Roadkill's 58 Chevy Stepside

[ptc]

Very Nice!~ -- wish I could have a wood bed, its easier to work with than metal I think.

[Roadkill58]

Thanks Kim57, PTC.

The wood is Sapele from Africa.

Power went out yesterday around 6pm. PG&E says power will be back on maybe noon today.

I have a Microsoft Surface and a Netgear Unite Pro for internet.
Luckily they both have a full charge.
Doesn't do much for heat.
Guess I get a day off weather I like it or not.


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[Roadkill58]

Power came back on Friday afternoon.

Tried to get a roof back on the engine storage shed.
The only engine in the shed at this time is a mock up motor.

Drilled new hole in the cross sills for the bed wood.

Need to drill new hole in the bed angles.

No pictures today.


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[Roadkill58]

Got the ugly fender primed.

Started stripping the driver side rear fender until it started to rain.

Found some inserts for the wheel center caps.

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[Kim57]

Insert is very cool.
Kim

[ChuckDriver]

Wheels look good under the primed fender!

[Roadkill58]

Originally Posted by Kim57

Insert is very cool.
Kim

Thanks Kim.

I've been working on some more inserts: Indian heads,
medicine wheel, and buffalo heads.

My wife has a brothers scan and cut and can make things
with vinyl.

[Roadkill58]

Originally Posted by ChuckDriver

Wheels look good under the primed fender!

Thanks JJ.

That fender is so bad I didn't bother knocking any dents out.

Got the tailgate primed, and worked on the rear cross sill.

I'll post some pics tomorrow to show what I'm doing to
fill the gap on the cross sill (raised bed floor).


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[Roadkill58]

The rear cross sill extension is on.
It doesn't look any worse than the rest of the bed.
I didn't weld it to the bedsides so it is removable.
Need to brace it on the back side.

In the pic the bedsides look bowed out. They are.
I loosened them up so I could do some adjustment
on the tailgate fitment. I forgot to tighten them up again.

The stainless polished bed strips came in today.
Installing them on this train wreck of a bed is like
putting lipstick on a pig.

I thought the wood deserved the stainless.

In the future I will buy some new bedsides, and stainless
angle strips. Also a new front bed panel.

I bought new fenders and steps, as well as, a new rear bumper
about five years ago.
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[59chev]

Looks great. Your step notch is perfect. I plan to do the same with mine but run a 4 link. Enough to give decent clearance but not so much that you have to raise the bed floor a huge amount. The second cross sill to fill the gap makes it look factory.

[Roadkill58]

Thanks 59chev.

Thought about the step notch for while before committing.

The bed wood is about 1" above the top of the notch.

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[Roadkill58]

Made some upper rear shock mounts today.

Tacked them on for now.

Wasn't sure how to set them up.

The shocks are 16" fully extended, and 11" fully compressed.

Not a lot of travel.

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[cameo]

Just finished reading your entire thread. Looks great! I'm on your side with getting it primed and on the road.
Question, can you show some pics of the rear suspension? Did you just relocate the pads on the differential, using the stock springs, or did you relocate the springs on the frame?

Thanks

[Roadkill58]

Originally Posted by cameo

Just finished reading your entire thread. Looks great! I'm on your side with getting it primed and on the road.
Question, can you show some pics of the rear suspension? Did you just relocate the pads on the differential, using the stock springs, or did you relocate the springs on the frame?

Thanks

Thanks cameo.

Axel is on top of the springs.
I bought the U-bolts and spring pads from a trailer supply.
The rear spring hangers are stock.
I removed the overload springs. Might have to remove some more springs.
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[Roadkill58]

You would have thought today was my birthday, but it isn't.

Felt like it.

This morning one of my friends (we grew up on the same street) drop by to give me a gift card to say thanks for letting him keep his motorcycle trailer (a friend gave it to him) at my place. I told him it wasn't necessary, he insisted.

This afternoon I got a call from another long time friend to tell me the
bedwood was ready.

I asked him what I owed him and he said "Who said anything about money? Are you trying to insult me?".

Nice to have friends.

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[Kim57]

Cool friends.
Nice looking bed wood.
Kim

[MIKESAD50]

Woods looks great, what used as far as stain and sealer/clear?

[Roadkill58]

Originally Posted by Kim57

Cool friends.
Nice looking bed wood.
Kim

Thanks Kim.

[Roadkill58]

Originally Posted by MIKESAD50

Woods looks great, what used as far as stain and sealer/clear?

Thanks MIKESAD50.

No stain. Sealer is a marine grade with UV protection.

I don't know what brand of sealer he uses.

The wood is ribbon cut Sapele.

Sealed on every surface.

[Roadkill58]

Seems like I have been working on the bed forever.

I wanted to make sure everything is completed before I start installing front fenders (inner and outer), and hood.

One of the things that was on the list was fuel fill.

I didn't want a fill in the bed floor so installed it on the fender.

The fuel fill came with all the parts that came with the 58 GMC I bought years ago.

I was thinking about a donor fuel door from a Camaro, but on this junk fender this was easier, and faster.

Still need to run the vent line up near the cap, and maybe port into the fill tube.

I wanted to stay away from the line on the fender so I mounted it on the top where the fender is relatively flat.

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[Kim57]

That looks good.
Kim

[ptc]

Nice! >>>>>>>>

[Roadkill58]

Originally Posted by Kim57

That looks good.
Kim

Thanks Kim.

The truck is going to be driven a lot so I'm hoping to gas and go quickly.

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[Roadkill58]

Originally Posted by ptc

Nice! >>>>>>>>

Thanks PTC.

Are you getting flooded?

We have family here all week because of the Oroville dam.

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[ptc]

Originally Posted by Roadkill58

Thanks PTC.

Are you getting flooded?

We have family here all week because of the Oroville dam.

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No floods but water has been pretty constant around the house, its so muddy and mucky everywhere around here I have to wear my rubber boots just to walk over to the shop. Trying to sell my sons roll-bar boat and we cant get it out of the barn because its too muddy to get a heavy truck in front of it. More rain starting tomorrow too. We have been cut off from the highway as Dillard Rd was shutdown for a couple days for flooding, and Wilton Rd, they almost shutdown because water was getting close to come over the bridge there. That whole Oroville thing is a fiasco!!!! We have friends upo in Marysville and Yuba City also that had to get ready to leave and stack all there things up high. My friends shop, hes got machinery movers out there getting all his stuff out, his insurance said we'll pay the movers if he wants to save it.... What a mess- Somebodys gonna have hell to pay over this - most likely us the taxpayers!

oh well.... it never rains in CA !

Im ready for summer now! -----