There is a vertical flange on the running board that follows the perimeter of the cab, and to ease the manufacturing of this challenging detail, a C-shaped stamping was spot welded to the original boards. This was OK for a work truck, but it wasn’t in keeping for this project. The spot welds were drilled out to remove the flange, and the parts were reshaped so they could be butt-welded together. The photos show what a huge difference this seemingly small detail makes. In one more step of refinement, a wedge of metal was removed from the front of the running board, allowing the edge to be pulled in about 1/2 inch to better follow the shape of the cab.

A new outer edge was made for the running boards from a strip of 16-gauge steel, bent into a U-shape. This channel was butt-welded onto the boards and metalfinished. The tips of this channel were flared out slightly to meet the fenders in a more pleasing manner.

The original running boards were bolted to the truck chassis with carriage-head bolts, which were visible of the top surface. New mounts were made and welded under the boards with studs that extend through the mounting brackets. This way, all the fasteners are hidden on the top side.

A new piece of metal was formed, positioned, and welded to the bottom of the front fender, to match the level of the running board. Once the bottom of the fender was at the right height, a flange was carefully fitted to the front of the running board, ensuring the junction was clean and tight.

The rear fender needed similar modifications. An oversize piece of metal was grafted onto the front edge of the fender, then the running board was fitted into place and a flange was added to the running board to match the fender perfectly.

A flange was originally spot-welded to the top of the running board right under the bed, and Gary’s crew wanted to clean up this area, too. A gracefully curved flange was fabricated from many pieces of steel, and it joins to a mating surface that was attached to the running board. This is some very complex metalworking indeed, and Gary credits his lead metalman, Emilio Belmonte, who pulled it off to perfection.

The final step was fitting a small piece of carefully formed metal to the rear fender, continuing the stepped edge around the wheelwell opening into the running board. This part required an intricate hammerform made from solid steel, which you’ll see in the photos.

Stay tuned for the next episode of this ongoing series. We’re sure you’ll like what you see!

1. The original F-100 running boards stick out a bit awkwardly. The plan is to slim these down and blend them into the fenders smoothly.

3. The curved corner at the rear end of the cab was originally made by spot welding a separate piece of metal into place.

5. The panels are tack-welded back together.

6. After finish welding and smoothing, the junction looks much better.

8. The long joint is held with many clamps to ensure proper alignment as it is tack-welded together.

10. A new piece of 16-gauge metal was formed into a U-shape with a bending brake and tack welded to the edge of the running board.

12. Rather than welding in a long, tapered wedge of metal, a new bottom edge was made for the fender. This results in far less welding and produces a better result.

14. A shaped piece of metal is tack welded into place.

16. The underside of the flanged edge is reinforced with a carefully shaped piece of sheetmetal. You can see the studs that will mount the boards to the chassis, so there will be no visible fasteners on the top side.

18. An oversized piece of metal is grafted onto the front edge of the rear fender.

20. Filler pieces are added to the running board, establishing a perfect fit with the fender.

22. An angle, bent from 16-gauge sheetmetal, is welded to the inner edge of the running board.

24. After sanding and smoothing, the joint looks like it was die-stamped.

26. This piece is tack-welded into place and carefully adjusted before finish welding.