1946 GMC 1/2-Ton Pickup

Owned by Jeff Traeger "Jeff'z 46 GMC" Bolter # 19924 Orinda, California Just East of San Francisco Come talk about this truck

01 April 2009 Update
# 2539

Here is a link to Photobucket with more pictures

From Jeff :

As of March 12, 2009 the old Oakland Utility box, which was manufactured in 1958 according to the brass plate, is gone and the truck now has a proper set of rear metal fenders and a GMC corrugated metal bed. Now it looks like a rat rod pickup.

The transition from utility bed to pickup bed went pretty quickly, but the transition to “show truck” status will be slightly slower.

Check the Photobucket album for more detailed photos.

Jeff Traeger

23 February 2009
# 2539

From Jeff :

On February 9, 2009, I purchased my 1946 (the registration says 1947)] GMC 1/2-ton pickup with a utility bed. The truck (pictured here) was advertised in the San Francisco Bay Area issue of Craig’s List. I found it to be in pretty good condition and bought it.

I drove it home, mostly on the freeway, a distance of about 35 miles. Other than weak brakes, it was an uneventful trip home. The 63 year old truck handled well and seemed to have a pretty sound engine.

This Art Deco GMC has its share of surface rust. Other than the bottom of the doors, the truck seems to be free of structural rust problems. This may be credited to its California life where the weather is pretty easy on vehicles.

According to the last owner, the truck was originally purchased from a Chevrolet dealer in Point Reyes, California, a small town about an hour north of San Francisco. It was owned by a mason in the San Geronimo Valley in northern California prior to being purchased eight years ago by its last owner who used it lightly in an organic vegetable business in Marin County – just north of San Francisco.

Most everything on the truck appears to be original, except for possibly the engine which bears a rebuilders tag. I am still try to ID the engine. It has a Chevrolet valve cover which leads me to believe that it is not the original GMC engine. Incidentally, the truck has a four speed transmission. I don’t know if the “Oakland Utility Body” [ image ] is an original dealer add-on or if the truck was stripped of its original bed and the utility bed added later in the truck’s life.

I plan to go though the truck mechanically and use it for a while as a daily driver. Work on the brakes and instrument panel repairs are on the top of the list.

I’d like to replace the utility bed with an original pickup bed and rear fenders. After getting to know the truck and getting a good understanding of the restoration issues, I will probably undertake a frame off restoration.
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Jeff Traeger


To some, this is a perfect example of a real work truck. I see a diamond in the rough, and it sounds like Jeff has plans. ~ John Lucas, Stovebolt Curator

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