Out With The Old!
Unlike the firewall, the floorboards were in pretty sorry
shape. In places they were rusted through, in others there were previous
repairs that had not been done properly. So.... They're all coming out.
Here, you can see just how bad they really were.
Fortunately, Direct Sheetmetal makes a replacement floorboard
kit that will do nicely and eliminate the need to fabricate everything by
hand.
Dave Wright, the lead fabricator on this project, first installed
the new side rails (part of the kit) to connect the front and rear halves
of the body. With those in place, he can start fitting the new floor pieces.
Carefull measurements and preliminary layout are neccessary to ensure that
all the pieces fit properly before you start welding.
To help with the process, a piece of square steel-tube is
tack welded into place crossways, so that the floor boards can be properly
aligned and clamped into place before being spot welded. Dave checks his
work.
Hot Rods & Custom Stuff, 2324 Auto Park Way, Escondido, CA.,
1-800-HOT-ROD-5.
Hot Rods & Custom Stuff - builds, restores, paints, services
and sells parts for classic autos, cars, trucks and street rods.