The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Interiors How to remove dash from 1951 Chevy 3100?

Hi all... well it's been one of those days. Just getting into the teardown of my 51 Chevy 3100 and we've discovered some major structural issues with the cab related to the floorboard, door frames, and firewall that make me think that all we can do at this point is part it out. I have another 1951 Chevy 3100 5-window cab that I believe is in better shape. So.. now that I have your sympathy... laugh.. laugh... I'd like to know if anyone has advice on the best way to remove the dashboard. I can see two bolts on each end of underside of dash but the rest appears to be welded in place. I'd like to remove dash as it and the gauges are all viable. Thanks in advance!!!

"SAWZALL"

Acme little Giant Dash remover jell..............
Humm ok it is spot welded all around the windshield opening and has a couple of bkts. so pick your best way to remove spot welds.
Mike

Man.. you guys are tough on the new guy... i appreciate the humor and it sounds like there's not much to removing it! Thanks!

not a fun job....

You could remove like it like delux54panel said but you need to cut it at the cowl to get the lip for the dash also. You still have to either use a cut off wheel or try to drill the spot welds out on the sides of the dash near the doors.

Like OLTrucks said you could drill all the spot welds out to remove it. But you still have to either use a cut off wheel or try to drill the spot welds out on the sides of the dash near the doors.

I did it the stone age way since I had no electric or air & was in the middle of whaet field in northern Kansas. I used a hammer & couple of very sharp chisels. Not pretty but it worked...Joe

I don't know if you have access to the factory assembly manual but it has really good detail on the locations of brackets and number of spotwelds. I agree that cut-off wheel or spot weld cutter would be the way to go. If the existing cab is junk cut it out of the cab with a torch and then seperate it carefully at the original attachment points on a work table. I don't have a scanner but if you send me your address I could photocopy the pages showing the details.

ChevyTruckKy,


Generally speaking, the dash isn't removable. I guess I missed the gist in the posts that made it seem like no big deal.

To expound on my statement. You can remove dash #1 by chopping it up and taking it out in sections. Your donor dash #2 is left in the donor cab, and the cab is removed from the dash, so to say!

You now end up with a semi-intact dash to install in your dash-less cab!

I have done this procedure, and that is how I accomplished it. Because of the amount of spotwelds, and the tight quarters in the pillar and windshield area, something must be sacrificed in this procedure. You cannot come out of this task with a perfect dash and a perfect cab.

Stuart

Boy Howdy thats it right there
Mike

OH NO! I was really looking forward to seeing your progress on that one. I was wondering how bad it really was. By looking at the pictures in the Gallery she didn't look very encouraging. Sorry to hear it.

I would avoid using the cutting torch. Talk about ugly results...

I didn't mean finish cutting I meant junkyard cutting there is a difference. If the cab is junk cut wide and then use finish tools to seperate. No denying its lots of work however it is approached.

I would sooner use an angle grinder with a cutoff wheel before a torch. Too much collateral damage with a torch and no way to get a nice, clean, straight cut that you could weld a new dash up to out of a donor. You'd still have to grind the weld bead down flush with the same angle grinder and a grinding disk, and then skim-coat it with bondo and repaint. If you do well, you should not be able to tell it was ever replaced.

If there are spot welds you could drill out, that would be even better. A lot less bodywork!

If you do replace the dash, one tip I've got would be to put the gauges in the dash if possible before you install the new dash. It is a real difficult job to remove/install gauges with the dash in place. I've done it, but wasn't fun.

But did you know that there's a company now that builds new 5-window cabs with new doors out of brand new sheetmetal for about 9 grand now?
Also, where I live in Taos, NM, the AD trucks are EXTREMELY common, and you see them all over the place just sitting in fields! Many of them are restorable. So not a bad idea to plan a trip out and take a look around.

When good used cabs go for $500 or less, why would anyone spend the hours and labor required to take on a project like this? How many hours do you reckon it will take to carefully pick two dashes apart and put one back together? Not to mention the fact that the dash is an integal part of the cab structure. You'll need to weld in braces and cross braces and hope they hold the cab true. Good luck, but it seems to me you're a glutton for punishment.

I agree, actually. It would be easier just to pick up a cab in better shape. And there are several such low-rust or no-rust trucks here in the southwest that are like that.
If a person were to pass through my area, I'd be happy to take him around to a couple places where I've seen AD trucks sitting out in fields in restorable shape.

The man's right, pack your skis and head for Taos and as long as you're there you might as well check on some AD trucks.

For what it's worth -- I had a parts truck ('52 3600) with a junk cab that I decided to remove the dash -- thinking it would make a cool wall decoration. So I went at it with torch and cut off wheel. I tried my best to save that dash but it, along with the cab, ended up as scrap metal.

After having tried to separate a dash from it's AD cab, I'm here to tell you that it's not worth the effort -- do as the guys suggest and go find a better cab. They're out there!

Good luck,
John

I did the same with a '54 Chevy car. Ended up cutting the A pillars, body mounts, and the floor off half way to the seat. It was easier to load and haul that way. Spent a ton of time cutting it close to the dash and then sold the dang thing for $100 to a guy who wanted to fix where the radio had been yanked out.

I'm getting one of said $500 restorable cabs from TX as we speak...easier that way. Michigan makes them perforated.

How bad is the dash in the new cab? If there is just rust out along the bottom. You can cut just what repair piece you need and weld it in. My radio hole had been ripped open to accept a later model radio. I cut what I needed over sized from the doner and trimmed it to fit what I cut out. It was a lot less trouble than the whole dash, I think. anyway just a thought.

By the way, save the old roof. I found that the curves made great repair patch pieces for the fenders.

Neil