So I'm starting on refurbishing the bed on my 53. The old bedsides came from another truck, and had weird latches welded to the sides. I cut them off, but I don't really remember what the real latches are supposed to look like, or how they work. These old bedsides had an eye bolt with a chain and hook, but how do they close the tailgate? Does the tailgate have any sort of loop they hook into? And is there something welded to the bedside that hooks everything together?
If anyone can take pictures of their latch set up, I can figure out what I need to do to mine, I hope.
I'm attaching photos of the mechanism that was on the bed sides.
Tim
I am currently digging back in to a 1953 3800 (one ton) with a nine foot bed. I've owned it since 1979, and drove it until 1982 (or so). My wife got me involved in restoring it back in 2002, got the body removed and the frame redone, then things came up. Now I am retired and starting again. If anyone is interested I have photos on Imagur ( https://timwhiteblues.imgur.com/ ). I live way back in the woods in the Ozarks on 40 acres at the end of a 2 1/2 mile private road.
