[Awl_TEQ]

I plan on making mine this coming April. Last time I made three sets for a local guy that does NOS restorations. That was like three years ago so I can't even remember what gauge of steel I used. I think it was 16 but could have been 14 - I have all the info at work but I'm off till the 5th and it's all the way across town. I also don't have an actual cost until I check material prices as well.

People reading this thread and thinking of asking for a side or a set should know the following:

1) There is no wheel arch rib - I have no way of stamping it in.
2) These are punched out on a CNC Turret punch - not stamped in a press.
3) The hip, main rib and perimeter flanges are formed on a 10' Amada press brake.
4) The "bumps" that straddle each hook are done one at a time in a manual punch machine.
5) These sides were made to fit a 1978 FJ45 by measuring a removed rusty one - I have no idea if they will fit the late 60's trucks, I've never seen one in person.
6) I have no price until Jan 6th - I have to check current material costs.
7) The wheel arch rib is a laser cut 1/2" thick drilled/tapped and bolted on affair - see pic three.
8) I can make custom lengths and wheel positions
9) I can also make the end, top and bottom channels for the tailgate as well as a blank tailgate panel - see pic two. (four hinge model)
10) I have made inner walls to make the box double walled - no more dents from cargo - see pic one.
11) I am in Canada and have no idea how to ship these or what customs will require so shipping will be up to the buyer - I would of course package them.
12) You will have to hammer, weld, grind, buff curse and swear to make them perfect after paint - these are NOT NOS PARTS I make them myself.

[Awl_TEQ]

This is one of the sets I did for a friend of mine - finished and painted. He paints them himself. Note the wheel arch - they are the 1/2" lasered piece bolted from behind, ground down to mimic the factory bevel and feathered in with filler. I think parts of the tailgate were mine as well.

[Awl_TEQ]

D'Animal - so when exactly is the return trip??


More pics
This truck also got the inner walls on each side. I just made panels with a couple of ribs in the to mimic the ribs in the factory front panel.

[Awl_TEQ]

More....
This is how I mimic the factory ribs and embossed areas without a 300 ton press and $50k die set. I cut a slit from the formed area to the edge of the material. This prevents any buckling of the material when I bend them. The end user then has to weld the slit closed during installation. Not a tough job for most cruiserheads. In the first two pics you are looking at the bottom right corner of a tailgate panel. I can do the main embossed rectangle but I can't do the letters. The "T" shaped slit is for the half-round rib that runs along the bottom of the tailgate - it has yet to be formed. After the rib is formed the horizontal edges of the slit will butt together for an easy weld. The end of the raised rib will require a bit of filling with weld and then a grind and buff to make it perfect. Please excuse the spots of rust - these parts have been sitting for three years waiting for me to start my rebuild.



The third pic shows the top right corner of the tailgate with the relief slit as well as the mounting hole for the tailgate latch.

[Awl_TEQ]

More.....

These two shots show the upper left of the tailgate apart and then in approximate assembly.

[Awl_TEQ]

More...

Here is a shot of the wheel arches. I am not interested in doing the grinding of the bevel on the outer edge of the arches. It takes quite a while and is not fun. I tried to get these cut on a 3 axis laser and have the bevel cut as the part was cut but the supplier couldn't do it after saying he could. It was a software issue so maybe he can do it now. The inner edge matches the wheel arch cut in the box side. The bevel is just a 45 deg champfer of the outer edge so it blends into the box side. The mounting holes are drilled using a template to match the holes in the box sides being careful not to drill through. They are tapped M6 to keep with the metric.

Only one of the arches show has the bevel and it is not finished yet. It needs to be feathered and blended better to mimic the factory.

[D'Animal]

D'Animal - so when exactly is the return trip??




June?

Mark puts it on every other year. I have no details on the one for 2010.

It's only 14 months away.

[Awl_TEQ]

I can nail down a price on Monday or Tuesday (Jan 5th,6th)

I have made them from raw cold rolled steel. It is much easier to weld - but I can make the from satin coat (A.K.A wipe coat). I'm pretty sure they were 16 ga.

I'm not looking to make a big profit from any of these parts I may sell but I do have to cover my material and time. The set up of the forming is the hardest part so the more I make the cheaper they get. Shipping is up to you. So I would have to say these should be your cheapest option to fix the holes and spotweld dimples on your box and maybe straighten out your tailgate. You will have to hammer, weld, grind and buff - These are NOT NOS PARTS but they'll give you something you can work with.

