I have had this 1946 truck for a year,, I had it shipped from Flagstaff Arizona last year and slowly getting my hands dirty, so very little rust, a couple of small spots in the running boards where brackets collected mud, and in rear fenders on top in brackets, and a spot on each side were cab meets the fenders ,,, its original besides the 1958 235 it sports. My dad and I got it stared yesterday after we converted it to a 12v system. It runs string, no smoke, but the trans is where it lacks .. I want to put a IFS , and a diff rear end for cruising speeds,, I wont tow and or race this,, just cruising and a show here and there. I have read on here that a 2002 S10 rear will bolt right in ,, I need a tranny as I went to drive it around the black and the shifter linkage is shot ,, No reverse,, I swapped out the top from a 1946 3/4, ( kicked my butt getting it back together) and I still cant figure out reverse,,as it doesn't want to go side to side,, I want it to look similar to the lowered trucks in the pics below, I have a set of 16 white walls,, but want to put 18 or 19" in frnt and 20 in rear eventually,, Looking for whats the best setup,, from some experienced guys out there,, any suggestions
My personal opinion is, these trucks look best restored stock or pretty traditional. I've seen exactly one so far that had modern(ish) wheels that looked good. The rest of the truck looked basically stock from the outside. I would, personally, make it look stock with a nice rake and a hot rod 6 engine. That would be cool. I think any of them (if you street rod it) look significantly better with the front bumper still on the truck. There was one in primer on eBay a while back that looked good as well. It had a modern drive train (sort of, it was built in the 90's), nice steel wheels and a great rake. I don't have any pictures on this machine, though.
I got one of those, I went the SBC, EFI, Auto, MII route, built mine back in '98-2000 and have put 100K+ miles on it sense. My advice: work out all the mechanicals first, fix all the bugs and drive the tires off of it. I never got around to painting the outside of mine and don't regret it a bit. No shiny paint means no worries about still using it as a truck. Keep the normal size wheels and tires on it. I have had more people to keep my truck just the way it is. When its all shiny people seem to find every flaw and make sure they tell you about it. If you look in Fasttoys (not Fasttoy1) album you can see mine. Fasttoys
Heidts makes a nice must II front that fits these trucks very nicely.S10 rear ends are a touch too narrow a nova or camaro rear is what i usually use.One of the problems with putting in a ifs and trying to use the original engine is the front engine mount wont work.1939 rear fenders are 1 1/2 inches wider which will help for wider tires in the rear.The Must II front will move the wheels in a bit which helps for wider tire in front.
That will make an awesome looking truck when done. I will echo that the traditional or if you prefer the old school style will look best. By that I mean as close to totally stock as possible with the body. No funky looking changes like on that one truck with headlights in the fenders that look like they don't belong there. A nice stance with a practical low, but not body dragging stance with a bit of hot rod rake and no hydraulics or airbags. This also means no stupid looking 19" or 20" wheels with little rubber band tires. What looks best on a ride like that is 15" wheels with some decent sidewall height, smaller tires on the front than on the rear. Most of the trucks you posted don't look like anything worthy of copying, all could be vastly improved with a few simple changes. For the chassis and suspension your best plan of action is to keep and use the original chassis, and adapt modern suspension components to it. Several companies, Heidts being one of the better ones can help you with kits and components.
