When I was about 30, I found an old truck sitting in the tall grass at a nearby junkyard and fell in love. Looked at it for a couple years every time I was there and finally asked about it. It cost me $150, delivered. A slightly battered 1941 Chevy 1.5 ton Grain Truck, which looked like it had been painted with a broom...assuming the broom to have been several years past its prime. I put a battery in it and some gas and away we went. It became my daily driver (for short drives, anyway) and required very little maintenance. The occasional shorted spark plug, plugged gas filter, a used tire now and then. I had it for a good number of years when a passing motorist saw it parked behind my house and asked if it could be purchased. Seems he had driven a 1941 chevy gasoline delivery truck as a boy for his father's business...he still had the tank. I agreed to sell, realizing I had under priced it when he wrote the check for $100 more than I asked. Oh, well.
Pause for the passage of 20 plus years....
I always missed that truck and regretting selling it, although the smile on the old guy's face when he drove it away was worth a lot. Now another retiree is looking for a replacement and spots one on eBay close enough to home to buy. Thus I became the proud owner of a 1946 Chevy 1.5T flatbed (actually, no bed. It was all wood and totally rotted). By the ID it was built in Kansas City. As far as I can tell, the only thing it is missing is one inside door handle. It has a Chelsea PTO and a Sprague??? Steel Products hoist. The brakes have been repaired, the clutch unstuck and several problems with the fuel system overcome (some just temporarily) and a short maiden voyage taken using a 5 gallon bucket for a seat. Ultimately, it will be painted Bud Lite blue and Black but for now, it's just great to have it as it is.
I never heard the term stovebolt in this context or knew I was a fan of an Art Deco style truck until after I bought this truck.
Of course, after I got it home, I found one I could have bought for $1000, 20 miles from home!
Last edited by Peggy M; 07/18/2023 8:20 PM. Reason: added more info to the title
