COE 1941 Ford COE build

OK, I think I get it, the bottom of the door window and the front of the sleeper are not perpendicular, are they? Sleeper is leaning forward?

 

correct...

 

The more I look at this, the more I think the sleeper body line needs to come up an inch on the bed end. It would line up with a second piece on the bed, not the current one. I need better measuring tools. More pics to come...

 

That thing sits too high in the back.

 

Thank you for the helpful and constructive criticism.

 

Looking at the picture of the side view of your truck you posted last Thursday I printed out an 8x10 and checked the lines with a straight edge. I'm aware that the photo is distorted not being a true flat image but it's a good starting point. It appears the sleeper is tilting somewhat to the front and gray band seems to be inline from the cab thru the sleeper. You added the stepped trim (which looks *****in) and it follows the top of the paint band and the bottom line of trim dives into line up with the bed rail (another very cool look) which creates your visual distortion. What you might do is talk to someone who has a good artistic eye, not unlike a stripper or sign painter who could recommend a solution using paint rather than rebuilding the sleeper or bed. Talk is cheap maybe a lunch or a couple of beers. This is my opinion, take it for what you paid for it and keep on keepin on.

 

I'd recommend checking in with the wife before seeking the expertise of a stripper...
LOL

 

Haven't done much actual work on the truck lately, but have been driving it a fair amount. Always lots of thumbs up and cell phone cameras directed his way. Had to test his 4 wheel disk brakes yesterday when some ***hat nearly ran a stop sign.... Pic at another local cruise night....

 

Been there with other drivers...some old gal was looking at my truck instead of the roundabout in front of us. She went straight and cut me off. I hit the brakes hard and the ramps on my bed slid into the cab...now I have two very large dents to repair.

 

Played with the body line a little... The HAMB's acute sight was right!! The line was pointed down... I think I fixed that but unfortunately the cab/sleeper line no longer lines up with the bed rail... I mimiced the cab lines on the sleeper with a triple line and I don't hate it... The transition to the bed rail I'm not keen on...

 

I had thought about raising the entire bed 1", but that creates other issues... My buddy says what about just raising the front end..... HMMMM......

 

raised the front of the bed 1", I think I have it all lined up right now...

 

looks good from here!

 

The bed and sleeper look good and maybe its an optical illusion,but the cab looks like its running uphill.

 

interesting.... I wonder if the curve of the cab is distorting the pic... I'll have to get my niece out there with her Apple phone level....

 

lol!

 

I have not forgotten about my COE or the forum but sadly I have not done any work either... A tree fell on our ski boat last fall and the repairs have consumed all my garage time. Good thing I had all the fibergl*** practice on the 41's fenders...

 

Sorry to hear about the damage, but luckily you can fix it. I don't get on very well with fibregl***, can't weld the darn stuff. And your COE will wait patiently.

 

Almost time to get back to work on the COE. The latest plan was finish sanding the sleeper and get it to my man for the same flat black that's on the bed, then do the same for the cab...

I have to pull the sleeper to do this and then wondered why I'm not going to color during the same process... I could mark the two tone line on the sleeper, have him paint it, then drive the truck to him without the sleeper and have him paint the bed and the cab... I know I'm oversimplifying here and I still have a metric ton of sanding and some fixes to do before paint, but any other gaping holes you guys see in this plan???

On the other hand, the repaired ski boat went to FL did it's job flawlessly and returned to NH.

 

Took the COE for a drive today... Always fun!! Got a price from a local shop on final body work and blue/white paint... Way fair compared to what some others wanted, but still a large chunk of change.... They come recommended by a good hot rod friend. Probably would be an October-ish thing.... still mulling it over....

 

let me know how it gose there are no body shops around here that want to work on old cars or trucks. The last time i took an old vehicle to a body shop they told me 2 months. 9 months later i got tired of begging for my vehicle to get done and picked it up and took it somewhere else.

 

We've agreed on terms... I will dis***emble the truck and bring them the pieces to cut some of the costs... It's still a considerable price tag, but far better than the shops that said "You write us a check for 20K and when we burn thru that, we push your truck aside.,"..... They have me penciled in for October 1st...

 

dumb looking Corvette hard tonneau no longer in the bed as a fuel tank cover/divider....


Repurposed some of the aluminum 2016 Ford bedsides instead.... Boy, I'm really torn on this one guys... Plan A was line up the upper, rear corners of the new panels with the first curve down in the bed rails like this:



I like how it kinda matches the bed lines, but I don't like the fact that it's pretty much upright... So I moved it ahead and leaned it some more...



I really like the angle of this one, it's more like the tail light panels.. Might even louver it... it's also not as monstrous as plan A. Really the only thing I like from Plan A is that it lines up with the bed rail corners and provides more storage, otherwise it's huge, vertical and kind of overwhelms the bed.

I also need to figure out how I'll combine the two panels... Overlap and rivet or attempt to flange that slightly curved surface then bolt them together... I have no idea how to do the latter without screwing it up... Is that a tipping die's role??

 

Plan C: I moved the panels back to line up with the bed rail turn like Plan A and leaned them ahead like plan B. Still seems monstrous... Makes me ask "Why is that GIANT box in your truck bed?"... Wife says Plan B, I think we all know the answer!

 

I'd go with plan "B" and I'd like louvers that match your rear pan. Mimic your rear pan, just higher and as far forward as possible. (Of course this is just my opinion, looking at it from a 1000 miles away)
Add one of these too.

 

Great minds think alike... that style or this one... I might need to monkey around with the height a bit... If I put the current one below the bed rail it leaks if the tanks are full....

 

Dayum!!! I thought 124 bucks was steep for the Dodge Charger gas cap....

https://www.corvettemods.com/C3-Cor...DbSd4Mf4xfNMMUlGmmQZEC6k9Gwo04YEaAum7EALw_wcB

 

I'll have to go digging, I might have one from one of my Triumph GT-6s. Price would be a lot less than $479.99!

 

Anyone know how to get a 90 degree flange on that curved, cut edge of the donor Ford bed panels?
If it began as a flat panel, I could do it with my brake and then shrinking, but it's already curved. I need to make the flange without ruining the existing curve...

 

Tipping dies in a bead roller. www.youtube.com/watch?v=HE9Us4Qk5sA