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This is somewhat re-cap / somewhat live. I've benefited from this forum and hope I can contribute a useful insight from the process.

Finally getting around to my Dad's truck after 10 years in barn storage. Like most new project I have no idea what I'm getting into. All I know is it ran when he drove it here in '09. From what locals have said its in decent condition. A bit of rust in the floor and cab corners but I can probably get by without new metal. (shall see about that). Trying to stay as OG as possible; though looking for a few cab improvements. Top priorities for me are repairing the brake lines, converting to 12 volt (I want a daily driver and live in MN), improving the look of the cab, and restoring the bed liner.

Dad has a garden outside of city limits and when he took my kids there he let them "drive" the truck. The youngest of those drivers is a Senior in High School and I'm thinking it would be great to surprise Dad with one of the grandkids taking him for a drive. Also hope to spend some time my my two youngest boys (age 17, and 15) and learn together as we go along.

Decided to drain fluids first before attempting to start it up again. The fuel came out almost as green as the antifreeze - though Dad thinks that could be from an additive (for winter storage?). Glad for the Stovebolt forums on petcocks. Oil was black as black can be and when I asked Dad about this he said he used recycled oil in the truck. He did his own oil changes on his other vehicles and changed oil frequently enough he thought it had a little more life left in it. Antifreeze looked good.

I found the brake line culprit. Along with the truck I inherited a flaring tool. (this seems as oddly doomed as getting a patch kit with an air mattress). Hope I don't have to use it too often. The worst part of the line was as it ran under a frame brace. I suppose salt and gravel stayed lodged in that area and ate away at the lines. Interesting to see a cross section of the line and how it appeared tear-drop shaped inside. Not sure if that's from the way I cut it, or material wearing / deposits inside the line.

Brake line replaced, son helped bleed the lines (except for one rusted bleeder valve... well they ALL were rusted but this one needs more time) and the pedal doesn't go to the floor anymore. Still a bit soft yet so that other line will need more attention.

IT RUNS!

Not on the first attempt though, so I picked up new plugs, distributor cap, rotor, condenser, and points. A little gas down the carburetor, waited a few minutes, and the truck fired up. My 17 year old gave me the best hug, and 15 year old could not stop talking about helping gap the points. Relationships and teaching my kids (at the same time that this forum and YouTube are teaching me) are why I took on this project.

We took a celebration ride around the block.

Now that I know it runs the next step is re-read for the 20th time about the 12-volt conversion process, and investing in some parts and favors from friends.

12 volt conversion is complete after many days of waiting. I won't bore you with how I did it because that's well-documented elsewhere on the web. But I did run into a few things that are worth noting.

1. My friend welded the new alternator bracket for free.
2. The guide from HUSSY on The 6 to 12 Volt ConversionJalopy Journal was essential.
3. I did not like the result of trying to use a resistor for the blower motor. That thing got HOT. So I went with a 12 volt motor from a classic parts store. The problem I found is the outer diameter of the new motor is smaller than the original so there's extra space in the firewall uncovered by the motor gasket. Not sure what to do about that.
4. This was a good example of the snowballing project. Deciding to replace the heater motor led to replacing all the heater hose lines (a very good choice considering the old condition) and disassembling the heater to clean.

I'm not doing a new wiring harness (probably could have) so a few problems were encountered there (future post). And I learned that being a 6'1" contortionist is not in my future. I did have one good idea under the dash which was to prop a 1x6 under the parking brake and accelerator pedal to keep the clutch and brake pedals down as close to the floor as possible. That helped.

Bottom line: it still runs. (But needs some electrical TLC)

Now that it consistently starts / runs well my thoughts are turning to the cab (and finishing up the lighting).

Some of the parts are okay and can stay original but there a few holes to patch and new upholstery to make.Online parts stores have been good so far, but I don't want to rely on them more than i have to. Obviously need new door liner and might as well replace the headliner to match. We're going with a black/white/original mix of interior. Major parts of the project will be ordering a few components (headliner, new visor arms, etc), repainting the cab, As much new glass as can be afforded and installed by us, refresh the steering wheel, clean up the original chrome pieces, patch the floor holes and use a chassis saver material, and re-do the seat.

Whew! I'm exhausted already....

Great read. A lot of work accomplished on your truck and doing it with your Kids thats just a plus. Keep it up

The Site has some excellent Tech Tips to help you along your journey. The link to Tech Tips is at the top of the page. Great family project.🛠

Seat Upholstery was taken on by my eldest daughter. I stitch-ripped the original seat covers apart and laid them out on the ground upside down and wrote in marker the position for both the bench and the back rest.

The plan was to use filling and liner material from recycled mattresses. (The place I work started a mattress recycling program to keep mattresses out of the landfill.) but was not sure about cover fabric. Then as chance would have it during this process our jail administer wanted to recycle some old unused jail mattresses. I figured the fabric would be suitable for this since they were probably made to be durable.
She cut new pieces, made edge piping, and sewed together.

