'67 step-side replacement rear bumper

[Richard8971]

Hey guys!!! I was just curious if anyone has used anything other than a 67-72 rear bumper on thier step-side. I am not interested in using an aftermarket rear bumper. I wanted to use a more modern factory "beefy" rear bumper on my truck. I do not like the idea of some jerk who is paying more attention to his coffee or cell phone than to the back of my truck. The truck was given to me a year ago by a friend who bought it and decided that it was too much of a project to restore. It sat in a hay fiend for over 9 years (the amount of mouse crap in it proved it) and was apparently someones "work" truck, trust me this thing was BEAT! Rednecks should not be allowed to own cars. This thing was painted with housepaint and a roller and spray foam was used extensively to fill rust holes. (I am not lying) If it was anything other than what it is (a '67 short bed stepside), I am not sure I would be bringing it back from the grave. I included some before and after pics, hope you enjoy. I have a body shop in Sutherlin, OR and all of the work (outside of the interior work) is being done by yours truly. My wife and I are calling her "Tangerine Dream". I can't wait to see her back on the road. I am also building my wife a 1953 chevrolet 4400. She loves BIG trucks.

[Richard8971]

Just some more pics... The truck had a 6 banger in it and the previous owner put in a junk-yark 305 in it with a 3 speed manual. I am rebuilding a 350 and installing a 700R4 for driveability. (stick-shifts were fun when I was 18) I am also installing power assist brakes (via S-10 power booster), power steering and A/C. Should be a nice daily driver when I am done. I do not (and never will) believe in trailer or weekend queens. Build them to enjoy and drive...

[Richard8971]

What the heck, maybe just a couple of more pics... The bedsides were re-skinned with an overlay over the beat factory insides. I was born and raised in Tucson, AZ and my wife and I just recently moved to Oregon. I have been in the auto body field for almost 20 years and have done many, many, many resto's (in AZ) BUT....I am just not used to all of this damn rust here!!! (This is an Oregon truck) OMG was this thing RUSTED!!! (Cab needed TONS of work) I used 16 guage steel and not only do I now have smooth bed innerd's, but it added some needed weight to the light rear end. "Overkill" is not in my word usage, and I believe anything worth doing, is worth doing right. Hope the work shows... FYI, my wife picked the color and it fits the truck. My friend James who owns James Dean Creations created the color, he modified a factory color for a bike paint job. Fits the truck perfectly. I think she has good taste... I have to be honest, I have seen other 67-72 painted this "color" but mine is slightly modified. More "bling" and much, much, much easier to spray. (The org was a tri-stage [candy] color, mine is a 2 stage color [regular BC/CC])

[Richard8971]

Here are a couple of the work being done to the cab. The new rockers are on and the drip rails are being shaved. The drip rails were so badly rusted out that they needed to be removed. It isn't exactly what I wanted to do, but provided I get the doors to seal correctly, it shouldn't leak too badly. Just about everything is the original sheet metal, I did have to replace the left fender as the truck hit something pretty good and the fender was toast. The guy who did the "work" just bondo'ed over the dent and paint and then rolled on a new coat of home depot exterior enamel. The right bed fender also was replaced as it was pretty banged up too. I had to get a fender from a '68 and I shaved the side marker light. The tailgate took alot of work, but the final result was worth it. I also had a new bed front panel made as the old one was rusted out and was in the shape of a serving dish. I'll update the photos as I can.

[Richard8971]

A few more progress pics...

[Richard8971]

If you are still reading my posts and looking at the pics, thanks! Hope I'm not taking advantage of this wonderful web site. Personally I love looking at construction pics. I think we have the ability to see more than the average person. They see a pile of junk, we see a diamond in the rough. All you need is a little time and money. Well, scratch that, reverse it. ALOT of time and money.

