B-73 Restoration

[Vladislav]

21 hours ago, mattb73lt said:

WOW!! I haven’t seen it in person yet, but my upholsterer sent these pics to me late today of his progress. I should be picking up the cab early next week and I can’t wait. What a beautiful job!!!

Drool, drool, drool !!!

[Freightrain]

I  put dynamat in my new doors.  Wow, what a difference.  They close with a "thud" instead of a bell ring.

[mattb73lt]

Picked up the cab today and made it back home without damage or dropping it on the highway, again. That was a huge relief and yes, I drove like an old lady. The work finishes off the cab and really makes it look great. Took some pictures with and without the seats. I just wanted to see how they looked with the headliner in place. Such a huge difference from when I dragged it home all those years ago. It truly looks brand new!!

[mrsmackpaul]

It was looking as expected until I saw the seats, a modern touch 

 

Its come up well and you should be proud 

 

Paul

[mattb73lt]

1 minute ago, mrsmackpaul said:

It was looking as expected until I saw the seats, a modern touch 

 

Its come up well and you should be proud 

 

Paul

My one concession, other than the electric wipers. I needed a little bit of comfort.

 

[mattb73lt]

A little bit of elbow grease was all it took to make it look new again. Sure!!

[mrsmackpaul]

Mate I  dont judge anyone and I completely understand, up until COVID started Iwas get some custom seats done for my R model, both air ride but I was getting a low backrest to fit in better

 

And yes your cab has come a long way

 

Paul

[mattb73lt]

Thanks, I can't wait to start the assembly of the rest. It's been such a long time coming.

[mrgumby]

29 minutes ago, mattb73lt said:

A little bit of elbow grease was all it took to make it look new again. Sure!!

Where can I buy a can of that elbow grease you use. That stuff works great 👍

[mattb73lt]

9 minutes ago, mrgumby said:

Where can I buy a can of that elbow grease you use. That stuff works great 👍

It's called "Time and $$$", it can be hard to find especially the Time part. LOL

[mrgumby]

You left out patience.  If you want it right you need that too. Truck looks great   Been following it since day one I’m always waiting for new pics and updates. Thanks for the ride. 

[Red Horse]

Looks  great Matt.  And the guy you took it to made all the complete headliner? Old stuff good enough to serve as templates??

[mattb73lt]

1 hour ago, Red Horse said:

Looks  great Matt.  And the guy you took it to made all the complete headliner? Old stuff good enough to serve as templates??

Yes, over in Watertown, CT. I removed what was left of the interior and saved it in a box. It was so brittle, it crumbled easily. I was only able to save two pieces relatively intact. I spent several hours taping the pieces together to build bigger pieces, then sandwiched those pieces between pieces of cardboard. Took all that to the upholsterer with the cab. That along with an L model picture book and photos I took at shows over the years was what he used to build the headliner and back wall. He modified the back wall to cover where the two man bench was as I’m using two bucket seats instead. He said the pieces and pictures were very helpful. I’m very happy with what he did, really great work.

[navypoppop]

Your patience, time and $$$ have surely paid off. What a beautiful truck! I really like the wooden knob for the air horn. Best of luck with her.

[mattb73lt]

3 hours ago, navypoppop said:

Your patience, time and $$$ have surely paid off. What a beautiful truck! I really like the wooden knob for the air horn. Best of luck with her.

I was trying to figure out how I wanted to make the pull happen. Either a lanyard or a pull. Settled on the pull. It’s actually a pull for a high tank Victorian toilet. LOL!

[mowerman]

Ha!!!!!’ I thought it was a fishing lure looks real good……love the seats. Bob 

[Brocky]

A VERY good job!! Your man who made it for you must have had a lot of patience also!!!

It took me a minute to figure out what the vertical sliders were in the back corners..  Did The L model only have exhaust louver type vents?? Does the air inlet come thru the heater system? Do those sliding doors seal well enough to prevent heat loss??? Are you adding AC??

[mattb73lt]

1 hour ago, Brocky said:

A VERY good job!! Your man who made it for you must have had a lot of patience also!!!

It took me a minute to figure out what the vertical sliders were in the back corners..  Did The L model only have exhaust louver type vents?? Does the air inlet come thru the heater system? Do those sliding doors seal well enough to prevent heat loss??? Are you adding AC??

They’re just exit vents that allow the air out and not hooked up to anything. The doors drop down to open. They seal up OK, but not air tight. Going to add A/C at some point when it’s done. Probably a back wall unit.

[harrybarbon]

Hi Matt

 

You mention air conditioning. We fitted Vintage air, mounts under the dash and excellent cooling and heating, especially with the lizard skin. I will try posting some pictures as I have not been able to post like a number of the guys on here.

[mattb73lt]

Matched up this view from '98 to now. BIG improvement!!

[mrsmackpaul]

Thats a huge difference, sometimes it feels like we are getting no were at all

 

Thank goodness we have smart phones that take photos these days, kinda shocks us back to reality 

 

Paul

[mattb73lt]

I wish I had a smart phone back then. I would have documented a lot more of the truck. The photos seem a lot clearer than the old 35mm I used, plus no wait to get the photos back. Manipulating them, zooming in or sending them to someone is so easy. I photograph everything, especially disassembly. It's like a color notebook.

[harrybarbon]

Hi Matt

I have tried to post a picture of our under dash Vintage air unit, but cant post it. I see you have the original heater unit/box under the dash, so I think that with the original heater box and the fire wall, it is unlikely the Vintage Air unit will fit in the space you have.

You can check the Vintage Air web page to see what air con units they have, good luck and it's looking fantastic.

[1961H67]

Matt , That Cab looks SO GOOD! I haven’t had time to work on mine for a few weeks, still installing some of the old copper air lines on my chassis,, I can’t wait to see your cab on the frame! 

[mattb73lt]

Still plugging away. Work has been busy and parts have been slow in coming, but getting stuff done. Hub and drum time, all the parts are cleaned and now primed. I still have to press in the new rear wheel studs and then paint the parts prior to assembly. I need to freshen up the primer on the frame, but it's not far off from turning red. Well into my fourth gallon of primer, which is really eight when you reduce it. That's a a lot of primer!! I'm thinking I may be stacking the main components together in late September/early October. Also need a driveshaft built, connect everything up.... The time is coming where I'll be trying to start it and then moving it under it's own power for the first time ever.