Anybody seen a 47-54 chevy truck with a flatbed that didn't look like a farm truck? ....any pics? I saw a stock 48 with a "factory" flatbed and was curious what one would look like with the hot-rod treatment.
On a truck yes. On a pickup, rarely. Usually ends up looking more like something some broke***ed tramp that couldn't find a bed tried to muster. I have seen home made wood pickup beds with stock fenders that looked ok. Forget the flatbed look unless you have duals.
I did a '67 C20 and and did make it look cool, so here's my take on it: Make the bed the same width as the cab on the older one, a little narrower on the newer wide cab. I had a set of duals from a 1 ton Ford, had to get 16 longer studs for my hubs and then a bolt on. Most put the full leingth bed rails (wood 3x3) on the frame, but the bed boards want to sit on the frame high point at the axle and cut to fit the arch. I bobbed the extra frame off at the spring hangars, built up a cheezy stock step bumper and braces stout enough to handle some real trailer and put it right at the hangars. Decked the bed and used one side board around 3 sides the width from bottom of bumper to top of deck. 1/8" steel fender that went out a few inches to covet the dual tread, 1/2" round bar for edgeing. Flatbeads can be cool if low and bobbed, seen few done right. I plan on doing one agian someday, and so much easier and better to use steel as opposed to hardwood and deck screws, but steel ain't free and wood is.
Keep the rear fenders and running boards and build the flatbed around them. Ford did this in 37, and they looked about as cool as they are going to get without looking like a chicken truck.
This one didn't have rear fenders. The flatbed looked factory or at least m*** produced by somebody with serious tools .....all of the components were stamped out (not fabbed out of square tubing). All that was there was the flat part, the headache rack was gone. The running boards were stubby. They ended just after the back of the door. I was thinkin' it would look cool slammed and the flat bed cut down to about five or six foot long (down from eight foot long). Not really sure how you could clean up the exposed frame...particularly the rear. .
I think it might look ok if you maybe trimmed it out with some blacksmith metal work or something on it rather than some plain old boards or sheetmetal, maybe some cool old rattail ties down or something like that?
I have seen factory flat beds, more commonly called stake beds. I have even owned Ford script ones, which are quite rare in pickup size. It is possible that you have a factory stakebed. Also Omaha Standard made them to fit just about anything and theirs were predominatly red with lots of cool pinstripe on the wood sides (which apparently yours does not have anymore but probably came with. I think a resto type vehicle with an original stakebed would be cool and unique. Start whittling on it to make a hot rod and maybe it wouldn't be so cool anymore.
We had a local do one up, can't remember now if it was a Ford or Chev, but it was a late '30's early 40's pickup. He did a flatbed with the hot rod treatment and it looked very good. The bed was homemade, but very nicely and before he got real fenders he used the chrome humdingers that they use on semi trucks. Like I said, it was very nice. The bed was done up like an Omaha Standard flatbed with lots of nice pinstriping, but he stained it instead of painting it, which was a nice touc h. I haven't seen it in a while, but if I do I'll try to get some pics. This bed was awfully short also, that helped quite a bit. A lot of the "farm truck" look, if I understand correctly, will come from a huge industrial style bed.
It can be pulled off sometimes. There are a handful I have liked the looks of, usually have some sort of wood side stakes and a old farm look. got for it, you may find a way to pull it off.
You have a cool stake bed there. I wouldn't change it. It has some nice round corners and has very nice proportions. I can see it painted with nice wood floors and some sort of sides. Everyone uses oak. I would go with something exotic for wood, like purpleheart, or maybe some spalted maple.
Nice piece as is. I would do the dooley, simply because I know what it would feel like with 2 cord of wood on it as compared with singles, wider stance and less sidewall flex. I would shorten it to the rear spring hangars, taking out one of the stake pockets to give you a single side rack about 6'. Notch for the tire and lower the bed a couple inches. Just my opinion. I haven't heard of 15" 8 lugs before, believe all 8 lugs will interchange. I had 750 16 duals, love the split rims, cake to work on, but the front rims were the low profile 16.5, ***** to pry off. Used some (I think)950 x 16.5 fronts, floaters, look tough and don't cut in off road. 3" stack. Yes I may be a redneck
any truck with a flat bed should have dual rear wheels. if not it looks way too low rent, back yard POS.
Next time I remember to take the camera to the farm I'll take a few shots of a 54 3/4 ton with a factory stakebed I have tucked away in the barn. It has single 17" rear wheels, and a four speed. Oh yeah, only 11,000 original miles. Zero rust. The original plan was just to freshen it up and drive it.
Just Drop the ****er so the top of the wheels poke out through the bed floor with a wood bed floor of course with some nice angle irn around the wheel openings through the floor.
Flatbeds are cool. I've always liked them. Even the messed up looking farmer ones made out of rough cut lumber. That bed you have on that truck looks like it has a lot of potential. I would use it. ...oh yeah, if flatbeds look lowrent, its because they are. They are cheap to build and very utilitarian. Embrace that. Don't be ashamed of it. Anyone who knocks a flatbed is a closet gold chainer. A true low dollar hot rodder will see the value in a flatbed. Just my 02
Since it has the "farm truck" thing goin' on...... does it need mud tires on the rear? FYI....it is being swapped onto an S-10 extended cab frame. The flatbed will stay "stock height" but the cab is dropping several inches due to the frame swap. .....the bed will be raised 6-8" from where it sits now (with respect to the cab)
You're kidding.....right? They are not even mounted in the same spot on each fender. One is like 1 1/2 inches farther away from the hood than the other.
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