COE So... I accidentally bought a cabover yesterday.

Hope your trip was fun. That solid sheet metal on all those trucks can make a New England boy cry. I love the "Darry Air".

 

Yeah- I would buy the only one that has any rust at all. Thankfully the rust isn’t much worse than I thought it was from the pics. Both door handles are froze up, and the hinge on the drivers door is fubar.

Seller drives a white 41ish Chevy COE with LS power on 1/2 ton chassis.

 

I'm kind of partial to the Chevy with the hoe on the back

 

Couple of them were 4wd - NapCo. The yellow hoe rig included. Dig that front “bumper” / counterbalance


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I'm swooning for that '54 Ford!
JML

 

were they all for sale?

 

I was kinda surprised with all the cabovers he has and proclaiming “I’m a Chevy guy!” that he didn’t have any 48-54 Chevy or Gmc coes. I don’t have a clue about sales figures but they seem more common around here and he buys everything he sees.

Looks like Monday I’m gonna take it over to my buddy’s place to pull the cab off and get ready for the new chassis

 

Not exactly but I think any of them could be pulled away from him. I asked about the Chevy next to my truck and he said he wasn’t sure— if someone wanted his contact info I’m happy to share and you can ask.

 

Do “we” think the door hinges are the same as conventional cab units? I****ume so, to economize but...
I’m sure not finding much in the way of info or parts suppliers for coe specific items.

 

That's because there isn't much in the way of info or parts suppliers for COEs. The fact that Northern Classic appears to be gone doesn't help either.

I vaguely recall that the hinges are COE specific, but if I wanted to know for sure, I'd ask Karl Wescott.

 

Perfect suggestion- I just got off the phone with Karl and he helped me put together a wishlist. Also told me I was SOL on the hinge.. COE only. I'll have to look at it again and see if it's salvageable. Karl offered to use his as a template and cast new hinges for me but gave me a noncomittal price quote of "probably 500 or a 1000 bucks" so I'll most likely repair what I have or keep looking.
He's about 3 hours South/SouthEast of me so I'll probably drive down and gather the parts directly instead of challenging him to put a few hundred stamps on those parts.
Other good info gleened was that a '38/9 pickup door is the same other than the fender cutout. Also the headlight stand is the same as 40/1 big truck and the bucket is basically the same as 35/6 car and 38/9 pickup.

 

Wow, that is really great info! Have you seen pics of his 1941?

The other option for hinges is Barry or Derrick right here. I got a replacement cowl from Barry that came from Derrick. Not sure what those guys might have. Also, I think the hinges are welded to the door side, aren't they?

 

Yeah, beautiful truck he has.
I should probably introduce myself, my name is Greg.
Not sure who Barry and Derrick are.. but I probably would know their handles or avatars.
Thanks again wetskier -- edit, just caught that your name is Rick.
Thanks again Rick,
Greg

 

I aways tell people - It’s better to be lucky than good. Turns out the injured hinge on my truck is the same as pickups etc. The upper hinge is the coe only piece. Hell, I may even have one of those- from my 39 pickup days.
Also found that the deck is clad with sheet steel. Two pieces 14’x4’. Must’ve been a grain truck- it has a cute little chute on the back.. Gonna peel that off to use to make the bedsides for my 51 Gmc Special. Starting off to be a good day

 

I see I didn't answer a question here, Greg...

DERRICK1032 is Derrick and B-Bop is Barry. My donor cowl came from Derrick via Barry.. Fastenal shipping was my friend!

 

Thanks Rick- I went back through your thread and found the post about replacing the cowl on your truck and found Derrick there. Pm’d him but he doesn’t have anything. Oh well. Thanks for the lead—

 

Here’s a couple rainy pics of the front of my truck. Didn’t want to tag them in on the buy sell thread where we were talking about them. Truck was obviously operated by a blind man who parked by “feel”. Wonder what the truck would’ve looked like if it didn’t have the snub nose!

 

Or maybe it was "Oh hell, it's a snub nose, I can get closer". I'd say you are missing the entire gravel pan. There are several sheet metal screws that hold it onto the surface at the red arrow and it bolts out each side into the piece that has the bumper holes and runs to the fender. Clear as mudd? Here's a pic of mine..

 

Ok. Unfortunately then I was right before and completely missing that. At least Wescott makes that piece.


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Come to think of it, the top portion of my original gravel pan was still mostly intact. It could serve as a template for some of a new piece. I'm pretty sure I still have it. Its yours if you want it (and I can find it

My other thought was attempting to call Todd or Barb at the former Northern Classic since Midwest was a bust. If it were a case of the tools being destroyed or a deeply discounted price to have them live again. Maybe the latter could happen. I know I'd never make any money on a venture like that but getting a few more 38-47 Ford COEs on the road might be reward enough if the price was reasonable. I tried Email already but it just bounced.

 

That will buff out . LOL Skier is that pan just folded up or at least half there . I could probably fix or make a new one . Would love to make a buck off it so I could build new ones with my hammer . Blue

 

"half there" is probably a little generous... If Greg doesn't want it, I'd be honored to see it in your talented hands!
I didn't pick up on the fact that the gravel pan is available in FG from Wescotts until now.

 

It's good, Flea would be a better steward of that pan. Maybe I'll get in line for one of the practice run units.
I'm a ways off from anything close to fitting that pan so I wouldn't even be able to get at it. Thanks much for the offer Rick

 

Hey Greg, just catching up on reading today. When I got all the parts from Derrick, he had cut the door jambs from both cabs and is building a crew cab. I have no hinges. I have 5 acres and grab anything that I can find so that it does not get crushed. That is how I ended up with Derricks cab remains. Will let you know if I come across any.

 

Thanks Barry - I appreciate it. Are you by chance, friends with Jim Prowse? I’m thinking you may’ve stopped by my place to check out the ‘48 f1 I sold him. Would’ve been 7 or 8 years ago.

 

Nope, name does not ring a bell.

 

I’ve seen a couple trucks with kinked door etc from lifting them off the chassis. Any special tricks I should keep in mind when taking cab off. I have a forklift that I usually use fo4 my heavy lifting.

 

Make sure the cab is completely free of the frame before lifting. (it the front wheels are coming off the ground, stop lifting)

 

^^^^This!
I like to use a 4x4 timber thru the door openings to spread the load out. It can be tricky lifting the cab off as they are pretty tall

 

Ok. Lifting that way isn’t a problem as long as it’s completely disconnected and distributed a bit. The last thing I need to do is damage this thing more. The front already looks like used tinfoil..