yeah measure once and pray that is my motto.
(careful planning! kidding!)
the upholstery shop that did the seat shined me on the carpet and underlayment and I am sad to say that is the last straw. so went to the Yard Store today, man I love that place. of course they had jute, and they also had some aircraft sound barrier material I didnt pick up but thinking about it I will tomorrow.
IMG_8879 by
Joe Doh, on Flickr
also got some drill bits and a 10x1.5 tap to fix my bed bolt problem. drilled out the broken bolt and chased all the threads.
IMG_8872 by
Joe Doh, on Flickr
rain dampened my bed ambitions so I went to the next item on the punch list, rebuilding the doors and windows. here is a trick, if you have clutch head screws on a 39-46 truck that are...
recalcitrant, I take a cutoff wheel and cut a slot in them, the little bit of heat and vibration lets me take them out with a flat bladed screwdriver instead of that low torque clutch head driver. only had to do that to about 7.
IMG_8873 by
Joe Doh, on Flickr
I rebuilt the door latches, here is a how-to if you have-to.
1. remove the door handle, mine was rusted fast to the latch assembly and required some persuasion, namely a hammer and a punch to push the handle out. this actually separated the upper part of the latch assembly but it had to come off anyway.
2. separate the latch assembly from the door support that also holds the window regulator. there are 4 big slotted screws that hold that piece to the door and then two more clutch head screws that hold the latch assembly. picture below is the latch assembly in the vice, you can see the missing parts that fell off when I beat on the door handle, and the four tabs you have to grind off to release the door latch
IMG_8874 by
Joe Doh, on Flickr
3. unscrew the inner release rod from the latch, there is a (probably broken) spring on the shaft, this is what holds the outside handle level when latched so it will need replaced. I got a generic stainless spring assortment from home cheapo, and found one with the right tension.
IMG_8875 by
Joe Doh, on Flickr
4. clean and free up all the linkages. you dont want to sand on them even though its tempting, they have worn into a comfortable position after almost 80 years and if you clean them up too much they will stick and catch. after that reassembly is reverse of disassembly, and I use a couple tack welds to hold it all shut for the next 80 years.
IMG_8876 by
Joe Doh, on Flickr
here is the door handle assembly that was dislodged by the handle removal, reinstalled. it is possible to snap it back in.
IMG_8878 by
Joe Doh, on Flickr
lube it all up and work it a few hundred times, this smooths the mechanism, and you can make sure the handle is springing back (this one is)
IMG_8877 by
Joe Doh, on Flickr
tomorrow I will rebuild the window felts and the passenger latch, and maybe get the bed together finally.