August08'-09' build off "Aw Hell" 1956 Ford F-100 (Ford-o-Matic)

[bondo]

whats up fellers (and females)?
it's been awhile since i've been around.
i havnt been messing with much RC but i have been working on a few projects that got started but set aside.
one of them is this 56' ford.
i dont own the truck but im doing most of the work on it.
the truck is bieng restored for a close freinds dad who had a stroke about a year and a half ago.(you'll see him later)

it started out as a kentucky built and sold "ford-o-matic" and my friend mike became the second owner when he bought it in 1988.
he got married and had to sell the truck and then 20 years later he decided to look for another project.
he dug the style and regretted having to sell the truck so he started looking for the same year/style and found one 5 miles from his house.
paid the man, checked the history and sure enough IT WAS THE SAME TRUCK!. mind you it had a bit more wear and added bondo weight by then....well, less if you subtract all of the rusted metal that had fallen off..

we started stripping some of the more obvious spots and found a mess.
it wasnt the worst metal ive seen but it was pretty ate up with cancer and then glorified with bondo.

i cant seem to find all of the pics from when he bought it but these were taken shortly after.
the bed was there but barely.
you can see that the frame was pretty rusted(everything that looks decent on it is just undercoating over pit rust) and the cab has some rust issues.again, alot of the rust was "prettied up".



the hood was shot, the bottoms of the doors and all four cab corners were gone and the fenders looked like they had been beat on by joey jordison.

now that you have an idea of what it was, all i can do is show you what it's becoming.
i'll see if i cant find the original pics along with the pics of mike when he bought it in 88.
these pics are probably going to be out of order aswell becuase i havnt taken the time to organize them in the host....sry

new patch panels, some are cut from OER panels and some were donated from a parts truck.
the frame had already been stripped and recoated by this time but those pics are with the others.....





the drip edge along the rear glass had to be replaced with one from the parts truck.


here's joe shortly before the frame was stripped and recoated(also shortly after his stroke).


some pics of the cab being brought down to metal.





whats wrong with this pic???

mike(A.K.A. Micheal "BY GOD!" Weathers) the epitome of safety....lol

the hood was gone as previously mentioned and the hood on the parts truck was just as bad in the same spots so we searched high and low and after an 18 hour road trip we finally found a suitable substitute.
same year but came from an F-250.

after a bit of stripping.

after blasting,ospho and sealer.
it still needs some work but the metal is good to go now




that's it for now but ive got some updates on the camera to be posted soon.
whadya think so far?
cheers,
bondo

UPDATE!
1/12/09

got a few things knocked out.
first is MY custom touch to the truck.
i got to looking at the bed and a spare tailgate and thought......hmmmm.......betcha i can make it look better and add in something that i've never seen on a 56'.

kinda plain right?
so...




more spots that needed attention.







this scab is one that was done by a neighbor of mike's when i was without a mig.
i dont know what the hell he was thinking but he got paid good money for THIS!!!!


WHAT THE HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO DO WITH THAT?????
i'll show you what im supposed to do with that..........


i'm sorry but i cant stand when people do the bare minimum to get paid and expect someone else to fix their nastiness........i cut two of the booger looking welds and the top scab FELL OFF!
i can't fix the rest without buying a new panel and starting from scratch and since im not paying for any of this.......this will have to do.

now, onto some fab that I'VE started and finished.
the tailgate is pretty much shot but it's going to have to do for now since this is about as budget as budget gets.
so we get to fix as much as possible until funds can be found for the $500 replacement.
i didnt get a pic of the right side but this was the better side of the two(right).

the right side was in far worse condition...
a few well placed cuts..



and onto the actual fix.







and here's what's left of the cutouts so you have an idea of the metal that was there before the cuts and patches.


the cab and bed have since been brought to bare and sprayed with etching epoxy.
pics to come soon.

cheers,

[snowboi1289]

The hood still needs alot of work, but it looks like a pretty good project.

Glad to see you back!

