'46 Chevy Shorty

[Tango]

Howdy All --- been a very busy Fall here and I'm just getting back to the Shorty. Just had replacements made for all the rusted away body spacers. The old were not even primed or painted, no idea why they lasted as long as they did. The new units will also get layered in fiberglass to prevent the water that will run into this area from the windows from wicking into the seam between them and the body (that's what caused the original problems). Once the glass is in place I will drill drain holes as per the original design.

Also found a very clean Toyota pilot's seat. Non-electric with plenty of manual adjustments including the beloved "lower Lumbar lump". May get it covered in Mercedes-style breathable leather if the price is not too steep, but for now it is in great shape. A friend is going to machine a super sturdy Lazy Susan base for it that will permit me to rotate it for use as a living room chair when docked.

And I am just about ready to start cutting away the old lower sheet metal. It will get replaced with new panels of Paint-Grip welded in place rather than screwed on. Any later body work should actually be simpler. One pic shows the angle iron "fence" I will run the steel cutting saw along. It will get tacked welded in a few places to secure it, then cut free and moved to the other side.

Here's a few pix...


Before...(the only one that survived removal)...


...After...


The set minus the one below...


...which actually fits!!!


The angle iron is only there as a fence to run the saw along. It will get tacked before the cut is made.


And finally...the new Pilot's Seat from an '02 Camry with less than 10k miles on it. (keeping it clean in my shop over the next few months will require a miracle in addition to the plastic).

Will post more as I progress, but right now the Winter looks like it will be a busy one. Hope everyone has a great Holiday Season.

[Tango]

Back at it. Now have the lower sheet metal cut off the right side and new panels are being fabricated. Will have to do a little practicing with my mig welder before I jump into attaching the new ones. Hope to avoid too much distortion or "oil canning" by going slow and using lots of well spaced tack welds.

And I had a slew of deliveries arrive today. The 44 gallon holding tank, a front bumper (that will be cut to fit the new rear end & deck) and a package of HyTech insulating paint additive that will wind up on the inside of the wall panels as well as the outer roof.

Here's a few pix...


Kinda' scary...but it will make replacing the old gas tank & installing the holding tank a lot easier


...here's what it looks like from inside. All the metal is getting the full Monty rust treatment.


...and...the new holding tank off of Epay. Took a while but I found the perfect size (24x60x9.5 - 44 gals.)

Onward!

[Diesel Dan]

I think it's great you are doing such a thorough job in preserving that awesome piece of history!

[Tango]

Thanks Dan --- I really do want to do all I can to keep this old girl on the road and functional for as long as possible. Meanwhile...I got nothing but a really cold shoulder from the people over at the Vintage Chevrolet Club of America. Seems they are only friendly to restoration purists. Any Chevy that's not precisely the way it came off the assembly line, they consider a sacrilegious abomination. I just never cared for the whole "museum" approach, I'd much rather see these wonderful old machines doing what they were intended to do out in the real world...and making a whole lot of people smile along the way.

As William Shatner once told the Trekkies..."get a life".

Onward!

[Tango]

Just scored another Epay find! Been looking all over for a pair of classic front turn signals and found a pair that should look just right on this old girl. All metal, two sided with hoods over the funky directional arrows. Will no doubt take a little work but should be much better than the crappy round plastic things someone stuck on top of the fenders. Sometime it just amazes me what shows up there. And PayPal must love me by now.

[levitayelor]

lookin good so far!!! love the corrugated metal you're considering for between the rub railing!!

[Tango]

Thanks levitayelor --- still going back & forth on that one. Thinking now it might look better below the bottom rub rail instead. Hope to have the new door frame ready for the sheet metal shop soon but work (paying projects) has had me tied up lately. Will post as things move along. Hope everyone has a great Christmas and a safe & Happy New Year. All my best to the good folks here on Skoolie!

[Tango]

Finally have my computer working again and trying to get caught up. Below is a pic of one of the 2-sided turn signals I found on Epay. Soooo much more appropriate than the plastic hockey pucks that came mounted on the fenders. Now, I just have to make'em work!

[RevBill]

.. awesome "find" .. those are going to look great ..