One mistake I made was not having her cut the vertical pieces larger to account for the extra thickness. I added more fiber to the thickness and did not accommodate for the extra thickness so pulling the pieces on was a challenge. We did get them on but one of the corners tore in the process. This was not a difficult project at all so we may re-visit this winter if the material does not hold up.
The other thing I should have done is sand and paint the main pieces of metal.

The decision to refresh the interior was a simple one as the driver side door liner was already shot and the headliner was warping in one place. My neighbor does powder coating on the side and offered to do out trim pieces and even re-do the interior side of the doors.

So we started removing trim and peeling off parts and are thankful we made that choice.... sort of. removing the window trim freed the front of the headliner and instantly we were treated to the aroma of old mice. When all was said and done we removed a 5-gallon bucket of oat seed hulls, stuffing from the seat cushion, mouse droppings, and mud wasp nests. (That's what I get for allowing the truck to sit in a barn for 10 years). I'm glad we took on this challenge and discovered this now.

The roof is rusty (no doubt from the mouse urine) so we'll have to prep and re-cover cover that as well as the floor repairs. All in all it was a good yucky day.

I was dragging my feet about refreshing the gauges and finally committed after I discovered a position I can contort into that is less uncomfortable and does not make my legs fall asleep. You definitely cannot be claustrophobic working on these things.

I purchased the decal kit, but in the process of removing the speedometer needle and holder the fragile 68 year old plastic pointer burst into several pieces. I did not want to order a new one and wait for yet another deliver as the days are cooling off rapidly, so I opted to make a new pointer out of wood and to secure it to the base with a Loctite brand all-purpose adhesive. The wood I used is leftover from the bed liner so there's a hidden connection with this conversation piece. It's not as sharp as a new red pointer, but every time I look at it I can smirk knowing that I made a speedometer pointer out of cedar.

Seats are in!

My neighbor powder coat painted the seat frame and did a fantastic job! Old school lap belt open lever seat belts were acquired and installed for driver and passenger, and I glued layers of foam and mattress liner together for sound deadening so the jack, and tow chain don't rattle around so much. Its fun to finally start putting some things back in. Another few days before the rest of the parts come back from painting.

These brakes almost broke me.

Went for a drive around the block the check my bleeding job and the brakes were still a touch soft. Opening the MC and applying pressure I could see fluid rising back into the MC when the brake pedal was released. It looked like a very faint/slight liquid cone. Imagine a bubbler in a pond that barely cracks the surface and minimize the point to a pencil head. So I knew movement was happening, and knew I had just bled them a few days ago. I opened up the furthest line to re-bleed but no fluid was coming through, and my 13 year old helper said the fluid level was not going down and no bubbles were coming up. Hunching there was a blockage I loosened the fitting on the rear Tee going to the left rear and fluid was seeping between the threads. I was quite certain there was a blockage; especially considering the line I replaced where the hole previously was had severe rusting.

Sure enough, I pulled everything off from the front Tee to the rear, separated the individuals lines, and could not spray fluid through the hose just before the rear Tee. Since I had everything off and since it was the last nice day before more rain I made seven trips to parts stores to find a hose that would come close to a match so that I would not have to wait another week for an original part.

I had to make a couple adjustments such as cutting a slightly larger hold in the mounting bracket for the new rear Tee to fit, but it was worth it to get the lines redone before it gets cold here again.

Wow, great progress and Good work. You'll be cruising with Dad and the kids by Thanksgiving..

I don't have before-photos of the bedliner but Dad had salvaged the liner strips, and thriftily replaced the rotted boards with 2" planks in a unique pattern (however he could make it fit with what he had on hand). It definitely served the purpose. And THANK GOODNESS Dad salvaged the liner strips. Most were still in good condition. 3 had pitted rusting and several squared fastener holes had rust as well. Fortunately the neighbor down the street who does powder coating was able to sandblast with care, and the finished product turned out better than expected. True, when you look closely you can see the worn and pocked areas, but they are all in one piece!

Backing up a bit, I took my teenage help on this project to meet a local millwright, Bob D. (from whom I've bought wood for canoe paddles and end grain cutting boards). I let him select the wood. We have talked all along about this truck restoration theme of "the old meets the new" as we both had a strong desire to keep as much original while still being able to drive daily through the winter, and refreshing the interior was a strong desire. My son picked out cedar that Bob had milled from telephone poles. Its not what I would have gone with but in hindsight think it was the best choice as the cracks in the cedar maintain the "old" look even after refinishing. It was easy to work with the cedar, and with the odor of creosote still lingering I'm hoping for some additional rot resistance.

We ended up 1 length short due to some boards that were too cracked (and Bob lives a ways away) so we "made" the final board by splicing together four pieces; 2 at a time. The first 2 boards were off-set so that the gluing face was long enough for a study board. Basically, the 2 boards off-set made the 85" length (though each board was only 55"). The next 2 we glued the remaining 2 boards to the previous. For the butt ends we used the trick of mixing glue and sawdust then pushing into the seam (which is the same tactic I used for some of the split sections). It wouldn't pass the test of many woodworkers but we're happy with the finished product. The new support blocks were also made from glued cedar pieces.

