The Stovebolt Site Forums Project Journals Archived Journals 1951 Chevy 3100/3600 Project

Brian, I am, tracking your progress as when the weather cooperates I will be doing the same floor, inner and outer cowl patch panel work. Great job, I can only hope to have as good a result.

Boy, does that look nice! Great work!

Thanks you guys for the encouragement! I've done similar body panel replacement work on railroad passenger cars, but the metal is a lot thicker. And, since you're not working in such a confined space it's not nearly as tedious. This project has been quite the learning process.

Good job on the inner-to-outer cowl. That floor and firewall is starting to look like new.
I did nearly the same on the cowl piece, came close to cutting it completely apart and welding it back together. The fabricated piece is close to just raw material to make your own.

klhansen,

I took a moment to go through your flickr album. You've done some impressive work on that poor old truck! Way more than I will ever need to do. I really like the cab rotisserie you fabricated. I can't imagine doing the rear cab corners without turning the cab on its nose, or even getting the bottom of the cab cleaned and painted. I'm going to have to build one for sure.

Since my last post I found some stuff lying around the shop area with which to build a pretty decent rotisserie for the cab. Once the cab was on the spit, I was able to finish both of the lower cowls, clean up the welded seams at the new floor panels, and replace rotten parts underneath the cab. About half of each flange where the cab-to-running board seal mounts had to be replaced. Then I replaced the bottom sections of the inner rear cab corners. Once all of that welding was done, I cleaned, prepped and primed the bottom of the cab.

After rebuilding the rear cab shackles, it was a good feeling to re-install them instead of just putting them on a shelf for later. Next, I began the task of replacing the outer rear cab corners. To date I've got the left corner cut out and the inner area cleaned up and coated with truck bed liner. I'll use this coating on the floor under the fuel tank and seat as well. Once the cab corners are done, the bottom of the cab will get a top coat of paint then a coat of truck bed liner, too.

As a side note, the new floor panel for the driver's side toe board did not come with the seal retainers for the brake and clutch rods, or the accelerator pedal hinge, travel stop and seal retainer. My old floor was missing the original pedal hinge and stop as a previous owner had chopped them off to use a more modern pedal. Many months ago I had cut these pieces out of the floor of a truck at a junk yard. The seal retainers (with seals) I purchased through an eBay store called Bill's Truck Shop, Ltd. in Canada.

While the cab corner work is going on, I've also started cleaning up the front fenders. They are in pretty decent shape although it became pretty apparent that both had suffered damage and were pounded back into shape, more or less, many years ago. I've got one fender in primer now after many hours of sanding, and a whole lot of hammer and dolly work to (hopefully) lessen the amount of body filler I'll need to apply later.

Great work/progress. I am hoping to get my driver's side floor and cowl area to the point of pulling the cab off the frame in the coming weeks to allow the bottom side work you have completed and the rear cab corners that you are starting on.

Your fenders sound a lot like mine, pretty good shape for their age and experience but the closer you look the more "used" they appear.

I put some quality time in on the left rear corner of the cab yesterday. After test fitting the new patch panel onto the corner a couple dozen times, I came to the conclusion that the "L" shaped corner at the bottom rear (where the rear cab wall notches up) was not going to wind up in the right place if the new corner remained in one piece. It simply isn't the same size as the original corner. So I cut off the corner and clamped it where it needed to go. I figured it would be easiest to get the rest of the corner to fit then fill in the gap (which turned out to be about 1/2" wide). The first photo shows the new corner piece temporary clamped into place with the "L" corner in the right spot. Note the difference in the two surfaces. In order to get the corner to "lie down" and meet up with the rear wall, I needed to get the bottom of the corner to tuck in further. To do that, I had to cut off about half of the "Z" shaped lip where the corner attaches to the door jamb. Then I had to slowly grind away the remaining material until the corner piece was relieved sufficiently.

Before that whole process, however, I took some time to make a couple of patterns from the door. Using overlapping layers of tape, and some strips of manila folder for rigidity, I made patterns of the bottom of the door, and of the rear edge. These patterns allowed me to check the alignment of the new corner piece before I tacked it in. Unfortunately, because the other cab corner is gone at the bottom, too, I don't have any means of gauging how far out the new corner should be from the door jamb. I made an educated guess based on the thickness of the bottom of the door (including the rubber seal). I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the door and the corner faces line up reasonably well.

