Where to start, Well after many hours of stuying photos & measuring I decided that the body needs to be stretched 17 inches. I will stretch the doors 4 inches and the rest by new metal between the door & rear cab wall.
I set all the parts on the frame and leveled them up so that the crease down the body, fender & box were in alignment. then built temp. mounts for the front of the cab and welded them to the frame. made shim blocks for the rear of the cab & box. Modified the frame a little at each end so the box & core support fit. That will be my base line all leveled & square. I can shim up as needed for final assembly.
The firewall is my start point for the cab and the doors must align to the firewall. The lower hinge pins were broke & the holes worn oversize. Rust had destroyed the hinge mounts & lower cowl.
I repaired the hinges by using parts of some 57 car door hinges, pins, bushings, and a section with a good pin hole. Then time to make some new hinge mounts in the A pillar,and the front of the step area.
Just fab work but part of the project 16 ga. as original
The bottom area of the cowl is a very complex shape and required many small parts shaped and welded together. After cutting and drilling the outside part off in a manner that kept them useful for patterns, it was time to make the inside panel
This is like a puzzle..... which part to to fit in first..... where to make the weld seams, etc. used the old sections for dimensions & shape. Some of this area needs to be very accurate so the door hinges mount correctly, and so there is clearance for the hinge to swing in the pocket.
more next post
Steve