Thank you Nate, I appreciate it. Just thought I would have had him a little longer. The thing that sucks the most is he didn't die of lukemia, he started throwing up and it cause him to have a heart attack. He was only 8 years old and he was my family. Thanks for the encouragement on my build, I decided to weld my hood myself and I took my time welding up the center. So far I have 10 hrs and plan to spend 2 or 3 more on the center before grinding it. The hood looks great and it did not warp. I only put 4 or 5 welds a 1' a part every 10 to 15 minutes and that did the trick.
It took 12 hrs,but my hood is welded and straight. I sandblasted my doors and primed the door jams and back side. Now to start on the body work on both
Skimmed the entire hood this weekend sanded it down and sprayed the first coat of finish sand yesterday. Now to blocked it.
The Details Rico ; Since you're clearly taking the time to do the best job you can , I remind you to finish paint both sides of everything ~ right now this will seem like too much extra work but in the years ahead , every time you're touching , repairing or simply admiring your truck , you'll be ever so glad you did , it prevents one from ever getting bored with it like happens to so many projects after a few years . I think you're going to have a stunner when it's finished .
Thanks Nate never thought about it. I was planning on undercoating the inside of most parts for noise. Front and rear fenders, inner front fenders, running boards wondering since I'm going to undercoat those parts will I need to paint the inside or not. I finished my hood and also the hood latch, last night I skimmed both doors will be sanding on them today. After going over the hood 4 different times it's finally straight
Again I say : WOW . Since you're obviously taking the time to do a stellar job , why not go whole hog ? . If you care , folks will love it when you pop the hood and the inside paint is as good as the outside paint... I'm having my '69 C/10 done right now and I had a little discussion about just this before I let him touch my truck ~ I said " finish paint top to bottom on ALL body sheet metal , ~ user the seat and behind the gas tank etc. " . He has done just this and I am ever so pleased . He painted the under side of the (perfect) cab floor in black ~ I could almost see my self in it but I told him straightaway : ' remember I said I want it green as when it was made ~ NO VARIATIONS if you want to get paid ' . When YOU foot the bill , you and you alone , get to make the choices that'll greatly effect how much you like the finished project in years to come .
Obtw : I don't give a rat's patoot what anyone thinks of my rig but I'm ever so picky about how it's built and assembled out of the various bits I choose , when I'd greasing my U-Joints 20 years later , looking up at the chassis done *just* the way I like it , makes me smile in spite of that dirty nasty job at hand .
I agree with you 100% Nate, anything you can see will be painted. Engine compartment and inside of cab. I had a vision of what I want the truck to look like when it's complete and I will not compromise what I want. Had a few people tell me to do it different and I just tell them this is my truck and I'm doing it my way. If that's what you think you can always go buy your own truck and do your way. You know what's funny, I have never done any of this work you see I'm doing. I decided what I want, do lots of research and then do it.
Rico~ Every piece of newly (?) painted metal on my truck looks just as good on the backside as the outside. It was a real (fill in the space) to do, but the thing is, I want my truck to live forever, and my thought is, if you give rust a stronghold, you messed up. These trucks are old. When cancer sits in, good luck getting it out. If you have selling this rig as the end result, skip the hard/extra work of reaching every nook and cranny. They won't have the time (or the ability) to see if it is just as good everywhere as what they can see. Besides~ the buyer would no doubt be a man, and when a man sees a shiney new thing, they could care less about the baggage, right? My paint job was done by me, so it isn't show quality. However, every piece I painted looked just about like yours. All the way down to bare metal, self etched, primed, and then painted a couple of coats followed by clear. (for those sun exposed parts) The frame was the same way, except most all of it was brushed on Rustoleum. Your ride is looking awesome, and that is what really matters. Thanks for all the photo updates, I have really enjoyed the journey!
Thank you Zig, your one of the reasons I keep putting pictures up. I know you appreciate seeing them and it helps me stay inspired to keep going even when I can't see the light at the end of the tunnel. This road I'm on is soooooo long I'm finding out it being my first time. I go the extra mile on this truck with ever step because I plan on driving this thing until the wheels fall off. One of the reason's I'm putting such high end stuff on it. If it ever gets finished it will be one if a kind, but I know it won't be the only one custom, but it will have my touch of what I like and it will be all mine. lol
Well more set backs, found out you should be able to run a 1/8" paint stick down both sides of the door in order to clear for opening and paint. Mine did not. So after all the bodywork I had to sand both sides of both doors, drill 1/4" in every 6" down with a 1/8" bit and then weld the holes so when I grinded the side of the door it would not separate. Then after I got my 1/8" gap I had to weld the seem of the doors then redo the bodywork. MAN what a project. Finished the bodywork again and finally moving on to the priming stage
Front fenders, grill, inner fenders and front roll pan all in primer. I also received my bed sides from Mar-K I liked them so much I order a black tailgate with hidden hinges from them
Oh HECK yes! Holy cow that is some mighty fine work! The amount of time you have spent on attention to detail is staggering, but SO well worth it! It seems like it won't be too long before we see it in final paint? Thanks for the update!
Thank you guy's really do appreciate the kind words. It is slowly coming along, I had no idea the amount of work I was going to put into it. There is so much to do, but I starting to see light at the end of the tunnel even though it's a very small light. Hopefully I will have everything in primer in the next 2 weeks then I have to put the truck together to make sure everything fits. I also ordered running boards from the guy on eBay. His name is Tony,very nice guy to deal with. Once I mount everything then take it apart finish the wet sanding and get it painted. I CAN'T WAIT.
Awesome Looks good Rico as aways have you picked a color yet? Thanks for the pics they teach us and keep us motivated as well Robert
