1955 Ford C600 Cabover

[GJunktionMike]

Lynn, that a cool coe Those thing are realy sharp look setting low to the ground[P[P

 

[shakey56]

Thanks

Thanks for the good words, Snake Farm.

Thanks Mike. And, yeah, it's gonna be as low as it will go. Based on my measurements, I'll have to cut about 4 inches off the bottom of the front fenders to keep it from scraping the asphalt. Stock floor height from the ground was 42 inches. I'm shooting for 26 inches when it's finished. Gotta be low....low...low.

And.....thanks to my buddy at R.A.W. Rods for the carb rebuild.

Lynn

 

[hotrod preacher]

well apparently i had lost track of another cool build... oops.... looking good, glad to see progress and i like root beer too, a cream accent, and shiney root beer interior is definitely the way to go! maybe put some "root beer kegs" on the flatbed...lol

 

[jammersspeed]

great looking project! i have a 56 waiting in the wings for my ramp truck project!

 

[shakey56]

Root Beer

Hey Preacher...great idea! I hadn't thought of that. Guess I'll start lookin for a couple of barrels.

I like a 56 cab a little better than the 53-4-5 cab, Jammerspeed, but I found Buford in a junkyard and it was fate. Unlike out West, there are NO COEs in my area for sale....hardly ever.

BTW, I bought another visor today for 50 bucks...just needs paint. It has all the mounting brackets, too.

Here's a pic of Buford when I found him.

Lynn

 

[shakey56]

Update

....such as it is. I had another death in the family so it has been difficult. It seems they come in bunches. But working in the shop has always been my best therapy. If we only knew, it's probably what keeps most of us from going "critical". LOL

But...to Buford. Got all the stuff on (and in) the motor. Sprayed a little black on it before it went in. I need to prepare you guys....ain't goin' for slick and shiney. Been there and done that. Too old and way too slow to get it done "purty". Can't see the motor....it's under the cab. Gonna be way too low to see the bottom. (Besides, I got buddies with slick street rods I love to agitate. LOL)

So....I've started under the rear of the cab removing stuff thats in the way. COEs have a separate frame that the cab is mounted to. That frame is mounted to the truck frame. Gotta get some of that frame out of the way so it can go down. Here are PICS !!!!!yay

Lynn

 

[R.A.W. RODS]

GET ER DONE!!

 

[GJunktionMike]

Nothing wrong with ruff around the edges

 

[shakey56]

The best laid plans...

Wellllll....I started under the back of the cab as planned and then.......

The new door bottoms and lower skins arrived! And, my buddy, Mr Old Ladys Mad, told me he was on vacation and we could repair Buford's doors. So....change of plans. We marked and cut the bottom off the drivers door. Upon closer inspection, we discovered the lower hinge pocket was pushed forward and the door was a little twisted. At this point, he told me he had seen a 54 F100 on Pull-a-part's lot with good doors. So we went there and, sure enough, cherry doors....what are the chances of that? AND...$37.00 each! We got em WITH GOOD HINGES.

So we are putting better doors on Buford. We pulled the hinge pocket back in place. Luckily, the post was not damaged. We have to modify these doors as you can see in the photos. We also have to relocate the lower hinge pocket in the door. But these doors are in exceptionally good shape! Much better than the original and well worth the effort. The door bottoms and skins are from MidFifty and fit like a glove....excellent quality.

Lynn

In the photos, my old doors are red, the new doors are black.

 

[earthman]

One of my favorite build threads right here.

 

[fullthrottle53]

Love the COEs. I have a 42 GMC 49 Chev and a 46 Chev. More projects than I have time!!

 

[shakey56]

Report

Thanks, Eman.

Fullthrottle.....3 COEs! Cool. Hope you can start on one soon.

I got some time on Buford this week. I removed part of the panel under the rear of the cab. (See pic). I thought I could just take it out but I found that it is part of the sub-structure. I have cut off about three-forths of the panel. I have to leave part of that structure for support. After I smooth up the edges, I'll post some new pics....probably tomorrow.[

Lynn

 

[shakey56]

Cuttin'...Slicein'

I did it!!! I CUT THE FLOOR OUT.....YAAAA! I ain't skeered.

There is so much bracing under Buford the cab can't move. The rear braces and the cross brace have been removed or cut down so all I have to do is cut the front supports off and I can lower the cab. At this point, it looks like my floor will be 28 inches from the ground. This should put the bottom of the front fenders 3 1/2 from the pavement. Think that'll be low enough?[

There is also a picture of the driver side floor I need to repair. I'll do that after all the cuttin' is done.

Hey ....I know I'm slow but I'm old!!!!

Lynn

 

[Sam_Fear]

3-1/2" for a COE is pretty darn low! So if I figured right, you lowered the cab 14"? Any lower you'd have to have air bags.

 

[shakey56]

Yep

You're right Sam,.....14". My 56's floor is 21" from the ground so I think Buford's 28" will make it 2 steps to get in. Should be about like a new F250.

Lynn

 

[CR55]

Looking good!

ps.....watch out for potholes!!!

 

[bell]

LOVE IT MAN!!!! Looking great!

 

[R.A.W. RODS]

Looks good buddy.

 

[shakey56]

Update

Well, I got a little done. I removed more of the substructure that was in the way. Cut 7 inches from the passenger side front. The brace was sitting on top of the spring hat and I still need to go down 5 more inches. Removing 7 inches should give me 2 inches clearance. The first pic is the side that I have not cut yet. The second pic is after the cut on the other side. I still have to trim a little.[

The van frame is really working out well. I moved my cab back 6 inches to center my wheel in the wheel opening. This gave me a much better angle on my steering. At first it looked like I would have to use a double steering joint but after moving the cab, I think I will only have one single joint. It lines up beautifully. In the photos, I put a white rod where the steering column will be mounted. I want to make sure everything will line up before I do my floor repair.

I also temporarily hung my fender. I'm going to have to run a pretty healthy tire on the front because the wheelwell opening is so large. The photo has a 30 x 9.50 mounted in place. The rear will be 35 x 14.50 on a 10 inch reversed steel wheel.

Lynn

 

[Snake Farm]

I don't know about you Lynn but I'm getting excited You're making some nice progress man! [cl[cl

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