The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The HiPo Shop 1951 3100--"Resto-Mod" ideas

I am going to pitch in with Jon (Carbking) above. Plan your work. Newer 6 plus a 5 speed and updated rear end are good ideas. The brake system your truck was designed with may be fine unless for some reason you want to drive faster than 60 or so. I'd rebuild the brakes with new parts. Front end...go through it carefully. Steering box...same thing. King pins & bushings/bearings. Drag link, tie rod ends, all that stuff. Front wheel bearings? You can add updated style bearings and nobody will ever know it. The old style were fine, but many think the newer type are better. Check the springs and shackles and shocks. Add turn signals. You will need them...other drivers expect them. Backup lights too and a good dual tone horn. Electric wipers? I think so. Vacuum wipers are fun and certainly interestingly nostalgic until you have to depend on them for a few hours in a hilly area. New glass? Depends. Lots and lots of these vehicles are suffering delamination. A good radio. A dependable and accurate fuel sender. Check the seat...make certain the mounts and adjustment mechanism are all right. Some of them aren't and a loose seat can be a real safety problem. Door hinges? The old ones can be shot and new ones will make things much nicer or you can rebuild your old ones in many of several ways. Plus nice tight doors will stop lots of rattles. Also look for the door hinge springs. No fun having one of these doors rap you in the leg and without the spring it will do that all the time.. Door latches (actually technically called locks)? You can get new ones (like the old ones) or you can modify the door and pillar to accept newer ones like Bear Claws or others similar. Window regulators, channels, etc. You'll need new ones. Plus a nice thing is you can find almost all the rubber parts for these trucks and I'd replace all of them. These are just a few things off the top of my head. At this point you're sort of like an artist with a new canvas. I hope you enjoy it and have fun. There is a wealth of knowledge and information around here.
Jon