PS - someone chime in about any differences between the boxes of the late 60's trucks and late 70's trucks. Three VS four hinges comes to mind. Specifically the sides - # of hooks? wheel location? clearance light location or shape?

[Awl_TEQ]

Originally Posted by D'Animal

D'Animal - so when exactly is the return trip??




June?

Mark puts it on every other year. I have no details on the one for 2010.

It's only 14 months away.

June is fine - I should be doing them in April. I'm doing sliders and roll cage starting right away here and then pulling the box off for a blast and spot drill. Sliders and roll cage don't sound like 4 months but I have the full time job and family issues and I have had the truck for three years already....

[D'Animal]

June of 2010, not 2009.

[Awl_TEQ]

I dunno.....maybe enough time - if I do one part a month

[krzyabncanuck]

Dang it, too bad i am not still in Calgary. Grew up in Deer Run / Midnapore (sp).

[Awl_TEQ]

Other side of the tracks eh?

[Awl_TEQ]

Here are a couple of shots of the arch and where it goes

[strever]

Awl teq
you are obviously in the precision sheet metal industry with access to NC punch and nice big precision press brakes :-)
check around your area and see if someone has a nibbler
typically a pullmax or trumph the 2 most common brands
they can and are being used to form special shapes
and can do the radius on your wheel arch rather easily
see this link for a sample
Metal Meet Forums

[Kief]

That is some nice work!

[KT40]

So is your grey 45 the same as the red one that you posted pics of in that other thread? Only restored?
Very nice work BTW!
How about some headache racks?
Do you have the capability to do those?( I Know about Proffits)
Or at least the triangular braces that bolt to the bed sides?

[Awl_TEQ]

The grey truck is not mine. It belongs to a friend who restores LC's for a living. Here is his site I believe it is still for sale, 3B intercooled turbo, 5spd, 24 volt system, LHD, factory power steering, all NOS parts except wheels of course. He calls himself Hilltop Cruisers and he has more than a few 40's and a couple of 45's in stock. He doesn't usually sell them as is but will restore them to your desired specs and then sell them to you.






The red one in this thread (not the one pictured in this post) is mine and I am about to start the resto-mod on that one.

The triangular braces are pretty easy I think. The rack itself is just a channel isn't it? Bending the radius in the channel is the hard part. Triple D Bending in Calgary may be able to do it. For one or two I could jury-rig something that would look pretty close. It's all a matter of time spent tinkering.


Strever

Yeah - I can buy a tool for our machines that will nibble form the rib. The shop I work for has no use for such a tool so it would be a personal purchase and I doubt very much I could have it made for less than $8000 to $10000. We get our punch tooling from Wilson Tool International and they would love to engineer one for me. For that much I can finish my truck by next Christmas.

[Awl_TEQ]

Ok - I took some time and worked out some prices for the parts listed above.

All prices are in Canadian Funds ($1 CAD is currently (Aug09) around 0.91 USD)

All pricing is now in the classified section at this URL - PRICING
I reserve the right to change pricing in the future.

PM me or post up with any custom panel inquiries or other parts I may be able to replicate for your restoration. I'd love to help out a fellow Mudder if I can.

I would require half the funds to cover your order up front and the balance when ready to ship. Customer pays for shipping. I will package the order such that it will arrive undamaged. If it is damaged in shipping you must claim the damage through the carrier yourself. You are of course more than welcome to pick up your order and I will do my best to accommodate any Mudship requests.

I currently plan to do a production run in mid April 2009. I will consider an earlier start date if enough interest shows up.
Please PM me an e-mail address if you are interested.

[KT40]

Prices look very reasonable!
Could you fab the bed bottom?

[Awl_TEQ]

KT40

Let me take some measurements and do some thunking. I should be able to. It would be tedious and my corrugated shape may be slightly different. The question is weather the length of the bed is shorter than the frame of our press and how far back the backstop goes vs how wide the bed panel is. I'll get back to you.

[fjwagon]

Kevin, I have the same problem(bed bottom) but the bed will be shorter and not by choice. It came this way. I gues I should take measurements.