[barthmonster]

Originally Posted by Richard8971

.................FYI, my wife picked the color and it fits the truck. My friend James who owns James Dean Creations created the color, he modified a factory color for a bike paint job. Fits the truck perfectly. I think she has good taste... I have to be honest, I have seen other 67-72 painted this "color" but mine is slightly modified. More "bling" and much, much, much easier to spray. (The org was a tri-stage [candy] color, mine is a 2 stage color [regular BC/CC])

Sorry, yeah I blew right past the color, was enjoying the pics. Now that you mention it, it is a lot 'brighter' than HOK Tangelo Pearl. Nice, real nice !

[Richard8971]

Originally Posted by barthmonster

Now that you mention it, it is a lot 'brighter' than HOK Tangelo Pearl. Nice, real nice !

Thank you! HOK tangelo pearl is an awesome color, that would have been my next choice. I love orange, esp orange pearl. Not too many people realize that it is a pearl color until they get right on it, and that's cool. Should be on the road soon... at least hopefully!

Don

[Richard8971]

Ok, here is the start of the bed wood. First of all, I want to apologize in advance for my bad written instuctions. I feel however that you should be able to get the drift of what I am saying. The photos will help some too...

A quick trip to Lowe's produced two sheets of furnature quality oak 3/4" plywood. (photo 1) I rooted through the pile until I found a couple of sheets with damage on one side. They are usually quick to discount sheets that are damaged just to get rid of them. I got one for $14.00 and the other for $35.00, not bad considering that they are $50.00 a sheet, full-price.

Start taking some measurments on how wide the bed is. Mine was 50" across. That means that 25" at the half-way point means you need two sheets to get each half. (photo 2) My bed wood needed to be 77 1/4" long by 25" each. Mark the lines with chaulk string. (photo 3) Make sure to cut a little short to allow for expansion of the wood and for fitting. You don't want them tight in case there is a variance in distances.

Cut slowly using a good quality plywood blade, you don't want to splinter the ends. Now this is where it gets tricky. My wood is 5/8" thick and the distance it needs to be is roughly 1/2" thick at the braces. (photo 4,5,6)

Lay each sheet in the middle of the bed so you can mark where the braces go. You will need to take a router and shave the back side away so each sheet can lay flat. (photo 7,8)

I'll cut the groves this weekend so I will be able to post photos to help explain why you need the groves on the back side. The factory wood has groves on the top of each side to allow for the strips to sit flush with the wood. Cutting the bed wood on the back side allows for the strips to sit on top, (which is what I wanted, I had custom strips made for my truck, they are flat) but you can always cut groves in the bed wood like factory so that your strips lay flush.

Hope this makes sence so far.

D

[72BlckButy]

Build looks great, it is coming right along! Can't wait to see the final project.

[Richard8971]

Thought you guys would like to see some more before pics and durring construction.

[Richard8971]

Couple more pics... I have to say one more thing. The truck did run when I got it. In fact once the exhaust was put in (dual) it sounds awesome. I drove it for a couple of weeks just to be sure it seemed sound before I started tearing it down. I think that a full blown project in under a year is good timing... right???

[samwise68]

that is some awesome work!

wow. i envy and admire your talents.

-Sam.

[Richard8971]

Thanks Sam! I have been doing this for almost 20 years... (omg has it been THAT long???) but I am still learning. I have done tons of restos for others, but this is the first for myself. I wanted it to look right and last. I know if I ever do another I will do it much differently, but I guess if we all did what we did in the past, nothing would ever change. It's not for sale, but I guess for the right price, I could build another. Life is about change and learning, and hell... there are LOTS of old classics just begging to be done. GOD I envy Jay Leno... (at least his love for cars and his money to support his habit!!!) Just FYI, the lettering on the tailgate is painted and hand stripped with vinyl tape and cleared over. Looks great!!!

[glock35ipsc]

Love the color! Mine's gonna be 2007 C06 Vette Atomic Orange, really stepping outside the box on this one! I'm more of a blue guy!

Keep the pics coming, it looking great!

[Richard8971]

Originally Posted by glock35ipsc

Love the color!

