51 B3B build thread - after all these years

[bkahler]

After figuring out the easiest way to install the brown trim push pins I finished the installation of the rear trim panel.  I'm not overly impressed with the panel quality so I'll probably look into the ones that DCM sells, but that's for another day.

 

Also finished up the side view mirrors. 

 

Next up for the interior is the headliner.  I'm not sure how I'm going to manhandle it by myself but I'll figure out something.

 

 

[bkahler]

Kick panels installed.

 

[ggdad1951]

Fenders off is easiest....and not hard to put on after.

[bkahler]

I got the GPS installed today

 

 

[bkahler]

Due to the USPS inability to deliver a package to me from DCM Classics I've been forced to work on other tasks while waiting for the bed parts.  Parts were supposed to be delivered Saturday, but for some strange reason the package has been sitting somewhere between Lexington and Richmond (30 miles) for 3+ days now.  I stopped at the local post office and asked if they could tell me what's happening, due to the holidays they are extremely backed up.  I assumed as much but what I found strange is they don't sort things based on first in, first out.  Instead it's apparently just random.  Frustrating to say the least.

 

So with no bed parts to work work with, I decided to wrap up a few details on the tail lights.  While doing some research on tail lights for these trucks I came across the following pictures.

 

 

 

To me they look like original tail light installations.  I decided to try and replicate the setup on my tail lights and came up with this.  Close enough for me

 

 

The day after I ordered the bed parts from DCM I ordered a roll of their rubber fender welting.  It arrived right on time.  Unfortunately it has a bead on it that wasn't in their description.  Their picture was to small to make out any detail so I figured it was probably correct.  I'm a little bummed out about it.  My first thought is to just use a straight edge and cut the bead off.  The rubber quality seems to be good so I might as well use it.

 

 

 

The last thing I started working on was the headliner.  I won't bore you with the details, but I now have a new interior kit with headliner on order from DCM.  Unbeknownst to me, the order of installation is supposed to be the headliner and then the rear panels around the windows.  That's not how I approached it.  The ABS interior kit wasn't cheap but I'd just as soon do it right and be done with it.

 

Pictures of the interior kit installation will be posted sometime in January.

 

Brad

 

 

[bkahler]

Several years ago we discussed the weight placards on these trucks.  At the time I only had this picture available. 

 

 

Yesterday, while looking through a bunch of picture albums I found about 50 pictures of my truck that I took as I was starting to dismantle it.  I found the following picture showing another weight placard or decal.

 

 

What I find interesting is the one on the front fender shows 6,000 Gross, yet this one shows UNDER 5000.  I'm now debating whether or not I should have my nephew recreate the UNDER 5000 decal and put it on the truck along with the 6000 Gross decal on the front fenders.  If nothing else it should make for some interesting conversations

 

 

[ggdad1951]

23 hours ago, bkahler said:

To me they look like original tail light installations.  I decided to try and replicate the setup on my tail lights and came up with this.  Close enough for me

 

 

 

The day after I ordered the bed parts from DCM I ordered a roll of their rubber fender welting.  It arrived right on time.  Unfortunately it has a bead on it that wasn't in their description.  Their picture was to small to make out any detail so I figured it was probably correct.  I'm a little bummed out about it.  My first thought is to just use a straight edge and cut the bead off.  The rubber quality seems to be good so I might as well use it.

 

 

Looks right for the tail light sheathing.

 

As for the rear fender welting, I just used body caulk.  Screwing around with a linear piece of rubber on curves...might prove challenging.   If you want to use that from DCM, cut off the lolli and go for it.

[Los_Control]

I'm sure from past conversations that you know more about the gross weight placement than I do.

 

This was added on by the owner and could be anywhere that can easily be seen .... for me it is on the lower front side of bed near the cab corners.

 

From what I know, that sticker or plate is to declare how much weight you paid for at the tax office when you renewed your registration. .... you can pay more 1 year and then less the next year .... I believe there was a minimum you had to pay .... then if you wanted to haul more weight you can pay more and then use a 6K gross weight instead of 5K

This is my understanding of how it use to work.

 

I'm not sure if they even have that system in play today. .... If they do have it, and you are using both .... I think the interesting conversation would be between you and the police while you show the registration to prove you paid for the higher weight limit posted on the truck.

 

Just saying, it makes sense to me why they had 2 different weights posted .... Not sure it even matters today.

I was once told I had to post a sign on a 1966 Elcamino ... I paid the weight tax, never posted the sign.

Today I think they just charge you what they want and no sign needed.

[JBNeal]

Maybe a magnetic decal could be applied when ya want to take the buggy to town 😁

 

That taillight looks good from my couch...let'r rip ⚡

[bkahler]

15 hours ago, ggdad1951 said:

 

Looks right for the tail light sheathing.

