The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop Cab rust repair-- what order?

Hi Folks-
Got the fenders and inners off of the '52. Horror! OK, it's what I expected. Floors, both kick panels, inner/outers and 1 lower cowl section.
Question is-- which order makes the job the most efficient? I'm thinking--- Kick panels, then inner/outers, then outer cowl, then floors. Am I way off? Please advise.
My plan is to fix the structural problems and stabilize the surface rust as I have too many other things to do this Summer to get too deep into this one just yet.

Thanks again guys, having a resource like this is a huge benefit.

Mike Burgess
Albert, KS

To maintain as much structural integrity as possible I like to fix the smallest areas first and work up to the larger ones. Hard to guess exactly what you are looking at in the way of damage.

Some things to keep in mind. Cab on the truck. Cab off the truck. It matters. Doors on the cab. Doors off the cab. It matters. If you have doors that fit now. Good. If the cab sits on the frame properly, then that is good. Keep as much as you can stable and blocked safely when you repair, patch and cut. When possible I work 1 area at a time. Door hinge pillar is a critical part. Outer cowl repair and inner area in front of the pillar can move the door and hood. Floor repair can shift the cab. The truck is rather simple, but quite precise. Keep stuff aligned and blocked safely. My floor was a mess. I cut and patched a lot. But I kept it on the frame and fixed one mount area at a time. Moved to the inner kick panels and did a lot of cut and fit there as well.The doors were on and off many times to make sure they would still fit.The hood fit well when I got my truck and I never took it off. I had one area where the outside corner of the hood fits to the cowl. and the hood was the only reference I had to work with. Glad I kept it in place. I found some work that was done by the PO. Some good, some bad. If I were to do it again? More attention to the front of the door to the cab. My fit is not great. Slow and careful is my only advice. It would have been nice if the engine had been pulled. But I got around it OK.

Or look for a better cab. I salvaged a basket case on my first AD build. New front cowl, dash, inner cowls, outer cowls, inner-to-outer cowls, rocker panels, floor board, toe board, cab corners, entire belt line on back of cab...
Never again!
There are better cabs to be had out there for less money than what I paid in just the patch panels.
Carl

Thanks guys.
Cab is on frame. Doors are attached w/ new oversized pins & springs. Pass floor rusted so that floor support sits 3/4 inch above (gone) floor. Fiberglass mat repair sometime in the past. It's now gone to assess damage & plan repairs. Jacked up cab, inserted plate steel to hold floor up. Adjusted door. Good fit. Will jack cab to same level when removing/replacing floor.
Fenders and inners are now off for access. Hood still on cowl. Plan to level cab and block to good door fit before remove and repair of rusty panels. What do you think of the order of repair? (Kick, I/O, lower cowl, floor)? Seems logical but this is my first AD Chevy.

Regards,
Mike

Hey Carl-
Just priced cabs this morning. My local salvage guy gets 2500-3000(!!) for a non-rusty unit sans doors. He and his father have been buying and stashing this stuff in this area for a few decades now. Says he's shipping them back East where there's good demand and no non-rusty stuff available. Panels and a bit of time seems the way to go.
Thanks.
Mike

Don't go there anymore. That's way too high. I agree to find a donor. Use the "new" one as is or use it for donor patch panels. What years have the same cab?
https://houston.craigslist.org/cto/4982261612.html
Great advice by the members above regarding how to analyze and begin.

Wow! I pay that for whole, complete trucks with a few that have ran. Don't know where "down on the farm" is but I am pretty sure it is not Utah! Here is a link to some of my cab pictures (scroll through) and most of the replacements you describe I also made. The advice given above is all good.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/advance-design_parts_co/sets/72157631867396207/

Not trying to talk you out of fixing your baby. Just sharing my experience and the pitfalls. I am proud of my basket case resurrection, I just would never do it again.
I would not look for a good cab from a salvage yard. I would look for a do-it-yourselfer who found out that they couldn't, and is looking to get out of it. There are PLENTY of those out there.
Carl

Hi Folks-
Ordered the panels. I'd like to find a better cab but that requires some time to beat the bushes and run and fetch, etc... I work 65-70 hours/ week and that gainful employment thing is really crimping my project time! Add 4 acres to mow (on a '50 8N!) and rental house maintainence and I'm booked.
Anyone have an opinion/experience on the order of panel replacement?
thanks again....

Mike

PS- Brad- your photo documentation and work quality, not to mention photographic quality are FAH REE KIN AWESOME! Big tip o' the hat on your efforts and results!
MB

Mike, my preference is that you start with the areas that are most seen and will thus be most "critiqued". So I prefer fit up the doors (A pillar repair as needed) get gaps set around perimeter of the door to establish a baseline, and work on what I refer to as the "door frame". Get the outer rocker, cab corner, etc. clamped in place, re-visit door gap consistency, and then weld those components in.


A slight misalignment on the inside stuff is less cause for alarm under a floor mat/carpet, but if you started there and worked your way out, once misalignment starts to compound with each successive panel, by the time you reach the outside panels you have noticeable flaws and excuses to make..

Thank you Robert-
Good common sense approach there. I looked at your links-- my welds are bubble gum under the dining table comparably, but boy can I grind! Improving with every quarter panel installed. Appreciate the advice of all!

Standing in awe---
Mike

I like to start with the floor. Once you remove the bad spots you can inspect the front cab mount supports. These need to be sound in order for the cab to have a sound foundation upon which to build.
Carl

Great info. I also am at that point of replacing panels.