1948 Chevrolet 6400 Dump

	1948 Chevrolet 6400 SWB Dump Truck with 5-window cab The new Stovebolt flagship? Owned by John & Peggy Milliman Bolter # 1 Mechanicsville, Maryland

From John :

Well, I've always liked the early AD trucks, and I've always thought the short wheel base 2-ton dumps were really cool. So when one of our local members of the ATHS Baltimore-Washington Chapter called me for advice on how to dispose of a truck he'd been keeping in a barn less than 10 miles from Stovebolt HQ ... it got my attention!

Then he added it was a 1948 Chevy short wheel base dumper! Excellent. The previous owner had recently lost storage on the truck and needed to get rid of it.

It didn't hurt that Peggy preferred dump trucks to the long wheel base grain trucks we had previously been messing with ...

Also playing into the equation was that since Grigg Mullen had been to many of our events with his 1948 Detroit Diesel project, I had been wanting a good project for a diesel conversion. And not to be overlooked was the sheer peer pressure of Billy Marlow and *his* Detroit diesel endeavors.

I was doomed!

So I went over to the Chesapeake Bay tidewater farm where Ed's truck was tucked in an old tobacco barn (like I said -- less than 10 miles from Stovebolt HQ), saw that it was a pretty solid 5-window cabbed SWB dumper, and loaded it on the trailer. All with fellow local Bolter Doug Hamilton's help. The die was cast. I could explain all of this to Peggy...

The funny thing was that I didn't have to explain all of this to Peggy. God bless her, but she *got* it from the beginning and even encouraged me to call Ed and complete the deal.

The deal, though, is that this will continue to be a working dump truck for our Christmas tree farm, as well as be the prime mover for hauling the 1949 1-ton to future shows. It also means that we can dispose of the '95 Dodge duallie and the '85 Ford F-350 dump truck we currently use on the farm. Also relevant is that this is a 5-window cabbed truck that was built in Baltimore (that actually is important to me as my other AD trucks are Ohio-built trucks).

It also means that I forever and unequivocally avow any notion of ever owning a B-61 Mack ... Sigh ... (I can always play with Billy Marlow's... )

Anyway, my plans for this truck are to upgrade it to be able to continue functioning as a 21st Century dump truck and to be be able to cruise safely and efficiently at Interstate speeds while towing the '49 1-ton on a trailer.

To do that, I plan on upgrading the drivetrain as follows:

• Engine: Detroit 4-53T
• Transmission: Fuller Road Ranger RT610 (10-speed direct drive)
• Rear axle: 10 lug GM Dana 80, 3.31 gears
• Brakes: 4-wheel hydroboosted disc brakes
• Power steering

The rest of the truck will remain original and stock (i.e., cab, front sheet metal and dump box).

So stay tuned to this project! Grigg is my coach, and Peggy, Billy and Mike Roache are my cheer leaders!

John

John and Peggy Milliman
Mechanicsville, Maryland
Stovebolt HQ



Boy, I'm glad to see this part in writing: "I forever and unequivocally avow any notion of ever owning a B-61 Mack" ... yee ha! ~ Margaret

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