1955 Ranch Wagon Cruiser

DJ it clears the drip rail when painted your the only one that will notice. An option is to shorten the front post that 1/4 inch but thats a lot of work.
There are so many outstanding areas in that build, that little factory flaw is invisible. [cl[cl
Is there a booth around you you can rent for a day, shop school, friend [S

Torchie said:

You are definitely on to the tedious and boring stuff. But it is the stuff that makes all the difference in the finished product.
As I have posted before , the old guys that taught me body work always laughed at us punks and our quest for the perfect gaps. Their comment was always"They didn't come that good from the factory."
As you are finding out many times it is a compromise as you will get one gap right but it throws off another.
And just as an aside... When I did body work for a living my favorite tool for adjusting doors, hoods and trunk lids was a 2x4 piece of hard oak. That and a "wee bit" off pressure in the proper spot would do wonders.
It's looking great. Keep up the good work.....[cl [cl [cl
Torchie

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Thanks for the support. I agree with those old guys - it doesn't need to be better than original. I never noticed the door gaps before I took it apart, I doubt if I'll notice them when it's finished. But, I do think the tapered gap is curious - was it like that before? If not what caused it?

soltz said:

DJ it clears the drip rail when painted your the only one that will notice. An option is to shorten the front post that 1/4 inch but thats a lot of work.
There are so many outstanding areas in that build, that little factory flaw is invisible. [cl[cl
Is there a booth around you you can rent for a day, shop school, friend [S

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Shortening the front post is a solution I hadn't thought of. I'll keep that idea in reserve in case I decide I can't live with the gap.

The booth I built is working out well. I have sprayed several times now (just primer). The over spray in the air seems to be minimal. The exhaust filters are showing signs of being dirty on the inside which means the over spray is getting to them. And I have almost no over spray collecting on the floor. Parking the trailer in the driveway and squeezing the truck in next to it is getting to be a pain, though.

DJ3100 said:

Thanks for the support. I agree with those old guys - it doesn't need to be better than original. I never noticed the door gaps before I took it apart, I doubt if I'll notice them when it's finished. But, I do think the tapered gap is curious - was it like that before? If not what caused it?

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Could be from any number of things. Including factory so that something doesn't bind. Mostly just the fact that the body is now 60 years old and not square anymore. (Wow. Just like me)
Just remember the "Big picture". It's going to be sweet!!!!!!
Torchie

Looking good [cl
Saw this 56 today at a local show.

Thanks ZZ.

That's a nice looking wagon. The roof on these always seems out of proportion. The roof rack seems to visually lower the profile or maybe divert attention away from the profile. At this point I can't imagine having to fit the body panels so that trim would fit and look good.

I have been waiting to post something that was finished - but nothing ever seems to get finished. I do have both quarters and the rear blocked to 320. It will get a coat of epoxy (which lays down very smooth) and blocked to 600. Hopefully with no burn throughs. I'm going to wait on that untill I have everything else at that stage.

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Blocking the area around the taillights has been a real problem for me. The compound, concave curves are difficult to get smooth. I think they are as good as they are going to get.

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I'm ready to put it back on it's wheels so I can get serious about aligning the doors and fenders. While there is progress, there is still a long way to go. I still have not done anything with the tailgate. The fenders, hood and roof need to be blocked.

Well there you are. Thanks for the update Dan. [P

earthman said:

well there you are. Thanks for the update dan. [p

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x2^^^^^^^^^^^^^ [P [P

earthman said:

Well there you are. Thanks for the update Dan. [P

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Yeah, I'm still here working on it almost every day. The shop is a disaster with white sanding dust everywhere, sanding blocks and sand paper covering all the flat surfaces.

I'm keeping all the filler, glaze, catalyst, mixing boards, and spreaders in the refrigerator which gives me about 30 seconds to get it mixed and spread (unless I do it first thing in the am then I have about a minute).

I'm bored and tired of sanding -but still have at least 100 hours left. I'm in the just do it - getter done mode. Someday (maybe in August) I'll get to post something a little more interesting.

Looking great. Painting a station wagon is a HUGE undertaking. Not to mention all the other work that you have done to get to the point that you could even start to prep it for paint. Always has been and always will. Only thing worse was when we had to to a complete paint job on a full size Work van. The kind with no side windows.
From my for what it's worth file.
As someone who has done not only what you are doing but numerous wooden boats as well. My philosophy towards sanding has become this. I use it as a "Meditation" time. I am usually in there by myself and it gives me time to focus and get things straight. I used to play music when I did that part of the job but now I don't even do that.
I know that it sounds a little"Karate Kiddish". Wax on. Wax off. but it works for me.
Keep at it brother. The end result will be worth it.

