Hmmm, yeah, I think I like the new look better that what I had going on before!
i think it looks awsome, i liked it before but i like it alot better now. great job.. im defanitly doing somthing like this to the 72 .i love the smooth dash great job:metal:

i think it looks awsome, i liked it before but i like it alot better now. great job.. im defanitly doing somthing like this to the 72 .i love the smooth dash great job:metal:

Thanks man!!!!

Frizz - That sounds cool..... until I'm driving at night around a corner and it starts to rain. My luck would be I go to clap for the wipers, and the headlights shut off!! :haha:

Bob's been busy!!! Looking good though Bob....a very much old school clean look!

Thanks Alex! Still scratching my head on the glove box door, I think I can come up with something totally off the wall yet....

Didn't get any work done to the truck, but spend one and a half MUCH needed days cleaning up the shop, getting a bunch of parts that don't need to be in the shop out to the shed. Now I can get the chassis out of the shop and roll it into the other shop. Then I will have a ton of room to do the final prep work so I can lay on some primer!

BTW, all those parts I mentioned?? Look in the for sale forum, I have a bunch of stuff there to get rid of!

Woo-hoo! Just won this on eBay, $15!!!!

http://i15.ebayimg.com/02/i/000/b4/3f/0954_1.JPG

And I have one of these to put on it somehow:

http://www.classicparts.com/images/22-851.jpg

Or maybe this one, the ends are shaped more like the door:

http://www.classicparts.com/Zoom/22-850.JPG

I think the Corvair door will look real good with your setup! I personally like the trim with the bowtie better as a replacement for the Monza.

Thanks Bill! I really like the one with the bowtie too, in fact I already have one. But I'm keeping the other one in mind since the angle on the ends fit the angle on the doors better. I will just have to see what the one I have looks like when the door gets here. :metal:

Whew, I got a lot done tonight!!!








:lol:, well OK, not really. I got two holes drilled! When I clean out the shop this weekend, I found the box that has my Rockford Fosgate tweeters, mids, and crossovers in it. I had been planning on installing the tweeters in the dash, but since I found them, and I was just hanging out in the shop messing with the TV, I thought I would go ahead and mark & drill the holes for them. Made a template to fit the top of the dash, the marked both sides, then drilled two 1-1/2" holes. They will sit flush on the dash. The top of the dash will be covered with tweed between the glass and the dash pad, so I think they will look good sitting up there.

And I threw in two gratuitous shots of the dash with the pad sitting on there.

hey glock nice work. Oh by the way are you planning to put you mids close to your tweeters??? The reason why i say is that usually tweeters and mids are supposed to be fairly close within each otherwise you will have a system that sounds like its all high or barely any highs if your mids are closer. We did something similar to what you're doing and when we were done we turned up the system and because the tweets were closer to us than the mids (we mounted those in a custom fiberglass enclosure down by your feet) the sound was definitely out of balance. We heard too much high frequencies rather than a even sound.

I got these as a set. Two mids and 4 tweeters. In my old truck (2003 Chevy) it had the OEM mids & tweets in the door, and tweets on the A pillars. I replaced the OEM ones with this Fosgate set. I am going to set this up very similar to what the 2003 was. Except I didn't want the upper tweets on the pillar, so I put them in the dash. The other tweets and mids will be in the doors, but as high up as I can get them, and angled slightly up and back to resemble, as closely as possible, the OEM placement of the 2003 Chev door speakers.

They come with the tweets as a part of the speaker, but also have several different "cups" that allow you to install them in something, or surface mounted at different angles. I separated the tweets from the speakers and mounted them by themselves when I had them in the 2003.

http://www.sicorpusa.com/audio/Rockford/P162S/P162Simage2.jpg

I had a set up similar to that in my 04 tahoe but i made the factory door panel custom by heavily modifying it. I had a mid driver and tweeter set up molded into the panels with fiberglass then painted to match the truck and then custom fiberglass kick panels with a mid range and tweeter set up. it sounded like the stock bose system i had in there prior but much much more refined. highs and mids were clearly distinguished plus i ditched the stock sub in the console for a bigger one plus what i added in the rear.

