This is part five of a series of posts on this highly custom 1938 Chevrolet Truck restoration, for the introduction to the project see part one.  In post two we look at the individual truck parts that make up the front end build.  In post three, we cover the chassis and drip rail.  In post four, we show you the process of metal finishing the fenders.

This post takes us to original panel restoration of the inner grille housing panel and a custom touch of deleting the cowl vent panel.  These cabs do get hot inside in the summer months so a cowl vent opening was practical in designing this cab back in the 30’s.  Fast forward to 2013 and we have AC and therefore we can afford to remove this feature, since the owners had concerns the vent would become a rain trap.  Check out the seamless restoration and rebuild in the photos below.

 Chevy truck grill housing panel restoration

Years of decay are evident here.

Brand new metal formed and tack welded on.

The final product ready for another 60 years of service.

Chevy truck cowl custom modification

Original cowl opening with cut lines mapped out.

Cut completed, and new sheet metal shaped and welded in.

After metal finishing, the truck cab looks just as though it was never a feature!

This is part five of a series of posts on this highly custom 1938 Chevrolet Truck restoration, for the introduction to the project see part one. In post two we look at the individual truck parts that make up the front end build. In post three, we cover the chassis and drip rail. In post four, we show you the process of metal finishing the fenders.