Regarding the sills, many fastening holes were rusted through - especially the outer 2 liner strips, but all in all they were 70% good. Rather than scrap them and spend $500 for new I had the local machine shop make 1/8 strips with the precise hole pattern drilled in and slid those up the underside of each sill when fastening. This worked out great! It give the lower fastening support and the boards seem to be held fast.

Very happy with how this has turned out. Hoping for one more 50 degree day to spray some underliner sealant and have the main bed mounting bolts to fasten.

"I'm Tanked"

Thanksgiving is closing in but so is the project. The problem I asked the forum about earlier (carb vs fuel pump) led me down the dingy road of assessing the fuel tank. THANK GOODNESS for this forum. I was getting fuel so I never suspected the tank, but fortunately for the wisdom of this group I did some digging and found rust, and sludge.

So... siphoned out the tank, out came the seat, disconnected the line, out came the tank, disconnected the petcock to reveal the source of the blocked flow, unplugged the petcock valve, spend 45 minutes in the local hardware store looking for the proper fittings, and now just waiting for the new tank to arrive.

In the meantime I received a glass bowl fuel filter to replace the contraption I'm holding in my hands in the photos ("bell-style fuel filter?") and a Carter YF Carb to replace the Rochester B that is clearly in need of new gaskets (at a minimum). When the tank is installed we *should* be able to travel more than 1/2 mile... unless there's another hidden mystery to solve. Which reminds me, after having the master cylinder replaced there is now - as predicted - a rear wheel cylinder leaking. (I better get that ordered today as well.)

One bright spot; my main helper was away, but my youngest son (age 15) was around. When I asked him if he would be willing to help me remove the fuel tank he literally (and I mean literally!) jumped out off the couch ready to help. That's what has made this project so great!

New fuel tank = New Life.

Swapping out the tank would have been done a long time ago if I had been more aware of the need. Thankful to this forum for alerting me to the concerns. I added a fabric composite liner material and rubber floor mat from a ford econoline conversion van which also required a coupler to connect the tank straps. The truck has been operational since then and is ready for Dad to take a drive on Thanksgiving.

There's a reason I don't install headliners for a living. For me it was NOT a 1-person job. My main helper and I struggled for a mad minute to get the new headliner lined up and connected in the middle. One problem was caused by adding a thin layer of foam to the ceiling for a little insulation. So one edge of the headliner had to be trimmed to compensate for the loss of head space. Maybe a waste of effort to do so... I won't know until summer. But the task is complete with only one blemish. (Totally my fault).

We finally received all the parts back from powder coating and we're ecstatic with the results.

Windows were much easier to install - we installed new glass for the doors. It made such a difference one of my teens asked (looking at it from a distance) when I was going to put the windows in. (They were in and rolled up!)

For the window regulator channel I used 30 mil rubber landscape liner to replace the previous liner material, and with the vent window elected to trim the rubber windlace off the metal fastener (for the locking side of the vent window) rather than pop the rivets off the old windlace fastener. I used spray-on adhesive to secure that. I also had my middle daughter help me select some material (tweed) to line the channel and it ended up being a perfect fit. She stitched two seams according to the spacing of the old channel fabric (what was left anyway) which made it easier to place. I used spray adhesive on that was well which especially worked great for folding over the outside facing metal channel.

A few final trims needed for the excess tweed awkwardly hanging but all in all its looking close to done.

I'll post some before and after photos of the cab when I get a chance, but for now just sharing that Dad was down for Thanksgiving and took my Son for a ride. He had a big smile on his face, gave me a big hug, and said he's glad the truck is in good hands. My Dad and I have a great relationship (thankfully). It was a treat to let him drive it after 10 years. The other photo show how well my 6' 8" son fits in the cab. This will not be his type of restoration project.

THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH for the advice and encouragement. There's still a bit to figure out, but that will be next year's budget.

Wow, Great work, story, family and of course truck. Thanks for sharing. Now it’s time to start enjoying the fruits of all your labor while working on all the little bits (you do know these projects are never truly finished).

Just reviewed previous post and wanted to say something on how well the bed turned out. Fine work by all involved. You need to be careful or things are going to be too pretty to use.

RonR

Thanks RonR

One of the little fun things we installed were interior lights. The "Rock" lights are mounted on the rear ridge of the seat frame support and swivel 180 degrees. They can point froward so you can see the foot pedals and glove box in a dark cab. We got the "rock" switch for when we want to jam out... that is... sometime in the future the we score a radio for the vehicle.

The "Sasquatch" lights are a long story. Basically my eldest daughter (who did the seat) wanted a blue color in the truck - I think this came from the old meets new (and she added borrowed and blue). I saw the Sasquatch switch on eBay and it struck me funny enough that I got it. We mounted the blue LED strip lights behind the upper seat frame bar because (as I told my 8-year old) Sasquatch sneak up on people from behind but they don't like blue light. So if you're worried about Sasquatch just turn on the light.

Silly... yes. But no Sasquatch attacks thus far...

I enjoy reading up on your progress. I really like the choice of Cedar you made for the bed wood. I was thinking maybe Cypress, it fairly common here in the South , it holds up great to Sun and weather. Great adventure you have going.

You are doing a good job. Looking good. Keep it up!