Moving Along!
 

The hood opens and closes. Go figure! :lol:

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...-33-46_404.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...-33-52_544.jpg

Now that the hood opens and closes and fits well enough for the bodywork it is time to move forward. The truck now steers with with the sterring wheel for the first time in about 4 years. We put the steering column in and installed the u-joints with DD shaft. We did this is an effort to check the front end for tire clearance. As much as I would like to, the 315-35-20 is not going to work on the front. It is too big in diameter. If this were an all out race truck and we didn't need to worry about inner fenders etc, they would work. In the end this is still a street truck that will have a "finished" look. So, it's on to a 26"-27" tall tire. Here are a couple pics.

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...0-23-56_82.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...-23-44_817.jpg

Thanks for looking!

That hood gave you the blues, huh? Nonetheless, looking good. I bought a NOS one for mine about 4 years ago and I'm gonna s#!t a brick if I gotta put a whole lot of work into it.

I can tell you the work done to get the hood hinges to bolt up was a problem with the fenders and not the hood. If you can find rust free oem, DO IT!

Thanks for the kind words! :thumbsup:

OD or Sidewall?

I think he is leaning toward a change. I think we are sticking with the same O.D., but using a smaller wheel. Now he is thinking a 295-45-18 on the back. Same O.D., but 1" more sidewall. Front will probably be 295-35-18. We'll see. There was a lot of head scratching and math going on last night! :lol:

Just wanted to say in this post how nice the Ring Brothers Hinges are so far. After I fixed all the mounting points on the sheet metal, man are these things smooth. They really have a great feel compared to stock. You can also stop the hood wherever you want and it will stay. Check it out.

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...-39-48_440.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...-40-07_541.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...-40-26_397.jpg

:thumbsup:

Well, I should be safe then because I've got both, left and right, NOS fenders too. :unibrow: Looking good sir. Hood looks good closed and the gaps are on point too.

A Real Update!
 

It's been a while, but I have done some work. Christmas and New Years took it's toll on progress. I just couldn't pull myself away from my twin girls over the Holidays! :)

It looks like after more fitting, moving, turning, and measuring that I care to think about we are going with a 26.65" diameter front tire. Most likely a 275-35-19. With this tire size and moving the the front tire up a full 3" and turning full lock it's going to take a custom inner fender well. OF COURSE IT IS! First comes clearancing the inner structure of the fender. Then I started with the stock inner fender for some of the more complicated curvature to save time. I'll then make the rest. Here is the beginnings.

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...-14-59_336.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...-15-30_853.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...-28-54_896.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...-29-06_473.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...-58-03_164.jpg

http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r...-58-28_679.jpg

We'll keep plugging away!

Chad -- you're a regular master.... (okay I won't finish that the way I wanted to)........ Craftsman!!!



Nice work! It's looking really good!

looking good! You better get busy racing season is around the corner.

:thankyou: I think!:)

Thanks Trent, I think this season is out. I'd be happy to step into your monster if you need help! :idea: