[buckroseau]

Had to work all weekend, didn't get anything done Saturday night. I got home tonight about 7 after work and figured I better do something.

Little more work on the wheel well. More cut, weld, grind and primer.

Hoping to get most of the metal work done on this well tomorrow or Tuesday. Wheel well won't go back in until this rear quarter is done. Hopefully that will happen next week.

Pics to follow.

[buckroseau]

more

[buckroseau]

some more

[buckroseau]

last 3

[usmcruiser]

Originally Posted by buckroseau

some more

you continue to amaze me. Every time I check on this tread I am blown away by what you can accomplish. your body work skills are amazing. Keep up the great work.

[Coolerman]

Wow! Wow! (Did I say Wow!?)I just finished reading this thread from the begining and have got to say; not only are you multi-talented, but you are willing to take the time to share your knowledge. I know it takes a lot of time away from working on the Cruiser to take and post pics and text detailing your work. Your drive to accomplish goals is inspiring to us all. Please continue to share, I have subscribed to this thread so I can keep up with it.

Man I wish I had read this thread before starting my own sheet metal work. I could have saved a lot of time with the tips I have picked up. That tip your neighbor had about using a trailer ball to help form the rounded edge of the molded ribs was just too cool. I don't have a metal brake so I can't easily make the ribbed sections. You should really think about selling those in different lenghts so folks could easily patch floor boards! I do have an air powered version of the shears you use. Got it from Northern Tools for about $68. They will cut 16ga easily and 14 ga if you have just a small cut. Hard to cut curves with them unless they are large curves but so much faster than the jig saw I normally use.

Slightly off-topic
MY wife is now after me to investigate that concrete counter top. She claims that if I put those in her kitchen when we build our log home she will help me with the Cruiser more... Can you share any further construction info on that? Maybe a link with more info? I don't think the guys will mind if you post it here as several have asked about it!

If you ever get to Lexington, KY look me up, the beers are on me!

[phishtaco]

Coolerman.....
Concrete counter top info, I bought the book a couple of years ago after I installed my own. We have the dvd here at work somewhere but I haven't had a chance to watch it.
http://www.concreteexchange.com/index.jsp

[buckroseau]

Originally Posted by Coolerman

Slightly off-topic
MY wife is now after me to investigate that concrete counter top. She claims that if I put those in her kitchen when we build our log home she will help me with the Cruiser more... Can you share any further construction info on that? Maybe a link with more info? I don't think the guys will mind if you post it here as several have asked about it!

Yes, slightly off topic, but I'm the one who started it. I guess if it helps you work more on your cruiser and get's your wife involved it's all good and somewhat cruiser related, right?

I thought this link was helpful

http://www.naturalhandyman.com/iip/a...counter-a.shtm

Not to technical and fancy, more my style I thought. I didn't follow it to the letter, I did what I thought would work, very similiar though.

Bought a 8'1" x 49" x 3/4" sheet of Malomine board. Ripped the base to size first which was 8'1" x 40". Then ripped the remaining piece into 2 1/4" pieces, that way when I screwed them to the side and they were flush with the floor it would be 1 1/2" higher, the thickness I wanted my countertops. So, basicly screwed those pieces to the side of my larger piece approx. every foot on the side. I then ripped 2 - pieces of 2 x 6" boards to 6" triangles and then screwed them in the corner on one side of the form. I wish I would of use the Malomine board because when I pulled the form the concrete was a little flakey where the 2 x 6" pine triangle's where. The Malomine board makes a very nice finish when it release's.

I then cut wire netting 1/2" o.c. square stuff, roughly the size of the inside of the form, approx. 1/2" to an 1" shy from the edge. I also cut 3/8" rebar 39" long and layed them widthwise on top of the netting approx. 6" o.c. the entire length of the countertop. My reason for the rebar was the 15" overhang my wife wanted. I just thought if several people were eating and leaning on it, worried about it breaking if it got a lot of weight.

Used a mixture of 2 - 60lb bags of quickcrete concrete mix / 1 gallon portland cement / 1 - 8oz bottle of quickcrete charcoal tint and water. I don't know the exact mixture of water? I've done lots of concrete work so I just added water until it was the right consistency, kinda like pudding.

