46 Ford truck sheet metal
 

Hi --I am looking for any direction -ideas -tips -on reinstalling all the front end sheet metal on a 46 truck .I have the inner fenders and the hood on so far -all newly painted - fenders first ? Grill first ? Tips ? Tricks ? Anybody been there before ? Thanks Appreciate any help

Re: 46 Ford truck sheet metal
 

Pickup? Bigger truck? I have a bunch of them. I ALWAYS treat the 3 sided 'front clip as a unit. Meaning I assemble the fenders, inner fenders, radiator support, grille panel all bolted together on the ground. One guy (I'm 67) at each wheel well , I put the carraige bolt in the funny tear drop shaped bracket on the cowl and drive a wood wedge upward to hold the 'square' shoulder bolt in place. Each guy has to spring their fender outwards to get it onto the carraige bolt, and then the rad support is sitting on the front crossmember. Now... To get good alignment you may wanna loosen some bolts to slide stuff around. Sometimes I don't have the springs that mount with the carraige bolts, but I must have a hundred valve springs not up to spec so a washer and nylock nut works wonders. Oh, and always have the best jailbars you can find on the grille panel while it is off. Pretty much child's play taking 'em on and off while that front clip is sitting on 3 sawhorses or wood blocks.

Re: 46 Ford truck sheet metal
 

I install the hood first and assemble the front end off the truck. It's much easier to access all the inner fender and front nose bolts that way. Because I have no helper and have had to do this several times, I made up a dedicated spreader assembly to enable me to use my engine crane to install and remove the entire front assembly easier. With the radiator removed the spreader goes just to the rear of the core support and enables a decent balance point for lifting. Here is a pic...

Re: 46 Ford truck sheet metal
 

Thanks for the input /ideas !