Torchie said:

Looking great. Painting a station wagon is a HUGE undertaking. Not to mention all the other work that you have done to get to the point that you could even start to prep it for paint. Always has been and always will. Only thing worse was when we had to to a complete paint job on a full size Work van. The kind with no side windows.
From my for what it's worth file.
As someone who has done not only what you are doing but numerous wooden boats as well. My philosophy towards sanding has become this. I use it as a "Meditation" time. I am usually in there by myself and it gives me time to focus and get things straight. I used to play music when I did that part of the job but now I don't even do that.
I know that it sounds a little"Karate Kiddish". Wax on. Wax off. but it works for me.
Keep at it brother. The end result will be worth it.

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Thanks Torchie,

Actually it's worth quite a bit to me. I appreciate the insight. I can't tell you how many times I have thought of "Wax on. Wax off."

It kind of goes between meditation and pure frustration. Every time I think I have it flat, another low spot shows up. The filler and glaze have very little working time (ambient surface temp 100+) and they both "kick" instantly. So, filling a simple low spot can be a real challenge and a lot of sanding.

But, it's getting there.

blocking the roof

I have put off blocking the roof because the roof panel is so loose it just pushes away. I had decided to put braces in (Ford did not see fit to add install any braces), but the headliner bows are very close to the roof. I thought they were designed to stiffen the panel.

I decided it was time to get the bows in the correct position and see what was going on. This drawing is in my trim manual. The chart at the bottom gives the color code for each bow and its position. I couldn't believe there was still a hint of color on each bow. The dome light (bracket in the center) is pushed up tight to the roof.

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This is what it looks like with the bows in the correct position. The front 3 bows actually contact the roof, but the rear 7 have 1/2"+ gaps. So, the roof is still loose.

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I have no experience with bowed headliners, and I didn't want to do anything that would create problems later. I visited Streetwerx upholstery armed with a couple photos and came away with a very positive feeling about them and about my project.

They were working on a bowed headliner in a '50's Willys wagon. It looked a lot like the Ford except Willys added braces. Bottom line is they can make it work no matter what kind of brace I add and all the other upholstery concerns I had are not problems. The prices he was ballparking for me were doable (I was prepared to be staggered).

So, I came home and attacked the braces. I cold bent 1/4 x 1 flat stock and temporarily installed some 1/4 neoprene between the brace and the roof. Tightened up the panel really well. I just did one today. I figure I need 3 more.

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Always excited to see updates to this thread. Will continue to watch and learn.

AzHunter said:

Always excited to see updates to this thread. Will continue to watch and learn.

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Thanks. Glad you're watching. If there is one thing to learn from this project, it's "keep the original patina". And I guess I would throw in: "stick with trucks, much less sheet metal and sheet metal is the enemy".

I keep feeling like I'm almost ready for paint - then I see all the little details and realize I'm not.

Yes, the devil is in the details. Building a "finished vehicle has to be twice as time consuming and aggrevating as building a "rough" rat rod.

You've got the perserverance to fo it, and do it in fine fashion.

You've got more patience than I do, thus my rust! Looking really good! One question tho, how did you get that cup ring on the ceiling???

nice work on the bows.. makes a lot of since to me.. amazing that it had such a large unsupported panel..

smallfoot said:

You've got more patience than I do, thus my rust! Looking really good! One question tho, how did you get that cup ring on the ceiling???

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I was using this to hold up 1/2 of the bow while I marked the other half (they're welded together in the middle).

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I was going to make 3 bows, then decided if 3 is good 5 will be better. I spent quite a while tweeking them to get about 1/4" space between the bows and the roof before welding them in.

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I bought Fusor 121, a flexible closed cell foam. I was not sure if this is the correct stuff, but it sure seems like it worked. In their instructional video they were applying it to a horizontal surface, so I didn't realize how runny it was. It dripped all over the place and sets up in 10 seconds at 70 degrees. I used a razor blade to cut the drips somewhat flush with the bows.

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It seems to have solved the problem. The roof can move, but it doesn't oil can in with a good amount of pressure. At least it won't be rattling while its going down the road.

Great job on the roof braces. You are lucky that roof panel is in as good of shape as it is. Most unrestored wagons have some sort of roof damage by the time they reach that age.
[P [P [P
Torchie