1980 1/2 ton shortbed...

[87454westernhauler]

My 80 has about 4 or 5 stock horns hooked up all together!! LOUD!!!

[hotrod24]

Yea pat it has alot of nasty rust spots around the pillers, that is next after I get everything working and put back togather. Yesterday I pullled the seat and rubber mat out and insulation to find that my floor, kick panels and my cab supports need replaced. But i am just going to rivet some cab supports in for now so my cab does not drop and then later in the summer when I get a welder I can do it right along with floor, rockers, cab corners.  Right now i am trying to get my dash back together and I am having a problem, someone put some nut bolts in my heater control lens to hold the switch and my bezel is not fitting, so I am in the middle of fixing that and cleaning up all the dirt and gram...

[80stepsideguy]

Dusty,
i hope this truck of yours doesnt become like the other 1 you had.You know what i mean.(Taking it apart only to junk it later).Now that the nicer weather is upon you i say put it under the carport and do little by little.If i hit any junkyards i`ll see if i can scavange some parts for you and ship them to your place.But right now i really dont need anything for the truck, just my dads black eagle vision.

thanks
Pat

[hotrod24]

Yea man that is not going to happen to this one lol I am just doing a little cleaning up and checking out things, my 78 did get scraped but I had to do what needed to be done to live  This 80 is going to get a make over but a little at a time i am going to start at the front and work my way back and then in the end it will look alot better...

[hotrod24]

Ok well for the past few weeks i have been cleaning and checking out things, making sure things are hooked up right and in working condition...  and in the middle of that, putting my dash back together, but I ran into a problem with my heater controls, someone put bolts in the lens so the bezel was not lining up correctly.  So I got a heater control from a friend on here, but it was from an 85, and my cables would not work with it.  So I rigged up the old controls with a little JB weld, lol.  So now everything is working correctly...

[80stepsideguy]

Ill send the cables out friday.

[hotrod24]

Well it has been a while,  So far I have got my interior cleaned up and back together and i gave the truck a wash job of course I ran in to some problems with the heater switches, but I fixed that and everything works nicely.  Anyway, now that I have my interior back together, I have started on rust repair, starting with the firewall.  It has some nasty rust that I am going to try to fix for now, but I am going to need a new front clip and cab.  The front passenger side of the truck has been wrecked and that ruined the radiator support and lower panel.  The radiator support was not even bolted to the fender it was welded to it and the hood has braces that someone welded to it.  So I think it was in the wreck or it was from weak hinges or springs and someone grabbed it and bent it trying to shut it, plus it has a softball size amount of bondo on the driver side of the hood. So that is why I need a new front clip.  Now for the firewall, I did not think it was that bad until I started wire wheeling the rust and I found that the holes were a lot bigger than what I thought and that the inner coil and under the dash had rusted though, The lower part of the lip of the firewall has some nasty rust there to I would have to fab up all the replacement parts and i dont have a welder or the tools to do So it would come out alot cheaper just getting a new cab.









 

[80stepsideguy]

Still wish you had the 78 huh? All the parts you couldve had were at your fingertips.As for the firewall i say do like vile did.Make a 1 piece panel and weld it.Just cause it has some rust i wouldnt jump the gun n say its junk.I seen worse get repaired.You could cut pieces from other trucks for like the door channel, but its really all on what your budget allows.I can see what else i got laying around i can let you have, i know i dont got to to much, i know i got a lower stone guard shield and the upper radiator support.But pace yourself and see if your uncle will let you go parts picking at his yard once you decide on your outcome on the trucks repairs.

ttyl
Pat

[87454westernhauler]

Don't jumk it if you can help it, I would almost kill for one with as little rust as yours has, compared to an iowa truck and the price you got it  , but if you have to do it, its your truck.

[VileZambonie]

i say do like vile did.Make a 1 piece panel and weld it

Actually mine is two pieces. I made the tunnel too but let me tell you...There's enough work in there to complete a restoration.

[hotrod24]

Yea pat I sure do, I could have used a lot of parts from it, I have thought about alot of diff options and I would like to just rebuild the cab but there is some bad rust in places that does not have patch panels but its like you said I could get the piece from another cab and I can make the rest, but I need a welder, a brake and a shrinker, stretcher, but that would be out of my budget unless money starts getting better, I guess we will see and yea if you have any parts laying around I will be happy to take them off your hands...

[80stepsideguy]

I`ll see what i can come up with.It may not be much  but it may help you out.Give me a lil time and i`ll see what i can do for ya.

thanks
Pat

[hotrod24]

Here is some pics of the rot...
























                                       Where i am now..

[hotrod24]

Ok thanks man...

I`ll see what i can come up with.It may not be much  but it may help you out.Give me a lil time and i`ll see what i can do for ya.

thanks
Pat

[hotrod24]

Ok been working on the firewall more and the rot, Sanding and wire wheeling fun fun lol anyway i am about to the point of bondo and sealing things up so i can put the fenders back on...