Quote:
Originally Posted by kiwikid
on the bed cuts how many inches were removed front and back ? looks good
|
A very good question. To make a long bed into a short bed you need to take 12" out of the front and then 8" out of the rear. You then also need to cut 8" out of the rear frame if you still have the original frame.
Now the next question is where to cut on the bed? Actually I don't know the answer to that, but on mine I did the cuts where you see them because of the body damage on the passenger side and then matched it on the drivers side. If I were to do it again without a damaged bed I would cut very close to the leading edge of the bed on the front. On the rear I would cut in the exact same spot again. The reason for this is due to the sloping body line. Your going to have to match it up or else it looks horrible. I think I found the sweet spot in the rear quarter, and only had to slightly move the slope line just a smidge when welding it up to make it line up. Also make sure your cut lines are super straight. Can't emphasize that enough. If your lines are not parallel and perfectly straight then you might have one heck of a time trying to get it to fit back together. Measure 100 times and cut once. Trust me!
Oh yeah one other point is to use a cut off wheel when you make the cuts. Run a tape line where you plan to cut and just follow the edge of the tape with the cut off wheel. Don't use a Sawzall because you will damage the panel. The push and pull of the blade really bends up the sheet metal pretty badly.
Hope that helps.