I knew the single speaker would not do and I did not want to cut into the doors or add extended kick panel speakers. I opted to install some teardrop shaped speakers. I think they are used a lot on boats and side by sides.
I liked the fact that they are somewhat hidden but project the sound around the seats into the cab. I had to make my own odd angled brackets that I fastened to the seat base frame and the speaker to keep them away from the cab sides. That way it would not vibrate while driving or just playing music. I know it is not everyone's cup of tea but I like more bass when I am listening to music (not as much as some).
So I also installed an 8" powered subwoofer under the seat, like the other speakers when you look at my truck you never know it is there.
I installed the previously covered seat back into the truck sticking with my black interior theme. I wanted the running board step plates that looked original also. It was nice that they were dark black also.
The step pads had studs on the back to bolt thru the running boards but I did not want to drill thru the running boards in case I decided that it did not look like I wanted. Instead I cut the studs off and used 3-M double stick tape to hold them on. It had to be run on top of the high parts of the running boards to make good contact. The longer it is on the better it holds.
I wanted and searched high and low for steel chrome rims that looked similar to the old style Cragar rims. I wanted 17" rims to fill the wheel wells a little more but used shorter tires to make them close to the overall diameter of the original tires.
Since I had kept the 6 lug wheels all around, this limited my choices unless I went with 20" wheels. Since I could not find steel, I bought the aluminum from Boyd Coddington. The rims are 8" wide with a 3.75 backspace (the rims that were on it when I got the truck had 3.75 backspace) and the tires are 255ZR-17.
Yes, I do not need a "Z" rated tire for this trucks speed but oh well.
Once the tires were on the truck and I drove it some, I noticed the tires would slightly rub the inside of the fender when I hit some bad Ms bumps. So I decided to lift the back up 1" by making new shackles for the rear side of the leaf springs. I just had to get some .375 steel flat bar. Problem solved it does not rub anymore even on the same bumps and really does not look any different.
