A few pics of my beddy resto

Just a question on the welded rim....
Was it welded around the bead area? (where the tyre goes over the edge of the rim)
I would be a little concerned for the tyre fitter if it was..

There is every chance it will be fine but a chance it may blow apart also..

Not trying to be a smart A@#$


chocs

7.50 x 20 tyres are relatively easy to get, or were, at chinese prices. The 7.00 have been scarce for some time and I remember another thread here on the same issue and the price you give is about the best you will do.
The K model wheels are made in a way that leaves them vulnerable to rusting the rim into two halves and it is not unknown for rusty K model rims to explode apart (life threatening if you get in the way of the shrapnel). I am in the same boat as Chocs on welding of wheels, unless it is a certified welder that has signed off on it.

the price for the tires was for both 7.50 and 700, i think i will do a bit more shopping around. here is a few pics of the cab so far and the rims.







When i cut and welded the rim i was able to get a pretty good weld on both sides, the bloke at the tire place seemed to think it was ok. Should get my water pump back this week so hopefully over the weekend i can start the old girl.
Got onto some sandblasting grit so i will blast the cab and panels myself. Any one know what micron grit i should get, its glass beed and can be from 0 to 800 micron.

glass bead is a softer media which I use on aluminium components, the best being garnet for ability cut through paint without messing the steel too much, and a lot cheaper. Can't advise on grade but suggest you contact specialists such as Blastech 07 3329 5000 or Pan Abrasives for advice.

I have a big job which won't fit in my cabinet so if you are onto a cheap supply of glass bead let me know.

Dave, I spoke with the lad from Nepean I bought the garnet from and he didn't know much about micron size. He said if you are blasting body panel with moderate rust, use Garnet. If it is only old paint, use Ilmanite (that may not be correct spelling). The garnet worked very well for me, but he said glass bead was ok too.

Can I suggest before you do the blasting, blow with compressed air as much of that old rust and dirt on the lower parts as possible because the worst part is simply being able to see what you are doing, the easiest part is blowing the paint off the body shell, the worst part is the rusty dirty parts low down.

Cheers and good luck, Max

Hey mammoth the glass beed is in melb and is $120 a tonne in bulk bags. And thanks for the info ill give them a buzz tomorrow and find out what they have to say about the grit size.
Thanks for the tip max, its a job im not really looking forward too, but i would rather have a go at it than send it off to have some one who doesnt care and end up doing damage to the panells and cab.

Ilmanite is a natural mineral sand and is used because it is cheap and safe healthwise. However the job I have seen done with it left a very course surface which showed through the paint. That glass bead is as cheap as chips but as Max says will struggle to cut through rust and the tougher rust. Maybe you could go over the job with glass then switch over to garnet.

Mammoth thanks for the tips, im going to look into it a bit further, I wonder if you think using differant sizes of grit will make a differance, eg a courser grit on the rusty parts underneath the cab and a finer grit for the paint.

You haven't said, but unless you have access to a $6K+ blasting outfit with 260cfm compressor the size of abrasive will be limited by your gear. The air needs to be 100psi at the nozzle so generally the nozzle size has to be small enough for the air compressor to keep up with whats coming out at that pressure. As nozzle sizes get smaller so must the grit that you are putting through it. There are some web sites about which have a table of that relationship.

Been flat out farming and cutting wood and the odd day hunting lately to do any work on the truck, so tonight when i got in i thought bugger it ill have a go at getting this motor started. After a few hours Brrrrrrmmmmmmm brmmmmmmmmm brmmmmmmmm, well it more of a putt putt putt but the old girl runs ok. got a mate coming over with a timing light and some other gadgets to tune it up but im pretty happy at the moment. Baby was due 4 days ago so things mite change quickly.