 

As for the rear fender welting, I just used body caulk.  Screwing around with a linear piece of rubber on curves...might prove challenging.   If you want to use that from DCM, cut off the lolli and go for it.

 

Is this the body caulk you're referring to?  If so, I have a box or two on  hand.  It would certainly be easier to use than the rubber strip.

[bkahler]

14 hours ago, Los_Control said:

I'm sure from past conversations that you know more about the gross weight placement than I do.

 

This was added on by the owner and could be anywhere that can easily be seen .... for me it is on the lower front side of bed near the cab corners.

 

From what I know, that sticker or plate is to declare how much weight you paid for at the tax office when you renewed your registration. .... you can pay more 1 year and then less the next year .... I believe there was a minimum you had to pay .... then if you wanted to haul more weight you can pay more and then use a 6K gross weight instead of 5K

This is my understanding of how it use to work.

 

I'm not sure if they even have that system in play today. .... If they do have it, and you are using both .... I think the interesting conversation would be between you and the police while you show the registration to prove you paid for the higher weight limit posted on the truck.

 

Just saying, it makes sense to me why they had 2 different weights posted .... Not sure it even matters today.

I was once told I had to post a sign on a 1966 Elcamino ... I paid the weight tax, never posted the sign.

Today I think they just charge you what they want and no sign needed.

 

My guess is each state had their on rules and regulations on what you can haul with a pickup.  My first thought when I saw the Under 5000 was maybe the bed was allowed 5000 lbs and the cab could hold two people weighing 500 lbs each 😄

 

 

[bkahler]

12 hours ago, JBNeal said:

Maybe a magnetic decal could be applied when ya want to take the buggy to town 😁

 

That taillight looks good from my couch...let'r rip ⚡

 

Interesting thought on the magnetic decal.  I'll have to check with my nephew to see if they can make magnetic decals.

[bkahler]

I installed the weight rating placards today.  I'm not sure why but its very satisfying having them installed

 

[bkahler]

Back to work on the bed today.  I got the rear cross member installed with the help of the DCM L brackets and hinges that I bought.  For the most part everything lined up perfect, I did have to use a drill bit to open up three holes slightly.  The two bed sides are perpendicular to each other within 1/32" of an inch.  Close enough for me

 

 

Next was installing the tailgate.  Hanging went without a  hitch but I did run into two problems.

 

 

 

The first problem is upper guide plates will need to be tweaked in order to get the tailgate to close all the way.  The only option I see is to bend or spread the two guides so they can slip past the brackets on the bed sides.  Nothing like messing up new paint

 

The other problem is the nice new chains I bought from one of the suppliers is several inches to long.  Not a real problem, just frustrating when you buy something listed for B3 high side pickup bed and they don't fit without adjustment.

 

 

Time to go watch a football game....

 

[bkahler]

It's half time

 

Got the guides tweaked.  There was a little bit of collateral damage but a bit of touch up paint and it'll be good to go.  Also took three links out of each chain and the tailgate now sits level when open.

 

As far as I'm concerned, the bed is now done so the next task is to get the bed wood milled and cut to size.  Hopefully that task will done sometime this week.

 

 

 

[Los_Control]

You are making great progress .... I like following your post, you get things done 

 

I have been trying and basically a nice 77F day and just cant get in the mood to work 

[bkahler]

1 hour ago, Los_Control said:

You are making great progress .... I like following your post, you get things done 

 

Ha!  It's only taken me 28 years to get to this point

 

1 hour ago, Los_Control said:

I have been trying and basically a nice 77F day and just cant get in the mood to work 

 

Yep, the older I get, the more I have  days like that as well.

[ggdad1951]

On 12/26/2024 at 6:43 AM, bkahler said:

 

Is this the body caulk you're referring to?  If so, I have a box or two on  hand.  It would certainly be easier to use than the rubber strip.

 

Yes, that is the stuff.

 

 

On 12/29/2024 at 12:02 PM, bkahler said:

The other problem is the nice new chains I bought from one of the suppliers is several inches to long.  Not a real problem, just frustrating when you buy something listed for B3 high side pickup bed and they don't fit without adjustment.

 

Where did you get your chains from?  Did you put on the rubber sleeve?

 

 

On 12/29/2024 at 2:21 PM, bkahler said:

It's half time

 

Got the guides tweaked.  There was a little bit of collateral damage but a bit of touch up paint and it'll be good to go.  Also took three links out of each chain and the tailgate now sits level when open.

 

As far as I'm concerned, the bed is now done so the next task is to get the bed wood milled and cut to size.  Hopefully that task will done sometime this week.

 

 

Those hooks look odd at the end IMO, I've never seen a taper on the end, just blunt cut and a more round "hook"?

[bkahler]

6 hours ago, ggdad1951 said:

Where did you get your chains from?  Did you put on the rubber sleeve?

 

Got them from DCM and the rubber sleeves are on.   

