Thinking about building a truck from basically scratch

[Don B.]

Another update, I found a deal on a stainless steel brake line kit and fuel line kit from marketplace where the seller bailed on his truck due to what he says was too much rust.
Only problem is the particular company that he used only has line kits for short bed trucks like mine for some reason so I'm about 16" short on the line going down the frame to the back brakes... The front lines fit beautiful.
I did come up with a piece of straight and flared 3/16 stainless line but it's about double the length of the "patch" I need.... So I need to cut that one down and attempt to reflare 1 end of that... I've flared ALOT of brake line over the years but never had to do any stainless line.... This will be the first experience with that.

 

[Duner Wi]

Free advice, practice on the extra length before you are committed . Thank you for updated.

 

[Don B.]

Ok I got the front line and the back one to join up .. that piece from my kid actually flared easier than expected.
I found a 30 gallon gas tank that actually has a working and not rotted out sending unit... Soni don't have to settle for a Chinese reproduction.
I have a Chinese reproduction sending unit here and I see a way that I can swap out my old float unit (the part that tells the gauge where to read) off of a rusty original one and transfer that to the new rust free sending unit body.
Can't believe how much they get for those plastic tank sending unit lock rings.... Damn
I also have a 2nd rear end identical to the original that's been all sandblasted and primed/ painted
Primer and topcoat are each 2 part individual epoxy.
I took the brakes apart on both old and "new" Dana 60 and found all 4 drums between them are out of spec so had to get new ones.
I had to take the brake backing plates off and do some build up/welding on them where the shoes ride. I then sandblasted them and powdercoated them... I had an "oops" while powdercoating and all of the coating blistered and burnt off the one I had on the top rack of the oven. That stuff came off quite easily. The PC on the rest of it that didn't get BBQd dis NOT want to come off!!!
It took me over 2 hours to get that backing plate company bare again.... I don't have to worry about this stuff being durable I see.... This is the 2nd "test" of the durability of powdercoating on this project.... And it surprised me both times.

 

[Don B.]

I have everything brand new for the back brakes except for the backing plates and the e brake lever that the cable attaches to/ plus a 2nd set of everything (also brand new) as spares ... Including the e brake cables themselves.

 

[Don B.]

Well shyt.
Last night I got the rear ends swapped out. I feel more comfortable with having full contact on both spring plates instead of only half contact on the one side that had busted leaves and a spring plate that was bent down like a banana and looking like the driver side sprint and the rear end could slide on each other... I could have replaced the spring perch on the original rear but I lucked into a deal on a replacement for a good enough price not to have to cut and weld.

Earlier yesterday id gotten a phone call that's had me ------ ever since. Is this typical?
They've had my bed cab doors fenders etc for A WHOLE YEAR and haven't done anything with it yet. A YEAR. and I gave them their requested deposit the very next morning after I brought it to them. In cash even.
I realize they had a few jobs to finish up before they could start on mine. I was fine with "well have it done in 6 min to a year". I'm not happy with a year and not even touched.
We had a hailstorm in March. A full 6 months after they got my truck to paint
Well it seems every damn hail job got put in front of me. Cmon I was there FIRST.
Now they yell me they're over a year out on hail work. And im at the end of the list and have requested me to come and get my truck in same condition as they got it. I have the frame done and ready for the painted body to go back on the frame, and the body is still bare metal as it was when i dropped it off. I brought it from a sand blaster guy straight to them. Bare metal. Straight clean rust free from out of state. Not salt infested like most Illinois trucks. And they couldn't even prime or seal anything? We found damage in 1 door 1 fender and I had others in storage that turned out to be better, meaning less time and materials needed to make it nice. (And less money) So I took them nicer stuff to replace the not so nice ones... Neither tailgate I took them was worth a shyt so I bought a 3rd that is actually in good shape. A year and they haven't touched my truck, instead wanting to do all the work that has come in since mine got there.
Is this typical? I don't get it

 

[Don B.]

