1/2 Tub Vendors (1 Viewer)

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Joined
Mar 30, 2015
Threads
29
Messages
242
Location
Pennsylvania
Looking for help finding a replacement 1/2 tub to finish my build. I've looked at LCH, TROA, CCOT. Are the CCOT 1/2 tubs worth 8900? Are the others worth 2900.00? Wondering about fitment issues us vs col specs. Have also read about shipping problems. Do these tubs have any build quality issues?
Appreciate the help…on the East coast.
 
After I saw what CCOT wouldn't do to help with a bad tub they sold a member on here that cost over 10K there is no way I would say they stand behind what they sell nor is it in spec to work without major refab work.
For just a bit more than 2900 you can get a 3/4 aqualu tub and it might buy you a lot more time on it's life up there in PA
 
Try Teseven, I think they are back in business after the fire.

I bought an SA 1/2 tub and had major fitment problems. Took months of reworking to resolve.
 
If you are not doing a steel restoration, the Aquala is the perfect choice. If I ever had a rusted out Northeast FJ40, I would certainly go with the Aluminum path.
 
Thank you everyone for the advice. I’m considering buying the panels again and welding them in myself. Just too much money not knowing if it’s going to fit and then being stuck with it
 
After my experience with the SA aftermarket tub, I would completely agree with Indygbd that your best bet for correct fitment is keep the OEM skeleton and weld in panels.

But, if you do go to buy the whole thing, recommend staying away from the cheap SA tub option.
 
After my experience with the SA aftermarket tub, I would completely agree with Indygbd that your best bet for correct fitment is keep the OEM skeleton and weld in panels.

But, if you do go to buy the whole thing, recommend staying away from the cheap SA tub option.
Forgive my ignorance but not sure of your "SA" reference??
 
I've decided to do this job myself. Stay tuned for more updates. I ordered the quarters, rear bed HFS w/supports, corner channels, inside & outside rocker panels from CCOT. I ordered the wheel well support braces, wheel well sides and tops from RSC. CCOT didn't have them available. Was trying to stick with one manufacture for the best fitment. I've been watch JNH Classics on youtube, his 72 build is amazing, lots of rear tub sheetmetal work. I'm thinking if you all can help me figure out where to start replacing panels. Oh, and who makes the best spot weld drill? I saw some on Eastwood but it seems that technique is everything when getting the most out of them.
 
I've decided to do this job myself. Stay tuned for more updates. I ordered the quarters, rear bed HFS w/supports, corner channels, inside & outside rocker panels from CCOT. I ordered the wheel well support braces, wheel well sides and tops from RSC. CCOT didn't have them available. Was trying to stick with one manufacture for the best fitment. I've been watch JNH Classics on youtube, his 72 build is amazing, lots of rear tub sheetmetal work. I'm thinking if you all can help me figure out where to start replacing panels. Oh, and who makes the best spot weld drill? I saw some on Eastwood but it seems that technique is everything when getting the most out of them.
Make sure you primer in between the joining metal flanges before you spot weld them together. You don’t want them rusting out in a few years after all of your hard work.
 
Read the build thread “An accidental frame off…”. Particularly the page that contains post #341 and then scroll to the last 10ish pages of posts. Ryan was extremely detailed and took great measures to do his restore right, and he did, but the Red Devil still showed back up within only a couple years of finishing.

If your 40 is going to be driven with any kind of consistency do yourself a favor and cancel the steel order and go with the Aqualu tub. Just my 2¢…
 
Update rear tub.
The ccot panels are on the way. I’m adding a few pics of the rear tub and front floorboards. The areas that need metal work. The question is where to begin, rear bed panel, quarter panels, corner channels, support braces, should I bolt down the new rear floor pan to the frame mounts and build up from there then bring over the other half? I’m going to move the tub off the frame to a metal cart more suitable for fabrication. Any ideas ?? Thanks again for the help!!

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buyuing panels : make sure they are not thinnner than 16 gauge steel. Steel will only last so long if it is too thin.
Been there and done that. I rebuilt my 42 in stainless, drew up the panels and tig welded the half tub in place using the original rail.
I also did a xtra cab fj45. Looks like your body support metal is fubar. I'd replace with 1/8th steel and grab a can of Galvalum galvanizing spray upon finishing. I'm not sure but maybe someone can chime in to what thickness the 1/4 panels and floor metal thickness is, I think it may have been 18ga. You can't go wrong with 16th ga, easier to weld as it's thicker / stronger.
Cheers
 
Thanks for the advice. Panels just came yesterday from CCOT. Waiting for the rest from Real Steel Cruisers. Not sure how I’m going to start replacing the panels yet. Maybe I need to find the correct dimensions since I only welded 1 bar across the back.
 