I repeated the mixture above 4 x's in a 6 cubic yard wheel barrel. Mix up a batch, pour it into the form, mix up another batch.....you get the idea. I had a little left over when I was done, but not much.

Tamped everything down with the trowel for several minutes to make sure there were no air pockets along the sides of the form. I then had the wife help me with a straight 2 x 4 and we screted the top of it. Basicly all you do is work the 2 x 4 from one end to the other while wiggling it back and forth across the form, moving slowly ahead. Flushes the concrete with the top of the form so there is no excess. After that I used a bull float and floated it a few times to smooth it out. You wouldn't have to float it, but I had one so I did it.

Waited about 6 hours, came back out and troweled it smooth with a 14" trowel. Waited another 2 hours and troweled it again. Pretty much got it as good as I was going to get it? Waited 24 hours and then went over it a few times with a floor sander w/ a 36 grit disc, just to smooth it out even more. I waited about 3 days before I pulled the forms off the side, just to make sure it at cured fully. After I pulled that I used a belt sander with a 36" grit belt and beveled the edges to about a 1/4" 45 degree angle, if you take your time you can actually get that bevel pretty nice.

1 week later, 5 guys hauled a 500 lb countertop into my kitchen. It was pretty leve, but it did need a little shimming on 1 end of about 3/16". I waited about 2 weeks before I sealed it. I use a product that I sell at my store here for coffee tables, tables and other misc. stuff they recomend it for. I figured it would work, but no one told me to do it. I use the gal. kit and that was barely enough, but it made it. Stuff is called Easy Lite, 2 part goo that you mix together an pour on, gets to be about an 1/8" thick and looks like glass when your done.

Before I poured it onto the top, the day before I mixed up a cup full and used a brush and went around the edges first and brushed a coat on first. The reason I did this is, I did a test run on a concrete patio block a few weeks earlier to see how this stuff was goint to work. I poured it on the patio block on the top first and then it ran over the sides randomly. When I went back to brush out the runs where it had first ran down and brush the dry spots, the dry spots didn't look as wet as where it had ran down first. I guess I figured I better brush the sides evenly first before I pour it on the top. It ran down the sides, but it didn't matter because I had already sealed it, just brushed it out then. Have to keep after it for about 3 hours after you pour it, just keep brushing out runs.

My total cost, approx. $150 bucks for the whole works.

I'm no expert, just what I did. All that matters is that the wifes happy and I get more LV time.

Hope this helps, Matt

[buckroseau]

3 more and finished product

[buckroseau]

Ok, enough with the concrete countertops, back to Landcruiser shit.

I have to work late tonight so I spent a couple hours out in the shop this morning. More of the same program, cut, weld, grind, prime.

Started working up a piece for the door sill. Semi complicated, but just takes a little time. I still have to do some tweaking, but I got it massaged in there somewhat with clamps. Little more tweaking, might try to weld it after work tonight at 9? We'll see.

Matt

[buckroseau]

last 3 for today, or this afternoon at least.

[Poser]

Lookin' DAMN good Matt!

[Coolerman]

Thanks for the links and construction pics. I'm reading that link now... The wife is now getting 'other' ideas for this construction technique :-).

[MiniPigg]

Im still in a state of AWE. Dude you do awesome work. I cant wait to see the end result.

[buckroseau]

Didn't get a whole lot done this weekend. I spent the entire day on Saturday and cleaned my shop. Still not done, but a huge dent in it.

Figured I better do something on the LV this weekend. Finished up that curved door sill piece I had fabed up last weekend. Still had to do quite a bit of fitting, but got in pretty nice. All welded in and ground down. It still might need a film of spot putty on the inner door sill, to get out some of the deeper sand scratches, but I am very happy with the way it turned out.

I also removed the quarter panel that had been replaced at one time with a factory panel. Wasn't to hard to take off because whoever replaced it years ago didn't re-spot weld anything to the inner panel. I only had to cut out there crude welds, which wasn't much, and off it went. This way I will be able to straighten out that inner panel on that side, it is really Fawked up!

Blasted in the back side of the inner skin and epoxy primed everything. About 6 hours of work on it today. If I can this week I might try to get that entire rear sill off, it's all bent to hell and needs to be replaced.

