Starting to build Henry

[BOBS 2 68S]

Yes I named my Broncos. The half cab is Red ( named from the PO ) this Bronco is Henry.
Any way I could use some advice. I cut up this body to get it sand blasted and now many years later and learning much from this club. I need to replace both floors and drivers side kick panel, what bracing should I put in. I thought about welding in the windshield frame then bolting on the top to help prevent the body from buckling. Or is there another way to brace it with out the top on?
Then after the floors and kick panel the front inner fenders. The body is sitting in 1 1/2 wood blocks for temporary body mounts, but not bolted down.

[Kinder]

Most weld or bolt bars into the door opening horizontally and diagonally to keep the body somewhat aligned. Some also put bars across the body at the top of the front and rear door posts.

[BOBS 2 68S]

thanks.

[Gunnibronco]

Moved this from the 'Staging area' to 'Members rigs'.

Kirk's advice is good. Bolting the hard top on will help keep things solid, but may get in the way. Measure a bunch before cutting stuff out, or use a good solid truck for reference when putting it back together. And test fit everything you can, even if you don't think it matters. Its better to figure things out before making things permanent.

Good luck.

[BOBS 2 68S]

Got some work on the windshield frame. I got a lot aggressive welding in the patch panels and warped it . With a BFH ans some 2x4s I think it is pretty straight.
Lesson learned slow down!
.

[Kinder]

Looks good, I'm a huge fan of BFHs & 2x4s.

[Gunnibronco]

Looks good, I'm a huge fan of BFHs & 2x4s.

LOL, they are regular tools of my trade! Much of body work is very specifically applied brute force.

[Jesus_man]

Looks good, I'm a huge fan of BFHs & 2x4s.

LOL, they are regular tools of my trade! Much of body work is very specifically applied brute force.

LOL and a healthy dose of patience! Or "slow the heck down" in this case!

[BOBS 2 68S]

New problem. When I had this body sand blasted I realized that it had been in a crash at one time. Today when I mounted the wind shield frame I found a bend in the cowl where the blue tape is. It is about 3/16 to 1/4 inch. Yes there a dent that is shaped like a hammer my chunk of wood fell off and ...
How straight does this have to be?

[Kinder]

Refresh my memory, is this one of the early '68 bodies with a removable hinge or is it welded. If removable I'd say you could get by with shimming it, if welded you may want to fill that area so the hinge sits even.

[BOBS 2 68S]

It is welded. The replacement windshield is temporarily bolted on so I can bolt a top on and some more bracing before I replace the floors.

[landshark]

There might be a slight gap on the outside above the fender and between the hood and cowl. That would be a tough area to bend back. 3/16 wouldn't be too noticeable if I understand what is bent that is.

[BOBS 2 68S]

As I stand out in the shop and stare at the problem, I think what I will do is get every thing placed and see what the gaps look like. My goal for Henry is to build a driver not a show truck.

[landshark]

Then only you might notice the gap. Definitely get the panels on and see!

[BOBS 2 68S]

I need a measurement from the red line on the blue tape to the other red line on the blue tape. I am setting the " inner fenders ". The measurement is from the fire wall lip to the core support lip. The 1/2 cab has been hit on the left side at one time so the core support is bent.