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The "What Did You Work On Today" thread

3M views 36K replies 388 participants last post by  cerial 
#1 ·
4 hour work day for me at the shop. Used the time to do a valve body swap on a '01 Jetta 1.8t auto .... I successfully installed a transbrake on the car .... that however wasn't my intention.

Its in 2 gears at once in park, all other gears (R/N/D/2/1) are forward gears.... they all seam to be first gear.

I have it torn back down most of the way. Tuesday I'll actually get the VB back out and see whats up.... but part of me wants to take it out for a test drive the way it is just for the fun of it.
 
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#4,441 ·
i primed most of this , and ive never sprayed a car before so im pretty happy about how it came out, my friend who paints was there to help me
Looking good. i know you are excited. Congratulations.


I got the roof back up into place too. :D Looking gooood!

WHOOO HOOOO!





I really can see the difference of that half inch less chop and I am digging it.

Brian
Yes! To me, that is going to be the perfect chop. It brings the truck into perfect proportions and looks like the factory built it that way. Someone who is not familiar with these trucks may not realise it is chopped.

When it is done you need to always park beside one that is stock if you can.:thumbup:

The sectioning and chopping work perfectly together. Maybe you should have been a GM designer.:drool: :):D

John

BTW Have you decided for sure what you are going to do with the rear window?
 
#4,442 ·
the hood on the car now is being thrown away ill be replacing it with a brand new 4 inch steel cowl hood
Um, you don't seriously mean "thrown away"...:confused: Around here a clean IROC/Z hood is worth $150 any day.

I've been gathering parts for the '38. I'm installing a trans temp gauge and fan thermostat for the cooler fan. I went to the hardware store for brass fittings to mount them in line and WOW, brass is expensive !!

I was going to put the trans crossmember back in yesterday and quickly realized it is going to require major surgery. The mount on the 200r4 is several inches rearward from the th350 location and the crossmember is a cut to fit affair. It's now too narrow to fit the frame in the new location so I need to cut it up and add tube in.
 
#4,443 ·
Looking good. i know you are excited. Congratulations.




Yes! To me, that is going to be the perfect chop. It brings the truck into perfect proportions and looks like the factory built it that way. Someone who is not familiar with these trucks may not realise it is chopped.

When it is done you need to always park beside one that is stock if you can.:thumbup:

The sectioning and chopping work perfectly together. Maybe you should have been a GM designer.:drool: :):D

John

BTW Have you decided for sure what you are going to do with the rear window?
Thanks John, I am not sure on the rear window, I am planning on putting the stock window out of the extra roof and then widening it over to the quarter windows leaving exactly the distance between the door glass and the quarter glass so they are all the same all the way around. OR tighten it up a bit so it's more like that 57 Buick. But this is honestly one of those very hard choices and I am going to think long and hard before I do that. I am also going to mock it up, and photo shop it before too. This is one of those changes where you really need to get it out in the driveway and stand back and look at it from different angles.

Brian
 
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#4,444 ·
Looking good Brian. I have always thought of taking one of those style trucks and mounting a 55 car rear window vertically in place of the factory window. It would take a lot of time and a little fab, but I think the look would be interesting. I'm not very good with photo shop so maybe you could mock that up for me when you have time.


Kelly
 
#4,445 ·
There is one with a wrap around window like a 55 truck had, it looks awesome. It looks like it may be a Dodge truck rear glass as they were "Chopped" height.



But this is a GM Motorama truck so I couldn't use one of those. :D

Brian
 
#4,447 ·
There is one with a wrap around window like a 55 truck had, it looks awesome. It looks like it may be a Dodge truck rear glass as they were "Chopped" height.



But this is a GM Motorama truck so I couldn't use one of those. :D

Brian
Yes you could Brian.
All the body parts were custom. Why not the glass. Whose to say that GM didn't use something that was pre built? They were concept cars not production cars.

BB :thumbup::thumbup:
 
#4,448 ·
Yes you could Brian.
All the body parts were custom. Why not the glass. Whose to say that GM didn't use something that was pre built? They were concept cars not production cars.