In the last photo, you can see that after I trimmed the door edge sufficiently, the corner laid down pretty well and was easily tacked to the "L" shaped corner at the rear. The gap between the two pieces is easily filled in with a strip. I will need to make some filler pieces for the door edge as well.

When I fitted up the new patch panel on the left rear corner, I had to cut away a bunch of the "Z" shaped leading edge in order to get it to lay down in the right position. That meant I had to go back and make pieces to fill in those gaps, too. The first photo shows the new pieces tacked in place. At this point I spend quite a bit of time double checking dimensions to be as sure as I could be that it was right. The second photo shows the end result after a whole lot of spot welding, grinding, welding, sanding, welding, etc., etc. I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out.

I then started in on the right side corner. In this case, I didn't need to replace the existing "Z" shaped section so I cut the old corner to leave that edge in place, and made the new patch piece fit up to it. I spent a fraction of the time fitting this corner vs. the other side. In the third photo the interior of that corner has been cleaned, metal prepped and then painted prior to putting the new corner in. I'm coating the interior of these corner spaces and the whole floor pan inside the cab with truck bed liner. Eventually I will coat the bottom of the cab the same way.

Your progressing nicely! I like your rotisserie! 👍

Me too.
I think I've seen that concept before.

With progress on my cab moving along, I decided I'd better get some of the interior things rehabbed and ready to be installed someday. I brought home my gauges and ordered a number of restoration parts from a local vendor. Now, my truck is a '51 and as such it had an 80 mph speedo in it. The truck came with another pair of gauges that were not in the best shape, but I took both speedos apart so I could pick the best pieces to use. As it turned out, the decal set I bought (which was advertised for 1947-1953 Chevy trucks) came with a 90 mph speedo decal. This situation seems to be an issue with the various vendors I look at. At any rate, I went ahead with what I had. I plan to rehab the pieces I have for the 80 mph speedo, too, once I get a proper decal for the face plate.

I had a lot of fun with the odometer. I don't wish that little project on anybody that doesn't have the patience of Job. The decal instructions say to apply them directly over the old painted numbers on the wheels. That would ensure the numbers all line up properly. In my case, one of the odometers had teeth missing from the gear on the end, and the other odometer's wheels were stuck on the shaft. Also, the old painted numbers were flaking off the wheels so I had to scrape them all clean before applying the new numbers.

Since I wanted to reset my odo to zero, I jumped in with both feet and took them both apart. I always wanted to know how they worked anyway. For the uninitiated, each wheel has a dimple on one side that indicates the "0" position. Between each wheel is a thin metal plate with a small gear. The teeth on those little gears are different on each side so getting them installed in the correct way is critical. The wheels are held on the center shaft with washer-shaped keepers that are pressed onto each end. Only remove one of them so that the wheels stay in the same position on the shaft. I removed the keeper on the right (gear) end as it is much closer to the end of the shaft. Getting that keeper back onto the shaft in such a way that it is not too tight or too loose is challenging to say the least.

The end result is less than perfect as the zeroes don't line up just right. This is due to my application of the decals (not getting them in exactly the same spot on each wheel) and not the wheels themselves. I'm going to live with it until something better comes along.

The steel body of the speedo was prepped inside and out for repaint. On the outside I used Dupli-Color #SS100 "Stainless Steel" to replicate the galvanized look. The inside was repainted with Krylon #2437 "Satin Almond" which I found in my wife's stash of spray paint. The pressed ring that fits between the gauge body and the glass was originally painted in Chevy's "Champagne" color (I think that's what it's called). My son found a reference to Rust-Oleum #7272830 "Dark Metallic Bronze" right here in the Stovebolt forum. I found it to be a wonderful match to the original color.

I used a new chrome bezel and found that the bronze painted inner ring would not fit inside it as it should. The inner ring's flange was too wide across about 45% of its circumference. A short time with a good file took care of the problem. Next, the replacement gaskets that I got are not the same shape as the originals. The originals were round in cross section so they sat down inside the bezel. The new gaskets are square in cross section so they sit proud in the bezel. With the glass and inner ring in place, you can't push the gauge body down far enough to seat it all together and crimp the bezel. My solution was to take a razor blade and shave one the outer corner of the gasket to a 45 degree angle so that it sat down inside the bezel.

