The original running boards were totally rusted through where they were mounted to the supports. I cut out the rusted portion and welded plain 14 gauge steel in place. After painting the patched pieces are not very obvious. I like having retained the original diamond pattern as opposed to fabricating new boards from Diamond Plate. Actually there are numerous pin holes rusted through the original Diamonds that you cannot see in this picture. They still function well despite the holes. If anybody has a set of these they are thinking of scrapping because they are rusted pretty bad let me know, I need a set for my next truck.
This is the running board support bracket I fabricated. I used 2" square tubing and 2" angle. The angle runs the full length of the running board for extra support. I put a stud on the mounting plate for the lower bolt since the location of the bolt head interfered with the 2" tubing. The (2) holes are for mounting a rubber strap for the muffler.
This is a view of the bracket, running board, and muffler installed.
Here's a view of the frame for the bed upside down. There are (2) pieces of 2 x 4 tubing that run the length of the bed at the same width as the truck frame. There is also 2 x 4 tubing around the complete exterior. 2 x 2 angles are used as cross members every 16". The angled corners are on the front next to the cab. I bolted 10 gauge sheet to the top of this frame. The 2 x 2 crossmembers are recessed below the top of the 2 x 4 tubing so there is a 1/2" lip around the entire bed.
Bed Mounts. A short vertical piece of 4" channel facing
inward was welded to the 2 x 4 tubing. A mounting plate and (2) gussets
and a pice of rubber cushion is used to fasten the bed to the frame.
A piece of 14 gauge sheet was bolted in place to close the gap between
the frame and the 2 x 4 tubing. Yes, it does not take long
for rust to appear with the road salt and mud hear in Northern Pa.
Here's how the bumpers were made. The original bumpers I had were bent up pretty bad. I would have straightened them but I wanted to add some depth to them to make them stronger. I used cardboard and the original bumpers to make a pattern for the front and top and bottom of the new bumpers. The inside piece of the bumpers is made from 2" pipe. The bend back on the top and bottom of the original bumpers is about 1" I made these 2 1/2".
The instrument panel uses 1 1/2" gauges for oil pressure, temperature, and amps. I got these from JC Whitney. The temperature gauge came with fittings that screwed directly into the head of the 230. I got the speedometer at the MV show at Aberdeen Maryland. I made oversize metal plates to mount all of the gauges in the dash. Then I drilled the dash and the plates for # 10 screws. I cut the heads off the screws and plug welded the screws into the dash. The welds were ground smooth so you cannot see them.
I mounted the gas gauge in the corner of the cab just under the dash. I got it and the sending unit from Whitney.
If you look close you will see the piece of white/clear plastic tubing that runs from under the dash down to the floor. This is my speedometer cable housing. The truck came with a short length of speedometer cable housing attached to the speedometer and to the speedometer gear in the transfer case. I got a new core and then used this piece of tubing from the local hardware store to make the cable housing. I slipped it over the stub ends of the original cable and hose clamped it into place.
This seat drew a lot of comments. I have enough of my own padding that I don't really mind the firmness. I made this because I live in a grove of oak trees and cannot keep the mice, chipmunks, and squirrels out of my vehicles. If I left the truck outside with an upholstered seat inside it the seat would be a nest within a week. The back lifts out for access to behind the seat. The seat belts are anchored on reinforcing plates welded to the floor.
Here is the "fancy" seat installed for going to town. This seat is out of a early 90's Dodge Ram mini pickup. It is a perfect fit for the PW cab. I welded some plates to the corner of the seat and bolt it to the original seat mount.
The original heater core was a sieve. I made my own core from
copper tubing. It doesn't throw a lot of heat but is better than
nothing.
I took some scraps of EPDM pond liner and made a rubber cover for the shift levers. Then I cut out a piece of sheet metal to hold the rubber into place.
I am using a Carter 2 barrel carburetor. I took (2) pieces of 1/4" plate. One piece was cut and drilled to match the single bore manifold. The other plate was cut and drilled to match the 2 barrel carburetor. Then I took a 2" high block of oak. I drew the 2 bores on the top of the block and the single bore centered on the bottom of the block. I shaped the block on the belt sander. Then I formed 14 gauge steel around the outside of the block. This was then welded to the (2) pieces of 1/4" plate. Then I smoothed the inside with a die grinder and grindstone.