It's Alive! It's ALIVE!!

[Frank Enstein]

I think the idiots were jumping the truck because all the spot welds in the back half of the cab were broken. The spot welds were on the very edge or the outer panel so that didn't help much either. First year body style teething problems?

 

[Frank Enstein]

So the seats were crap, smelled like wet mice, and were upholstered torture devices, and they didn't match. Sooo New(ish) seats! Facebook Marketplace here we come! $120 later I had Second and Third row Toyota Sienna tan leather seats in perfect shape.

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The gap between the seats will be filled with a fold down arm rest/cup holder made from another set of the same seats. The other set was free except for the fuel to get there.

 

[Frank Enstein]

I scored switch mounts and actuators for carling "V" switches at a local store that buys closeouts.

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If you don't know the Carling "V" series switches come in thousands of different configurations.
Here's a link to a place that sells them pretty reasonably.

https://spemco.com/carling-v-series-rocker-switches

 

[Frank Enstein]

The wife's Astro has 263000 miles on it, the seats were worn out, and they were hurting her back. Marketplace again! More Toyota Sienna tan leather seats (free this time!) 4 hour ride each way. Momma's back didn't hurt a bit the whole time!

 

[Frank Enstein]

The wife's Astro has 263000 miles on it, the seats were worn out, and they were hurting her back. Marketplace again! More Toyota Sienna seats (free this time!) 4 hour ride each way. Momma's back didn't hurt a bit the whole time!

The front seats were pretty easy other than making new holes in the floor. But the back seats were a MOTHER HUBBARD! They fold and tumble so like a complete idiot I decide I want them to still be able to fold and tumble." No biggie" I said, "They're just seats!".
WRONG!!
The floor isn't flat like the van they came out of.
The tunnel is offset to the side.
The seat's "Fold and Tumble" latch mechanism was designed by Pablo Picasso and Rube Goldberg (who were both Sadists by the way).

So I finally get them in. All eight mounting points are different, the inboard rear mounts are sunk into the floor (of course the box I welded into the floor for it interfered with a brace under the floor AND hit the gas tank. The tank was out so I could weld without Frank making a doggie noise (WOOF) just once (Fire BAD!) and I didn't know it would hit the tank until afterword.

So having the rear seats in and out 347 times each, I damage the latches for the Fold and tumble.
However, I have the second set to take the latches from ANNNND they're different.

 

[Frank Enstein]

O.K. so the floor is welded up, rust converted, Painted with New Holland Blue. My wife god love her, bought me a case and a half of White and a case and a half of Blue for like $2 a big can because she loves me and wants me to be happy. So I painted up the floor 'cuz this baby ain't never gonna rust again!

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Tunnel Patch in place


So me being a belt and suspenders kinda guy decided to Herculiner the inside while everything is still out. I had also been looking into heat insulating/sound deadening for the cabin so I want to put microballoons in the Herculiner to help with the insulating. I mention this to my boss and he tells me he did the same thing to his project car and had a half gallon of the stuff leftover and did I want it?
Yes SIR! Thankyewvurrymuch! I know I need to thin the Herc so I get a gallon of Xylol/Xylene 'Cuz that's the only stuff you can use. I applied the first coat to everything inside I could reach that wouldn't show below the windows. The first coat doesn't cover well at all which is normal for Herculiner I used about 2/5 of the gallon on the first coat.
The plan is to add the microballoons to the rest. The stuff pours like a liquid and is nasty if you breathe it so I grab the mask and the mixer and start to mix it in adding more Xylol as I go until it looks like really dark grey cake batter (yum!) I'm a bit apprehensive because I can't afford to screw it up but it goes on really well. It looks like gravel guard or Fluid Film when It cures.

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F^%&^@^& Seat Mounts!

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My wife has asthma and solvent smells are really bad for her so I close the truck up and go to work for a couple of days (it was 90+ degrees all week). No smell at all after the third day! Woo Hoo! Momma can ride in frank!

 

[Frank Enstein]

Now for the fun stuff! Summit Ultra Sound/Heat Barrier!
I put as on as much of the firewall/toe board area as I could.

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Looking pretty snazzy!

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Next the roof!

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[Frank Enstein]

Dash is all done. With my new Fiero steering wheel. I painted the spokes with the same Rustoleum Hammered Black (Which looks almost exactly the same as the cured Herculiner/Microballoons mixture) That I used on the repaired Dash bezel (More to come!) and Painted the grip with the Rustoleum Sand vinyl paint that I used on the light colored panels in the interior. It will have a leather cover made from the extra seats eventually.

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I really like the new wheel. The smaller diameter feels better to me and I can see the HVAC controls better. I really do not like the other wheel but Betty and the parts Sub have the same one. I also got an Ebay 4WD shifter console that I cleaned up and recolored.
The wife (ain't she great?) surprised me by getting the later model center console that will be the topper for the custom console that I haven't designed yet. Any suggestions are appreciated and welcomed.

 

[F4U-1A]

My public library has pick up only, and I love a good read. Keep it coming.

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[Frank Enstein]

I am getting multiple likes by the same person at the exact same time. I'm not sure why but 4 or 5 likes turned into 38!
Would one of the moderators please check this out?

Thanks in advance,