Father and Son 1955 Chevy Truck Build

[Cadillacmak]

Parts installed, starting work on the inner fenders!

 

[someotherguy]

Since this dent is shown in pictures here, I should tell the story. Otherwise everyone will wonder why we didn't pull it. First picture is no dent, second picture shows the dent.
I used four ratchet straps and hooks in the ceiling to remove the cab from the frame once. My thought was, that I could release one strap at a time slowly and set it on the ground. That was a very stupid thought! When I pulled as hard as I could on the tail and released the strap, the cab became a battering ram as it smashed through me and some bins on the wall and hit the ground. That's not to bad of a dent for the fall, so me or the other three straps (which unhooked somehow in all the violence) absorbed enough energy. Since its not seen, and serves as a reminder to not be stupid, we left the dent.
View attachment 1737View attachment 1738

Good thing the cab didn't take you out!

Now where have I seen that wheel chock method used before? Gave me just enough room using 4 of them to prop the bed up on Critter so I could chop out the homemade gooseneck mount and cut the frame for the C-notch. Y'all should've seen me using a combination of scissor jack, and floor jack with a piece of 4x4 lengthwise to jack the bed up to get the chocks under there. Sketchy is a good descriptor.





Hope y'all are feeling better from the flu soon.. take it easy and looking forward to more updates. So awesome your son is so involved with this build and the skills he's learning in the process. I feel like that's something I very sorely missed out on when I was growing up, and I had to play catchup on my own as a teenager, although with major guidance from my mentor/family-friend-become-family, Dennis, who ran the shop I was a helper at back when I was 18.

Richard

 

[Cadillacmak]

Now where have I seen that wheel chock method used before?

I am glad I am not the only one!

Hope y'all are feeling better from the flu soon.. take it easy and looking forward to more updates.

Thanks @someotherguy! The goal is to put it on the road this summer.

 

[Cadillacmak]

My son has been doing work on the inner fenders and they are getting close to paint time. I think he did a great job modifying the drivers for the power steering box.

 

[Cadillacmak]

Primed and sealed tonight, tomorrow we paint and clear coat. But as for the rest of the night, heading over to dads to play pinochle!

 

[Cadillacmak]

Paint and clear coat done! One step closer to a finished truck! Once again, my boy did a great job.

 

[ORVietVet]

No worries of overspray with the truck next to it?

 

[Cadillacmak]

No worries of overspray with the truck next to it?

Yes, its a problem! We have a cover coming for the truck, but from previous over spray the plan is to sand and clear coat the painted parts of the truck again. Kind of a lessons learned item, we hope to do better going forward. We didn't realize how far the spray would travel.

 

[Cadillacmak]

I was reminded today that I should show what we are using to paint. For primer we are spraying with this old Craftsman at around 24 psi. We are currently using the Axalta VS3000 primer. We heat the garage to around 75ish and open the door a bit to vent. We dont spray steady as I watch the fog as my boys sprays, I stop him and let the garage vent, and them tell him when he can start again. Might sound dangerous to some, but I have had a lot of training in explosive environments and play it really safe.

 

[Cadillacmak]

For sealer we are this War Wick HVLP and Nason Ful-Poxy 491-16. We swap the filters and regulator between guns.

 

[Cadillacmak]

We have found that it takes half the sealer as primer and a little more base coat than primer, then we mix the same amount of clear coat as sealer. Here is what we are using for base coat and clear coat. All four stages we follow the directions for mixing, pot times, and re-coat times.

 

[Cadillacmak]

Other items involved.

 

[Cadillacmak]

Started on the front driver fender last night. Cutting out rust and knocking out dents. Hoping to weld in the patches Saturday and start skim coating.

 

[Cadillacmak]

New grill just came in!

 

[bobthedog]

Dang! That is one heck of a build for anyone to take on. Will it be ready for this summer?

 

[Cadillacmak]

Dang! That is one heck of a build for anyone to take on. Will it be ready for this summer?

We are trying hard for this summer, its fully functional right now, just need to finish the body.

 

[ORVietVet]

Does it have some car/truck shows in it's future?

 

[Cadillacmak]

Does it have some car/truck shows in it's future?

Maybe a show and shine or two! It a good way for my boy to meet the old guys that actually know real things. The more of those guys you know, the better. Almost all of those guys I met when I was younger are gone now, just saw Mr. Paul's obit the other day.

 

[Cadillacmak]

Building a patch. We cut a piece of old steel out of a junk fender. Then we shape it into what we want and weld it up. I will post final pics when its done.

 

[Cadillacmak]

Sometimes you can hammer and dolly the metal straight but sometimes you have to pull it straight. Driver side fender is getting closer to paint.