Galen Mommens' 1946 Chevy 2-Ton Grain Truck

19 February 2007
# 1834

From Galen :

           I haven’t had time to do much with my truck. But just today I delved into finding tune-up parts. Hopefully, I will be able to get it running this spring.

           I was originally referred to The Stovebolt Page from someone on a tractor board. I bought this 1946 Chevy grain truck (for $100) from a farmer nearby. It's been sitting in a shed since 1976 and had about an 1" of dust on it! He said he drove it into the shed and was always meaning to restore it. He's in his late 70's so he gave up on the idea! After a little research I found that it is a 2-ton with a 235, fish plates, heavy bumper and 15,000# rating! The farmer still has the duals. He just has to FIND them!

           I got it towed home back in June (2006) and first thing was to give it a bath. This was BEFORE the bath! I found a little light surface rust on the body, a couple of small dents in the fenders and a "head sized" dent in the roof (not creased, so it SHOULD pop out easy). The windshield still operates and there is no rust on the inside of the cab. The seats have been "de-stuffed" but all else seems to be in great condition. The grille is in excellent condition, no dents or pits, just light rust here and there!

           After the bath, I found out it was green with black fenders. I wasn't sure if the motor was stuck, but I put some diesel in the cylinders to check. The motor is not stuck but I have no spark.

           It took me a while but I FINALLY got time to nose the truck into a shed (the cab is in, but not much else!). I had put some PB Blaster, MMO, and ATF mix in through the spark plug holes and cleaned her up a bit before I got to other things around here. We moved it and found that the clutch was stuck (won't disengage) and the pedal has no effect. The brake pedal is also stuck "up." The tranny will also not come out of gear.

           I admit, I don't know much about Chevy's! I grew up with them -- my Dad was a Chevy mechanic for most of his life. I have driven Fords since I was 18. But I do love the older (pre-1960) Chevy’s though! Fear not: I'll learn more about Chevy's as I go!

Galen Mommens
"Dachshund"
Bolter # 11306
Tecumseh, Nebraska

           Galen also has a cool Scroungers web site!  As John commented, he thinks Marines invented Scrounging. If it wasn't them ... surely it was farmers! Check out his site ... and scrounge away! ~~ Editor