Cool! UPS came today with the Corvair glove box door. It is in real nice shape! So, of course, the first thing I did was to take it apart! :metal:

I actually consists of 4 parts: the outer chrome ring, the aluminum front piece just underneath the trim ring, and steel piece behind that, then the stamped steel piece that makes up the back side. I think the only thing I will use will be the trim ring (top piece in 2nd pic). I believe I will use the rear stamped piece as a pattern, and cut one piece of 16 gauge to match that will act as the front and back. There is actually a groove that runs along the backside of the trim ring that will allow me to screw on the hinge to the new piece I cut out. Make sense? :crazy: LOL......

After debating on how to finish the piece I will cut and use, I think it would look cool if it was body color, with the chrome trim ring around it, and one of the two OEM glove box trim pieces I posted above stuck on it. I will use the trucks OEM push button latch, as I have a brand new one.

I think I will like this better than my slimmed down OEM door! I guess I have some new wall art!

Oh, I'm also debating on whether to use the door shape as shown, or turn it upside-down (longer edge at the top, instead of at the bottom). Keep in mind, there is no longer anything on the dash resembles the original shape of the gauge bezel or the glove box door other than the very ends of the dash.

I think if you used it up-side down it would look better jmho. and go with the body color that atomic orange will look nice against each other!

Yeah, I'm thinking upside down too. And definitely body color in the middle!

OK, got it torn apart and cut a new piece for the center. Here are a few different shots of it. First is the door upside down (from it OEM position) with the 67-68 glove box emblem on it. Second is the door without the emblem, and third is the door right side up as it would be in the Corvair.

Myself, I like it upside down without the emblem (#2), and the flat piece painted body color. I could either ditch the emblem all together, or put is on the dash directly under the door, or above it....... :crazy:

Myself, I like it upside down without the emblem (#2), and the flat piece painted body color. I could either ditch the emblem all together, or put is on the dash directly under the door, or above it....... :crazy:



I'm with you...this will look great!

I like the first one, just flipped with the decal

This might actually work! I was a little bummed last night after cutting and fitting the new center piece, but not able to find a good way to attach it. Originally, there were little studs sticking up that were mashed down to "trap" the other plates. Of course, those had to be ground off to the the original plates off.

I ground the little studs off and drilled holes in the new plate, but I couldn't find any countersunk screws small enough in my shop that would work. Finally, when I was ready to come in, I remembered I needed to pull the cover off my shop calculator to see what battery it needed. When I got my little bitty screwdriver set out of my toolbox, underneath it was a bag of ..... little tiny screws!

They worked perfectly too! Now, I need to decide whether to use this one, or cut the same exact shape out of billet aluminum. The reason I bought this one in the first place was to use the shape as a template for cutting an aluminum one. But this one is kinda growing on me. I think I might go ahead and cut an aluminum one and see which one I like better. I can say this though, the aluminum one will be MUCH easier to attach the hinge to.

I like that Bob!!! I think will match up real nice to gauges you've chosen!!!

Is she gonna step out of that flat yellow coat and slip into something more comfortable like along the lines of an Atomic overcoat....soon???

Alex

Well, this weekend ensured that it will happen sooner! I finally got the bottom piece of the dash cut out and tacked in place. Since I cut the entire center out, I had a gap along the bottom side of the dash. I decided that instead of just cutting a piece to fill in the gap, I would weld a piece all the way across. This also helped to fix the problem off the bottom piece being so beat up that it waved back at you!

Also got both front fenders completely sanded inside and out, the spot welds on the ends and one shipping ding in the tailgate fixed, and started sanding on the drivers door. Need to pull the drivers door and finish sanding it, finish sanding the hood, and the inside of the bed. Then I can break out the primer!

As far as the cab goes, I just need to finishing placing some more tacks welds on the dash, seam seal the rest, and it's ready to prime also. Oh, and most important, cut out glove box!!!!

Very Nice!!! Gonna look great in that stuff called "Paint"!!!

Oh yes, I completely agree! :metal:

I got the "new" hood in the shop today. It's off of my 68 K10 parts truck, and other than one little kink on the front under the last "E", it is in perfect shape!

