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Here is the cab mounted to a body rotisserie made by yours truly. It works great giving good access to the cab floor bottom which is really rough on this cab. Also makes working on the roof, lower cab corners, firewall, etc. very easy. This is good because this cab needs all the help it can get!
Here we are ready to go to the Exhaust Shop. I'm not sure yet how the exhaust will work out. I'd like it to appear as original as possible but I'm not sure what kind of muffler I will find. Also, the original muffler was strapped to a bracket on the frame which I don't have. I'm sure we'll figure something out. Also, I'm not sure if it should exit in front of or behind the rear wheel. The wheels are 19.5" GM tubeless with 8R19.5 Tires. The stainless steel wheel simulators were found on Ebay for $150. Check out that chrome front bumper!!
It has been a while since the last update. I don't claim to be an expert body man by any means. This cab has to be the worst thing I have ever attempted to smooth and paint. At first glance, it didn't seem very bad. After it came home from being dipped and stripped, it became obvious I had my hands full. The floor was rusted and broken around the front floor mounts. The rear of the cab had been pushed in hard. The roof had been crushed right above the rear window. The firewall had about 500 extra holes. The roof had been drilled for about 10 different sets of clearance lights. The dash was broken around the steering column mount and had a bunch of extra holes. Even the inner sheet metal around the rear window was bashed in!
So, anybody spot my sheet metal working cheat? The interior is going to be a combination of the exterior color (orange) and black. This is by no means the original color configuration. I really don't like the original colors used in the interiors of these trucks so I thought I'd use a little imagination. It will be similar to what is done on newer trucks by painting everything the same color.
Some of you might not believe this cab is the same one shown above. OK, I changed my mind. I spent a few bucks and bought some paint. I ditched the left-over orange and reconsidered what I was trying to achieve. To get a more "period correct" look, the interior is a custom mixed gold tan metallic and the exterior is "Polar Grey" from the 1953 GMC Color chart. I am very pleased with the results. A couple of areas to note: the color change from interior to exterior color in the door jamb areas and door hinges. The color change needs to be in an area that won't be seen with the door closed. This takes a little thought! And the hinges - I would have loved to paint the doors removed but with the way the hinges install it makes it impossible. I used foam masking in the jamb areas with the doors installed and it worked great! Almost ready to bolt to the frame!!!
Here is a quick update. The first pic shows my modified oil filter mount. I didn't want the firewall mount mostly because of the rubber hoses needed to connect the filter. This modification was easy enough - just a bracket welded to the oil fill / breather bracket. Filter will now have to be changed through the floor. The second pic shows the driver's door finished. A few things to note here: first, the door panel frames are reproductions and don't fit that great. The vent window assemblies are a bear to put together. The frame is riveted together and no fun! And last is the door frame weather-strip, it seals nice but throws the door latch adjustment off. Expect to readjust the doors after it is installed. The last pic is the new fuel tank and sender available for conventional cab trucks. The tank fits fine but the fuel sender has a fuel pickup as well. Since the COE feeds fuel from the bottom of the tank, I just capped the pickup tube with a 5/16" flare cap.
Here is another quick update. The gauges are aftermarket. Don't yell at me - They cost half what the original ones would cost to restore and update. The seat frame was media blasted and painted the same color as the rest of the the interior. The flash makes it look gold but it is more of a metallic light brown. The picture of the dash is closer to the right color. The floor panels have also been blasted and epoxy primered. A few notes on the assembly process on the seat. To save you some time, install the seat tracks before the gas tank. Rear track bolts are almost blocked by the tank. Also, if you are missing the connecting wire for the two tracks, you can use a stiff wire. I routed the wire through rubber covered wire clamps to keep it in place. Lastly on the seat upholstery, the backrest is an easy redo for any shop but the seat bases (GMC uses two seat bases instead of the Chevy Bench) can be a real problem. The few that I had were completely shot. I recreated the base with square tubing and sheet metal. Instead of springs and the rest of the junk you find in an old seat, the upholsterer is going to use foam to recreate the base. It should be much more comfortable than the original.
The cab is almost ready to mount to the frame - this is a huge step! Stay Tuned!!