The speedo is done and I'm most of the way through doing the other gauge now so more on that soon.

Here's a photo showing the two odometers all taken apart. You can see the thin metal divider plates with their little gears. The wheels have a full "ring gear" on one side, and a very short section of teeth between "9" and "0" on the other side. The little gears have "extended" teeth on one side that engage that short section of teeth on the wheel to advance the next wheel one place. It's a very clever design.

Today was a big day for the project. With my son's help I got the cab re-installed on the chassis. Prior to putting it on, we installed the cab-to-running board seals on both sides and I finished coating the bottom of the cab with truck bed liner. After removing the steering column and a few other items installed during last summer's test drive, the cab went on without any hitches. Now I need to shim it to the proper height. I'm very excited about getting the front end all put together soon!

That is a big day and it’s starting to look like a truck again. I think the best part is your not going backwards repairing every part you touch but moving forward toward a completed project. Congrats!

Last weekend my folks were visiting from out-of-state for my dad's birthday. He's been a big supporter of my truck project so I figured I needed to have the truck in a condition to give him a ride while he was here. My list of to-do's was fairly long.

Previously I had painted the interior of the cab. I then painted the upper cowl area where the hood lays. I figured this was as good a place as any to spray the urethane sample I had mixed to match the "Gloss Regal Blue" I used inside the cab. After letting it cure a number of days, and being satisfied with the result, I installed new rubber grommets in the firewall, and the reconditioned fuse holder and voltage regulator (just for looks, it's not in use). I needed to get some of my new wiring loom installed, too, but first I had to purchase a new rubber mat (with the jute backing) for the inner firewall and get that installed. The new mat had die-cut holes for the various penetrations, some of which didn't match up at all. In hind sight, I should not have punched out the holes before installing the mat. Instead, I should have test fit the mat and marked it with a pen through the holes in the firewall, then cut the mat myself. It is what it is at this point, so I moved on. The new wiring loom my dad purchased over a year ago went in along with a new brake light switch and headlight dimmer switch.

To finish up inside the cab, I installed the brake and clutch pedals, the accelerator pedal and its rod, the starter pedal, and the choke and throttle cables. I also installed a new speedometer cable and the speedo I rebuilt. Next went in the re-conditioned seat adjusters, the cleaned (but not yet painted) seat frame along with the original cushions, and finally the steering wheel.

Moving to the outside of the cab, I re-installed the steering box and column (removed when I installed the cab). Then came the radiator, the inner fenders and their support rods.

After installing a temporary temperature gauge that I zip tied to the passenger side A pillar, I filled the cooling system with water. I also installed a temporary oil pressure gauge in the tee fitting at the block. Lastly, I ran fuel hose back to a temporary gas tank mounted on a piece of plywood on the frame behind the cab.

After a brief hiccup involving the distributor timing (quickly rectified by my son) the motor fired right up and idled smoothly. My son and I took a quick spin around the shop area to make sure everything was ok then it was my dad's turn. It was incredibly rewarding to be able to drive him around in my truck!

The first two photos don't do show the blue paint properly. The third photo better represents the dark gloss blue that I had matched to one of my porcelain enamel "Union 76" signs from the 1950's. My son reconditioned the air cleaner (a swap meet purchase) and added the decal which he made from a scan of an advertisement on a 1950's Union Oil road map.

I haven't had any luck uploading video files to this forum, so I plan to upload some video to my YouTube account then post a link.

Congrats on your first drive. Won’t be long before you take your first spin on the road!

My 1951 3600 is in the final paint stage. I am the third owner, all original, 69000 miles. I drove it for a year before I started a total frame off restoration in 2018. Trying hard to make it look like it just came off the show room floor. Total stock. Only thing I have left to find is 17" (8) lug split rims.

51 Roughrider, sounds like you've got a great project. Have you posted any photos yet? I'd sure love to see your truck, and I'm sure others would, too!