Hint, hint....... I have a very nice 68 K10 LWB for sale, the bed is about 98%. The front clip, minus hood :) is also beautiful. The cab had some work done on it already when I bought it, but needs a little touch up. I also have a 72 rolling chassis that goes with it. Front disc brakes and a Rockwell transfer case! I'll be posting up some WIW pics tomorrow to get an idea of what it's worth.

The UPS truck delivered a 5/16" x 12" x 18" piece of 6061 aluminum plate today, that gives me enough to screw up once! As I said earlier, I made a template from the Corvair door, but narrowed it by 2". I got the basic shape cut out a little bit ago, and got the corners smoothed out on the belt sander. Now I need to put it in the mill and mill the top and bottom perfectly flat, then blend the corners into the flats again. Then I need to cut the hole for the latch button. I'll be using an OEM button.

Man, cutting and sanding aluminum makes a mess! :lol: My son laughed at me when he saw me cutting it..... welders hat, goggles, respirator mask, ear muffs, and a long sleeve jacket. But I can safely say I did not inhale any aluminum dust, and there is none in my eyes ears hair, or my arm pits! :lol:

I will post up some pics later tonight, it's dinner time! :metal:

Finally, some pictures!

Last night I got the glove box door cut out of the aluminum and cleaned up the corners on the belt sander. Also cut the hole for the button latch. I still need to put it in the mill and mill the top and bottom flat, and also drill and tap the holes for the hinge.

I still had the pattern that I used to cut the piece for the flat dash, so I cut another for the passenger side so I could do all this on the bench. I wanted to be sure I have the opening size and shape all figured out before I cut the dash on the truck.

I'll end up using piano hinge, and it took a few attempts to get one cut right so that when you look at the door, you don't see any gaps or open holes around the hinge. The catch at the top is a slightly modified original part.

The back side of the dash will have a frame made from 1" angle and will have more than one purpose; it will provide the structure for the hinge and the catch to mount to, it will also be attached to the dash sheetmetal to keep the sheetmetal rigid, and it will be where the glove box itself attaches to.

The very last picture of this group shows my idea of where to cut the ball milled grooves. What do ya'll think of the location , spacing and length of them??

The way the angle is clamped to the back is NOT the way it will be in the truck....similar, but this was just to stiffen it up while working on the template.

more....

last ones.....

OK, one more. This is the idea I have for the location of the ball milled grooves. I don't know if each pair is too far apart, or just right. They are based on the top set with one running up to the center of the button, and the other right between the top of the button and the top of the dorr itself.

I can't wait to see this thing with the grooves and all polished up!!!! :metal:

**EDIT: I went back out and added another groove top and bottom, I think I like that better. I also think I like the emblem on here better than the original Corvair door.

Bob , That looks GREAT!!!

Thanks Alex!

Well, I took the plunge! Made the paper template off the mock-up piece I made and laid it out on the dash. Then went to it with the jig saw.

I sure hope it's right!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That is going to look so good when you get it all hooked up!! :metal:

Thanks guys! I get more and more excited about this every time I get a little something else accomplished!

Speaking of accomplished, the glove box door is almost complete. I am still waiting on the ball mill, so I though I would get it sanded down as best as possible. I also ordered a couple buffing wheel and a couple different polishing compounds from Eastwood this morning.

This is just from some sanding with 320 grit and hand polishing with Never Dull wadding cloth, and the pristine OEM button I got from LocDoc. I also rounded the front edge slightly with a couple hand files and some 150 grit emery cloth.

Pretty!! :D

:metal:

Slick, slick, slick! Get er on der!!!

Oh man!!!!! Sweet!!!

Looks AWESOME Bob!

I don't care what you say....you are da man when it comes to metal fabrication!

:metal::metal::bling2:

Thanks Larry! Unfortunately, I blew that though outta the water Monday night. The ball mill arrived and I set the door up in the mill to cut the grooves. Not sure what happened, but after about cutting 6"-7" of a PERFECT groove, the cutter suddenly pulled itself in real deep then broke! So that door is officially jacked up! :whine:

Luckily, I bought enough material to cut out another door. So for now, I will cut out another one and polish it, then just attach the emblem. Maybe down the road I can have a machine shop try to cut them. Or I'll just leave it alone!