The other panel will not be coming off, only the lower section will be cut off and replaced.

My body man buddy called me last week and got busy so, didn't get to bring it up. He thought maybe this week sometime, we'll see I guess? I figure I'll keep plugging away at it until some tells me to stop. Still hoping to get it up to his place for the rear quarters, it would go so fast then.

Matt

[buckroseau]

Another 3

[buckroseau]

3 more

[buckroseau]

yes, another 3

[buckroseau]

last 2 for today.

[buckroseau]

Originally Posted by MiniPigg

I cant wait to see the end result.

Me 2

Matt

[Mikesta]

Nice pics of the inner workings of the rear section. Nice to see how it was put together. Buck... are you going to cut off the roof... I think I read that you were??? but cant find that post.

[buckroseau]

Originally Posted by Mikesta

Nice pics of the inner workings of the rear section. Nice to see how it was put together. Buck... are you going to cut off the roof... I think I read that you were??? but cant find that post.

Yes, I am going to take off the roof. There are a few hundred spot welds around the inside of the upper lip. I will have to drill out all those spot welds and the roof should come right off.

I am going to wait until the body is back on the chassis before I pull it though. I think removing the roof on the rotisserri might be a bad idea in terms of structure. The body could flex or bend. When it's back on the chassis I will remove it, blast and repair the damage, which is quite extensive.

I am also going to weld in plates with 12 mm thread boss's in the B pillar for shoulder harness's for seat belts.

Matt

[fjwagon]

It's unbeleivable how much work you are putting into it. I think it's great what you are doing. I have a question about what tools you are using. What is the tool you use most and cannot do without?

[Nick the Carpenter]

nice kitchen bench tops, never seen that before were did you get the idear.

[Nick the Carpenter]

sorry nice metal work too

[buckroseau]

Originally Posted by fjwagon

It's unbeleivable how much work you are putting into it. I think it's great what you are doing. I have a question about what tools you are using. What is the tool you use most and cannot do without?

110v gas welder

[buckroseau]

Originally Posted by Nick the Carpenter

nice kitchen bench tops, never seen that before were did you get the idear.

My sister lives in Dallas, I was down there a few years ago and her and her husband did concrete countertops in there kitchen. Until then I had never seen them before or even considered them. After seeing hers I knew that at some point I would do it.

Cheap and cool looking I think.

Matt

[fjwagon]

....and the second and third tool..... I'm in the process of collecting items for the wagon. I still need some rubber for the windows, seat covers and horn assy. I'm also getting tools I don't have so I can do some body work. I have rebuilt several engines but never done body work and the wagon is going to need some help.....lots of help. Any advice would help. Thanks

Originally Posted by buckroseau

110v gas welder

[Chef]

Holy crap Matt! Did you take the body completely apart? Man, you're making my project look really, really minor dude

[buckroseau]

Originally Posted by fjwagon

....and the second and third tool..... I'm in the process of collecting items for the wagon. I still need some rubber for the windows, seat covers and horn assy. I'm also getting tools I don't have so I can do some body work. I have rebuilt several engines but never done body work and the wagon is going to need some help.....lots of help. Any advice would help. Thanks

I don't know how good or bad you wagon is, or the extent you want to fix it up? If your going to do what I'm doing, be prepared for a MAJOR time comiment.

If you need to make parts, your probably going to have to get a metal shear and brake. The one I have is the 52", I have described it a few times in previous posts.

You also might want a gravity feed blaster and larger compressor. You can buy some cheaper gravity feed blasters for around $100 bucks. 60 gal. vertical 7hp oiled compressor, around $500. I would still farm out the majority of the blasting, at least the big stuff. But, when you start taking it apart you will have to do some more blasting on a smaller scale, so it's nice to have one.

The other smaller stuff: Gravity feed paint gun, water trap, auto body hammer, couple different sized steel bucks, die grinder, grinder, air grinder, long reach vice grips (misc size's couple of each), etc.....

The user: MIKESTA, has been working up a parts list a page or 2 back, he actually has a pretty good list with price's, a good starting point. He's pretty much getting everything you need to do what I'm doing.

Take a look at and let me know if you have more questions.

Matt