Changes in my job have got me hopping, but I continue to make progress on my truck as often as I can. We've had some very nice weather here which has made it nice to get lots of painting done. I'm trying to get as many of the big pieces painted before cooler and/or wet weather sets in. The place where I am doing this work is not the best environment for painting so my bar is not set very high. I keep telling myself that this isn't going to be a 'show truck.' Also, to paraphrase something an old boss used to say (about his welding abilities), I wouldn't make a pimple on a good painter's butt! In the end I hope to have a truck that will be fun to play with and still look pretty good going down the road. But I digress...

A couple months ago I temporarily mounted the front fenders to the truck so that I could (1) figure out how to do it before they are painted, (2) figure out where to install the turn signals, and (3) check the fender height (I had a concern about my radiator support not being 'square'). Since then I've painted the front fenders and the grill, and the hood is 75% done (inside painted; ready to paint the outside). To recap a bit, I'm a Union 76 collector so this truck is going to represent a gas station service truck, hence the blue and orange scheme. I matched the colors to a 1950's era porcelain enamel sign that I have hanging in my garage. The orange is a stock color (Sherwin-Williams) and the blue happened to match "Nissan Blue" (Wesco). Both are single-stage urethanes. I had issues with getting the orange thick enough to not see through it (which turned out to be an issue with my gravity fed spray gun, not the paint). I shot four coats the first go around. After that had cured I wet sanded the fenders and gave them three more coats. I had the same issue with the orange on the grill. That took five coats, the last two I shot with a different gun. Live and learn, I guess. I shot all of the blue on the grill first then masked for the orange (since the orange is in the front). What a nightmare! There are some spots where the parting lines are not as clean as I'd like so I will go back and touch those up with a 00 brush. Ultimately, one day when the budget allows, I hope to acquire a chrome grill to replace this painted one.

On a different note I also acquired new tires (thank you dad!) to go on the new 16x6 rims that I bought. I painted the rims blue (they came powder coated black). Once I install the hubcap clips the rims will get another shot of blue. I'm really looking forward to seeing the truck sitting on these one day soon.

After shopping for cab glass via the usual vendors, I decided that I did not need to spend so much money on shipping (which basically doubled the cost of new glass and has a 4-6 week lead time). I took my old windshield glass to a local shop and had new ones cut. Then, thanks to an ad on Craigslist, I picked up brand new glass for the rear window, the vent windows and the door windows (all LMC products for a project that went a different route) at half cost. The hour and a half drive to pick them up was well worth it.

Next on the docket is to get the windshield installed while the fenders are off, then the front end can go together.

Sounds like great progress. My project is several months behind yours.

Can you provide any additional information regarding the wheels and tires that you bought? It is hard to tell from the picture but they appear to be 8 bolt wheels and sound like a size that I may pursue for my build.

Keep up the great work.

Sure. The wheels are 8 lug, 16x6 steel wheels from eTrailer.com:

https://www.etrailer.com/Trailer-Tires-and-Wheels/Dexstar/AM20766.html

I've read many recommendations on various forums for using these wheels on 3/4 ton trucks when you are using the original steering gear. The 0.5" offset gives you the clearance needed at the tie rod ends. I originally bought just two wheels to use on the front end as I intended on using a pair of later-model Chevy wheels that I had on hand for the rears. I want to use original style hub caps which require the metal clips like the original wheels. I found that the later wheels didn't lend themselves to that very well so I bought two more of the Dexstar wheels. I will use one of the later wheels for the spare. I will be installing the metal hub cap clips very soon and will post photos of that process.

I chose to use 215/85 R16 tires for my truck. I like the taller side wall look. I don't have a big budget for this truck project so I shopped around for tires that didn't cost an arm and a leg. What I settled on were Americus LT's from WalMart. They are a commercial style tire (vs. a touring, etc.) so they are "all business" looking which fits well with the style of my truck.

Thanks for the wheel and tire information. I am using the original steering gear although with a custom drag link due to steering gear relocation for engine clearance.

I was planning to go with taller tires but as you noted prices can be challenging.

Today I began installing hub cap clips on my Dexstar steel wheels. As I mentioned in an earlier post, these steel wheels have dimples on the back side that show you exactly where to drill the holes for mounting the clips. The trick is to get the clips the correct distance from the wheel so that they actually hold on to the hub caps. I used an old hub cap I bought at an antique show to test fit the clips which I spaced away from the wheels with washers and secured with machine screws and nuts. It was easy to add or subtract washers until I found the right height. In the end it turned out that 1/4" spacers under the clips was optimal. My local hardware store had Delron bushings that were 1/4" high with a 1/4" dia. hole, perfect for use with the 1/4" dia. copper rivets I purchased from McMaster-Carr.

