Quite Road Trips

[Chewie]

Hi Everyone!

I took our New 1975 Creeew Cab for a spin yesterday!!!
(Shh.. 8-) Don't tell my Husband!)

Short of needing a step lader to get in, a bit of play in the steering (which of course kept for keeping it an intersting ride) & a few squeaks, I'll admit it was an okay trip-!

However, it would be really nice if our New Family Road Trip Hauling Truck was a Wee bit QUIETER!
Some good ole fashion rubber backed deep shag carpet may do wonders, but I wondered if anyone had anymore suggestions for softening the road noise and quieting down a couple whistles?

Thanks a Bunch!
Chewie's Wife
It's Just a Road Trip Away!

[74w300uteline]

get a 1970's era

pioneer stereo and some giant speakers.
someone will chime in with legitimate sound deadening suggestions soon.

[MoparFreak69]

There really isnt a lot you can do for the road noise short of pulling the entire interior out and installing some heavy sound deadener like dynamat or other similar product. Undercoating the cab can help quite a bit as well. Basically you want something that is heavy enough to stop a panel from vibrating, which is what is transferring road noise into the cab.
Installing some matting under the carpet (or whatever you have for flooring) will help, but not drastically.
Replacing window and door seals will help a lot with whistles and other air leaks.
Tire choice can have quite a bit to do with road noise as well. Big mud tires will be big noise producers. Normal sized all seasons will be a lot more quiet and comfortable, but less grippy off-road.
Everything is a give and take. A quieter rig is generally a lot heavier than one with no concern for noise control.

[Chewie]

Maybe Sound Reduction Headphones!

Hey thanks guys! All the ideas are great!

As far as in addition to anything, it is all mopar metal! Everything is any option! (within reason! lol)
Thanks!
Chewie's Wife

[74w300uteline]

Dear Mrs Chewie, problem solved

those hubcaps are notoriously noisy. best remedy is to sell them to somebody far away. =)

[KRB64]

No cure for the whistles, thats just the admiring by-standers!

[Chewie]

She's been busy!

And she's right; it's loud! The cab resonates like a bell when you shut a door because it's all metal in there. Only soft stuff are the seats, dash, and the door panels.
I've looked into some sound proofing (besides earplugs) and it seems Dynomat is pretty popular, but I'm not sure I want to glue something down. Most of the interier paint is in great shape, and it is a neat shade of blue. What did they use on optioned trucks in the 70's? This thing came from the Air Force, so I kinda doubt it ever had carpet. I bought some generic rubber mats for it, and have thought about trying carpet remnants, too, but since I've never worried about noise before, I'm not sure where to start.
And it appears she'd like a more quiet ride.

[MoparFreak69]

The dynamatting works best when put inside the doors, so no need to worry about covering up the paint on the interior panels. It is kind of a pain to install in the doors but well worth it. Installing it on the cab floor under the flooring/carpeting will also help not only the road noise but the heat intrusion as well. Going as far up the firewall as possible makes the most difference, as well as covering the rear wall of the cab. There is also a product called Lizard Skin that is a spray in sound deadening material that is supposed to work really well.

[Bruce]

More Options

Hush Mat is another, I think they both have foil too, for heat reflection? I remember the 6 Packs we had in Minot all had single piece rubber mats, anchored at the thresh-holds.
The hush mat can be attached on the firewall also.
I remember in the early seventies, returning from the main BX in Bangor, ME, we hit a 12 or 14 point buck at or near dusk, it shoved that slant 6 nearly into the rear compartment

[MoparNorm]

And she's right; it's loud! The cab resonates like a bell when you shut a door because it's all metal in there. Only soft stuff are the seats, dash, and the door panels.
I've looked into some sound proofing (besides earplugs) and it seems Dynomat is pretty popular, but I'm not sure I want to glue something down. Most of the interier paint is in great shape, and it is a neat shade of blue. What did they use on optioned trucks in the 70's? This thing came from the Air Force, so I kinda doubt it ever had carpet. I bought some generic rubber mats for it, and have thought about trying carpet remnants, too, but since I've never worried about noise before, I'm not sure where to start.
And it appears she'd like a more quiet ride.

In addition to the other suggestions, headliner, carpet behind the rear seat.
Eastwood and Summit had some pretty reasonable prices on sound/heat mat. It can be very expensive so watch for specials. Placing that down prior to carpet works wonders! Inside the doors as well, but leave the weep holes open and clear!

[Chewie]

I just wanted to say...

Thank You Everyone!

You sure have given us some great information!

It will surely make Our Long Haul Family Roadtrip Creeeew Cab Rides more pleasant!

Very Grateful!
Take Care!

Mrs. Chewie

[Ron in Indiana]

I was searching ebay for parts for the 75 crew cab I'm redoing when I found several sources for carpeting made for these trucks. It's supposed to be molded for crew cabs. Reasonable at $160-185 I believe. I'm planning carpet and floor mats in this one.

[Chewie]

www.stockinteriors.com

Is this the place you found, Ron?

They have molded carpet for 75-80 crew cabs, with insulation.
I haven't called about the headliners yet. Mrs. Chewie is not looking forward to messing with another one of those! It looks like they have everything else we need, too, and matching colors to boot.
I may try that Lizard Skin, too. Kind of pricy, but if she and I are going to do some cross country cruising in this thing, it needs to pretty quiet.

I have to weld up some fire department holes yet, and I think I might update the wiring before I do anything serious, though.

[Ron in Indiana]

Yes that was one of them. I saved a couple for future reference. I didn't think anyone made carpets for crew cabs but I'm glad they are. I'm thinking the Hush Mats and Dyna Mats are probably good products but wonder about moisture getting under them. With Lizard Skin being a membrane like coating I would think there would be less chance of that problem. I have not used either but will be looking into something to help with noise control also. The mats on the insides of the doors or a coating of the LS would be a big help. I'm also planning to use cloth upholstry on the seats for whatever little help that may be.
The wiring will no doubt be a challenge if it's like any other piece of fire equipment. Everybody on the volunteer departments think they are electricians and can wire up lights and whatnot. The last one we had here should have burnt to the ground with all the crossed up melted wires we found. These trucks weren't known for there wiring as it was. My Dad's 77 Clubcab had electrical issues after the first year he owned it. We never could get it resolved.

[2x1972]

the best sound deadening i ever did to mine was to fix the gaping hole in the driver side floor pan, and fix the exhaust leak at the header collecter =P