BB :thumbup::thumbup:
This is true. The only thing stopping me is that I don't have the 54 cab with the one piece windshield. And it's a little too much without the one piece windshield. And I have thought about that too, I have thought about putting the front half of the cowl and roof from a 54......I just hate to drift so far from MY truck that I know and love. My happy medium that hit me one night was to put a very narrow strip in the middle of the windshields instead of that one inch wide one of the production model. I am thinking that will be that middle of the road that will be acceptable in my mind with what I am after.

Brian
 
#4,449 ·
I did some of the work to redo my welding cart. It took me awhile to get a smooth bead, but at least one of them looks ok. I used some brackets I had on hand to retain and position the welder. Also ground off the cord holders that were on the wrong side. Still have some planning to do and will add some tip storage. Also still have to figure out tank retention as well. My plan is to use chain to hold the tank in place, but I have to weld on a piece for the bottom of the tank to rest on.
 
#4,450 ·
This is true. The only thing stopping me is that I don't have the 54 cab with the one piece windshield. And it's a little too much without the one piece windshield. And I have thought about that too, I have thought about putting the front half of the cowl and roof from a 54......I just hate to drift so far from MY truck that I know and love. My happy medium that hit me one night was to put a very narrow strip in the middle of the windshields instead of that one inch wide one of the production model. I am thinking that will be that middle of the road that will be acceptable in my mind with what I am after.

Brian
I do think if you stray too far from your vision you had as a kid you will regret it. This is your opportunity to build the truck you dreamed of back before you had the tools, money or knowledge to pull it off. The Motorama concept is perfect because you are using the parts, style and methods that were available when you first had the truck back in your high school days.

I only spent about 2 hours in the garage but did get a little more done on the body mount that goes under the front of the seat.

Lynn Yearwood would approve.

John


 
#4,451 ·
This is true. The only thing stopping me is that I don't have the 54 cab with the one piece windshield. And it's a little too much without the one piece windshield. And I have thought about that too, I have thought about putting the front half of the cowl and roof from a 54......I just hate to drift so far from MY truck that I know and love. My happy medium that hit me one night was to put a very narrow strip in the middle of the windshields instead of that one inch wide one of the production model. I am thinking that will be that middle of the road that will be acceptable in my mind with what I am after.

Brian
Brian have you considered V butting the windshield it eliminates the divider but retains stock angled glass not the curved glass of a 54 ,then your stock wipers and arms will work ,i think they look great a friend of mine in Ringold has this done but I donr have any pictures.
 
#4,452 ·
I thought about it, the problem with that is, it's a common thing now, and they wouldn't have done that I don't think in 1950. They actually make a bent windshield believe it or not.



I am after what REALLY would have been done in the early fifties by GM so it take a bit of a stretch in your head. :D

Brian
 
#4,453 ·
The cab and roof are once again united! WHOOO HOOOO! They are merely tack welded but they are aligned up and welded in never to be torn apart. :D

I had to "un-lean" the bottom post because of the 1/2" less chop. By cutting the inner structure out around the rear windows it was MUCH easier to move it where I wanted. Amazing what a difference that makes.

Brian

 
#4,454 ·
I took this photo so show some friends of mine what the 2.5 inch section and 3.5 inch chop looked like next to the stock door.



I then grabbed the door from the back one hand on the front and one on the rear and carried it back to the yard where it was before I grabbed it for the photo. As I am carrying it I see this.......



Thank God it was getting dark and cooler and they stayed right there, not a single one flew out! This was about 8 inches from my face!

Brian
 
#4,456 ·
I know you can't wait to lengthen that top and make it one piece again. I love it.:thumbup:

John
Yeah, I need to get that other top out and see how bad it is, but I really think I will just be lengthening this one. I did it forty years ago I guess I can do it again.:drunk:

Brian
 
#4,459 ·
"Wow, just saw the wasp nest. "

Reached into a storage door on my wrecker yesterday and two of the little buggers stung me. :thumbup:
Yeah when I had my Rambler parts car out there I opened the trunk and there was a couple right there in the trunk gutter, I was wearing shorts and one bit be or stung me or what ever they do on the knee. YEOW:pain:

Brian
 
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