The next step was to build a mandrel to back up the rivets on the rear side of the wheel. I used some scrap pieces of 2" square tubing and a chunk of hex stock with one end turned in a lathe to 1/2" dia. (so it would fit in the ribs of the wheel) to build the mandrel. I then used a small ball shaped die grinder tool in an electric end drill to mill out a "socket" on the top of the hex stock. This allowed the domed head of the copper rivet to sit in the top of the mandrel. I had bought a small air chisel at Hazard Fraught Tools and it came with a basic chisel tool. I cut the end off the tool and used the ball die grinder tool to make a dimple in the end as well.

With the the mandrel sitting under the wheel, a copper rivet in place, a bushing set over the rivet shank, and a clip set on top of the bushing, I then riveted over the end of the copper shank with the air chisel. The air tool got the rivet swelled enough to hold everything in place, but to really get things solid I used a hammer and punch. I think the air tool should have been larger for this job. In the end the hub cap snaps into place very nicely and isn't too difficult to remove. I think when I finally am able to drive the truck on the road I will put old, beat up hub caps on it at first to make sure they stay in place, then replace them with nice, new repop caps.

The weather has turned cold and the shop is unheated, but stuff still manages to get done. After trying to get my original gas tank clean inside, I bagged that job and bought a new one. Brother's Trucks was having a sale, and with free shipping the total cost of a new tank was less than one I could pick up from my closest vendor. The tank showed up last Monday so on Tuesday it got installed, along with a new sending unit, straps, hoses at the filler neck, etc. Sure is nice to have that space in the cab filled up finally!

Since I had to get under the truck to run the wire to the gas tank sending unit, I stayed under there a while and finished running all of the tail light wiring to the rear end. Man that concrete floor is cold and hard! When I rebuilt my SM420 transmission I used a later model cover that included a reverse light switch, so I also ran the wiring for that.

The dash is starting to come together. I reconditioned both of the defroster ducts and installed them, then did the same to my wiper motor and linkage. A few days later I found (and bought) a like-new wiper motor for $8 at an antique mall, so go figure. Maybe the original one will work just fine since I have a spare. I also managed to get the cowl vent and drain hose installed.

I have reconditioned my fresh-air style heater and will install it as soon as the gasket kit I ordered arrives. The original 6v motor runs just fine so I'll be installing a voltage reducer in that circuit.

Next time I hope to report that the windshield and rear glass have been installed.

Man, you truck is sure coming together nicely. Nice job

I also have a concrete floor in my garage, so I feel your pain. I keep a few pieces of cardboard from large boxes just for that purpose. Insulates quite nicely and softens the concrete to boot.

Keep up the good work!

I recently finished refurbishing my heater and got it installed in the cab. I kept the original 6v motor as it runs well, so I'll be using a voltage reducer in the circuit. I chose a non-stock paint color as it fits with the truck's scheme. I've since installed all of the hoses, too.

Yesterday was a big day for the project. I had a good friend of mine come by (he's rebuilding a Diamond T into a beer delivery truck) and give me a hand installing the windshield. I've never done one of these before but did watch several good You Tube videos. I didn't stay at a Holiday Inn Express but still felt confident I could pull it off. The job went surprisingly well, and quick. The only hiccup with the hole thing is that the four holes in the center rubber strip do not line up well enough to allow the chrome trim to be installed. It's off by about a half a hole to the right, just enough to force the screws to skew out of line. I'll ream them out a bit with a tire plug reamer then use a liberal amount of sealant in each hole.

We then started to tackle the rear window. I had bought new rear glass from a private party a couple months ago (leftovers from a guy's project that went a different direction). This was glass that had been custom cut, not ordered from a catalog. I did not notice at the time that it was not the correct size for my truck. Fortunately it's too big, so I'll have a local glass shop cut it to the right size.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to everyone!

