my 98 stepside project

[98nightmare]

Thanks guys, Idunno why I let it get under my skin so bad.. Marcus your right, to each their own..lol

 

[lester622]

Prime example of why it pi$$es me off... I'm ragged for a flex plate gusset.. this has same overhang, and just sticking off the side of frame with nothing..

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How about some non braced flat stock to hold control arms?? This is praised and deemed extremely safe and professional..

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Granted it was only a few azzes... But I know for darn sure my crap is a Heck of a lot more safe than this..

There is a lot of unsafe stuff that a lot of the well known shops do lol. I was at scrapin the coast this year and I seen a full 2x4 frame on an extended cab 1500 and it did not have a fish plate or gusset anywhere on the frame, all the tubes where just butt welded together. Guy had business cards all over it. I asked him if the tubes where sleeved in the joints since there where no fish plates anywhere and he looked at me like I was crazy, I just smiled and walked off.

 

[98nightmare]

Lol, damn... That's not good at all.

 

[98nightmare]

Alrighty... Still debating on modifying front of truck and now the rear.

Instead of caddy lights since its been done SeVeRaL times already... Any opinions on 60s style Chevy lights?
Impala, bel air (almost every 60s Chevy car) had the round with chrome trim tail lights.. pondering mid section, barely outside the body some with the round bulge of the light carried across to the fender.. Idunno

 

[lester622]

I like the frenched in 59 Cadillac lights but idk how they would look on a truck. I also kind of like how these are doe with the red lexan.

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[98nightmare]

Yeah, I've been looking at original lights for that!
And I've noticed the 65s had a good angle to them that'd work on a roll pan. Kinda wondering about making a recessed panel with billet between the lights concealing some reverse lights.

 

[lester622]

Yeah, I've been looking at original lights for that!
And I've noticed the 65s had a good angle to them that'd work on a roll pan. Kinda wondering about making a recessed panel with billet between the lights concealing some reverse lights.

One of the lenses on the factory 65 lights has a clear center for reverse lights. I think if the lenses where mounted upside down in a rollpan it would probably look really good.

 

[sewlow]

I've been following your thread since I got on here. Read it all from the beginning. Haven't posted much, well, because I'm mostly beyond words! Nice work! I've been taking notes!
Not gonna re-post a bunch of what's already been re-posted, but I agree with every thing that's been ranted about in the last bit.
Can't throw in my $.002 'cause, Canada doesn't have pennies anymore. Here's a nickel's worth!
A few (cheap!) fab tools do not make a fabricator! Gotta have that knowledge from time spent.
That one front end, though. (orig post #1818) Hoo-boy!
All that time, $$$ & parts just to all be voided for the lack of knowledge, experience & a couple of more hours!
Form follows function. Get the engineering down, then make it pretty. I mean, really! Just look at that freak-show! That gives the rest of the people, that really know what they're doing, a bad rep in the eyes of Joe Public once that thing takes out some innocents.
And people applauded that gong show! S.M.H!
Dumbasses. Quite being blinded by the shiny bits & open your eyes!

Anyways...

 

[98nightmare]

Thanks Sewlow!!
And Lester622, I found some 63s on eBay from Canada! Original lights, but in pristine condition.. guy had purchased them over a decade ago and just had them sitting in storage
Also have a pretty big end sheet of 1/8" aluminum we had purchased originally to fix my father in laws bed cover, that ended up going a different route.. so I'll probably section out the tailgate and bend the aluminum to the contour of the taillight housing and have it go between the lights. Ima try to find matching reverse lights, or probably recess the Envoy ones I already have. Hopefully I'll have the bed together enough soon and find out what kind of placement would suit better.. fingers crossed

 

[98nightmare]

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Also got a roll of that metal mesh for arts/crafts that holds shape and easy to bend.. going to use it in all the joints on the bed where stuff tends to crack and also in the taillight shaving.. adding a metal inner skeleton to the bedside also. I'm not going to chance it cracking after its painted.

Almost tempted to just buy a regular bed and convert it to stepside so it'd be all metal. Wouldn't have to worry about a roll pan cracking from bedside also. But for as long as everything else has been taking, Idunno if it'd be worth adding even more time to ever finishing the ...lol