Slick 60's

G'day all from Aus.
I have a 1963 2wd f250 stepside that I bought probably six months ago. When I first inspected the car I really didn't have a proper look at the foot wells *rookie mistake* I know . Especially after reading plenty of horror stories in magazines. I have been focusing on getting the cooling system fixed and just getting the thing going again. New holley carby, new radiator, new waterpump, and just recently fitted an electric fuel pump because the mechanical one shit itself. So it is running now

But back to the floors. They are pretty well rotted. They seem to be the only problem area...... So far. I know I can get replacement panels the only thing I'm worried about is that the cab mounting bolts are in the middle of the area that needs to be cutout. I have seen a few guys on here who have welded in the new floors but they have all been the unibody trucks and Im guessing the cab would have more support because of this....... Correct me if I'm wrong . So I'm wondering if the cab needs to be supported elsewhere to do the replacement.

Sorry about the extended post, just thought I'd give abit of a run down on what's been achieved so far as this is my first post.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but the supports under the floors are most likely bad also. And, yes you need to support the cab. Best spot while working on it will most likely be right in front of the doors on the place that it is boxed and in front of where your step comes up to the front. These cabs are front heavy and have a very poor support up front when it starts to rot. You might be able to able to do some supporting where the cab floor meets the firewall, but it would be a little tricky.

Rich

Not sure how detailed your build will be, but my son pulled the bed, placed a sheet of plywood on the frame rails and rolled it on its back when he replaced his cab mounts. Others have done the same, but if you work from the frame up with proper dimentions you can do it without flippin he cab.

I am a big fan of over building the cab mounts and floors.. Its one of the few really weak parts of the design. Personally I don't care if it looks stock or not.. I figure build it so it will be strong long after I am gone ! Or as Kid and I have joked.. 100 years from now it may be a pile of dirt/rust.. but that cab mount will still be solid !

I built my own replacement front floor braces for a 64, and used 1/8" flat plate and some similar sized angle pieces I got at the local hardware. Same dimensions, welded the corners instead of trying to bend plate. I feel pretty certain they will never need to be replaced even if exposed to our wonderful winder roads here in Ohio.

My front cab mounts were replaced by the po a long time ago. They are made out of 2x4 channel iron with 1 inch square tubing struts. I am not going to mess with them, they will be there long after everything else rots around them.

Dan

I have a right side floor panel, two step risers, one rocker panel left over from my project (over bought). I will sell very reasonable and will ship also.

bruceandersson wrote:I built my own replacement front floor braces for a 64, and used 1/8" flat plate and some similar sized angle pieces I got at the local hardware. Same dimensions, welded the corners instead of trying to bend plate. I feel pretty certain they will never need to be replaced even if exposed to our wonderful winder roads here in Ohio.

i did the same and used plate on the floor where your feet rest as well
viewtopic.php?f=32&t=34190
i also did the rear of the cab
since there were no step issues i was able to support the cab under the front corners as stated in the previous post

took a lot of time but i am very pleased

here is a link to some issues with the stepwell replacement
viewtopic.php?f=32&t=16614&start=160

a few years back i cut out a very nice set of stepwells from a parts truck, the member who got them was very pleased and had none of the issues in the link. if you are not a great fabricator you might consider this as an easier route than buying individual pieces