New Tailgate
I traded a friend for a tailgate (1950ish)and decided it was time to tackle this little project. The PO had put on a Rossen Koenig service body tailgate. It was small and didn't look right. So I thought I would change it. Here is a pic when I first got it.
Here is the tailgate in question. I had already cut all the rust off the top and bottom of the tailgate. Next the width needs to be cut down quite a bit.
So I started out with new tailgate hinges and some tubing for the bottom section.
Don't mind the spacers for the tailgate hinges, they get ground down later.
Moving on with making the sides of 3/4 X 3/4 Angle Iron and another piece of tubing for the top rail. I cut the tailgate to the right size and tacked it in the frame.
When it came to the way the gate would open and close. I didn't want a bunch of chains in the back. I wanted something nice and clean.
I used 1/8" Aluminum Cable and used the original hooks. They close and latch to the original chain. I cut sections to make 2 loops with the hook in the middle to secure the tailgate.
Here is the end product. Good enough for a rat rod. Here is the old tailgate leaned up to it so you can see the difference.