Hi everyone! Thought I'd finally share my long story with my 1941 Chevy named Lucy.
It all started right before my seventeenth birthday, my grandparents wanted to get me a car and they asked what I wanted. I always liked old trucks but now I had a chance to actually get one! Other cars like a Camaro and 65 mustang were thought of but I came back to wanting an old truck.
My grandparents drove past a house one day just up the road from them and outside a little garage sat Lucy and they turned around to go ask about her, but the funny part is the owner, Brad, turned out to be an old friend of my papaw's. Papaw later told me about the 41 Chevy and then took me out to see her. When I walked into the shop where she stayed, I was instantly hooked. I walked right passed a 58 corvette in mint condition and straight to Lucy, I loved her! A couple weeks later we met Brad at the shop, this time with my parents also there and this time I got to leave saying I was her new owner and brought her home another couple weeks later.
Lucy had belonged to a friend of Brad's who had passed away so Brad bought the truck from his friend's wife as she needed the money. Brad is a corvette guy (he owned the frame from corvette number three for a while) and has some gorgeous cars but I wanted what he calls the old farm truck.
When he got Lucy she needed a lot of work, he took a hammer and chisel to get the mud and manure off the bottom! He also put in another engine as the original 216 needed a lot of work. He said he wanted to replace it with a 235 but couldn't find one at the time. Instead he found the current engine which is a 1947 216.
Now we finally come to my beginning with Lucy, when I got her I drove her around in a field a couple times and then got into learning how to work on the old Chevy. She had an overheating problem that took me about a year to get right. It turned out there was rust chips and sludge in the block so I flushed the engine and cleaned it throught the freeze plugs and after what seemed to be forever it was finally clean! But when she'd get out on high speeds she would boil over still. I tried different thermostats and even running without one, then some guys on here suggested timing and checking the distributor. I moved the distributor about a quarter turn and that changed my truck! She pulled hills actually and ran so smooth! And even in 90 degree weather Lucy runs fine, no overheat!
Some of the big things that have been done are:
New wireing harness
12 volt upgrade
Turn signals
Restored a set of wheels
Rebuilt wheel cylinders and master
Installed electric windshield wipers
New glass
Replaced door regulators
Valve cover and oil pan reseal
New water pump
Installed seat belts
Had a new muffler and tail pipe put on
And the list goes on as many of you know!
I have said that I've done a lot of this but I need to mention my grandparents again as they have funded the biggest part of Lucy, for which I am very grateful.
And also my dad has helped me on this truck so much and I don't think it would be anywhere near as good as it is if it weren't for his help, ideas, and encouragement. Also thankful to mom for taking time out, to help me too.
The wood racks on the truck are my dads creation, they are made of white and red oak, stained and urethaned. He is also working on a tool box that will sit on those racks which I will send pictures when he finishes it!
A couple intresting things you should know about Lucy. One, I am the forth owner. Also, she has a gmc bed because the original was destroyed by pigs at one point. I just replaced the gmc tailgate with a Chevy one from Jim Carters. Also, Lucy is actually titled a 1946 Chevy but I call her a 41 because the cab and parklights are the 41 style. She has one 41 headlight bucket and one 46 and a few other 46 parts so she's sort of a mix but just by looking she's a 41. I know that's confusing ha ha. I absolutely love the Art Deco style and so does my dad as he's mentioned loving the style and wanting one also!
Here's another little story, I met an older man at a little car show and he lives near me. He has a 46 Chevy and we got to talking about the area my truck came from and he said when he was a little boy his dad rented a truck from a farmer friend of thiers to get a load of corn, and he said it was a 41 Chevy, we both came to the conclusion that the truck he rode in as a little boy could very well may have been mine!
It's been a long journey so far with my 41 Chevy but its all worth it. I love driving Lucy and working on her! There are ups and downs but overall it's awesome. Also I'm still getting use to the attention, people wave and honk whenever I am out in Lucy and I'm starting to be known as the guy with the old Chevy truck around here ha ha.
I am also so thankful for this forum, you guys have helped me with so much and taught me a ton, and I know that will continue so thank you so much and
I also enjoy meeting all of you!
Ian's 1941 Chevy pickup If you have questions about Lucy feel free to send me a message!
I'm also into model railroading and have a 67 mustang which I got also from my grandparents for high school graduation!