I had a basically similar truck, a 37 Chevy. 350 SBC with T350 and a 57 Chevy rear on stock leafs in back with some 3 inch blocks, Must II suspension up front. A Must II is a good choice for the front susp on these trucks, fits well and rides good. Rearend you want a 59-60 inch width, such as the 67-69 Camaro/68-72 Nova suggestion. Also a 55-57 Chevy car rearend is a good fit for an older style rear. Ford rearend choices, the Granada or 69-70 Mustang is around the 59 inch width. If you have a good running 58 235, might just keep that and put a T-5 behind it. Your newer rearend will be open drive anyway. The OD of the T-5 will work nice with your 235. Don't run 18-20 inch wheels with low profile tires. Keep it 15-16 inch wheels and some tires with a bit of sidewall. Here is a pic of my old 37, the wheels here are 49-54 Chevy car steelies, with Firestone www bias ply tires: Here is the truck with 15 inch chrome smoothies and radial tires, how it looked most of the time as daily driver:
I have the " black-out" WWII version of your truck. No bright trim. Plastic covered inside door handles, etc It too has the later six cylinder. It took me months to find a good used gas tank and replace floor under tank. I like the T-5/ later diff idea. You can keep up with traffic then. As far as how it looks, what wheels to use that should be up to you since you'll drive it. I agree with what the posters said, though. I think stock-looking is best. Mine has enough of the original ( export?) blue paint to go with patina. I think you should fix front suspension perhaps get Nostalgia Sid to drop your front axle, put disc brakes on it and DRIVE. When and if you go IFS you can sell that dropped axle w/ disc brakes in a heartbeat to one of us. Good luck and post pics of what you are doing I'll be watching with interest. Thanks, Don
The S10 4x4 rear axle is wider,,that is what I used on my '41 K1. The ford explorer is also a popular choice for your application. Not sure about the transmission, myself I opted for a carbed 4.3 with a 700R4. Great combination for cruising and parts readily available. I used a Fatman Mustang 11 IFS, the Heidt is also a good choice just dont buy one the one size fits all IFS you see on ebay. Have your IFS crossmember and tophats custom cut to your frame, that's how Fatman and Heidt supply them. Good luck with your build,,the truck looks to be in very good condition. Also if space is in short supply in your shop you can see i have my front end sitting assembled on the truck box. Stripped down they all pretty much look the same
Thanks guys,, I do like the look of all stock on the outside and inside with the later 6 in it,, Im not looking to race or win trophy's etc. I like the look of 38Chev454's truck,, it looks stock with a little bit of lowering,, I don't want to put this on a S10 frame etc. Jazz1-Thanks for the guidance as I had been looking at IFS's on ebay,, Ill skip that route,,,I am short on space with a 2 car stall,, ( wife isn't happy) but I take them both up for now,, I want to keep the original patina on it as much I can and just clear coat it for now as I am on a budget,, I agreed when I bought this that I wouldn't spend any of my normal paycheck on this,, just my play funds from wheeling and dealing,,, 39Chev454- We ( my dad) has several posi rear ends laying around from a junkyard he stripped some time ago,, he has a 1959 Biscayne, 2-1957 2 dr hardtops, a 64 impala SS and a handful of others,,but never any time to work on them,, so my garage is where I must perform surgery ,, Ill keep the pics coming as like I said,, I need guidance,, Thanks
Anyone know of anyone around Illinois that has a good reputation that I could take this to to have a front end/tranny and rear end put in this,, ?
