Fumblin,
We took our old rims to the tire shop today to get the smooth oldies removed so we can sandblast and repaint the original rims. Our tire guys said getting replacement radials (no tubes) would be no problem at all, and that they do this kind of retro-work quite often.

They are preparing a quote for radials of the same size as the original bias tires they're taking off. They even gave us our choice of tread-life! Maybe it is because we are up here in the "sticks."

I'll post the quote and details as soon as we get them.

One other thing, as far as calling the junkyards, our rear-end came off a 1975 Chevy pickup 4x4 with six-lug rims. I imagine that the yard will be more likely to help you find something for a '75 than the '50. That might make your job a little easier. Or, you could just go with the 15s to get by. The rims are relatively plentiful at our local junkyards and tires can be had fairly cheap.

~ Kimberly
My '54 ... and my '63 and a '59 F100