The kicker is I know these people.
I worked with the owners mon, dad grampa and uncle in my years of working at sears auto center. Body shop owners sister is my sins age and they went to school from kindergarten to high school together. So much for small town, support local, all that.
The guy whose truck I saw when I decided to go there that I asked who had painted his and gotten this shops name was a square body Chevy. Every project in progress that had to be finished was a GM. I got some Snickers when I brought in a Dodge bit ive known these people 30 years and they've known me as "the Dodge guy" all the while. Somehow I have a feeling that if mine was a Chevy I wouldn't be writing this ... But cmon it's sheet metal.... What difference does brand make when working sheet metal?
Wed previously talked price which went up to a "I really don't want to do that job so I'm gonna quote it stupid and I still left it there.
It was always "I get this one done and yours is next ". And each one he had to finish to get to mine was a different one that wasn't there when I brought mine in. And every one a GM product

 

[Don B.]

So now I probably get to rent storage while I shop body shops

 

[Duner Wi]

I hope for good news pretty soon. Most frustrating .

 

[Don B.]

Well I think I can get a better deal anyway. If he follows his word and I get all of my deposit back I guess I can call it free storage... But I would have much rather seen progress. At a minimum a coat of something on all that bare metal. Last time I saw it it hasn't started flash rust yet and I hope that to still be the case.
I'll bring the bed home and put it on the frame by a couple of bolts for now and whatever I can fit in the back of the bed. The cab they've had will probably get cut up for its good parts as I have a better one at home. I wanted to swap them out but the shop owner wanted me to bring that one home and swap out the big floor tunnel for my stick trans... He said he'd rather fix the outside problems where id rather work on stuff not so visible. Like floor pans that will be hidden by hush mat, carpet and such. So now I'll get to do that at least and save myself some money with whoever I get to take it over. My son recently moved to 6 acres in the country (from 2 acres in the country) so I have a place I can at least get something on the bare steel I have sprayed paint before but more industrial type stuff. I want this to actually look good so I'm not wanting to paint the obvious parts. I don't mind doing the jambs the firewall the back of the cab the front of the bed, places like that that will barely be seen ... So at least that will allow me to reassemble the truck.... Maybe I'll chip away at that and get it as a complete roller and then look for a shop.... I don't know at this point. Every time I figure on paying someone to do anything for me I get screwed. So if I don't do it it usually doesn't get done

 

[Don B.]

Look at other topics in this forum ("paint and bodywork"). for a thread I have there called "powdercoating anyone" as there are a few pix of some of the other work I've been doing on this truck. I just posted the brake drums backing plates and some small parts I've powder coated for this project. I've also done a couple of the frame gussets, the hood hinges the door hinges the battery trays, some misc brackets and other parts in powdercoating. Don't know if I posted any of those other parts earlier in that thread or not .. something else I've been experimenting with here as I don't want all the stuff I've cleaned up to look like I didn't, in short order/ as much of that kind of stuff comes from the factory as bare metal when new ..

 

[Hive23]

My honest opinion. This is an amazing project and can't wait to see what you put together. Have you considered an old 12 valve Cummins for engine. Mechanically K I S S and built like a tank (so long as you keep up with oil changes). I have even considered and still considering a 12 valve vs Detroit 4-71 for my '57 Chevy 9200 2 1/2 ton LCF bob truck as a daily driver (project in process).

 

[Don B.]

Yup it's been considered.
I have a son that has 2 Cummins trucks trying to convince me to go that way. But I have a 360 magnum in the machine shop (actually a pair of those) for this truck. Started out as a "use what I have laying around" build and even at that and refurbishing what I have (whether really needed or not) has been expensive enough as is.. I don't have a Cummins around. And with what diesel is doing these days I don't think so .. I went to KY last weekend and there were places that diesel was $3 PER GALLON higher than gas. A diesel might burn less per gallon but not by enough to justify that
Back earlier this year I had to use one of my son's diesels for a few weeks as both my durangos were down with shattered glass (again because
Iof that hail storm) and the wait list to get either in for replacement was crazy. As it was i ended up going an hour north to find someone who could get me in within a reasonable time to get my windshields done. My wife had my 2012 Dodge to drive (it was out of the area during the storm) and I had one of my son's diesel trucks. And diesel was "only" hovering around $5 a gallon. Now at $7 no freaking way.
The transmission I have that is going in actually came from out behind a Cummins. I found a bell housing and flywheel to be able to use it behind the 360.

