Or, just help answer a few questions... thanks in advance!
I will soon be getting a 1953 GMC half-ton longbed. It's an old farm truck, which is good because that means it is still mostly stock, and hasn't been hacked up. But, it will need a lot of work and parts!
Here's what I know about the truck:
The torque tube is gone, it's an open driveline now.
It has a four-speed on the floor (don't know the type)
Floor mounted starter
5-window
I think it has the original engine. It is, at least, a six-cylinder.
I think it has been upgraded to 12 volt, negative ground.
Here's what I don't know:
Does it use tubed tires?
Are they split rims?
Does it have Huck or Bendix brakes?
Longbed was an option for half-ton's, right? The owner told me it's a half-ton.
Will disc brakes stick out too far?
Anyhow, when I get the truck, my first concern will be the front brakes and front suspension. I don't want to do a fancy modern steering column or anything like that, but I do want front non-power disc brakes, and if that means I must ditch the kingpins, so be it. Or, if kingpins are a nightmare at higher, modern speeds, I'll get rid of them anyway. My goal is not a street rod or hangar queen, but a drivable, mostly original truck. I won't drive it a lot but I'll take it to Home Depot when I need to.
What would you do to the front end? Whose disc upgrade would you use? Does it require new rims? Other parts I should upgrade because the factory didn't know better in 1953?
I'm not new at this... I have been working on my '56 210 for twenty years. But what a difference three years makes! (What's a "Huck"? haha)
Thanks!
56chev
