COE Salvaging a 38 Ford COE

Lookin' good, keep it up!

 

It's look'n good!

 

Still working on the Holmes wrecker bed.





The plan is to use 1937-38 Chevy pickup rear fenders on the Holmes bed.

 

Any up date's ?

 

Looks good,keep it up!

 

Still pecking away at the wrecker bed. Got the top bar on the other side now. Came out perfect.



Converted the 3/4-ton front brakes to 1-ton and then converted the 3/4-ton coil springs to light duty 1/2-ton stuff. I went with the lightest Moog springs for these trucks. Now I have a 3/4-ton frame with 1/2-ton suspension and 1-ton brakes.

Make sure to get the pigtail on the spring lined up with the cup on the upper frame pocket. You don't want the spring rubbing the frame or moving around. And you surely don't want to use coils without the pigtail like F-100 springs.



Here you can see the 1-ton brakes compared to the 3/4-ton stuff. Diameter the same, but now have bigger piston calipers and pads. Also, the rotors have built-in spacers to work with the dually rims.







And now I'm thinking about using this early 1949 Ford dash.

 

I like every aspect of this build. Nice switchout on the brakes.

 

This is a '38 Ford Tower truck for sale locally. It was used on the trolly lines in Minneapolis. The only one known to exist out of 40.

I love your build!

 

Wrong make, but another Minneapolis trolley wire repair truck - 1953

 

Love this build. Just read it for the second time. Keep up the excellent work. Just realized we're practically neighbors. I'm just down the road in Es***.



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Its looking great!!

 

Still thinking about using the '49 Ford dash in my '38 COE. Two issues to overcome. One, the dash is too wide and two, the cluster is off center with the column.

First thing to do is center the cluster. I shortened the left side 3 3/4".



Issue one fixed.

Now I still need to narrow the dash another 3 3/4" for a total of 7 1/2" just to fit the COE. Do I remove the 3 3/4" out of the glove box area or do I remove it out of the ashtray area? I still want the radio centered in the dash.



Oh the decisions...

 

If you're not gonna use the ashtray, take it from there.

If you want a functional ashtray, take the meat from between it and the glovebox.

You'll have to fix the taper no matter where you cut it, so it shouldn't matter too much, but you'll have to cut/finish the door as well as the glovebox itself and the dash, if you go through the glovebox.

Much simpler and easier to avoid that mess, IMO.

Project looks awesome, BTW.

 

Very cool build!

 

Nice work on your build. Please continue the progress updates! Subscribed.

 

Eliminate the ashtray if you don't need it. Are you keeping the speaker grille?

 

Take all but an inch out of the area between the ashtray and glove box and the rest out of the glovebox? Or all but an inch out of the area between the glove box and the ashtray and the rest from the other side of the ashtray?

 

It doesn't look like the radio will clear the engine doghouse. I might as well remove it from that area and loose the speaker grill. I hate the speaker grill the most.

 

That's unfortunate.

Any way to save that round port in the center (which I can only ***ume is there for a clock)?

It's gonna look awful plain if you cut out all those accents in the center when you narrow it.

 

Beau,

Here is another '38 Ford COE in the Twin Cities ... might be yours !!

 

I need to get the doghouse in before I continue on the '49 Ford dash.

 

More tweaking of the doghouse. After a few minutes with the English wheel, I was able to iron out all of the dings and dents and reshape it enough to get a full 1" clearance between the Ford V8.



And slowly working on the Holmes wrecker bed.

 

Looks great. What did you decide to do with the dash?

 

That cup holder will be great for hot coffee...not so sure about a cold soda.

 

Subscribed.

 

What an Awesome build. If I am not mistaken in Henderson, NC there is a display of Coe Trucks. Keep Up the Hard Work, it sure is going to something to brag about.

 

Looks Great keep up the good work!!

Remove from the ash tray area...unless you smoke?

Mike

 

Don`t need no stinky ashtray.......




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The wrecker bed. T******* out the rear panel for the dual exhaust and hitch.







Close up of the details. 3/4 x 3/16 bar t******* with eyebrow over exhaust cutouts. And my YOM plates.





And 3 pieces of tubing for the start of making this truck tow.

 

Lookin good u don't need no ashtray flick em out the window

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