[lvdreamer]

Hey

Would love to get a tailgate frame. Final stage of an FJ45 resto is the box and tailgate. Have both OEM but rough, your work would solve the problem perfectly.

Also in Calgary, so would stop by!

Cameron

[Awl_TEQ]

Yeah - I've got one full gate unassebled. I was going to use it for my truck but I can make another one when I get around to a production run on the bed sides. Send me a PM and I'll give you a call... prices above are still good.

Kevin

[D'Animal]

Complete tailgate - $225.00 (minus hooks,letters and latches)



Can you make one with the letters?

[Awl_TEQ]

I could laser cut the letters out of something like 12 Ga and spot weld them on. The painter would have to seal the perimeter of the letters with filler like joint sealer. I don't know how well that would hold up over time.....

[merbesfield]

What about laser cutting a male and female pattern and pressing it in? Just a thought. Looks like you have the necessary equipment to make it happen.

[Awl_TEQ]

Originally Posted by merbesfield

What about laser cutting a male and female pattern and pressing it in? Just a thought. Looks like you have the necessary equipment to make it happen.

Well, yes and no. The male/female would work with a little trial and error. I don't have enough tonnage to press them all at once and the beds on our presses are only three and five inches wide. The letters being something like 10" tall would need another inch top and bottom to anchor the material around the letter and prevent warpage.......blah, blah, blah. Bottom line is bending flat sheets is easy, forming raised beads and letters or embossing is another science altogether. It takes more tonnage and larger die sets and has a lot of specialized knowledge about how to draw the material without distortion. I did some 40 rear tub wheel wells with all the ribs in them and spent literally days trying to press one rib at a time and keep the panel from twisting up like a pretzel. Never did get it perfect and had to bill the hell out of the customer just to break even. He managed to use them but spent a lot of time welding them in.

Also, I don't need a tailgate, or at least not the panel itself and I am trying to get real progress on my rebuild now that I have started it. I hope that doesn't sound to self centered. I really only started this thread to try and help out other guys as I do my own stuff. It's not a big deal to make extra parts once I've got the tools set up, so I offer my time and skills to help out other builds as I go through mine. Once, or if, I am done my build I might be more inclined to experiment and spend time making one off parts for guys that need obscure items. Not that the tailgate is obscure - but you know what I mean.

[Bear]

AwlTeq,

Thanks for what you share with the less-skilled among us.
I think the guys are greatly impressed with your metal working skills, as am I.

I understand that special skills, calculations, and tooling are necessary to fabricate the more complicated stampings.
Also larger and heavier equipment, as well as expensive dies need to be made to accomplish one pressing to make a complete panel.
Toyota has the bucks, the equipment, and the technicians to create such equipment to produce, for example, an embossed tailgate, or a corrugated floorpan for a cab.
But they don't make the older parts anymore.

How-some-ever, we all really hope that YOU can somehow accomplish this with your skills, materials, and equipment. That's why we sit here needing obsolete sheet metal stampings, and ask guys far away in Panama, Pakistan, etc. if they will create the old pieces we need to finish a project.

Kudos to you for your talent and persistence to create what you do, and do well.
But I suspect that now you have shown your talent and willingness to provide some items, you'll still be asked for more. I guess you oughta look at it as flattery.

[Awl_TEQ]

Originally Posted by Bear

Kudos to you for your talent and persistence to create what you do, and do well.
But I suspect that now you have shown your talent and willingness to provide some items, you'll still be asked for more. I guess you oughta look at it as flattery.

I am more than willing to help out and make anything I have the ability to do. But right now I have started my own long awaited ground up resto-mod on my 45LPB. This, as I know you all can appreciate, takes a lot of time out of the week. I am pushing the envelope of my wifes good graces as it is. I haven't gotten to the sheet metal on my build yet - but when I do in a few weeks I will be in "sheet metal mode" and more able to tackle the extra items guys might need. I have a couple of guys wanting bed sides and tailgate parts so I've already commited to those. I knew what I was in for when I started this thread and the extra few bucks in my pocket get put right back into my truck too so I need you guys as much as you need me. Please feel free to ask for any part you might need - I will consider each request carefully in regard to whether I can make it. It just might not fit into my schedule right away so be prepared to wait a bit. If I agree to do it, I will do it.

P.S. - I am flattered and honored to be a part of this community.
(I hope that's not too sappy)