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1971_c10 · 12-11-2016, 02:35 PM

I then made the decision to go ahead and cut the bedsides to clear the 12" wide tires (a stock step side might be able to clear an 11" tire, but it is tight).

The process was somewhat complicated, but it worked out in the end. What I did was on one side I put an "envelope" (the square tape in the pics below). That envelope is where I know I want the mini-tub to sit once I get those fabricated. The next daunting task was getting the cab squared up, then putting the bed on (I had to remove the rear tires during this process), and squaring the bed up to the cab. This is where those gaps become important. I made sure every gap was equal side to side, including the front fenders. The goal here is to get the center of the monster notch in the bedside lined up with the axle.

Once the body was squared up, I started putting on the layout for the notch. The trick here now is figuring out the diameter I wanted and where the top of the notch would be. To help this, you measure from the top of the wheel as installed to the top of the axle tube. Then subtract the height of the frame rail at the axle. This give you a distance above the frame rail if the suspension was bottomed out (so in case I bag it one day). Then, think if you might run a taller tire. I've got a ~27.5" tall tire now, but some of the race specific tires I may run are 28-30". So I added a few inches to this this distance I measured, namely 2" for a bigger wheel and 1" for further clearance.

The second part is the diameter, which I basically took the 30" tire and added some clearance, so I used a 32" diameter notch. The catch is that the center of the hole is actually below the bedside metal, so a jig made drawing the notch easy. You can see the simple jig I used in the pics below. Once I had one side figured out, I just transferred that to the other side. Then it was time to cut. No special tools for me, just my IR reciprocating saw. I love that little saw.

Note, I also kept the top of the notch low enough to not interfere with the fender mounts and low enough such that the mini-tub will sit just below the row of bolts.

12-11-2016, 02:35 PM	#30
1971_c10 Registered User Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: Broomfield, CO Posts: 242	Re: C10CJ: A Pro-touring '71 Stepside on a No Limit Pro-C10 Chassis I then made the decision to go ahead and cut the bedsides to clear the 12" wide tires (a stock step side might be able to clear an 11" tire, but it is tight). The process was somewhat complicated, but it worked out in the end. What I did was on one side I put an "envelope" (the square tape in the pics below). That envelope is where I know I want the mini-tub to sit once I get those fabricated. The next daunting task was getting the cab squared up, then putting the bed on (I had to remove the rear tires during this process), and squaring the bed up to the cab. This is where those gaps become important. I made sure every gap was equal side to side, including the front fenders. The goal here is to get the center of the monster notch in the bedside lined up with the axle. Once the body was squared up, I started putting on the layout for the notch. The trick here now is figuring out the diameter I wanted and where the top of the notch would be. To help this, you measure from the top of the wheel as installed to the top of the axle tube. Then subtract the height of the frame rail at the axle. This give you a distance above the frame rail if the suspension was bottomed out (so in case I bag it one day). Then, think if you might run a taller tire. I've got a ~27.5" tall tire now, but some of the race specific tires I may run are 28-30". So I added a few inches to this this distance I measured, namely 2" for a bigger wheel and 1" for further clearance. The second part is the diameter, which I basically took the 30" tire and added some clearance, so I used a 32" diameter notch. The catch is that the center of the hole is actually below the bedside metal, so a jig made drawing the notch easy. You can see the simple jig I used in the pics below. Once I had one side figured out, I just transferred that to the other side. Then it was time to cut. No special tools for me, just my IR reciprocating saw. I love that little saw. Note, I also kept the top of the notch low enough to not interfere with the fender mounts and low enough such that the mini-tub will sit just below the row of bolts. Attached Images __________________ Chris Build Thread for my '71 Pro-Touring: http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=722029 My C10 has it's own facebook page! www.facebook.com/c10cj - it is a public page so no facebook account required to browse through.