Looks like you may need a new or rebuilt radiator support, that one looks kinda rusted out. Yea, on those old trucks, you WILL find rust, unless the truck has been in a garage the hole time.Overall the 4th, 5th and 6th pictures look like some good metal work, bending just right.

well i hope you dont plan to use Bondo to fill up those holes!! or use it anywhere on that truck for that matter haha. thats way to beautiful of a ride to be wasting it. Loving the work! keep it up

[TheB1GDude]

So the legend returns..... PM me sometime!

Good looking truck! You sure did pick something that needs a lot of work though!! How far along do you think you will be come August?

Keep us posted....

[bondo]

Originally Posted by snowboi1289

The hood still needs alot of work, but it looks like a pretty good project.

Glad to see you back!

Looks like you may need a new or rebuilt radiator support, that one looks kinda rusted out. Yea, on those old trucks, you WILL find rust, unless the truck has been in a garage the hole time.Overall the 4th, 5th and 6th pictures look like some good metal work, bending just right.

thanks,
the hood is actually in pretty **** good shape compared to the other two.
those holes in the front are the worst of it and that whole lead edge is getting cut out and replaced with OER.
the other two hoods had split infront of the hinges on both sides and the lead edge was completely gone.

it sucks when you find rust but it sucks even more when you find NO rust because the metal is gone.......lol

Originally Posted by SPR

well i hope you dont plan to use Bondo to fill up those holes!! or use it anywhere on that truck for that matter haha. thats way to beautiful of a ride to be wasting it. Loving the work! keep it up

thanks,
there will be some bondo on this truck but it isnt going to make the form of the truck,fill any holes,or be added in hopes of renewing structural rigidity.
the less i have to block, the better

Originally Posted by TheB1GDude

So the legend returns..... PM me sometime!

Good looking truck! You sure did pick something that needs a lot of work though!! How far along do you think you will be come August?

Keep us posted....

hopefully DONE!!!....lol
progress is moving alot quicker now.
im pretty much full time on this piece for awhile.
as long as the cash is flowing and the supplies are there then i will be too grinding my little heart out....

thanks again guys,

[mustanglover]

looks cool!!
my dad wanted to buy this matte red one but the guy wanted a lot for it, i like them old fords.


Btw where is the cable going in the one picture?

Originally Posted by bondo

thanks,
there will be some bondo on this truck but it isnt going to make the form of the truck,fill any holes,or be added in hopes of renewing structural rigidity.
the less i have to block, the better

can you atleast use rage gold? lol bondo is just... uggghhh...

[F-100CuStOmCaB]

Nice truck!! My dad has a '56 F-100 also. I will probably have to help him finish rebuilding it also. Nice project truck you have there looks like it coming along quite well. Yours is probably a little less frustrating than mine though because you don't have as much rust as my truck. I have been looking for a whole different cab because mine is so rusted. Has become a project of its own. Good luck on finishing it.

[Donziikid]

Looks like you're off to a wonderful start, Bondo. Glad to see you back aboard the forum.

Cheers,
Kyle.

[bondo]

Originally Posted by F-100CuStOmCaB

Nice truck!! My dad has a '56 F-100 also. I will probably have to help him finish rebuilding it also. Nice project truck you have there looks like it coming along quite well. Yours is probably a little less frustrating than mine though because you don't have as much rust as my truck. I have been looking for a whole different cab because mine is so rusted. Has become a project of its own. Good luck on finishing it.

good luck finding a donor.
your best freind in the case of a 53-56 ford truck is a fat wallet and LMC or other repro distributor..........sux but finding worthwhile donors is a pain and not very fruitful.
and dont you EVER say that this truck isnt frustrating.....


updates in the first post.
cheers,
Bondo

[texan_idiot25]

Goodness gracious on the ****ty spot welded bits. Nice recovery, tail gate is trick as hell too.

Bondo, I want your bod....y working skills, the CST10 needs it!

[kendallcschm]

HOLY SH**... i want all the skills you have... you are **** skilled... i wish i could do the work you do...