It's been terribly cold in the shop up so not much work has gotten done until Saturday when the temperature in our area suddenly went up to almost 60 degrees. My son came over and we decided to put in a little time on the project. As we were hoping to get the wiring harness installation finished (under the dash) he gave me an early Christmas present: an NOS heater switch. When we initially stripped out the cab two years ago, I inadvertently destroyed the original switch trying to remove it from the bottom of the dash. I had been looking for a replacement ever since. He found one on an eBay store. Unfortunately, we didn't get to work on the wiring as we had hoped.

I had previously installed the gauges in the dash and just needed to install a new line to the oil pressure gauge. I received a new kit last week, so with that in hand I dove in under the dash. I knew I was in trouble when that funky tapered compression fitting didn't ever get tight. Then suddenly the fitting popped right off the back of the gauge. I had bought this gauge some months ago at a huge wrecking yard that only deals in American made vehicles, and specializes in having a lot of pre-1960 stuff. They always have a lot of new restoration parts at the counter. My original oil gauge had an issue with going to "O" so I bought a replacement. Anyway, after some mild theatrics and various choice words, I removed the gauge cluster to take home. There, I compared the fitting on the back of the old gauge with the new one and noticed that the hole machined in the new gauge's block was much larger than the original one. That allowed the compression fitting to work its way right on through and basically pry the block off the back of the gauge. I was a victim of poor quality control. So at this point I am just going to put my original oil pressure gauge back into the cluster and get the thing installed. For my test runs I had a small gauge mounted right at the engine tee fitting. I'm going to keep that in place for peace of mind.

To keep the day from being a total loss we did install the passenger side fender, headlight and turn signal housing. Photos to come when I get the other side done.

It's been a while since I last posted an update on my project. In fact, it's been quite a while since I was able to do any work on the truck do to changes in my full-time job keeping me busy.

I've set a goal to have my truck (incomplete as it is) on display in my town's annual car show on June 24th. To that end, I'm working on getting the doors repaired and complete enough that they can be installed (minus windows at this point). The passenger side door has been in primer for some time, and needs very minor work on the bottom. The driver's side door needed to have the bottom of the inside panel replaced. This section is formed in a slight "S" shape. I don't have a set of rolls to use, so I clamped a suitable piece of sheet steel to a length of 4" dia. pipe and gently hammered it to shape, then flipped it over and repeated the procedure. The end result was pretty respectable. It's been fitted into the hole and awaits welding (I discovered I was out of shield gas).

While I couldn't do any work on the truck per se, I was able to acquire stuff for it (which is just as fun). All new gaskets, etc., for the windows, new springs, gaskets and chrome handles for the door latch mechanisms, and a complete kit for a proper bed.

I expect to be moving the truck from its temporary quarters (a 40 ft. shipping container at my work) to my home soon, thanks to finally (after 14 years) getting my son's '64 VW Bug chassis out of my garage and into his!

Last month I had an opportunity to trailer my truck home from where I've been working on it these last couple of years. Since my truck is going to be Union Oil Co. themed it was only natural that I stop at the local Union 76 station to check the tie down straps and snap a photo. I got it home and into the garage which turned out to be a whole lot tighter situation that I had imagined.

I wanted to be able to take the truck to our annual in-town car show so I had a list of things that needed to get done, not the least of which was repair and install the doors. Long hours at work kept me from doing much of anything at home, so it pretty much all came down to the Friday night before the show. My son came over to help and by midnight we had some items done, but still much to do. I went to bed but he stayed up till 2:30 am and finished everything by himself! How he managed to install the driver's side door when there's like 8 inches of clearance on that side of the truck I'll never know! Thanks to his dedication to the task we made it to the show that morning. This was my first time having something to enter at a show (my son entered his '72 Super Beetle previously). It was a wonderful time and we are all (my wife had a blast, too) looking forward to more to come.

Hey that will be great. We will have two Union oil trucks in the PNW

Beautiful truck! Hope to see it in person some day!

Brian

Glad to hear you made it to your town’s annual car show. What is even better, is getting to work on your truck with your son.great memories are being made. Congrats on how much you’ve accomplished

Sir, Congrats on a milestone accomplishment to have your project '51 Chevrolet 1/2 ton at a local show. Hard work pays off & now your probably more energized to finish it up. Good luck Brian. V/r, Nick