Wesley Patterson's 1955 First Series 5-Window Chevy

15 May 2006
# 1522

From Wes:

           Hi. I've been looking at this website for about three years now and I think I'd like to add my own truck to the festivities. It is a 1955 Chevrolet first series 1/2-ton that has been in my family since 1991. It is an original hydra-matic model, also equipped with the rare unison seat configuration. It has a side-mounted spare tire and the 5-window option. I rarely see those on the AD trucks (much less all on the same one) and they really do add to the farm truck appearance.

           Now for some unpleasantness. My truck was not treated as well as some of the other examples on this site. It had a custom rear bumper made that was heavy enough to slow it down. The grille was welded to one of the front fenders after a small accident to keep it on. The rear end was replaced with a 5 lug unit that came from who-knows-what. The floor was fiberglassed. And there is no excuse for what was done to the right rear fender (trust me it was a mess!!!).

           I guess I have been working on it with my Dad for about three years now. He helped me by teaching me how the mechanics worked, and he showed me how to do bodywork. So far we have made the truck driveable again, restored most of the front end, replaced the rear right fender, and fixed the rust holes in the side mounted spare fender.

           It has been well accepted at local car nights. People get quite a surprise when they don't see a clutch pedal on the floor (haha). Apparently the hydra-matic model is more of a myth than a fact. I've only taken it to a couple of old car nights, but as my Dad and I make it more road-worthy, and I make it more presentable, I think it will become a more common sight in the Victoria, BC area.

Wesley Patterson
"old black 55"
Bolter # 9716
Victoria, British Columbia