So I'm in the midst of the tedious block-sanding process, with the help of Chris and crew at Totally Polished, of course, and learning what hard labor is all about. We realize that there are a couple obstacles in the way of shooting any kind of final primer or paint. One is the rusty battery tray in the engine compartment. It hardly seemed worth working on or replacing since I really wanted to relocate the battery out of the engine compartment anyway. The other issue at hand was getting the gas tank out of the cab so we could shave the filler neck off of the cab corner. I put a call in to Jim Reis of Classic Performance Products in Buena Park, California. We were planning a disc-brake conversion using CPP components when we mentioned our dilemmas, and wouldn't you know that Jim had the perfect solution for each.
Brand new to the CPP product line is their Drop-Out Battery Box. It's a two-piece setup made completely of stainless steel. The mount bolts directly to the framerail in any location you wish. Next, you set the battery in the box and slide it up into the mount from underneath the truck. Now here's the cool part: There are two points where the box locks into place. The first is with the battery hanging down so you can attach the cables with ease. Then you slide the box up into place where it remains until you need to access it again. Pretty cool, huh?
During that same conversation, I learned that CCP was now offering aluminum gas tanks made specifically to fit the '60-72 GM truck frames. They carry a 19-gallon capacity and the heavy-gauge aluminum they use is approximately twice as thick as most of the fuel cells on the market. The tanks are complete with the fuel line and vent fittings, and the type of sending unit and fillers are optional.
Within days, I was back at TP with a fuel cell and battery box and all the additional parts that were necessary, all of which I obtained at the local auto parts house and a welding supply store. Follow along as Totally Polished's own Chris Daley installs both the battery box and fuel cell in record time. As always, if you have any questions for CPP or TP, give them a call or log on using the source box information. And, stay tuned for more exciting Old School stories because we're just getting started!