The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop sequence of panel replacement

After putting off the inevitable for several months I finally got the workshop cleared up, moved out a bunch of unneeded parts and generally got ready to start the restoration on the wife's '51 3100.

The cab itself needs quite a bit of TLC, floor panels, rockers, cowl panels, the usual I guess.

Because the floor has rotted around the front mounts it is sagging noticeably on the frame. I have a plan of attack but as this is beyond anything I have tackled before I wanted to see if anyone would scream "STOP, you are doing it wrong!" before I started.

So...my plan is as follows:

1 - by tacking some square tube bracing to the firewall/frame with threaded rod to allow for adjustment I will raise/lower the cab and level it out with reference to the frame. I will use measurements from the Factory Assembly Manual which shows distances from key points on the cab to the frame. I will of course ensure the frame is level first.

2 - fit new rubbers to the rear mounts

3 - once the cab is in the right position, level and stable I will be able to remove existing front mounts/floor panels knowing the cab won't move.

4 - replace front mounts/floor panels giving the cab a firm foundation. Technically at this point the bracing could be removed.

5 - I will then attack the inner and then outer rocker panels and finish off with the inner and then outer cowl panels.

6 - Once everything is solid I will remove the square tube bracing

Does the order of events look about right and I guess more importantly have I missed anything critical?

Many thanks
Paul

Paul,

Your plan sounds solid to me, but you made no mention of your door gaps. I would recommend you check your door gaps, adjust or shim the doors and/or body as necessary before securing the square tube bracing. You may also want to brace your door openings with square tubing after you remove the doors. This will ensure your door gaps are correct after you make your metal replacement and reinstall your doors. Good luck!!

My recommendation would be to reverse your steps 4 and 5. Replace the rocker panels before the floor panels which would make the door openings rigid. Rather than depending on the FAM dimensions, I would put your bracing in before removing the doors like clarsen3100 said. Using the margin around the doors for body alignment would be more dependable on the dimensions, as your doors are unique to your cab, and would get you closer when reinstalling and aligning the doors on re-installation.
I'm at the point on my cab of installing the rockers, but I only need to fully replace the driver's side rocker. I completely removed the cab and put it on a rotisserie, which does dual purpose of aligning the door openings and providing pivot points. It gives me better access for repairs. I'm getting to old to lay on my back to do welding.
Our earthquake put a hold on my progress, though. My town was the hardest hit, and some local seismometers put the magnitude over 8.0 as opposed to the published 7.0.

Sounds like you're in good shape overall. Good luck with your restoration.

Many thanks for the replies, very useful.

clarsen1, you and klhansen are absolutely correct that I had forgotten the door gaps!

For clarification, my step 1 which is to brace/adjust the cab is more about getting the cab level and raised to the right height above the frame. It is sagging probably 2 inches on one side as the passenger side mount has evaporated.

I think klhansen's comment about reversing 4 and 5 also makes sense. The floor is toast and there is no guarantee that things haven't shifted around. Tackling the rockers first will ensure the door gap is set and then I can move to the floor.

I also take on board your comments about referencing things to the doors as opposed a document.

Assuming I don't end up with a pile of twisted metals I will post photos as progress.

Oh, and sorry to hear about the earthquake kevin. I hope recovery is swift.

Many thanks once again,
Paul

Paul

Thanks for the thoughts on the earthquake. We didn't suffer too much real damage, just stuff puked off of shelves and cabinets on to the floor. Cleanup is slow in the garage, as I'm having to work inside the entirely full garage. As in move stuff to one corner and reorganize the spot that's cleared out, then go the other way. I'll be back at my restoration soon hopefully.

Your cab sounds like a twin of mine as far as initial condition. The cowls are kinked because the front mounts evaporated and sagged into the fenders.

Here's some shots of mine on the rotisserie. Cab rotisserie
if you scroll left you can see some of the progress, and a couple of shots of the mess the earthquake caused.

One tip that I can share is to attach new panels with either small self-tapping screws or just enough tack welds to hold them in place. This will hold all of your panels in place while you move on to the next panel, and more importantly, allows you to easily make adjustments to the panels as you fit the doors into place. Once your doors fit in the holes, you can finish welding all of the panels into place.
This technique saved my butt more than once.
There is not many lower feelings of despair as when you make all of your sweet welds without any warps only to find that you door is hitting the door opening at the top and there is a 3/4" gap at the bottom.
Carl

Carl

Great comment. I have watched a few videos on the ever helpful YouTube and saw a guy do just that. He attached the rockers with a few tacks to make them stable but not 'set in stone'. He then fitted the door to check gaps and when he was happy that everything was aligned he did the finish welding.

Thanks for taking the time to comment.

Paul

I always like to address the outside stuff first, ie: framing up the door opening and setting the gaps. Not all the reproduction parts are perfect, heck the factory assembly even left room for improvement. But if we started from floor pans and worked our way outward, the fitment of the inside pieces may limit the movement/adjustability of the outside ones. I'd rather get the parts that will be most scrutinized done first for best fit (door gaps), and then work around those for the inside stuff, where any imperfection that may arise can be better hidden.