To add insult to injury...... UPS delivered the buffing kit I ordered from Eastwood on Tuesday, the day after I screwed it up! :banghead:

Progress will probably be slowed down for a little while now. Snowmobiling season is coming up, and I need to get the sleds ready. I need to put the new motor in Mama's machine, and I am building a sled to pull behind mine. It will be used to haul the gas cans and the tubs with food and clothes to the cabin each time we go up.

Playing in the snow is the ONE thing that can easily prevent me from working on the truck! Nothing like having 5'-6' of air underneath ya!

How exactly were u cuttin the grooves, all at once? What i mean is what was ur depth while machining? DId u take the entire groove at once? Sounds like the mill got a little dull and maybe grabbed a piece of the uncut aluminum, then pulled out of the chuck. If u were doin it all at once, i would recommend instead only taking 20 - 25 thousandths of an inch at a time untill ur at depth. Ive worked at a machine shop for the past three summers, and we worked with aluminum a lot. It seems to cut easy, but really is quite gummy, and hard, which is why its such an awesome metal. Good luck with the second door, it looks awesome by the way. Nice job...

BRAD

I think I have a worthy goal in mind for having it finished. :haha: A goal that has the ability to change each month, with an ultimate finish date in October. The A&W in Eaton has a car show once a month. I'll start with trying to have it done by the August show. If that don't work, I'll shoot for the September show. If that don't work, then the October show will be a MUST!

:drama:

Apparently, I forgot what my goal was!!!! :haha:

Ah, what can I say. It's snowmobiling season!! I have got a few parts bought though. So I guess I could call that progress.

New Years weekend, just down the trail from our cabin:

How exactly were u cuttin the grooves, all at once? What i mean is what was ur depth while machining? DId u take the entire groove at once? Sounds like the mill got a little dull and maybe grabbed a piece of the uncut aluminum, then pulled out of the chuck. If u were doin it all at once, i would recommend instead only taking 20 - 25 thousandths of an inch at a time untill ur at depth. Ive worked at a machine shop for the past three summers, and we worked with aluminum a lot. It seems to cut easy, but really is quite gummy, and hard, which is why its such an awesome metal. Good luck with the second door, it looks awesome by the way. Nice job...

BRAD

Yeah, I got a little too aggressive with it. I've never messed with aluminum before. Fortunately, I ordered enough billet to do two. I knew I would screw one up!!

Well, this is kind of an update. I spoke to another good friend of mine who is a painter. He is coming over next week after we get back from vacation to look the truck over and give me an idea of what it will cost me to have him put it in color. The guy that did the initial body work has his new business up and running and is 3 months behind! Good for him, that's a good problem to have right now!

If I can get him to paint it sometime this summer or fall, then it's just a matter of starting reassembly. I have all new, and I mean ALL new parts, hiding in Rubbermaid crates ready to be installed.

Stay tuned...........

Geez....it's about time! Just Kidding! How ya doing Bob?

LOL, I know, I know.....

I'm doing great man, and you? Been working on the 5th wheel getting it ready for this weekend. Heading to the Royal Gorge on Saturday, and taking the family on the Royal Gorge Route train. My son loves trains, and I've been keeping him guessing as to what we are "riding on" this Sunday. He is gonna freak!

Bob, Good to see your Build thread pop up near the front, LOL!!! Any time you are down my way stop by the shop...check out your shortened frame progress!

LOL, I know, I know.....

I'm doing great man, and you? Been working on the 5th wheel getting it ready for this weekend. Heading to the Royal Gorge on Saturday, and taking the family on the Royal Gorge Route train. My son loves trains, and I've been keeping him guessing as to what we are "riding on" this Sunday. He is gonna freak!

I'm doing good Bob. I knew I liked your little guy....I am a train person too. My wife and I went to the Golden Spike site last summer in Promontory Utah. They have replicas of the steam locomotives that were at the spike ceremony. They were quite impressive. Have fun on the Royal Gorge train!

