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Hi All,

My name is Dean and I am from Western Australia. I recently bought a 1950 5-window 3100 barn find. I think it might have spent its life on a Californian farm as it was riddled with Walnut shells..

There is minimal rust just in the cab corners -- luckily it came with the patch panels.

The engine is not salvageable so the whole drive train will be removed and replaced with a 350 SBC and a T700 combo.

As I live in a RHD country, I will also do a RHD conversion which also includes cutting up the dash and switching that over as well.

Welcome aboard Dean. That’s a nice solid looking truck you were lucky enough to find. Congratulations. I’m looking forward to watching your build.

Thanks Paul

Once again, Welcome to Stovebolt Dean! Your project goals are doable, given the necessary resource, time and so on. Looking forward to seeing your project get going.

Cool truck. 👍 I’ve always liked those rear bumpers. Tailgate looks nice and straight. Good score.

Welcome

John

Thanks John, it does make climbing in and out of the bed easy, but I'm not sure of the look though.

So I have bought a Jag Series II IFS Rack n Pinion front end from an old Hotrodder which will need a full rebuild, from the 4 pot brake callipers to the rack n pinion, and suspension……

Gasp, you’re treading close to heresy now Dean 😂. I just got my new Mustang ll IFS x member the other day, but haven’t put it together yet.
Interesting choice for yours. How much work do you think it’ll be before you’re ready for the install?

I’ve had to make up some elaborate brackets to mount it to the chassis as I don’t want to weld it in, so I am about to put it all together and mock it up to see if it will all work, so hopefully Paul it should be a couple of weeks

So I have finished up on refurbishing the jag front end suspension and rack n pinion and now have got it in position ready to be mounted in

Now the process of mounting the front end begins, and fabricating some shock mounts as well.

After a bit of fabrication, welding and painting the front end is ready to go in

You are going to have a hard time getting the steering column through the hole on the firewall, through the engine and then to the input shaft on the rack and pinion.

Is the steering rack reversed? Is the input shaft on the passenger side? I think I'm seeing what Bill is seeing.

Gents - He mentioned above that he's converting it to Right-Hand Drive (RHD).

Oh, now I see he's from Down Under! Sorry about that Dean.

Yes that’s correct, I am converting it to Right Hand Drive as I live Down Under in Australia.

Please join me in giving a warm Stovebolt welcome to the latest Project Journal forum contributor, Shardean! Dean joins us from Perth, Western Australia, and he has some truly big plans for this former California truck.

Dean is already demonstrating some impressive fabrication skills. He has sourced, rebuilt, and installed a Jaguar Series II IFS front end—taking care of everything from the 4-pot brake calipers to the rack and pinion steering and suspension. Since the original engine is beyond saving, he plans to pull the entire drivetrain and replace it with a 350 SBC and a T700 combination.

Because Dean resides in a right-hand drive (RHD) country, he is also undertaking a full RHD conversion, which includes the significant task of cutting up and reconfiguring the dash.

It is a lofty dream from halfway across the world, but Dean clearly has the talent and the determination to see it through. What’s not to love about a project like this?

We are very much looking forward to following along as Dean’s vision unfolds. Welcome aboard, Dean! You can view his Journal from the begining here.

Best regards,
Phil (Phak1) Hakala Moderator, Project Journal Forum