76 Dodge 700

cool find you have how about building something like this.

that is cool looking truck. I already have 3 pickups so now I need something a little different. I am thinking if I can find the hydraulics from a dump truck and hinge the flatbed I might be on the right track. First thing I need to do is patch up the holes in the cowl; it is pretty rusty and open to the outside and being in WA state, rain is an issue.

So I have been contemplating a lot of things about this truck; the easiest would be to just find a rollback platform and mount it on there, however I think the wheelbase might be a bit short. Of course I cannot just get the right thing, have to make something... I am still trying to figure out how to get a car on the platform.. I cannot help but want to lower it . I have been thinking about how I would lower the front suspension with the I beam; perhaps put the axle on top of the springs.. it would be cool.

sure flip the axle to the top probably the easiest way

since it isn't a 4WD and since I am not going to use it commercially as it was designed, I am thinking if is was lowered it be pretty cool. Definitely different.

70chall440 wrote:since it isn't a 4WD and since I am not going to use it commercially as it was designed, I am thinking if is was lowered it be pretty cool. Definitely different.

i think you are on the right track

I think I have come up with a concept, I believe I can lower the bed almost a foot by removing the long brace that runs the length of the frame on which the bed cross members rest on. My thought is that I will remove this brace, then cut the side to side supports so that they sit down over the frame and weld them to the frame. This will put the bed directly on top of the frame moving it from about 4' off the ground to around 3'. I will still add a 2' bed extension with a slight decline (beaver tail). I think this will allow me to load vehicles and still retain the GVW of the vehicle. I will have to cut the bed to allow the rear tires come through the bed a little but that shouldn't be an issue. This is the best solution I can think of w/o turning this into another multi thousand dollar project.

sounds like a plan

I agree, when I get some time I work on it and see how it comes out.

I am thinking something like this, but with a longer bed.[img][/img]

you can see where the bed is just about the tire and they built a box above it for clearance. that is as low as you can go.

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My wheel base is longer, so I will have the 12' of bed but the concept is the same.

i think you are on the right track. should be a real beast

I am considering selling it, I am concerned with devaluing it by modifying it plus I don't really have a need for it. To do what I am thinking of will take a lot of time, perhaps not a lot of $$

Well, things are pretty quiet around here.... I have begun working on the D700 again, went out to start it a month ago "just because" and low and behold, nothing. Well last weekend I finally got around to exploring what was going on, figured out that the "new rebuilt" starter was no good. Not sure why it decided to die but it did. So, I removed it and got a new one (the new style). Got it running but it wouldn't idle and took awhile to get it to the point where I could move it. Finally, after about 4 hours of messing around, I got it moving and parked it in front of my shop. I think pulled the carb and rebuilt it along with new plugs. I also replace the fuel filter. Finally got it running, but still doesn't idle very well but it does start and I can move it (just have to keep one foot on the throttle).

I then decided to fix the horrific leaking exhaust pipe. I thought it was the head pipe so I cut it off at a place where I could reweld it and took it out and reworked the flange a little. Got it all back together to include welding the pipe back up only to figure out that the manifold was leaking. So, today it came off to find out that the center 2 ports were leaking massively. After removing the old gasket (which was essentially welded on) I put a straight edge on it to find out it was definitely not level. So, I took to a machinist friend to see if it can be machined level, which is where it is now.

After looking under the dash I confirmed that the entire firewall under the cowl is rusted away, so I will need to pull the dash and fix that followed by repairing the hole in the driver's side floor. "if" I can get all of this done I will be on way to making progress... Then it will be on to fixing all of the other sins put upon this vehicle such as mystery wires, shoddy wiring, bad bed, etc. Only then can I focus on "improving" the truck...

hidden mysteries in every project keeps it interesting. glad your making progress

Very true, I see it as automotive archaeology... I think it is one of the things that make it fun; trying to figure out why something was done a certain way, marveling at the lack of imagination and in some cases skill but POs as well as absolute ingenuity of some POs. I have seen vise grips left on a vehicle for years as a fuel line clamp, stop signs used for floor boards, etc.

I will get try and get some new pictures here as I know everyone loves to look at them (as I do).

found out last night that the exhaust manifold was/is severely warped; the center ports were/are 1/16" further out than the end ports which is why the gasket blew out.

Update - After a bit of a hassle, I got the exhaust manifolds sorted out. The pass side was warped so I had to have that one surfaced which came out nice. Then when I started the truck discovered the drivers side was leaking and since the gaskets came as I set, I decided to fix that one too. Well, once I got it off I found that it was fine but that the front stud was broken, so before reinstalling the manifold I decided to repair it. This is where the fun began, I drilled a hole in the broken off stud, then put a easy out in it and promptly broke it off.. So now with a hardened piece of easy out and a hole that goes into a water jacket (that was leaking) I about went and got a gallon of gas and set it on fire After calming down I broke out the carbide dremel bits and set to grinding, finally after many hours I was able to get the piece out, a new hold drilled and tapped for a 3/8 stud. Got it all back together and started it up, sounded like it should and then proceeded to drive it up and down the road; all good. [img][/img]

Update #2 - after the successful drive it was time to tackle the rusted out cowl; I started by disconnecting the battery and then set about taking the dash apart. I discovered that the foam components were/are complete dry rotted and destroyed and there is a fair amount of hacked wiring but overall not too bad. After getting the instrument cluster out, I began to try and figure out how to get the dash frame out and discovered 2 things; first they are completely hidden by the windshield gasket and second they had no intention of coming out by conventional means (aka screw driver). So, out came a plethora of tools to include a drill with many bits as well as my trusty dremel and carbide. After probably 4 hours of drilling, grinding, and prying it finally gave way and succumbed to my efforts. At that point I determined that I also would have to remove the heater which came with its own challenges as 2 of the mounting bolts did not want to come out. Finally, after a lot of work I got it all out and was able to really see what I had.

What I have is a completely rusted out cowl area running all the way across the cab. Evidentially water sat in this cowl for a very long time and this being Washington where it hardly ever rains (yes that is sarcasm) I suspect it stayed wet. I am not really sure how I am going to get it even remotely closed up but I will figure something out. I know one thing, I am going to dump a lot of MIG wire into this truck before it is done. [img][/img]

Some more pictures

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And for those who might be wondering, yes the floors are rusty as well.

The repair has begun. " />

Repairs continue

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Getting it done slowly.

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It is a cool truck, good to hear that you decided to do some fixin' instead of selling it. In similar fashion I recently bought a '77 D300 with, I think, the worst hacked up wiring I have ever seen....and the truck was owned by a commercial electrician...so I certainly appreciate your challenges.

BTW, how is the '52 doing?