ourcing the components to assemble a pickup bed using new parts has never been easier. Whether swapping out from a long wheelbase chassis to a short or Fleetside for Flare, all the sheetmetal and related components are available to get that old pickup in shipshape thanks to LMC Truck.

In fact, the plans for our ‘71 Ford F-250 project included both of those changes, with the shortbed conversion already handled courtesy of a Shortbed Conversion Kit from Classic Performance Products (CPP; PN 6772LBFSK).

With the foundation laid, we contacted LMC Truck with a laundry list of items necessary to build up a new Flareside box. Assembling the components is fairly straightforward but there are a few things that help keep things “aligned.” Many of the components rely on one another in order to attain a square assembly. Cross sills straddle the framerails and provide support for the entire affair. The fenders bolt to the bedsides, which then rests on two perimeter bed wood planks. The front bed panel attaches to the two bedsides and rests on the front cross sill. Out back, the tailgate is flanked by a pair of hinges. If any of the panels are out of square, misaligned, or racked, fitment of the rest of the components suffers.

We started the bed assembly by mating the bed side panels with the rear cross sill, held loosely in place as well as a few carefully placed spacers to hold the panels off the other cross sills until we’re ready to install the bed wood. The front panel requires attachment to the bed sides by either hardware or spot welding, but it doesn’t come ready for either of those operations. For now, we’ll be using one of the threaded fasteners at the top of the stake pocket at either side that it does come equipped with to mate the three panels loosely together. Fenders were added next and we hit the ground running.

1. Here’s the aforementioned Short Bed Conversion Kit from Classic Performance Products (PN 6772LBFSK) that we used to convert our ’71 Ford. If you’re looking to do a shortbox conversion on your truck, check them out, they likely have a kit for you.

3. Here, the detail of one of the two outer planks can be seen. These allow for flush fitment of the bed side flange and rear endcap. Also note the milled section where the wear strip will rest.

5. Each board is carefully slid in place until the flange and milled section are nice and flush.

7. At the tailgate end, each perimeter plank is moved rearward until it’s flush with the edge of the bedside flange. This will establish the gap at the front of the bed between the bed wood and the front panel.

8. Two fasteners mate the top of the bedside and front panel at the angled section near the top of the stake pocket. Down the side, however, our new panels lack any form of attachment, so we either drill and fasten with hardware or spot weld the two together. Since we’ll be disassembling for paint at a later date, fasteners it is. The gap between each bedside and the front panel is established first.

10. With the panel alignment checking out, things are clamped up tight and the drilling can commence.

12. With the sheetmetal components sorted, we can begin to finalize the bed wood assembly. First, the spacer comes out once again to finalize the location of the perimeter planks before the bed side flange boltholes can be marked onto the boards for drilling.

14. Once drilled, each perimeter plank is replaced …

16. It’s important to check for square as assembly progresses as any racking of the panels can seriously disrupt the final product. The tighter the specs are kept now, the better the result will be later.

18. As the boards are placed, so are the stainless strips and a fastener or two simply dropped in place to keep things from moving around too much. Note how well the strips and planks are lining up. A testament of quality product and careful installation.

20. The result? An even, consistent gap has been achieved between the sheetmetal panels as well as the end of the bed wood boards, scuff strips, and front panel.

22. The reason for this is so the tailgate can be installed and the rear opening between the two bedsides can be adjusted to suit. Once again, the goal is a consistent gap on both sides, then those lower fasteners can be tightened, effectively wrapping up the sheetmetal assembly on our short Flareside box.

24. The endcap covers and protects the rear ends of the boards and finishes off the backside.

25-27. Since we’re talking about a Flareside bed, it’d be remiss if we didn’t mention these neat little running boards from Smoothie Fab that we’ll be using. They come with a pair of heavy-duty mounting brackets and attach via a handful of fasteners that mate the ’board to the fender, the bracket, and the front cross sill.