brass mesh screen and tie it on with stailness steel wire . -OR- go to brand F dealer and buy one of thier intake socks , they're really well made and slip right over the open end of the intake pipe . To test in situ ; disconnect the fuel pump's inlet line , fuel should (MUST) come GUSHING out in a stream as big around as the inner diameter of the pipe ~ if not , remove the filler cap as it may be a non vented typ (wrong & bad) or the vent may have simply rusted closed (easy to fix , soak in White Vinegar overnight) . lemme know what turns as SWMBO is yelling I gotta go taske window screens to be repaired now .
Andy, Interesting thing I noted while I had everything apart. As you stated, I did not have a screen on the intake line on the sending unit. The intake was almost completely plugged with junk. It reminded me of the pictures you see of a clogged artery. I would guess that only about 20% of the line was open.
Success! The tank is CLEAN! It took 3 days and multiple soaks ans shakes but the result is a very clean tank. It is sitting right now with a gallon of Denatured Alcohol inside. I've been shaking that around to rinse it and remove any water before I seal it. While I was letting the tank soak I pulled the bumpers and running boards off and brought them to a buddy to get sand blasted. I'm going to paint the bumpers flat black and spray bed liner on the running boards. I really like the look of Jim's truck. Hopefully he wont mind the flattery...
black bumpers It's an honest old 3 window farm (retired) truck, just like yours Bruce, a 3 window with bed liner on the running boards and black enamel rustoleum on the bumpers. Glad you like it. Jim