 

[Don B.]

And my version of "mechanically K.I.S.S" is a good old school 4 barrel CARBURETOR. Fark computers.. I would rather tune with a screwdriver a distributor wrench a timing light and a vacuum gauge than a scanner.

 

[Hive23]

And my version of "mechanically K.I.S.S" is a good old school 4 barrel CARBURETOR. Fark computers.. I would rather tune with a screwdriver a distributor wrench a timing light and a vacuum gauge than a scanner.

Affirmative. My justification for the diesel (especially the older iterations) is that they are rather tolerant of fuel quality. I strongly considered an old school deuce and a half based solely on the notion that they will basically run on anything oil adjacent. As fate would have it the truck I picked up is a 1957 chevy 2.5 ton and why I will probably fork out more for a rebuildable Detroit or Cummins than I did for the truck. My version of KISS is - if it never breaks, there's nothing to fix. Good luck on the Dodge. Can't wait to see the finished rig

 

[Don B.]

We ended up getting a newer (2016) truck that is basically the wife's now as I needed something that would handle our camper. THE job this truck is being built up for. The longer we have the 2016 and the more I drive it the more I hate it. It's the farthest thing from K.I.S.S. as can be.
The need to replace the transmission pan to replace the filter, the constant incessant DING DING DING if you move 2 feet without the damn seat belt, the necessity to take it to the freaking stealership for the simple task of " turning on" the function of a trailer brake box and the resultant being taken to the cleaners for that service, the dial shifter, the unnecessary bells and whistles if which I never wanted and the most expensive price tag of any vehicle I have ever bought... All because of the struggles with trying to have my 83 straightened up and painted. I don't want all this big brother computer control or the payment. But since we own 2 durangos and have outgrown those between the camper and the Grand kids.... And they don't make, (well Dodge or Jeep anyway) anything bigger in an SUV nor do they make the old tradesman vans anymore (I wish I still had my 87 version) so we got painted into a corner. All because this body shop led me on for a year and now wants to skip this project for hail repairs from a storm that didn't happen for 6 months after they had my truck.
I have it all home now so I can do whatever I can do with the bodywork and try to get someone to paint it in the spring.
They did give me my whole deposit back which does surprise me, they did work on the bed a little (too little) and I figured they would cook up a bogus bill for storage or some such.... My deposit was basically about what I was hoping to have in the body work " all in" when I went into this project, but was quoted double to ( in this case) 2-1/2 times that amount, actually touching 5 digits. So hopefully I can do the body for closer to what I was originally hoping I could have it done for...

 

[Don B.]

I'm completely ready to bolt on a painted body and go.... And was simply hoping that someone could take care of that and have the body ready by the time I got that all cleaned up and everything rebuilt for it ... My powdercoat thread elsewhere in this forum, was all about making the small parts of this truck look good and last.

 

[TerryfromSWIowa]

Why not paint it yourself? Unless you want a show quality paint job watch some youtube and go for it. My have to sand a few spots before clear coat but paint jobs are 95 percent labor anyway.

 

[Don B.]

I don't have any place here to do so is the biggest thing. And while I'm not going for show there are some waves that need dealt with... Some from the idiot I paid to "dustless blast" everything when he blasted it with black beauty instead. And this guy's excuse... "I've been doing this for 12 years and I know what I'm doing"
The only thing that got done in a year of being there was they did work with that a little, and put a skim coat of Bondo on and sanded it down.... Exactly what I didn't want and why I got a bed out of Colorado instead of Illinois was to AVOID Bondo as much as possible.