The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Panels 'N Burbs Replace wood floor with steel?

I was wondering if anyone has ever replaced their wood floor with steel? In particular, I had thought of tracing the wooden floor onto the steel floor of a cargo van, then cutting it out and welding it in...it would allow more options of where seats are bolted in, cargo anchors ect. Thoughts?

Wm

What the heck are you talking about? over. Are you talking about a Panel? or Suburban? What year? Why would you want to scab it up? if you want seats, get a suburban. If it's a suburban, it has mounting.

It would be a lot noisier plus you would have to make up for the difference in thickness. Originality is also a plus if and when you sell.

Seal the new wood with expoxy and it will not need care again in your lifetime.

I would not do it if I were you.

What is the year and type/model of you vehicle?

I've found a couple that are shells only (56-58)....no wood, no frame, no cross members and no running gear AKA basketcases in a junkyard that's been flooded twice and abandoned. Intent would be mounting it on a modern frame and running gear...not everything salvageable is worth the immense cost, parts chasing and labor of a full restoration. You guys are too quick to assume everything's a jewel....

Wm

doesn't hafta be a jewel, but you'll still need to find cross sills to mount the body, and the original floor of a TF panel/burb is plywood, surely easier to work than a makeshift metal replacement

Bill [who's replaced more than 1 TF panel floor]

Well, I hate to contradict Bartamos, but my '57 Suburban does not have mounts for seats on the wood...
And my 2 cents about a steel floor: if everything is gone and rotten away, anything goes; if you have the knowledge, go for it, it seems like massive projects anyway!
And yes, a steel floor would allow, for instance, to weld in modern minivan seat brackets, to make the seats moveable or removable as easily as in a new vehicle. You could maybe even build in the Stow-and-Go seats that disappear in the floor... Too much work for me, but that suddenly sounds quite good!

I've given this a LOT of thought for my '62 Suburban, which also has a wood floor beginning behind the passenger seating foot well area.

I hadn't thought of using a cargo van floor--good idea. I'd thought about modern pick-up truck floors, but finding one with the wheel well notches in the right place would have been difficult.

After 50 years, the stock plywood floors are often rotted, or dry rotted. Also cracked. I haul a lot of stuff in mine, and have noticed a crack that opens up with weight.

My plan is to use a couple pieces of sheet metal, and a bead roller to roll wide reinforcement ribs into it, just like a truck floor. This will require making my own bead roller, since the throat will need to be half the width of the floor, but that's fine: I've got a Harbor Freight bead roller as a parts donor, and will always be able to use a deep throated bead roller for future projects.

Regarding the different thicknesses of the wood versus metal floor: Rubber spacers, isolator bushings, pads, etc. will cure that. I haven't started the hunt for that yet, but McMaster-Carr will be my first (and probably last) step in that search. That figure in at some point, but there are stringers/ribs going side-to-side under the floor. If you don't have those any more, get some reproductions for a wood bed pickup truck--they make all the metal. It's stamped U-channel, usually with a flange along both sides of the top. Cut to length, weld in place. I don't think you could do better than that. If you balk at buying repros, think of the cost and aggravation involved in cutting those out of a pickup truck or van at the junk yard.

I won't be able to find a sheet as wide as the truck floor, so I'll need to splice two together, butt-welded down the middle. Shouldn't be a problem. (hmmm... after writing that, it occurs to me that I do not, in fact, need a bead roller with that deep of a throat!)

I like the idea of a metal floor for several reasons: I'm not satisfied with the seat anchors, but more importantly, the seat belt anchors. I'd like something a little beefier. And, with a metal floor, I can use screws with winged tops going down into the floor, rather than fighting with the carriage head bolts coming in and going out of the key holes in the metal plates.

As someone else said, it also opens up the options for cargo anchors. And, it opens up the options for in-floor storage compartments. At this point, I'm also seriously considering using the spare tire well from a '55-'57 Chevy station wagon, which accesses the tire from inside the cargo area, rather than under it. It'll be a lot easier to change a tire (and check its pressure periodically) than when stored under the truck. The station wagon tire wells are available as reproduction. That would also let me use a repro wagon gas tank, and fuel sender. I'd rather have a repro gas tank than try and patch up my Suburban tank. The tank would probably be cheaper too.

As for sound, I'm going to spray the underside of the floor with Body Shutz, and then put cargo area carpet and jute backing down. If I get REALLY creative, I might make some metal strips to slide the cargo on, like the old Jeep Wagoneers did. For that matter, I've also thought about swapping in a Jeep Wagoneer rear seat: it folds forward/down to extend the cargo area. I've only looked at that once though, so it may or may not happen.

I drive mine daily, and just did a 900 mile round trip to a car show this weekend, where we camped in the back of the Suburban. More modern conveniences like interior access for the spare tire, fold down rear seat (rather than take it out at home) would benefit me a lot--I'd actually use those features.

-Brad

Brad, have you considered an minivan floor? Stop at a company that makes minivan handicap units, most of them cut the entire floor out in order to lower them ~6". I used to work for a company that made them and we just threw the floors to the junkyard. I'm going to put one in my '49 Sub so I have the metal for seat belt mounts. Mini van floors also have recess' for the seat hold downs. You may even be able to find a cut out with stow and gos, although those seats are not the most comfortable (had one!) The regular seats are pretty comfortable too.

That's a pretty good idea--thanks for the tip! I'll have to look around and see if there's a conversion place anywhere in Atlanta, or I'll have to get a Sawzall and hack one out of a junkyard van.

-Brad

We just replaced the wood floor in the back of a 64 panel for a customer and the pics can be found here. Before the comments start...Yes I know it has that "USLESS" giant chassis stepnotch and full width wheel tub and notch cover on a truck with airride. The same process that we used to convert what was left of this floor area can be used to support and create a new FULL floor on any wood floored panel/burban. We used 3/4 square tubing and made a perimeter frame that was welded onto the sheetmetal interior panels and tied to the bodymounts/floorbraces. This was skinned with 16 gauge steel and plugwelded to the 3/4 tubing and front/rear floor sills (where the recess is for the original plywood floor). From my experience installing the floor in several pieces is the best way to go because of the angles of the bodysides. (it's widest at the bottom where the floor is installed) If you think this may be something you want to tackle take a look at the pics and even give me a call at the shop if you want.
JOHN@ CCC
314-968-8377

New Member...HI!
I am restoring a 1955 Suburban. The original floor has been replaced with pressure treated planks and steel dividers, and installed higher than original since it was planted onto a 1988 chevy chassis. I am thinking of replacing entire rear floor with corrugated steel, welded around perimeter to tie the body together better and limit creaks, noise and body flex.
Anybody been down this road?