Here is someone in Ohio who may be close enough to you to help. He does great work. http://www.enjenjo.com
It's not rocket science,,,if I can install a IFS and engine and tranny a stoned monkey can do it.. What you might want to leave to a pro is the welding of the IFS crossmember and tophats,,,possibly have a mobile welder drop by if you dont know anyone capable. Do some research on how to complete your build here on the HAMB. Save your funds for GTO(gas,tires & oil)
I'll echo what some others have said here, with a few more specifics... Get a rear end from a '55-'57 Chevy, preferably with 3.5 or 3.7 gears. Get a V8 T5 box and graft an S10 tailshaft on it...MAKE SURE the S10 tailshaft is from '87 or older, so that you will be able to have a mechanical speedo. You will have to relocate the speedo gear on the mainshaft, but that can be easily accomplished with some metal shim and some epoxy. The S10 tailshaft will move the shifter about 8" forward and allow you to use the original bench seat. I used a clutch disc from an S10...it was slightly smaller, maybe 1/2", than the 10" pressure plate if I remember correctly, but it's fine for a stock setup, and it's cheap, maybe $60. Chevy used the same basic rear end all the way up to (I think), '64, but if you get a later rear end, you will have to cut off the coil spring mounts and weld on spring perches. On the rear end, you will likely have to relocate the spring perches. Also, you will either have to buy a kit with newer leaf spring, ubolts and mounting plates (Chevys of the 40s has them), OR you can use the original leaf springs but you will have to fabricate an offset plate to move the rear end about 3" back or it will not be centered in the wheel opening. An added plus is that you will gain Bendix brakes on the rear, far superior and cheaper to work on than the older Huck brakes. You will, of course, have to have a new driveshaft fabricated ($200 or so in my neck of the woods). The T5 will bolt right up to the existing bellhousing, and the V8 box input shaft is just the right length. If you use a T5 from a V6 Camaro, you will get a lower 1st gear (3.5 vs. 2.95 for the V8 box), and you will have to buy an adaptor plate because the input shaft is about 1" too long. Some people trim the input shaft and lengthen the splines, but I think that the adaptor plate is quicker, easier, and neater, and the adaptor plate is all of $120 or so. I would NOT use a T5 from an S10, as they typically have a REALLY low 1st gear (4.01 I think), which is basically too low to use. I did this very same swap in my '53 Chevy 3100 and I LOVE IT. It turns the truck from a slow moving pig into something that's fun to drive and will actually keep up with traffic. With the 235 and the OD in the T5, you will be able to drive on the highway with ease. Good luck... Chris
All, Thanks,, I can figure out the workings of putting an IFS in,, sounds like Im going with Heidts,, the welding is what scared me,, I have a Hobart 140 , but not good enough to trust going down the roads with my welds,, we have a welding shop in town,, and I believe they are mobile as well,,http://www.jarvisboiler.com/contact-jarvis-welding-llp-of-peoria-il.htm And from the posts, not going with an buy it now on Ebay front end,, Chris, I was looking into a buffalo adapter for my 235, and I see they have front end kits as well, Ever heard anything good/bad on them? I found this truck driving the backwood roads of Illinois,, He wasn't home otherwise would have stopped, so I grabbed a pic ,, as I like the stance,, I also found a gut in town removing a rearend from q 57 wagon,, Ill stop by and see what his intentions are with pics,, I saved all the info you have all posted and will start acquiring some items to get the ball rolling,, Thank you!! Its greatly appreciated!
Seabee - I've never dealt with them personally, but I've heard a lot of good things about them from people who have. Chris
Here's the T5 spacer plate I was referring to for the V6 T5s...FYI. http://hamiltonintakes.com/products/s10-t-5-swap-adapter
Its a 4 speed I believe , here are some pics of it,, they uses a cap screw to keep the original shifter in, but it was way too sloppy and I couldn't find reverse,, We drove it out in the street and went to find reverse and the shifter came out on my dad,, I took this 3/4 ton donor that is scrap and stloe the shifter as its solid,, in truck now donor 3/4 ton tranny original shifter The pattern is gone off both shifters, but I couldn't find reverse, and now it wont go side to side,, How does the lever play into this,, as the forks on it allow it to slide right left depending on location,,
They used a cap screw on the one that was in the truck,, ( its been removed for some reason or another before I got it) the original or donor is riveted in,,
http://stlouis.craigslist.org/pts/3905415449.html. Will this T5 WORK, and then swap out back half with s10 tail section with mechanical speedo?
In the pic , it looks to be in 1st or 3rd. pull the shifter down so it is in neutral. Does it only fail to go side to side since you changed the shifter ? check to see you correctly engaged the selectors and that they were in neutral position when the top of the box was reinstalled. Nothing much to the shifter if the selectors are positioned correctly. Reverse is lift the little toggle and drag the lever to your leg and down to the seat.
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