So, I’m helping Joel get his 50 Ford F1 pickup on the road to recovery. First stop, getting the Jaguar IFS installed under the front.

First, a bit of catching up…

Above: Not easy to see, but there is a beam axle of questionable origin, and a Geo Metro (?!?!) rack under the truck. This is a delightful setup if you like sudden, inexplicable lane changes at speed.

Above: Test fitting the Jaguar IFS under the truck.

And where we started off Saturday…

Above: Saturday started the real work: trimming the ‘extra’ flange off the bottom of the rail so we can attach boxing plates to the inside of the stock c-shaped rail. This should add a lot of strength as well as providing a convenient place to mount the new IFS.

Above: Extra flange removed, time to make a template.

Above: Much like all of the car shows on TV, we’ll skip over 8 hours of work so you’ll think it’s really quick and easy. Boxing plate cut out, fit (grind, test fit, grind, test fit, …), all of the extraneous holes welded up, and boxing plate tacked into place.

A productive and fun Saturday afternoon/evening.

More photos on flickr as part of Joel’s ongoing set of build pics.