[timbuk]

very nice ol peoject i love it bus looks like its in very good shape for sure if it lived here it would be a pile of rust...nice!

[Tango]

Thanks Timbuk --- have a loooong ways to go but do want it all "right". Both in terms of the Art Deco styling, how it works & and how it lasts. My biggest concern to date is the rear end/gearing. Really hope to keep the original wheel & tire combo but absolutely must find taller gears. This thing was built before the National Highway System was even invented and geared to pull steep, backwoods hills...not cruise at Interstate speeds. The stock gears are only good to 45 or 50 tops and I can't get on many roads these days with that limit. Sadly, there is absolutely no other gear set that will transplant, so I'm looking at either a complete rear end swap or a major cut & weld job. I can get a little better top end out of an OD tranny, but that still leaves me a long way from a safe highway speed. Especially given the lower RPM that the new Cummins diesel will be happy at (1800rpm).

Oh well, just one of many challenges ahead. We take these things on knowing it won't be easy, but no matter how "realistic" we think we are going in...they always manage to present us with more than we'd planned on. It's like I told a friend...if it was easy, everybody would be cruising around in nifty updated vintage iron instead of the boring shoeboxes that fill the roads, right?

Onward!

[chev49]

you can easily change out the rear end. and... if your wheels are the split "widow maker" wheels of that era, the tire shops may not change them.. They won't around here, so you might have to do your own. Better to just get modern wheels cause 99% of the people won't even notice.

[opus]

That should be an easy change. Maybe something out of a C50/C60 type would work. Yank the whole thing out and replace it. Gee...if I was near you, I would come and sip sweet tea and watch you do this. ;)

[Tango]

Still researching dually rear ends/complete axles but trying to keep the original wheels makes it difficult. The originals are 10 lug, 5 x 20's and have a safety ring but they are not Widow-makers. Anything smaller in diameter just doesn't look right unless you are going for hot-rod styling (which I'm not). There are some some 22.5, 10 lugs that will fit these axles, take newer tubeless tires, and work out very close to the final diameter, but they are very hard to find. Came on '56 to 59 Chevy 1.5 tons and are scarce as hens teeth these days.

One gearing solution I'm considering I saw over on the Stovebolt forum. Fellow there cut the entire center section out of a later truck and grafted it onto his existing outer axles. Quite a project, but until someone decides to make new ring & pinion sets for these old workhorses (not likely), it may be the route I have to go.

Like they say..."If it's not one thing it's another my little Roseannadana."

[timbuk]

best tp update if you can c50-60 as mentioned is best my 65 has a clarke rearend with a 5 speed its alot of cash gettin brake parts for it go newer easier to change the whole thing

[thommassey]

Originally Posted by Tango

Here is a stainless sheet that I am thinking about using down each side of the bus between the upper & lower rub rails. The pattern is raised but not all that large. More like what you'd see on a '57 Chevy Bel-Air rear fender than corrugated roofing or a Ford Tri-Motor. Also, it can be painted and then the raised elements sanded clean/polished for a really interesting look.

Do you know the manufacturer of the stainless? Or style name?

[bansil]

For the wheels why not just recenter with maybe a coverup to change it to th "corect" bolt pattern?ford did it on the newer trucks 7 lugs(I think)covering 8 lug wheels

[Tango]

Hey Thommassey --- the outfit is Rigidized Metals...they make a range of patterns in stainless, mostly for architectural use. They were quick to send a sample. Here's the link...

http://www.rigidized.com/samples.php

Bansil --- haven't seen an adapter to get back to the ten-lug wheels I am trying to keep. Also heard the ones they do make put a lot of strain on the lugs & wheels.

And...haven't had the time to even visit my bus in nearly two months (Arrrggh!) Been working around the clock on paying work to try and afford more parts & such. Hope she still remembers me.

[bansil]

I was referring to actually cutting out the center of the wheel and welding in a new center,fairly common mod for custom wheels

[Tango]

Bansil --- I talked to some folks about that approach a while back, they said they could do it but on wheels that big around wouldn't guarantee the alignment/balance. May still have to try that route if I can't find an off the shelf/bolt on solution. Thanks for reminding me.