 

 

6 hours ago, ggdad1951 said:

 

Those hooks look odd at the end IMO, I've never seen a taper on the end, just blunt cut and a more round "hook"?

 

The picture he has on his website now, doesn't match with the ones he sent me.  They are close but the taper to a point is missing.  I bought them in November of 2019.  I've seen a few trucks online with the same style hooks as mine.  Not sure if they were original or aftermarket.

 

https://www.dcmclassics.com/catalogs/p/all/parts_by_year-1948_1953_b_series-box_parts/654e4b7e093270eb01271032/bp-505-steel-tailgate-chains-pair

 

 

[Los_Control]

I have 2 different styles also.

My trailer has the tapered ends and only assume they are original ... both sides are the same.

The truck has something different and only 1 of them .... no idea if it is factory.

 

Trailer is a high side bed, truck is low side .... I believe they are assembled in different places or at least they are different in how they are made and have different pieces ....

 

It does make sense to me that there would be 2 different styles of chains because of 2 different styles of beds.

And the ones that reproduce them just choose one style, not worth making 2.

 

No idea if any of that is true .... but it sounds plausible 😎

 

[JBNeal]

From personal experience, I have seen shear operators break parts by hand that the shear would not finish off because they gotta hit their quota and QC is lax on certain details...so the batch goes into inventory, then warehouse ships out whatever is on the shelf, and if the customer has a problem, then it's up to customer support to deal with it...aka kick the can down the road...having that unique looking tailgate chain hook is a nice feature 👈

[bkahler]

I spent the last couple of days prepping the wood planks for the bed and I've ran across a problem fitting the planks in place.  The issue is fitting the plank between the strip welded to the bed and the top of the rear cross member.  The first two pictures show what I'm talking about.  At the front of the bed (closest to the cab) the 3/4" board fits nicely between the strip and the bottom of the front panel.  However, at the rear, the gap between the top of the cross piece and the metal strip is only about 1/2". 

 

 

 

My first thought was the metal strips didn't get welded properly to the bed sides.  However, after looking things over and checking with a tape measure, it looks like the strips are correct.  I measured from the top of the strip to the opening in each of the stake pockets and at all four points the dimensions were within 1/32" of each other.  To me  that means the strips were installed correctly. 

 

The other variable was the replacement of the stake pockets themselves.  The new stake pockets came from Bruce Horkey and they seem to have been well made.  There is only one way the pockets can be fitted due to their shape and there is no way to adjust the stake pockets up or down due to the way they mate to the bed sides.  

 

As a recap, both bed sides are used replacements, the L brackets and rear cross piece are replacements from DCM.  I compared the hole locations of the new L brackets with the old pieces and they are identical (just not bent like my old ones!).  The cross piece measures out the same as my original bent piece.  To me that leaves just the vertical hole locations in the stake pockets as the probable issue. 

 

If you look at the pictures below you'll see the orientation of the cross piece to the bottoms of the stake pockets.  The cross piece is roughly 1/4" higher than the bottom of the stake pockets.  To me that means I need to grind the bottom of the vertical holes to drop the cross piece down enough to provide clearance for the wood planks.

 

Currently I see two options, slot the holes in the stake pockets to drop the cross piece the required amount or cut a rabbit in the ends of the planks to allow the plank to slip under the metal strip.  My preference is to slot the holes....

 

Thoughts anyone?

 

 

[bkahler]

36 minutes ago, JBNeal said:

From personal experience, I have seen shear operators break parts by hand that the shear would not finish off because they gotta hit their quota and QC is lax on certain details...so the batch goes into inventory, then warehouse ships out whatever is on the shelf, and if the customer has a problem, then it's up to customer support to deal with it...aka kick the can down the road...having that unique looking tailgate chain hook is a nice feature 👈

 

I've seen similar to what you're describing.  Tolerances can start staking up also which can be a problem.  In this case, it's probably a combination of aftermarket reproduction parts mixed with original parts with a touch of me not knowing what I'm doing

 

[Los_Control]

13 minutes ago, bkahler said:

Currently I see two options, slot the holes in the stake pockets to drop the cross piece the required amount or cut a rabbit in the ends of the planks to allow the plank to slip under the metal strip.  My preference is to slot the holes....

 

Thoughts anyone?

Hard to say without actually seeing it. I think your first thought to slot the metal to make it fit correctly is the right choice.

Only seems natural that some modifications will be needed to make everything fit together.

That is, if the amount of work needed is reasonable.

 

Adjusting the thickness of the wood will work. The slot you are dealing with will be at a angle and to make the wood fit you will have to pie cut it.  Or it will be snug on one side and loose on the other ... maybe nobody would see it?

To cut it to fit exactly will take hours and hours .... faster to just fix the problem that is the cause.

 

IMHO

[bkahler]

Los, could you get a couple of pictures showing the same thing as my last two pictures showing the bottom corners of the stake pockets?