Work has finally started going the other direction! Instead of taking things apart, it's going back together. Probably doesn't look like a lot of progress, but school started again last Thursday and with three kids it's been tough finding moments here and there to work. No more making supper at 8 PM because it doesn't matter how late they stay up, for instance.
Anyway, you can see from the pics what I've accomplished. Have the CPP drop crossmember installed as well as the factory crossmember to the rear of it. Spring perches and bed mounts are bolted back on along with e-brake cable brackets. (I
really need to find the rear brake line bracket in my mess of a garage so I can get that bolted on!)
Started installing the custom rear leaf springs but ran into an issue because the front bushing was too wide by at least 1/4", so I had to get out the grinder and surgically reduce it. By the time I got it to the right size, however, it was starting to sprinkle again and I had to pack up. (Had rain much of the weekend.) I'm using CPP's 1-2" drop shackles and am going to start out with the 2" hole and see where things end up -- between the new springs, the shackles, and loaded weight on the frame I really won't know until next year exactly what's going on.
I'll also point out that I'm not going for a show-quality finish on the frame -- just something that looks nice and isn't going to rust immediately. There's obviously some rust pitting in places, not to mention the patched areas. But overall I still think it looks pretty nice. Anyway, really glad to be making visible progress in the right direction.
