The Road Ranger. 1997 SEMI

[Rick W]

I put the 2X4 between the roof and the headliner for my CB instead of between the switch station you made and the CB. It makes the installation look more professional and keeps the head liner from getting crushed.

The mount with the switches looks great BTW!

I’d say you were the inspiration for the vinyl, but it wasn’t so much an inspiration as a knock in the middle of the forehead. Sometimes I need that, actually frequently, but it was great advice, so you can take some of the credit. When I do my Lincolns and other cars, I try to get stuff just perfect, but I think of trucks like I think of a hammer, it’s just has to function.

Are you serious about the 2 x 4 above the CB? The one in my picture was just a scrap I was using to hammer out the sheet metal the way I wanted it. It was only in the picture to prop up the switch panel for a better picture.

I haven’t figured out how I’m going to attach it to the roof just yet, but I know I have a double roof. I’m thinking of some kind of studs hanging down that I can put nuts on if I have to take it on and off. I haven’t thought it out much yet.

in my 87, there’s metal trim at the edge of the headliner and against the windshield that is screwed in. So, for the front of that mount, I just screwed it into the same roof steel underneath. This headliner is different, and there’s no metal edge, so I’m trying something new. I made a 6 or 7 inch wide, 1/8 aluminum flat bar, and I threaded flathead screws in it from the windshield side, and then used my favorite E 6000 to glue it to the windshield in the right place. The back lip of my mound is bent down to match the angle. So when I’m mounting it, I can slide it over those screws by the windshield, and then screw the face up to whatever I come up with on the switch side.

For my side panels, I’m going to use some of the diamond plate, contour to the role of the headliner, but now I’ll cover it with the same vinyl, and hold it in place with the screws that hold the CB to the brackets. At least that’s the current concept. These things can be fluid when I actually implement them.

On a personal note, do you think you’ll get called up in all this craziness that’s going on right now? I don’t bang the drum out loud too much, but I do pray daily for safety and success of mission for all you folks who serve. I never had the honor, but I greatly appreciate those who do it. Be safe, be proud.

 

[sgtsandman]

I’d say you were the inspiration for the vinyl, but it wasn’t so much an inspiration as a knock in the middle of the forehead. Sometimes I need that, actually frequently, but it was great advice, so you can take some of the credit. When I do my Lincolns and other cars, I try to get stuff just perfect, but I think of trucks like I think of a hammer, it’s just has to function.

Are you serious about the 2 x 4 above the CB? The one in my picture was just a scrap I was using to hammer out the sheet metal the way I wanted it. It was only in the picture to prop up the switch panel for a better picture.

I haven’t figured out how I’m going to attach it to the roof just yet, but I know I have a double roof. I’m thinking of some kind of studs hanging down that I can put nuts on if I have to take it on and off. I haven’t thought it out much yet.

in my 87, there’s metal trim at the edge of the headliner and against the windshield that is screwed in. So, for the front of that mount, I just screwed it into the same roof steel underneath. This headliner is different, and there’s no metal edge, so I’m trying something new. I made a 6 or 7 inch wide, 1/8 aluminum flat bar, and I threaded flathead screws in it from the windshield side, and then used my favorite E 6000 to glue it to the windshield in the right place. The back lip of my mound is bent down to match the angle. So when I’m mounting it, I can slide it over those screws by the windshield, and then screw the face up to whatever I come up with on the switch side.

For my side panels, I’m going to use some of the diamond plate, contour to the role of the headliner, but now I’ll cover it with the same vinyl, and hold it in place with the screws that hold the CB to the brackets. At least that’s the current concept. These things can be fluid when I actually implement them.

On a personal note, do you think you’ll get called up in all this craziness that’s going on right now? I don’t bang the drum out loud too much, but I do pray daily for safety and success of mission for all you folks who serve. I never had the honor, but I greatly appreciate those who do it. Be safe, be proud.

There is a reinforcement cage around the perimeter of the roof, so in a sense there is a double roof. Sort of. Yes, I'm serious about the 2X4. There is a gap between the roof and the headliner about the thickness of a 2X4. So the 2X4 got attached to the cage/double roof structure of the roof and the CB bracket got attached through the headliner to the 2X4. The CB doesn't move at all with that setup and I had all that I needed to do it right there in the garage. A scrap piece of 2X4 and the needed fasteners in my left over hardware bins. Not exactly a shed of miracles but I do have a bit of a version like it. It also kept the headliner from being formed. So, you can't even tell what has been done and it looks like it belongs.

As far as the craziness in the world, there is always a chance I could get called up. The US military depends heavily on it's air refueling capability and they need "air bridges" to keep that going. There is a lot of detail that goes into that but it's probably best that I don't expand upon it. So, until I retire, yes I'm at risk for being called up. Technically, even when retired, one could get called back into service but things would have to be going pretty bad for that to happen. So, even when I'm out, I'll never really be completely out.