Bob the truck is looking great! Can't wait to see what new updates come our way. I lvoe the inspiration you guys' trucks bring for the build that's going to start when I get back :)

You know I love to add feul to the fire. Your switches for your head lights wipers and ignition would look awesome in a small version of the dash gauges shape. Or use that messed up glove box door to make a benzel that matches your heater and A/C controls Either way I would say they need to angle out the same as the gauges.

Now that I have boasted my oppinion, I gotta say, its looking GREAT.

Just a big grinning Thanks Bob!...for stopping by the GatorHyde Shop!!! Good ole' Glock stopped by yesterday, we shot the truck sheet for a few hours , had some mexican lunch, talked more truck, showed him the progress of my BBC project OverKill (that Bob was the master metal melter firing up the plasma and Miller to the frame)...always a good chat with Glock!!! Can't wait to see some more progress with your 68' Bob!!! A T O M I C O R A N G E!!!

Any updates?

WOW, I apparently have not been getting emails for new replies! I had no idea there were recent replies to the thread!

Alex, ALWAYS good to talk to you brother! That big block looks freakin awesome!

As far as updates, well about the only update I have is the measurable dust on the truck grew by 1/8". :haha: Seriously though, it has been a crazy busy summer, and I have done nothing to the truck at all. The guy that was suppose to come over to look at it to give me an estimate on paint hasn't showed up, he says he is swamped since he fired all his bum help and is now doing everything by himself. Can't blame him though, he's busy so that is good for him.

Sadly, I'm losing the desire to work on it, and at times wish I could just trade it off for a real nice running truck that I could just get in and drive. As the kids get older I find myself doing more with them (which I WANT to do) and less time to be in the shop. Maybe this winter will change my mind, as we probably won't go snowmobiling quite as much as we did last year. If that's the case, hopefully I can find my way out to the shop more often.

OK, enough of the :waah:

Sounds like me last year but now imma back full force and working on the truck every chance I get..

I think we all go through that at one point. Hopefully, you can get back in the swing of things. Finish yours, and then maybe build one with the kids....

Good luck...

If anyone is interested, I am going to sell the new TCI TH-350 I bought for the project. After riding in my brother's 72 since he put in a TH-700R4 behind the 402, I want to go with the TH-700 now.

Here is the for sale post:

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/showthread.php?p=2943879#post2943879

Bob,

I sent you a couple of PM's regarding the transmission.

I am definately interested in it.

Nice fab work!! Thanks for the heads up on your thread. Can't wait to see your truck in paint!

PS...great snowmobile pics....been too long since I've been in your state.

Look forward to seeing you next weekend Larry. Have any idea what day you might come up?

Thanks Gray Ghost! Snowmobiling season is right around the corner!

Still haven't done anything to the 68, but my son and I worked on my 70 K10 this weekend. That was enough to get my juices flowing again. I at least started clearing some of the crap it has collected on it over the past year or so. Might actually start doing a little work to finish up the dash soon. Hell, that's all that's left on it before I start priming and blocking it!

Here is my 70, "Goldie".

http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z147/glock35ipsc/DSC00655.jpg
http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z147/glock35ipsc/DSC00657.jpg

OK, so I saw a post today asking for info on sectioning a front crossmember. I remembered that I printed off Captkaos's "How-To" some time ago. I have always wanted the front to be lower, but didn't really want to use lowering springs with the drop spindles. So, since I have two extra front crossmembers (one will go in Dad's truck) I am gonna give it a try!

When I get around to it I will post pics as I go.

Look forward to seeing you next weekend Larry. Have any idea what day you might come up?

Thanks Gray Ghost! Snowmobiling season is right around the corner!

Still haven't done anything to the 68, but my son and I worked on my 70 K10 this weekend. That was enough to get my juices flowing again. I at least started clearing some of the crap it has collected on it over the past year or so. Might actually start doing a little work to finish up the dash soon. Hell, that's all that's left on it before I start priming and blocking it!

