'67 Valiant 2 door sedan for Drag n Drive
So, for the wheel tubs I looked at all the usual suspects... trailer fenders, wheel tub kits... nothing seemed to be what I wanted. I wanted my wheel tubs to be the same shape (flat top) as the originals, only a lot wider and longer to accommodate as big as a 30" tire.
So, when I couldn't find anything I liked, I broke out the shrinker/stretcher and the bead roller, and made my own.
I began by cutting off the bottom of the trunk lid hinge brackets. This means I will have to lose the torsion rods too, but it's okay. That's what struts are for.
I used the remaining OEM sheetmetal to make a template of the shape I wanted for the new tubs.
Then I had to make a template for the inner section.
For perspective, this photo is taken from the passenger side, the front of the car is on the right. You can sorta see the 4 link bars, and the sway bar brackets. (with the bungee cords wrapped around it) The flat bars with the green tape were going to be substituting for the shocks to hold the rear end up once installed.
This shape would define the inner panel of the tubs, where they weld to the frame rails. Then I cut out the shapes in 18 ga steel, and also cut out the steel that would form the front, top and back of the tubs. With the parts cut, I used my bead roller and a hammer and dolly to form a 90 degree bend on the edge of the side panels. This took a bit of time and patience to get them to fit, but with the help of a handful of Cleco fasteners to hold things in place, I managed to get everything fit and ready to weld.
The welding was done in a series of tacks, never allowing any section to get hot enough to warp.
Eventually I had a solid complete weld, which I ground smooth and then sprayed a coat of primer over top to keep things from rusting until I got the rest of the trunk floor in and could prime everything.
The next project, putting a floor back in the truck, and figuring out the locations for the battery and fuel cell.
So, for the wheel tubs I looked at all the usual suspects... trailer fenders, wheel tub kits... nothing seemed to be what I wanted. I wanted my wheel tubs to be the same shape (flat top) as the originals, only a lot wider and longer to accommodate as big as a 30" tire.
So, when I couldn't find anything I liked, I broke out the shrinker/stretcher and the bead roller, and made my own.
I began by cutting off the bottom of the trunk lid hinge brackets. This means I will have to lose the torsion rods too, but it's okay. That's what struts are for.
I used the remaining OEM sheetmetal to make a template of the shape I wanted for the new tubs.
Then I had to make a template for the inner section.
For perspective, this photo is taken from the passenger side, the front of the car is on the right. You can sorta see the 4 link bars, and the sway bar brackets. (with the bungee cords wrapped around it) The flat bars with the green tape were going to be substituting for the shocks to hold the rear end up once installed.
This shape would define the inner panel of the tubs, where they weld to the frame rails. Then I cut out the shapes in 18 ga steel, and also cut out the steel that would form the front, top and back of the tubs. With the parts cut, I used my bead roller and a hammer and dolly to form a 90 degree bend on the edge of the side panels. This took a bit of time and patience to get them to fit, but with the help of a handful of Cleco fasteners to hold things in place, I managed to get everything fit and ready to weld.
The welding was done in a series of tacks, never allowing any section to get hot enough to warp.
Eventually I had a solid complete weld, which I ground smooth and then sprayed a coat of primer over top to keep things from rusting until I got the rest of the trunk floor in and could prime everything.
The next project, putting a floor back in the truck, and figuring out the locations for the battery and fuel cell.
