Cab 12 Alteration???

[chris vickery]

I'm a pretty large lad myself and like you guys decided to restore a 12cab Ford CMP as my first truck. My helper, my father, also a bigger fella.
Here is what I did;
-reduced the seat cushion to maximize room
-eliminated the wooden spacers under the seat mounts
-tried to drive wearing work boots, a no go.
-switched to running shoes
-drove barefoot but not for long as the engine heat cooked my little piggies
-finally figured a way to clutch as little as possible while utilizing the right toes and heel combo to facilitate fuel delivery and braking capabilities as needed.
In other words, if I had no arms I'd be great at painting with my feet... Practice and more practice.

[r.morrison]

Well, some great points put forth here (with the exception of Mr Love's !). David's alteration has some great points and so does Bob's in as much as cutting out the bulbous part of the fender and creating a flat surface. And Chris's going through the motions of foot size etc. I sold my ballet slippers years ago! And I am squeamish about the cutting of the original fender. I wish I had a spare to sacrifice. I'm probably just going to sit in the cab, taking in all this info and put a plan together. I also realised why Phil has removed the roof on his unit. Sure makes it a hell of a lot easier getting in and out and I think it looks cool! Thanks again for your input gents. Robert

[rob love]

Originally Posted by r.morrison

Well, some great points put forth here (with the exception of Mr Love's !)

... ...

[Alex van de Wetering]

Alex...... what do you think??? will you endure or are you blessed with a healthy small frame and small feet???

I have a desk job and also do scale modelling......so, my frame is not as small as it should be. No small feet either.

To be honest, I haven't looked at the pedals yet. As always I intend to keep eveything stock and original, so I can only hope a pair of all-Stars will solve any issues.

I did see one or two cab 11/12 Chevrolets that had some extra room created for the left foot, by bending the engine cover a bit towards the engine and filling the triangular gap (about an inch at max I think) with some sheet metal. That is a small mod that is hard to spot and gives extra clearance for your left foot.

Bob, that modification to the inner fender is quite interesting. I think it's a clever idea, even though I think it could be done a bit more stylish. I would look at bending the whole inner fender and also the frontmost inner fender piece outward (with the inspection panel for the steering box). This should give a cleaner result, even though I am not sure if it would clear the wheel. Than again....clearance between the inner fender and wheel is also linked to tyre size used....and if you have a 4x2 or 4x4 truck. You could even limit the maximum steering angle by adding a stop to the front axle.

But, why did the previous owner of that truck go to all the trouble of adding extra room for the feet and still retain the original pedal setup? Why didn't he convert to a more conventional pedal setup.....maybe by using cab 13 parts and moving the gas pedal to the right in the newly created space???

Another idea....what about hand controls?

Alex

[Bob Carriere]

I am also driving my cab 11 as an open top roadster....it greatly facilitates getting into and stepping out of the cab.....nonetheless I still have to grab my pant leg to pull in my right leg over the door sill. I did reinstall the seat without the wood spacer and my original bottom seat cushion is lower with age. Eventually I will have the roof installed ad will screw mysel finto the dirver's seat.....wonder what the noise level will be like with solid flat wall behind my head reverberating. The headline panels will no doubt be useful.

The worst I have experience was trying trying to step down into the driver's seat of a cab 12 gun tractor...it was all original with wooden spacer for the seat and a full re-padded seat cushion. I could not have driven the gun tractor has the top of my left and right leg were resting on the underside of the steering wheel and made it impossible to lift my feet to put the on the pedals.

Another possible solution would be to install a 2 speed automatic tranny and keep only the brake and gas pedal. We have one at the barn....it bolts up to a 235 or 261 and is short enough to be coupled to the T-case with a short shaft.
Not sure what kind of snail it would be on the road as the gear ratio would have the engine either revving in LOW range or stumbling in 2nd gear.

...or maybe an electric motor with the cargo box filled with batteries for ballast..... think of it...no pollution and they would let you drive in future ANZAC parades.

A few year ago I crawled into "Bart", the Sherman from Oshawa. I tried doing what I had done many time when I was a teenager..... I let myself fall into the driver's seat, and as the tank turret was turned sideways, I crawled from the front seat through the turret basket opening and came up and out through the commander's hatch..... it was not as easy as when I was a 16 Y.O. string bean.

Old truck designs and old stiff oversize bodies is not the best combination.

I built it so I will endure.

Bob C.

[r.morrison]

Bob....I don't think the electric motor is my cup of tea. Grant Hopkins, over on Vancouver Island (that's the guy with the early Cab 11 for $500.00) suggested an automatic transmission. His point is well taken, given a little more insight into the points you put forth. In reality....it's probably the best bet. However, my associates and I will endeavour to come up with a plan taking in all this expert info into this endeavour!
Thanks for the info on the top removed. My feelings exactly.
As far as the physical end of it.....you are spot on. Too little too late! I can remember shimming up a rope that hung out the Lancaster Bomber perched on a pedestal on Lakeshore Drive in Toronto. Today, I'd be lucky just to walk to it!

Many thanks to all for your info..... Robert

[Bob Carriere]

The whole issue is to be able to fit the tranny WITHOUT relocating the transfer case. On a 2 wheel drive C15 it is not an issue.

In the early 60s GM had the 261 engine in GM van bodies and they used a particular 3 speed tranny that had a very short tail shaft..... that's the beast that must be located. Also believe that the tail shaft on most GM 3 speed could be changed form short, med. or long dependent on the vehicle it was installed in. It apparently fits in the CMP space using a very short drive shaft to the t case. I have not seen one and am not sure what model to ask for. Need to befriend a auto tranny rebuild guy that is old enough to have worked on them. Early 261 van engines ALSO had a hydraulic operated clutch that was on the right hand side of the bell housing identical to the CMP.

1960 GM vehicles are already considered antiques.

Bob C