Well, I finally got up enough nerve to show you guys my project. First of all, it's not a hot rod. I'm building a daily driver. It's got a 4.3 v6, vortec heads, throttle body injection on an eldebrock mainfold, mustang II front suspension, chevy 10 bolt posi w/3.23 gears, chassis engineering rear suspension set up, 700r4 tranny, and vintage air. I want the truck to appear to be stock, cause I love the look. I'm still few months out from finishing, but it runs now. I hope your not too mad since it's not the ol 216 it came with!!
That is one clean looking ride 48aero . Nothing wrong with combining the new with the old & it looks very well done. Thanks for Sharing . Bob
wow!!! great work, you have done so much to it. remember that its your truck so no matter what you do to it, its right!!! thanks for the pics i wish mine was that clean
Looking Good A bit of all the same color paint hides a multitude of sins Wolf . If you saw my battered '49 3100 shop truck up close , you'd be amazed I drive it where I do . Keep at it , painting piece by piece is allowed too , not many millionaires here....
Thanks for all the comments. It's been a project. I've replaced all the floors, lower cowls, and cab corners. I've been at it for a year and a half. I tell everybody that's interested, it's all about time and money, LOTS OF BOTH!!!!! Next is to build the doors and the wood bed. I'm installing power windows, and have decided not to be married to my wood. I'm going to use boiled linseed oil to finish them. I lived on a boat for 15 years and got very very tired of varnishing wood. What's the feedback on linseed oil?
Any oil needs routine maintenance! Oils are great, but they are very susceptible to the elements. Wood loves oil, but some don't absorb uniformly, based solely on the different porosity within the same wood. I love teak oil on wood, but you've got to treat it constantly. If you want something "high mantenance", treat it with some type of oil, otherwise, go with poly. It is more user friendly. Just my 3 cents, adjusted for inflation!
Wood Oils Well ; I'm using Tong Oil on some plywood I leave outside 24/7 , it's several years old and still going strong . Personally , for a work truck , I think many coats of _thinned_ black paint is the way to go , thinning (reducing) it before applying makes it absorb into the hard pine better , takes a few days to get enough coats on it to stop sucking it in but you then have a durable , long lasting bed surface . of course you know to treat the wood out of the bed so you can liberally coat the raw ends and underside of each and every piece , that's the key for longevity . Maybe you could borrow my truck for a year and return it looking like yours ? it's go no rust holes anywhere on it being aCalifornia truck and all.... Runs pretty good too
Hey 48 - i know nothing bout linseed oil, but i read a good article about using marine grade varnish (poly?) that made sense to me since I will have the truck with me about 1 mile from Atlantic ocean and I figured that was best with the sea salt in the air - as you probably know with your boat experience. So that is what I used. I started with the red oak pre-cut planks. I stained with an exterior grade stain - 2-3 coats until I got the color I wanted figuring it would fade in the sun. Then I gave it 4-5 coats of the marine grade polypropelyne (?). I made certain to treat all ends/edges, top/bottom, even the drilled holes got the stain and the varnish the same. I plan to use this truck as such, so I know it won't look this good for long, but that is what a camera is for! It really did not take that long. It was just the drying time in-between, and I hit it with some steel wool in-between, but I did not go crazy with it because it is not a piece of furniture for me. So far, I am pleased with it, but it has not yet been time or stress tested. Absolutely AWESOME job on the rest of the truck so far. It is STUNNING! Keep up the good work.