 

[Rick W]

There is a reinforcement cage around the perimeter of the roof, so in a sense there is a double roof. Sort of. Yes, I'm serious about the 2X4. There is a gap between the roof and the headliner about the thickness of a 2X4. So the 2X4 got attached to the cage/double roof structure of the roof and the CB bracket got attached through the headliner to the 2X4. The CB doesn't move at all with that setup and I had all that I needed to do it right there in the garage. A scrap piece of 2X4 and the needed fasteners in my left over hardware bins. Not exactly a shed of miracles but I do have a bit of a version like it. It also kept the headliner from being formed. So, you can't even tell what has been done and it looks like it belongs.

As far as the craziness in the world, there is always a chance I could get called up. The US military depends heavily on it's air refueling capability and they need "air bridges" to keep that going. There is a lot of detail that goes into that but it's probably best that I don't expand upon it. So, until I retire, yes I'm at risk for being called up. Technically, even when retired, one could get called back into service but things would have to be going pretty bad for that to happen. So, even when I'm out, I'll never really be completely out.

i’m feeling faint. I’m so disillusioned. That beautiful truck is put together with scrap 2x4s. I would have never guessed…

 

[sgtsandman]

i’m feeling faint. I’m so disillusioned. That beautiful truck is put together with scrap 2x4s. I would have never guessed…

Ancient Chinese secret.

 

[Rick W]

Meanwhile, 5-6 hours later:

I consider this a team effort, so my question is this: marinara or Alfredo sauce?

The two outside locations are grounds. I mounted that terminal strip with 8-32 screws right through the layers of the mount. The second inboard on the left is the power, but I already know I’m going to change that. When I wired everything else, I was short one terminal, so I just left it hanging if you look in the middle. But then I had the thought I should leave the power wire independent and use that terminal for the last switch item. BTW, I have had that terminal strip for 40 or 50 years in the various sheds of miracles along the way. It’s scary, I only have one left after this.

The wires are color-coded to the color of the switches, and sort of the same thing for the three controllers.

I used a universal hazard button for the high power strobes on the truck. It was a three wire switch, so I assumed it had a hot, a ground, a load wire, and it was illuminated. Of course I had the whole cotton pickin thing together before I realized that there’s one power line, and both the other lines are outputs. The switch was an oddball shape, so I didn’t have the option of another switch. So I added a bright red LED just above it. Of all the craziness, those high powered strobes on the corners of the truck are what I use the most. They’re also the easiest ones to forget that you have turned on. So I added the bright red beacon (which was a real pain in the ass to install without messing up my leather casing):

Then I added the power supply for the CB, and I cut the holes for the antenna wire, the power wire, and the accessories.

TAH DAH!!!

And here’s what I was talking about, about using the windshield as the forward mounting point:

 

[RobbieD]

Honestly, I would rather fab a simple sheet metal bracket, that's screwed or riveted to the interior structure metal, and then running down and out behind the headliner.

Gluing something to glass, I don't think will hold up carrying any kind of weight, and could possibly crack the glass.

 

[Rick W]

Honestly, I would rather fab a simple sheet metal bracket, that's screwed or riveted to the interior structure metal, and then running down and out behind the headliner.

Gluing something to glass, I don't think will hold up carrying any kind of weight, and could possibly crack the glass.

if you think about the rearview mirror, and what it weighs, and it’s hanging on a single point on the windshield the size of a dime, maybe a nickel. The CB is 6 or 7 times heavier or more, but it’s distributed over 7-8 sq inches. And it’s not dangling free like the rearview mirror, it will be supported from the other side. Also, that E 6000 stuff stays flexible like silicone, but it sticks like epoxy, so I’m pretty sure it will hold, it’s distributed over a relatively large area so I don’t think the windshield would break, and it will also stand up to vibration. And if I’m living in an alternate universe with a polkadot sky, if it breaks free in the front, it’ll just catch on the mirror, it won’t come crashing down.

And I already know I’m going to cut a hole in the headliner, but you won’t be able to see it above the mount. Right now, if you look at the last picture, I have a lot of the wires hanging over the lip of the headliner right against the windshield. I just roughed that in a couple of years ago. I’ve done this before, and now that I’m focused on it, I’m probably going to cut a 6” x 6” hole. I may reconsider the windshield mount once I see what’s up there, but the windshield mount definitely fits my weird vision. There’s no way I can bring that many wires around the front without it looking like crap.

And, and, and, I’m going to tape off and black out a little bit of the windshield above the mirror like they do around the edges of the windshield so you can’t see the goop and wires. And (x 4), I’m planning on a graphic across the top of the windshield on the outside, behind where the plate is glued. If you look at any windshield, the mirror mount looks like crap, but it’s tiny.

And these guys I know got all over me about just putting a metal plate up there, so now I’m going to have to go the distance.

Another thought about such a big hole. If you look at all the wires in the picture, when I connect from the other side, there will be twice as many, +4 extras. I’ve got to open the head space to have a place to push all of them. Also, in that last picture, I still have to tie off some of those wires and put in some insulating pieces here and there, so they don’t rub in the wrong places, like my weird horn switch going up and down (I’m planning on yanking the hell out of that thing).