Here is my 70, "Goldie".

http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z147/glock35ipsc/DSC00655.jpg
http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z147/glock35ipsc/DSC00657.jpg

Can't wait

Me neither!!!! :metal:

Already here!! Talked to my supervisor today who is a big sledhead, and he said there was at least 2+ feet in the higher elevations, where he normally rides. :eek: I'm not sure we got that much all of last winter or the winter previous. Don't worry, judging by your location, I'm sure the snow can't be too far off :metal:

Thanks Larry, was good to see you again!

OK, so the TH350 is now gone. It will soon be burning up the road in Lemield's sweet green 70 CST.

So, now it's time to find me a TH700 core to use for a mock-up, then I can get the engine moved up (still in the 6-cyl position), get the exhaust lengthened, and move the trans crossmember back (or build a new one).

But first, I will be working on finishing the sheetmetal work on the cab. Mostly consists of the dash (finish welding & grinding, finish glove box opening and bracing, cut holes for the cup holders), and seam sealing. I also need to do something to the bottom of the cab. Prime and undercoat or ??????

Thanks Larry, was good to see you again!

OK, so the TH350 is now gone. It will soon be burning up the road in Lemield's sweet green 70 CST.

So, now it's time to find me a TH700 core to use for a mock-up, then I can get the engine moved up (still in the 6-cyl position), get the exhaust lengthened, and move the trans crossmember back (or build a new one).

But first, I will be working on finishing the sheetmetal work on the cab. Mostly consists of the dash (finish welding & grinding, finish glove box opening and bracing, cut holes for the cup holders), and seam sealing. I also need to do something to the bottom of the cab. Prime and undercoat or ??????


Bob,

Thanks again for the transmission. As usual, it was a pleasure to visit with you and your family....your kids are great! I got the grand tour of the trucks and it was great!

Take care

Crapola! I forgot to add that along with the sectioned front cross member, I am going to add a U-notch in the frame over the rear end. Going to go with 6" springs in the rear for now, but I wanted it set up to bag it if the desire was to ever strike me.

Wow, real work got done today! Haha!

I got the inner frame for the glove box built. I got it screwed in place to the dash, then ate lunch. I'm heading back out right now to drill some holes then start plug welding it in place. Once that is done, I will get the cupholders located and cut. If I have time today, I'll install everything into the dash and take some pics.

I have pics of the glove box frame, and I'll post all the pics up later tonight or tomorrow.

OK, the first real progress pictures in a long time!!!

I first got the frame work made for the glove box. Once that was done, I screwed it to the dash, then drilled several holes so I could plug weld the frame to the dash. Once that was done, I welded the ends of the frame to the original dash metal. This keeps the new dash and glove box from moving or wiggling. It is rock solid. I still need to do a little adjusting to the glove box latch because it is real tight, but that won't take long.

Next I made a template for the cup holders and drew them out on the dash. Cut those with the air saw, trimmed, and drilled mounting holes.

With all the holes that have been cut on the dash, the center section has been stretched to the point that even with everything installed, it was very wavy. So I had to install bracing between the cup holders and radio, and the radio and A/C controller. The bracing is plug welded to the dash, and the ends of the bracing is also welded to the original dash metal. Rock solid!

So now, the dash is perfectly flat. Well, within a 1/16" at least. :ito: So after everything was braced and the plug welds were ground down, I installed everything to see what it looked like.

So far, I am extremely happy with the way it is turning out. This definitely lit a fire under my arse to get this thing done! This dash project was the last major thing that needs done to the cab. I still have to sperad a little filler on the dash, finish grinding the tack welds around the outside of the dash, seam seal everything, do a little grinding here and there, make a plate for a fuse panel to mount to, and I am pretty much ready to get it in primer. :metal:

More:

My daughter had my camera taking pictures of anything and everything she saw in the shop. Her 4-wheeler, her brother, even busted me!

Couple of more views:

That dash is looking sweet... can't wait to see how the rest turns out.

Don

Very nice. Glad to see you back on it!

Wow! That looks great! I'm glad to see your back at it too!

Very nice glock keep up the good work that dash looks b!tchin.

Thanks guys! It felt good to get this part done, it was the biggest hurdle to get it ready for paint. There are still a few things left to do to the cab, but they are minor compared to the dash.

Great work and nice custom touches!