Need help with reverse hood hinge fabrication 49
 

I've got a 49 Chevy panel truck that sits on the chassis of a 1999 Explorer. I have one problem I'm unable to resolve and I'm looking for help. The engine compartment is packed and the hood will not rest comfortably in place because of the blower motor assembly of the explorer.

It appears that if I get the rear hood hinges out the hood will lay flat. That means I need to figure out a way to have the hood open from the cowl to the front, reverse of normal. I've found no aftermarket kits and hope someone at some point has fabricated something along this line and can give me some guidance.

Thanks for any and all help.
I've tried to post pictures but it's not working out. Visit
http://www.solnbox.com/49Chevy.html

Re: Need help with reverse hood hinge fabrication 49
 

You aren't adjusting the hinges correctly. You need to "rotate" the hinges back to lower the rear of the hood. Pushing them down as far as they will go does NOT lower the hood as far as it will go!

Read the following and you will understand.

http://www.hotrodders.com/forum/basi...ct-219960.html

You may need to read this to get a full understanding on this bizarre thing.
http://www.hotrodders.com/forum/hood...oo-212388.html

Brian

Re: Need help with reverse hood hinge fabrication 49
 

If you open this link to one of my photobucket albums I saved the pages out of the factory service manual that tell how to adjust the hood. It starts with 008 but may not be in order. It is quite detailed.

Best thing is to adjust the hood right and then make the nose fit the hood and with a stuck together truck on the wrong frame that maybe a real headache. On a stock frame there are set perimeters to go with starting with having the cab or body spaced off the frame the correct distance. On yours you have to come up with your own perimeters one at a time until it turns out right. That will probably mean getting the hood to fit the body right an then getting the fenders and rest of the front end to fit the hood right. That could include shimming the body or shimming the nose.

I ran into a similar situation when I subframed my truck back in 1980 and spent more time adjusting the nose to get everything to fit right than we did installing the subframe. Adjust and stand back and look and go again if needed.

Re: Need help with reverse hood hinge fabrication 49
 

Good point, I forgot it was a "frame swap."

You know the definintion of a "Frame swap?"

A "Time, money, work swap" end the end everything could have been done much better with the stock frame.


Brian

Re: Need help with reverse hood hinge fabrication 49
 

I had a reverse hood setup on my 65 at one point. it was a 1994 buick lesabre assembly and it went out and forward of the grille. I liked it a lot, it ALMOST opened by itself, balanced the way it was, but it wasnt possible to keep as the truck was finished. I lost the pictures in the photobucket debacle but I have them somewhere. I am not sure the crown of the AD hood will be conducive to the lesabre parts but if it helps I will show it.

I would love to see your explorer swap especially the keeping the HVAC. dont get discouraged by the comments above, I bet they have a combined 50 years in not driving their clearly superior stock frame trucks.

Re: Need help with reverse hood hinge fabrication 49
 

A number of years ago one of the custom truck rags posted a blurb that No Limit was working on a front tilt hinge setup for AD trucks. I called and talked to Rob I believe and his answer was that it was such a pain in the butt that they abandoned the idea. Someone since has done a truck or two with a setup that appears to work but who knows what they spent to make it work.

I still think you are better off to go though the steps to make what you have work. That is 99% your time spent and very little cash. It may honestly take pulling the front end sheet metal off and fitting the hood to the body and then fitting the sheet metal to the body and hood. If that is what it takes you can rest assured you aren't anywhere close to being the first guy who had to do that.

Re: Need help with reverse hood hinge fabrication 49
 

I think speedway sells a hydraulic piston kit to replace the factory springs. Might be worth looking at as it may clear what the OEM springs don't.

Re: Need help with reverse hood hinge fabrication 49
 

Damn, I forgot how cheap they were

https://www.speedwaymotors.com/Eddie...aw,279802.html

Re: Need help with reverse hood hinge fabrication 49
 

I found my pictures of the forward tilt hood. I didnt do the work, a local guy did, however I am sure he used a buick lesabre (1990, I said 1994 and that was incorrect) for the hinges and an 84-91 bmw for the rollers/tracks.

https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4474/...a9b229e7_b.jpg003-16 by Joe Doh, on Flickr
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4338/...5a21b9dd_b.jpg004-13 by Joe Doh, on Flickr
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4434/...405298f1_b.jpg015 by Joe Doh, on Flickr
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4427/...ba045768_b.jpg040 by Joe Doh, on Flickr
https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4361/...e98b2dff_b.jpgIMG_3512 by Joe Doh, on Flickr


I think you could probably use the whole thing off the bmw, we used the lesabre because it dropped the hood in front of the grille where the bmw went more vertical (lighter hood). I say this because the BMW attaches in the center very front, where the lesabre attached in the middle and had a bar over the engine when down.

anyway I would still like to see your truck!