OK, it looks like Buford was "taken advantage of" by a 2015 Ford F-150. Now begins the process of dope slapping the modern out of the donor bed. first thoughts are cut off modern, outer panels entirely. The remaining shell looks like it will be about the right width to take custom, flat wrecker style panels and a flat front panel with corners that match the sleeper. First question... Ideas to keep the flat panels from oil canning??
utube tells me this thing is riveted together... That should help dis***embly! I suspect there is adhesive also... not sure how I'll need to deal with that...
When I did my bed I went with 1/8" steel to help with oil canning. I don't like the look, but tread plate is quite a bit stiffer than regular hot rolled. Also, the less you weld on the box, the less warpage you will have to deal with.
Skier , use .063 5000 series Al. In half hard . 5016 . Or whatever you can get where you live . Take your flat panel and beadroll an edge around the beds edges . Make some edges that either glues in or rivets in . The rivets would match your sleeper . Wish you lived closer, 4 day job after you trim the inside trimmed the way you like it . You might layout your outline on the bedsides you are going to take off . Maybe even cut them slowly to replicate what you want . May make the bracing go faster . Have fun .
I was thinking he should probably learn to buck rivets, if he doesn't already know how. Rub rails off an old school bus would stiffen up the sides and wouldn't look out of place on a wrecker bed.
I was going for the tow truck look on my first cabover build, I built a 1x2 frame then covered with 14 gauge.
thanks for all the info and suggestions guys. I just googled bucking rivets and it looks like tools are available for this for way less $$ than the Huck guns. Maybe a new tool is in my future. It would be very cool to pull into your shop for 4 days, Blue! How many miles from NH to Texas? I wonder about the most effective pattern for bead rolling to stiffen the panels... Multiple rectangles versus one outline of the entire panel.. ????
How about the belt line on the cab extended all the way down the side along the edge ? Bucking just like Huck you have to be able to get to the back . You may borrow my Huck gun if you like . Are you going to make it double wall like the stock Ford bed ?
yes, double wall. The inner will be the stock Ford, basically I'm reskinning the modern bed and reshaping it to Eli's fine photoshop rendition...
You could always just take off the old cab and sleeper, then install a newer Ford cab and that would match...LOL
that's a great idea... you need the grill?? Ok, I have the top of one side drilled out and disconnected... But drill bits are not happy... I have 3 very dull bits now from 20-ish rivets... Does alum kill bits or just my abusing them??? Suggestions for a bit that might stand up??
I use 135 degree cobalt and adjust my speed and feed to fit the hardness . Also a drop of cutting oil every once and a while . Can you use a center drill with the first pat the size of the rivet and let the expanded part cut the head ? That is what I did on all the bucks in the sleeper . Have fun , Blue .
Are they steel rivets in an aluminum panel? If you are dulling your drills, go with cobalt and cutting oil. With a hand drill and small bits, you shouldn't be able to turn them too fast.
Advice my friends used to tell me.. "it will work much better if you spin the drill in the correct direction"
I've been known to spin the drill the wrong way... Tried cobalt bits, still no love... They seem to never start cutting... they are steel rivets as Wolfie suspected...
I wonder if Ford came up with a better idea, and used a pop rivet with a hardened mandrel. (maybe to better control the amount of squeeze) Have you tried carefully grinding the head off flush, then punching it out with a center punch?
most would be nearly impossible to grind off.... It appears cheap old black oxide give us the win, however.... win!
One side off, the supports look like they'll accept my flat panels as is very nicely other than the rearmost one.
