| |
Jim Dunkin's1951 Chevy 3/4-Ton Longbox |
21 February 2007
# 1841
From Jim :
This is a 1951 Chevy 1/4-ton long box. My son John and I bought it from the original owner in St. Louis where it was manufactured in February 1951. It was running until we began a frame off restore in the summer of 2006. It should be completed in the next year ... or two ... or three.
In 1966 I was looking for a truck to pull my 5 X 8 motorcycle trailer and could not afford anything new or near new. I located a Stovebolt -- a 1951 3100 -- in the paper and drove out to look it over. It was clean and it drove great. Though it badly needed a paint job, I paid $600 for it and drove it home.A week later, I arranged with a body shop man to paint it on his off time and in his garage at home. I think the paint job cost me $40. Surprisingly, it looked very good.
I had a lot of fiberglass insulation and thought it might help to pack it under the dash which, like all vintage trucks, was as hollow as a tin can. I also packed fiberglass under and behind the seat. The results were astonishing. I could drive down the street and not hear the road or the solid lifters clicking on the 216 engine. In fact, the ride was as quiet as my mother�s LTD.
Hunting, fishing, and dragging my motorcycle to every muddy race, I drove that truck for the next three years until returning to college and needing money. I sold it to a farmer in Dekalb, Texas for $600. I don�t know if it is still running today but I ran into him back in the early '80s and he told me it was still running and he drove it every day.
I always wanted to replace that truck. Well, 36 years later when my son suggested we buy and rebuild something, I agreed and we began looking. I convinced him that we should start with a vehicle that would have less to rebuild -- like a truck. He agreed and we found this 1951 Chevy 3/4-ton long box truck on eBay.
My son John is 20 years old and a Sophomore at Texas A & M University.
I am now in the process of installing a Heidt�s IFS and a 10-bolt Camero rear end. I have more pictures on my Webshots account.
Jim Dunkin
"BIG CHEVY 3600"
Bolter # 12402
Dallas, Texas