Hi,
I’ve been meaning to upload this stuff for a while and have finally gotten around to getting it done. I have edited some things from the previous gallery page to save some typing!
I remember the first time I saw an Advance Design Chevrolet. I was in elementary school and a local businessman had a black 1953 parked in back, near the school. I would go look at it at recess and say to myself, "I'll have a truck like that one day."
Throughout the years, I watched and waited. I even called old Merlin a few times to see if his '53 was for sale ... "No."
When I was 18, before going to university, I created a wanted ad and hung it in our Post Office. I got a call the next morning. This man had a 1950 1/2-ton Chev and just about a second or third piece of everything for it! I gave him $750 and it was mine.
I was eager and tore into the truck, disassembling it without having a true plan. I did not appreciate what I had or what I was getting myself into.
Well, I'll customize it! You know -- IFS, Camaro rear, v8, etc. The truck snowballed out of my control. I made many mistakes and eventually lost passion for my beloved Lady Luck 1950. I sold it for a lot less than I put into it.
Years passed. I dropped off the Stovebolt site for a good long while. Time heals all wounds they say and the itch came back ... and began to grow. I began to look again.
"This time will be different! I will not rip it part immediately! I will finish this one!"
I began to formulate my plan before I bought another. Stock looking, inline six, maybe an open rear end, gas tank in bed for safety. DO NOT RIP IT APART!
I found this one-ton on an Internet ad site here in Alberta, Canada. The fella said it ran ... and it looked good. It wasn't a short box and it wasn't a half-ton. What could it hurt to look at it?
I made him a lowball offer -- $500. He refused.
It's a five window in really good shape. No rust in the cab corners, floors, solid fenders, really straight. Could this be for me? He said. "It ran ..." Runs, drives -- No.
So we haggled back and forth over email. I wasn’t really all that serious, but suddenly he said,"Come and get it."
Oh boy ... What to tell my wife?
I drove two hours to get it. It wouldn't run but looked good. I loaded it with a tractor. He then showed me his welding truck. DROOL!! -- A 1951 1-ton dually 5 window restored with a flatdeck and his welder and equipment on the back. An absolute gem. Amazing. I asked, "Is that for sale?" -- No.
Brought my truck home and I went back to work on the oil rigs. So the truck had to sit for a few months. Our project on the rig shut down so I went back to teaching and I found I had a lot of time to tinker again!
Let the wrenching begin!
I charged the battery, cleaned the lines, turned key, kicked the foot start ... Blah. Nothing .. Nuts!
Checked plugs -- good. Fuel pump -- clogged. Cleaned it up. Carb -- good. Radiator -- good.
Am I forgetting anything else? Tank was clean. Whatever, let's try again.
Key on ... Kick ... Vroommmmmmmm.... Wow! This thing sounds like an old sewing machine.
You know those moments of deep satisfaction? Zen? Being in the element? Ahhhh.
That day was really special.
I threw the Red Girl in gear and off I went down the back road. Good grief! The brakes in this old girl were right up top and touchy!! Good thing I checked that before I left...yeesh. The previous owner told me the brakes had been done. He wasn’t lying.
I got back and my niece, nephew, and wife wanted to go for a ride. I happily obliged.
"Uncle, this truck is awesome!"
"Is this as fast as it goes?"
"Uncle? What's that green stuff coming out from under the dash?" Oh good. The heater core was broken.
Well,it was running flawlessly. We headed for home and then, BLAM! Oh good, the muffler fell off.
Still, despite those two minor bumps, the truck ran great.
That was the first time I'd driven my dream truck and I loved every second.
Now after I got that old one ton running, I started looking for a 1/2 ton frame donor to perform a body swap on so I could have the 5 window 1/2 ton I’ve always wanted. I found a beauty GMC in Saskatchewan in a barn for a very good price. I made the trip and hauled it home. It was full of bondo but had the bones I needed to build the Chev 1/2 ton. But once I got started on the GMC/Chev swap, I couldn’t justify ruining the GMC as it was in such good shape. I began fixing the GMC to hone my skills. Eventually the plan formed and I wanted to keep the dually look, so I decided to build a GMC 1 ton dually using the 1 ton frame. I would use the 5 window cab and sheet metal for the 1/2 ton. It took me over 3 years to build the dually and I did everything myself, except the engine machining and the rechroming. If you’re interested to read more, there is a build thread here:
https://www.stovebolt.com/ubbthread...new-9ft-bed-progress-1ton-gmc-build.htmlSome of the photos won’t load any longer, but you get the idea!
I have over 2,200 miles on it so far and it has been a lot of fun. The truck has a 261 (.060 over), sm420 4speed, 4.10 gears out of a 72 C20, custom bed, but other than that it is very stock.
I’m still working on that 1/2 ton, albeit VERY slowly as children, work, and other projects have put it on the slow track. I have started a thread here:
https://www.stovebolt.com/ubbthread...222/1/1950-chevrolet-1300-cdn-build.htmlThanks for looking!