Alright, so I'm thinking I should have the fenders on hand before I actually cut any sheets of alum. I went to look at the previously mentioned 1939 chevy pickup rear fenders but they are 12" wide, so are the Fords of the same vintage. I only have 6.5" from the wrecker bed to the outer face of the tires. I see these car rear fenders which are about the right width, but I'd need to deal with the fender getting wider towards the back as the car's mounting surface isn't flat like a pickup truck. What else would I need to address?? https://www.speedwaymotors.com/1935-36-Chevy-Master-Rear-Fenders,1506.html
Skier , you can take the truck fender and cut it like you did the front to the size you need . Then make a flange and weld it on to the fender . I don’t know if you have a shrinker / stretcher , but easy to make one out of what ever gauge your fender is . Cut a strap what ever size you need and go to work . If the flange on the fender in flat you could carefully cut it off the wasted piece and use it . This would work on steel fenders if you can find them . And you know how to work the fibergl*** . Have fun
More questions that answers.... As suggested, I tried to remove the rear tire... It can be done but will involve a Hi-Lift jack to the frame or trailer hitch and the fender needs to be 2.5-3" away from the tire to clear the caliper... Not ideal.... The FG 1939 Chevy car fenders I purchased are 7" wide and fit pretty nicely other than missing a flange, but they are 1-1.5" from the tire... I much prefer the look at the closer dimension than 3" from the tire. 3" starts to look goofy... despite that I go back and look at pickup fenders from around 1940. Chevy is 12" wide and Ford is 12.25" wide... I'd have to modify either choice and then I'm still stuck with the goofy 3" gap... I could also open the bottom areas of the fenders as Eli suggested, but I think I'd still need a pretty sizable gap to change that 12"+ wide tire... Then I thought about how fender skirts work... The ones I've seen are simply removed to change a tire... I don't need the fenders to be removable, but what about hinged at the top and pinned at least fore and aft?? The ultimate solution would be a tilt bed, but that's not happening before spring.... Ideas, thoughts?? Just plain wacky???
What if you move your fender ahead slightly, (to allow a bigger wheel opening without changing the lower front) then radiusing the wheel opening. I don't know how you would mock it up without cutting up a fender. Another idea: make a jacking device that fits between the frame and axle. Jack up the axle to take the weight off the tire, then jack up the frame to force more room to get the tire to clear the brake caliper. Any chance that the caliper can be "clocked" to allow more clearance?
Been away since I started this glitch on your other tread. After a lot of similar head scratching my solution was; rear tire size is 235/85 R16 about 32" in diameter, from edge of tire to inside edge of fender 1 1/2", measuring across the center of the wheel the fender opening is 34", height of the fender opening from the ground is 27 1/4". I carry two jacks, an aluminum 1 1/2 ton floor and a screw jack, I made a bracket/step that goes into the trailer hitch receiver with a pin hole so it won't slip, using the floor jack I raise the axle clearing the wheel from the ground, put the screw jack under the bracket raising the frame/body enough to remove the tire. I have a spare mounted under the bed using the spare tire hardware from a Ford van, the screw handle goes in through a hole above the hitch receiver. A picture is worth a thousand words so-
Oh, the fenders I think are probably late 40's pu, just guessing by the shape. Tops have been chopped off and bolted to the bottom of the bed. The front bottoms that used to extend down to the running boards were cut off, the the modesty shield was added to hide all the bridge work underneath.
Here's my 2 cents worth. You could make a new larger wheel opening with fibergl*** resin and cloth. How - Rough up the inside of the fender a few inches away from the old opening and "attach" a 2" wide aluminum strip to the inside of the fender where you want the new lip. Just tape it on, putting the tape on the old opening side. Do this BEFORE you cut off the old lip. ( make a bunch of same size spacers and use the old lip as a guide for the new lip location to keep it smooth and even.) Then simply fibergl*** on the inside of the fender up onto the aluminum strip going up past where you want the inside of the lip edge. That way you can trim it even. After it hardens, you can cut off the old lip and finish the edge. The smooth aluminum will easily peel off of the fibergl*** leaving a clean finish. This is also the method for gl***ing on a flange on the inside to connect it to your bed.
Thanks for all the good info, guys! I REALLY like the trailer hitch piece! I'm a little leery of my lack of FG skills and getting the new corners to look right, whereas the flange is something no one will generally see..... Does the alum "form" need release agent also?
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