I've replaced all of the panels you're replacing as part of my resto. Mine was more structurally sound than what you're starting with, but hopefully this helps you out.

I wouldn't start cutting or welding anything yet. Start by getting everything into position and jigged up. The advantage of patching it together rather than using an aftermarket tub is that you still have many of the dimensions of the OEM tub to work with to ensure proper alignment. However, remember that your replacement panels won't be perfect. I used CCOT and Real Steel panels- all of them required some rework to get them to fit correctly, so don't assume they are right out of the box. Meaning, do not use the aftermarket panels for any dimensional queues. For example, my rear quarter panels from Real Steel were out of square at the ambulance door opening by around half an inch from top to bottom. I had to do a pie cut to get them back into spec. It would've sucked to discover that after welding it in.

So here's what I'd do, in order:
  1. Replace the body mounts. Think of your OEM frame as a jig for rebuilding your tub. If your body mounts are toast, you could have some twisting in the body right now- you don't want that as your starting point. I know your rear sill is gone, but I would loosely bolt the rear sill in place on new body mounts as well.
  2. Brace the crap out of everything with angle iron. Triangulation is key. As I think you've noted, one bar across the back is not nearly enough bracing to keep things in place. To start, I would use light tacks on your bracing- you're going to need to adjust things quite a few times during the next step.
  3. Put as many OEM panels back on your truck as possible. Mock everything up. Hard top, doors, anything that CAN be bolted back on, should. Your bracing in step 2 needs to be strong enough to support the weight. This will naturally give you most of the dimensions you need. There will be challenges- i.e., I know your rear quarter panels are missing, so you won't be able to bolt your back door (or tailgate) on. But do your best. You'll need to adjust your bracing along the way. Ask folks on the forum for measurements that you need help with.
  4. I would then start with the rear sill, since it will be the foundation of the rest of your panels. to place the rear sill properly, you'll need to clamp in your rear quarter panels to make sure the sill is properly placed fore and aft. Measure the quarters for squareness, eyeball them to make sure there isn't any twist, etc etc. It'll be an iterative process.
  5. I'd then do your rear floor and wheel wells.
  6. Then the quarter panels.

General advice: hammer and dolly out your welds wherever possible. The filler material goes on hot (in an expanded state), so it will shrink as it cools. People tend to focus their advice on avoiding concentrated heat when welding (i.e., jump around, use small tacks (no continuous weld beads), hit the welds with compressed air every so often to cool things down, don't get things too hot), and that is important advice. It will help you avoid warping. But you also need to think about shrinkage, so whenever you can access the front and back of a panel, use a hammer and dolly to hammer out the welds while they're still hot. I wasted so much time trying to fix shrunk panels- I ruined my front doors, which cost me many hours trying to fix them, only to give up and buy expensive used replacement doors. So don't make that mistake.

Also, be careful about heat build up while you're grinding. I was really tempted to rush it when spending endless hours grinding down the long weld seams on the quarter panels, for example. But all you're doing by rushing it is creating more body work later. It's worth your time going slow, skipping around, and periodically cooling things down with compressed air.

As for spot weld cutters, I really really like this one:

Amazon product ASIN B002XML5HK
The pilot bit is spring loaded, so you won't drill through the other panel, don't worry. That pilot bit keeps your cutter from jumping around.

I HATE this style:

Amazon product ASIN B087FS9PR8
I hate it because (1) the spring loaded pin in the middle does not do a good job of staying put. It will jump out of your center-punched divot and will make it really hard to get through. the bit will dance all over the place as you're trying to start your cut, (2) the hole saw part of these cutters dull really quickly. I found that they only lasted for maybe 10 spot welds before they were almost useless. The cutters on the one I like are thicker steel, and I don't think I even had to change out one of the bits over the course of my whole project.

You've got a lot of work ahead of you- it's a marathon, not a sprint! set reasonable expectations for yourself on when you can get it done to avoid getting demoralized. If you go slow and are patient, I would guess that you have 200-300 hours of work to get all of the sheet metal repair done. Know that, so that you don't get discouraged. If you find yourself getting impatient, take a break. work on something else, or put the tools down for a few hours. I really got burnt out on my project because of unrealistic expectations,.

Good luck!
 

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