So all we can do is record as many observations as we can while dismantling the trucks and make a logical guess as to the sequence of production. Even though I have no intention of ever building a show quality truck myself, as some of you may have noticed, this is one of the phases of restoration that really holds my interest in these AD trucks.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL
Denny, you can handily tell the paint sequence when you disassemble. Check under the bolt heads in the strips and angles and offset washers for paint, and check under the strips and angles and offset washers for paint on the wood. Those protected areas should reveal the mystery on most any original truck. Some years had the carriage bolts pressed into the bed strips and some years had the angle bolts welded to the angles. Those strips were probably painted with the bolts. GM did sell the boards separately for many years and those boards had a somewhat transparent black color all over. We do not know what the coating was.
Mar-Ktech
