GM FUTURLINER METALWORK
| Metalwork and re-fabrication is a very big part of the restoration project. Mother Nature tried very hard to pull the Futurliner back into the ground from where it came from. Rust had eaten away at just about everything and once the sandblasting was completed, damage was even more evident. However, the volunteers are not without the skills to re-fabricate and replace the metal framework and body panels. | |
 This picture shows the wheel-well and demonstrates the extent of re-fabrication that needs to be done to complete the restoration. The framework and metal must be fabricated and shaped by hand -- one piece at a time. |
 This picture shows how large the area is above the wheels that will have to be replaced. Unfortunately, with only 12 hand-made Futurliners created, there are no pre-fabricated panels that can be purchased. The men use raw metal stock and laboriously shape it by hand. |
 Conrad DeJonge inspects a rusted area of the Futurliner as he confers with Ed DeVries as to the need to be replace it. |
 Conrad uses an air powered grinder to level off high spots on welds on a newly replaced panel. |
 Sparks fly as Conrad cuts out the bad metal and replaces it with new, re-formed pieces. |
 The frame, or undercarriage, was in pretty bad shape. This is one of the many storage compartments that run along the bottom of the Futurliner. Many work-sessions were spent being showered by sparks from the cutting and welding torch. |
Don Mayton
www.futurliner.com
A Project of the National Automotive and Truck Museum of the United States.
http://www.natmus.org/