Yeah, I do too... (I have always been a big orange fan) I am not one to hide secrets. The color is actually Lamborghini California Orange Pearl. The color is unfortunately a factory tri-stage, a candy color if you will. My friend in Tucson found a way to make it a regular BC/CC formula and it is much, much easier to spray and I don't have to worry about the number of coats changing the color as much. All I have to worry about is coverage and this color covers really well for being an orange. (4-5 coats max over a light gray sealer) I altered the formula some (took out the metallic flakes and put in some new pearls in its place) so it is not quite the same as the factory and to keep it somewhat custom. I get more complements on the color than anything. As a side note, this color is quite forgiving as it hides slight imperfections in the body work/paint making the work seem even more perfect!

The tank was painted using a "spatter" painting effect. Helps hide imperfections in the sheet metal.

FYI, the total cost of this project will be around 3 grand (maybe 3500 or 4000, but the truck was given to me by a friend and labor is my own), not bad eh? Paint was donated by M & M paint in Medford (our paint/body material supplier). Thanks Jay!!! We currently use Valspar and Lesonal paints at my shop and I am using Valspar BC/CC on my truck. Excellent product for custom work.

Don

[glock35ipsc]

Tank looks great too! I know what you mean on the paint. The Atomic Orange was also originally a tri-stage. It was apparently changed (at least in the aftermarket) to a BC/CC as well.

[toomanytoyz]

Great Job on Your Build, I only Hope Mine will be as Nice.............

Thanks, Rick

[Richard8971]

Hey again, just a little update. The body work is done on the cab and is in slick sand. For those of you who do not know what slick sand is, you have been majorly missing out.

It is made by Fiberglass/Evercoat and you can get it at your local automotive paint supply store. Basicly, it is spray bondo. You can pound this stuff on and then block it with 100-150 grit sand paper to make your car or truck arrow straight. The beauty of this stuff is, it fills chips, 40 grit scratches (urethane primer surfacer will only fill a 120 grit scratch max), even slight waves and ripples in the sheet metal. You can lay this stuff on THICK and it won't crack or shrink. Once you sand the slick sand smooth you prime with your favorite primer surfacer and then block again (400-500 grit), then paint. Awesome stuff. We keep a couple of gallons around at any given time at the shop.

I hung the doors tonight to make sure they fit correctly before I paint the cab. Everything lined up perfectly. I forgot my camera so I will post the hanging tomorrow. Until then, enjoy the pics of the bodyworked cab!

Don

[67ChevyRedneck]

Originally Posted by Richard8971

Rednecks should not be allowed to own cars.

Hey, I resemble that remark

Great lookin' truck.

[Richard8971]

Originally Posted by 67ChevyRedneck

Hey, I resemble that remark

Great lookin' truck.

Thank you! You are from the higher class of rednecks that I would consider as a friend. The rednecks I am refering too are the Hatfields vs. McCoys type.

Don

[Richard8971]

Sence I have gotten a couple of complements on the insides of the bed I thought I would post a couple of more close ups of the inside bed skins I put in. The cab should be painted in the next couple of days and then I can mount it on the truck and start putting the cab and front end back together.

Later for now...

Don

[Richard8971]

The fenders have been reworked and ready to block for paint. I will paint them tomorrow and I will post pics. Here is the before and after.

[lock]

I love the bed skin idea... my bedsides are pretty dinged up! How did you manage to smooth the outside infront of the step enders so nice?

[Richard8971]

Originally Posted by lock

How did you manage to smooth the outside infront of the step enders so nice?

The beauty of skinning the INSIDE of the bed is that you can bodywork the outside and any dents you have to pound out you will not see because of the new skins. There will be a measure of gap between the factory bedsides and the new skins. I used a high quality urethane seam sealer in between the factory bedsides and the new skins to keep them from ratteling on each other and I also tack welded the edges as well as inside the area. Check out the photos I put in for weld locations. I made them large enough to also cover the stake pockets and I put a bend in the inside to act as the inside bed wood angle strips. The area that is left on the outside that is seen is small compared to the inside where all of the area is seen. I really hope this makes sence.