 

[Rick W]

Another afterthought, again, having done this before, on a small truck I have to use all that space right up to the glass for the CB antenna wiring and power, or else the CB is sitting so far inside the cab that you can’t see the face of it. I don’t have that problem on my F250, but I figured this all out when I did the 87 Missing Linc with the short cab. That thing is tiny, and I had to rework it 10 times so the switches and the face of the CB were visible and accessible. Tight squeeze.

 

[Rick W]

There is a reinforcement cage around the perimeter of the roof, so in a sense there is a double roof. Sort of. Yes, I'm serious about the 2X4. There is a gap between the roof and the headliner about the thickness of a 2X4. So the 2X4 got attached to the cage/double roof structure of the roof and the CB bracket got attached through the headliner to the 2X4. The CB doesn't move at all with that setup and I had all that I needed to do it right there in the garage. A scrap piece of 2X4 and the needed fasteners in my left over hardware bins. Not exactly a shed of miracles but I do have a bit of a version like it. It also kept the headliner from being formed. So, you can't even tell what has been done and it looks like it belongs.

As far as the craziness in the world, there is always a chance I could get called up. The US military depends heavily on it's air refueling capability and they need "air bridges" to keep that going. There is a lot of detail that goes into that but it's probably best that I don't expand upon it. So, until I retire, yes I'm at risk for being called up. Technically, even when retired, one could get called back into service but things would have to be going pretty bad for that to happen. So, even when I'm out, I'll never really be completely out.

BTW, really great idea. I’d like to use it when I open up my headliner.

 

[Rick W]

CB afterthought:

I’ve talked about using my other cobra 148 SSB in this rig, but I’m going to use one of my cobra 29 NWST LTD’s instead. The 148 is 3/4 of an inch or so wider than the 29, and it won’t fit between the visors without cutting off the ends of the visors. I did that in the Missing Linc, but I didn’t want to do that in this truck because it’s got a much nicer interior. The 29 with side skirts will still scuff the visor, but I think it’s something I can live with. I’ll use the 148 in the F250 when I redo the top lights on it.

 

[Rick W]

When you have your nose in that much wiring, it’s easy to lose the detail in the fog. But I did put the power in a separate little tiny power block, and I put the last load item where I had the power.

That got me to the point, I took the whole thing out to the truck, to figure out how to hang it. Like a lot of my projects, I figured it out as I was going. I hung the back three holes over the windshield brace studs, and folded it up to the headliner, and marked it. Then I cut the hole in the headliner, about 6 x 8. No turning back…

That’s when I had the vision that I could bend the top lip of my switch plate down, and make a bracket from the roof that would slide underneath it, no screens necessary. I could slide it in and over the windshield studs, and also slide it out if I wanted to..

So then I started to design that top bracket.

I could screw that to the second roof lining. Then I could slip the three screw holes over the studs, and basically pull the front lip forward and over that bracket. I had to modify it two or three times because it was too bouncy, but with a couple of folds in the right place, perfection for pennies.

When I got to that point, I realized my deluxe bracket could also short out all of the top switches against each other. So I went into creative overdrive.

I took one of my Hormel dinner trays, that I use in the shop to hold nuts and bolts, and I cut out a section that would be perfect to ride over the top of the switches and below my deluxe bracket. I did it carefully so the rib the middle would sit between the switches and hold it in place.

Then I had to fiddle it all back and forth a few times to get it squared up, and to get rid of the bounce.

From all my careful selection of materials, brilliant workmanship and creative design, I had the whole thing hanging up there without even putting any nuts on the studs. And when I tickled it, about 99% no bounce.

Then I took some cardboard and made a template, and I took a couple of plastic scraps I had, and started to cover them with vinyl for the side covers.

Here’s a picture of the windshield mount. When I took the tape off, I pulled on it pretty hard with my fingers for @RobbieD. I think I could hang an anvil from it.

Then I had to clean up and run over to the liquor store and get a bottle of wine to share with sweet pea and pull the suitcase out of her trunk when she arrived back from Florida.

The Missing Linc looked pretty good in the LED flashy lights in front of the devils den!

 

[RobbieD]

Well done, Sir!

Fuzzy dice are for rank amateurs; real men hang anvils from their overhead CB mount.

That setup is going to look awesome when you get it finished out.


And when you exhibit this beast in car shows, on the placard listing the custom equipment manufacturers used, by all means don't forget "Hormel".

 

[Rick W]

Well done, Sir!

Fuzzy dice are for rank amateurs; real men hang anvils from their overhead CB mount.

That setup is going to look awesome when you get it finished out.


And when you exhibit this beast in car shows, on the placard listing the custom equipment manufacturers used, by all means don't forget "Hormel".

I was thinking something more like this…

 

[RobbieD]

I was thinking something more like this…

View attachment 100655

Meh . . . every pimple-face kid in a BBT (Big Bubba Truck) has those.

 

[Rick W]

“ Put a little vinyl on it….”

“ it’ll just take a minute…“

Three days later: