Frame-off Restoration of my 55 Nomad

[Belair-o]

HI Thomas,
Very nice job - quite a transformation you have accomplished! Thanks for the great posting job, also!
Thanks, Doug

[tronitec]

Hi everyone

Today, I’m starting with the final update on the restoration of my ’55 Bel Air Nomad.

I sanded down all the weld seams on the rocker panels, side panels, and various metal sheets, filled them with tin-based filler, and sanded them again. The paint shop will handle the final finishing and sanding later





Then protected from rust with a 1K primer.











The rear panel is also done; my body shop just needs to finish the two corners. That’s beyond my skill level.



The rust spots on the front right and left are also a thing of the past.





All seams have been sealed with body sealant, and underbody protection has been applied







After 7 months, the result is a completely rust-free body-in-white and a fully assembled chassis.

That’s the last update on this project for now until winter. I’ve reached my first milestone here, so now I need to finish up some other projects first.

The cars have been swapped out, and the Bel Air is in its parking spot. Now I can install the trim pieces or continue working on the interior whenever I feel like it and have the time.



Tomorrow I'm going to start by cleaning up the workshop and giving it a quick wipe-down before I get back to work on my C3 on Monday.
It really needs to be finished already.

Wishing everyone a wonderful summer

Thomas

[Belair-o]

Hey Thomas,
Very nice writeup and pics - very well documented!
Thanks, Doug

[tronitec]

Hi everyone,

Today, I’m posting another update on the powertrain.
The original model had the engine mounted using a front mount. But since I don’t like that setup, I ordered a conversion kit from the U.S. for side mounting—
specifically one that moves the engine forward by ¾ inch. This will give me enough space later on near the firewall to install a high-performance distributor.

Here’s the conversion kit for $104 from Performance Online



To secure the part, remove the four rivets on the front cross member, two on the right and two on the left. These are then replaced with screws..
So, out with the rivets



Tighten the bracket



and drill the top two holes.



When I bought it, I got a 350 SB engine and a TH400 transmission. I’ll find out exactly what kind of engine it is when I rebuild it. For now, I’m just going to test the Motor Mount Bracket Kit





So, screw the motor mount onto the motor and lift it into the chassis.
It fits perfectly right away.


The problem with the 3/4-inch front-end move and the conversion to a TH400 is that the rear cross member no longer fits the transmission mount.



So, remove it, drill a slot in the front, weld a new mounting plate to the back, and move it forward by 2.5 cm (1 inch). Attach the gearbox to the mounting plate, install the driveshaft, and lo and behold—everything fits. Just need to paint and align it, then I can overhaul the driveshaft. It needs two new universal joints and will be sandblasted and powder-coated.




There's still plenty of space between the fan and the radiator. I just had to unclip the shroud at the bottom






That was the conversion to side-mount brackets and a TH400 transmission.

See you,
Thomas

[tronitec]

Hi Doug
Sorry it means Add another little sheet of metal and sand everything down.
I forgot to translate that little sentence

[Belair-o]

Hi Thomas,
Thanks for sharing your progress - you been busy! Great work!
Not sure if this was expressing joy, or cursing!
Noch ein Blech ansetzen und alles verschleifen.
Thanks, Doug

[tronitec]

Good morning to all my readers,

I wanted to give another update on the status of the restoration.

Since all the panels essential for the body’s rigidity are now tack-welded in place, the body can now be removed from the chassis and secured to the transport frame.

So, time to move the body



And lo and behold, the brackets fit perfectly into the new floor.



The next step was to finish welding the floor and the outer Rocker Panels. Now it’s time to tackle the remaining holes in the body.

Front right before the repair



After welding





The damage was more severe on the front left side.



There were also a few small holes where the metal had corroded through in the upper part of the firewall, and the connection outer Rocker Panels to the A-pillar was essentially gone



After welding







The next area to work on is the transition from the outer Rocker Panels to the B-pillar. But first, the side panel needs to be welded in place. So, for now, I’ll apply undercoating to the inside of the wheel well and the side panel..





Position the next section as measured, weld it in place, and temporarily secure it to the subfloor with clamps.










Now you can see why I haven't attached the side panel to the floor yet. I need to create a smooth transition between the outer Rocker Panels, the B-pillar, and the side panel. To do this, I'll definitely have to cut a piece out of either the side panel or the outer Rocker Panels. The fit of reproduction parts is always a problem.



So, use a string to mark the gap, cut open the outer Rocker Panels, bend it slightly downward, and weld it back together.





Noch ein Blech ansetzen und alles verschleifen.



The alignment is perfect, and no one will notice that the outer Rocker Panels on one side is 5mm lower.

The next step is to sand and fill the right side properly. Once that’s done, I’ll post some pictures.

See you then!

Thomas

[tronitec]

Thanks

[Belair-o]

Amazing work! Amazing progress!

[bigblock]

Nice work!!!!!

[tronitec]

Morning to all readers

The show goes on.
Since no one could tell me which outer wheel wells would fit a '55 Nomad, I decided to make my own. It was also the cheapest option.
So first I installed the fuel tank, because of the position of the filler neck, and made a cardboard template.





For the outer wheel wells , I used 1 mm sheet metal and welded it in three parts. The sealing rubber with a lip for the quarter panel can be bought by the yard for very little money.
Then I sealed all the seams with body sealant and painted the entire side panel with Brantho-Korrux 3in1. Later, I will add a coat of underbody protection.









Finally, the rear of the Vehicle is rust-free and the structure of the body has been restored.

To weld in the outer Rocker Panels, I attached the quarter Panels with several pliers and realized that I absolutely needed the fenders to position the outer Rocker Panels correctly.
Then I started to assemble the flip front. It's always fun to assemble something that you didn't dismantle yourself and for which there are no photos.

Here are a few pictures



the lifting device









now i know how the parts fit together and how the hydraulics work, but I'm still adjusting the front. Once the front fits, I can adjust the doors properly. The next steps are to
weld in the outer Rocker Panels, insert the front floor and quarter panels.

Once this is done, I'll be back with more pictures.

See you then
Thomas

[Belair-o]

Great, amazing progress you are making! Thanks for posting!
Thanks, Doug

[tronitec]

@ Brian Thank‘s

@ Bigblock and Busterwivel
The trick is, if there is too much dirt on the floor, just go over it with the vacuum cleaner.

[busterwivell]

Very nice work, by the way that's the cleanest shop floor I've seen when working with all that rusted metal.

I agree. How do you keep your shop so clean?

[bigblock]

Very nice work, by the way that's the cleanest shop floor I've seen when working with all that rusted metal.