Burb chop down.

[Clod_King]

Okay, so I have been trying to get my truck safetyable since december. I have all this week off to get the truck up to snuff.

Now this is the problem. I am replacing the inner rear fenders in the burb, and decided to get rid of that annoying spare tire dip, and the sheet metal behind the rear wheel opening aswell.

BUT after taking it all out, I noticed that the support beam that holds up the butt of body is rotted out completely, and I don't have the means to rebuild it at all....

So the question is, pay someone to rebuild the rear support beam...

or

Take the sawzall to the everything behind the rear seats, and put a wall up to close off the cab....

Pics are enclosed so you can see what I mean....

 

[Clod_King]

here is the corner that is rotted out.

 

[twoslo4five0]

tailpan is rotted out right???

 

[Clod_King]

this is how it would look... only less crappy.

I did this on paint.

 

[Clod_King]

and this is how it would look as a spaceship...

 

[Clod_King]

yeah man, and the whole beam running the width of the back of the truck...

 

[twoslo4five0]

yeah you can buy replacment tailpans and i have heard of people instlling them but i dont know how hard it is...that was something i looked for when i bought my burb...im about to paint mine in rust bullet for xtra protection..

 

[Craig Artzner]

and this is how it would look as a spaceship...

THAT...would be sweet a$$

 

[Clod_King]

they make two types of tail pans that I can order...

One is bent by hand, and fits like crapola, and costs 30 bucks.

The other is a remake of the exsisting one, bent by machine, and costs 300 bucks....


Yeah the spaceship idea was there for a second, and then i nixed it do to funds.... I don't know how NASA does it really...

 

[Clod_King]

All i really want is for somebody to say "YEAH MAN!!!! go and do that!!!"

I want to do it, but I need some to shove me in that direction really....







Oh, and I am already gutting the rear end, so i really need someone to say it right now... hahaha.

 

[original balzer]

CUT THAT BI#@* UP!!!!!!!!!. like buger king baby have it your way.

BALZER

PS a purpose built wheelers flatbed in the future would kick a$$

 

[tomford]

Cut it behind the back doors and make a pickup bed

That would be bad @ss

Tom

 

[Big Blzn]

It would cost more in time and labor and bullsh1t to do it halfass in the long run. Just spend the extra $$ and do it right one time the first time. Making a "truck" out of it would be a royal pain and if you don't like it your then are really screwed.

 

[twoslo4five0]

It would cost more in time and labor and bullsh1t to do it halfass in the long run. Just spend the extra $$ and do it right one time the first time. Making a "truck" out of it would be a royal pain and if you don't like it your then are really screwed.

x2...

 

[lectric80]

One thing to keep in mind is that tailpan is the structural support for the rear of the vehicle. Without it you are relying on the much weaker body mounts at the rear of the cab to support the entire weight of the cab. Do it right the first time or pay the price later. I really like the idea of a short bed suburban, but if you don't do it right now, you will regret it later, and it may not pass safety.

 

[Clod_King]

SO wait a minute...

Even if I cut up the rear, and just leave the bed there, I would still need to fix the tail pan??

I am not leaving the sides up. It's not going to be a pickup box in the rear at all.

The cab will end almost inline with the rear axle... So I will be installing some inner fenders again.

Oh, and the floor of the bed will be brought in almost a foot, to match where the floor is missing because of that spare tire dip.

 

[Clod_King]

Okay, so it didn't turn out to be raining, so I am outside removing the roof.

I have decided to reuse the rear "hoop" where the barn doors sat, so I can have some sort of a body line, instead of a 90 degree angle drop...

First picture is how it started off this morning.

The next three are with the roof removed (I kinda like the open air element to the truck now...)

And lastly, the cuts I made to the base of the "hoop". I kept the a section of the corner just above the light so I can still have the body kind of curve around..

 

[Clod_King]

okay so I got the "hoop" off (second picture), and I am going to try and fit it to the truck now....

Oh, and my buddy's dad showed up outta nowhere with his old GMC farm truck. I forgot to ask what year his truck was... I never get to see the guy anymore. But it is 2WD, with original everything (drivetrain wise), and some body work. The wood floor had to get redone aswell, but that is expected.

 

[twoslo4five0]

what did you cut it with???looks to be a really clean cut..

 

[Xtremegmc80]

subscribed... ur doing a good job! keep it going strong!