Hey Guys. I am wondering if anyone has access to a full 1932 bed sitting on a pickup who can help me out. I’m wanting to make a bed for my own truck but don’t have access to one in my area. The three measurements I need are : 1. The length along the bottom from the rear of the fender to the edge of the bed where the tailgate seats in. This one is past the stake bed pocket. 2. The depth of the side from the bottom edge to the fold. 3. The length along the bottom from the front of the fender to the edge of the bed where it meets the rear of the cab. This one is past the stake bed pocket.
The inside measurements I need are: 1. The depth of the front panel from the bed floor to the top where it folds over. 2. The width of the bed floor.
Check Mack Hils on line catalogue they may have that information? I think the print catalogue I have has it????
I looked at the Mack Hils site and found boxes for sale. Other than the length of a 70 21/32 long and 50inch wide bed are the beds the same to the shorter narrow beds.
Hey Guys. Just a quick update, I was able to get bed measurements from a 34 Pickup a local Rodder owns. And from those measurements and patterns, I was able to make this cardboard template. The only major measurement I was unable to get was the distance between the base of the leading edge of the wheel arch and the base of the leading edge of the bed itself. I have the template sitting over a Model A Roadster/Coupe Fender, so the wheel arch is cut out to allow the extra width of the fender. The finished bed will have tubs.
I also sourced a few images to get further measurements from. The second one shows the measurement I need, it’s number one.
And here is the bead roller die I’m using for the side swages. These are not Eastwood or Lazzie dies, these are from five one off sets, I had machined up especially.
Hey Guys. A long over due update. I made up a secondary patterns for the sides. Because the sides are too long to make up in the bead roller, I did them in halves. A couple of observations were made. The downside of doing them in halves was how to join them in the centre, they will be butt welded so leaving enough material on either end that I could trim down for the edge to be joined was essential. Welding the two ends together at the centre of the wheel arch would also mean it was the weakest point. To remedy that problem, a separate wheel well will be welded to the sides once they are welded together. And because this is my first attempt at making a pickup bed I did not want to sacrifice my two expensive sheets of fresh steel to the process. I have plenty of sheets of scrap lying around, so I decided to use it instead. I have a number of mistakes with this first side, that needed correcting. I don’t intend to repeat those mistakes when I make the proper bed.
These are the bead roller dies I’m using, they are one off designs that I got machined up at an Australian shop called Speedwerx. They are the same width as the bottom swage of a Model A Coupe, Cabriolet or Roadster. The wheel well template was taken from the wheel well out of my 29 Cabriolet as it was the most intact and still has all the bolts to fasten the fenders to.
The stake bed pockets are proving a little more challenging, so for the moment, I will just finish a set of cardboard template ones, before I work out the material for the real ones. Once I have welded the the ends of the bed together, I will finish off the other sides and clamp them to this effectively using it as a jig.
My first 32 pickup boxes were handmade but I didn't worry about the beads. The first one even had 2.5 inch tubs. I just bolted the fenders to the box. Also did several for the 34 Speedway club cab pickups I built for Speedway and Ford Performance Products plus a few customers. I used square tubing for the stake pockets. They were dimensional y correct but without the beads. Made mine out of 14 gauge cold roll as I was welding them together. (overkill?) Not the most authentic but they looked good when finished.
Nice work so far! Really diving in. I'd contemplate having a separate part lapped a couple inches on each half to join the 2 halves above the fender. A few rivets on each side and it could look like old school, and that area is going to be the weak point. It could incorporate a tiedown or other feature to make it seem like an accessory. It could even be a third stake pocket. It's not OE, but we are rodders!
Hey Guys. I got a little bit more done, I welded the the two sides together and formed the wheel wells. A couple of observations I made when forming the panels was that I should have pre stretched the panels before putting the swages in. Being thinner material, the distortion on the panels is noticeable, this will be somewhat offset by welding the wheel well in and making up a frame for the sides out of angle.
I’m also re-examining how many sections make up the sides. At the moment I’m making the wheel wells as a separate unit, but I’m thinking of making the wheels as part of the two halves. The benefits to doing it this way is there will be less welding involved.
Hey Guys. I was able to throw some undercoat on it yesterday and weld the wheel well in. I’m definitely going to make the sides in two halves as less labor intensive.
I also sourced some vital blueprints of a 34 Bed last week, these will give me the measurements I need for the front panel, stake bed pockets and tailgate.
The tailgate is the next section I’m working on. I purchased a full sheet of MDF from my local hardware last week and I’m using it to make the templates for the tailgate, front panel and floor.
Hey Guys. Another update. I was looking for hinges to get patterns off, I picked an early Model A tailgate from a local Rodder this morning.
Hey Guys. More progress, I got the capping welded on and added the inside rail that floor will sit on.
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