The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk daily driver thoughts

Howdy folks......just a few things gained from years and miles of driving my '47 as a usable work / fun truck. To make your truck sooo much nicer to drive you might want to consider the following :

1. first thing, get rid of the knee action shocks. Best thing you can do is upgrade to tube shocks. Forget about new springs, Teflon inserts blah blah blah. The stock suspension works fine as soon as you loose the knee action shocks.
2. get some 225/75 R16 (or15) tires. Stock rims work well and look good.
3. check the king pins and replace them if necessary. It's really easy on a 1/2 ton.
4. insulate the cab with floor matting. I used the back floor mat out of a long bed Ford van c/w under mat. This works well and it's cheap. It's just such a treat to drive a QUIET AD truck.
5. put about 200 pounds somewhere in the box or on the frame. Pre-loading the rear springs just helps the ride so much.
6 Next best thing costs a bit of money......get a 235 engine and a 3:55 gear set. If I had to do it all over again, I might just get a T5 trans and an open drive shaft/rear end. A 3:55 rear with stock 3 speed lets you run at 60mph at about 2400 rpm......right in the torque zone. I don't think a 235 really has enough power to warrant an over drive trans but it's possible if ya care. 60 mph is where I wanna be.

So just sayin'.....the above really really make your truck so much nicer to drive and apart from the drive train, they're all cheap , easy and effective.

Everyone is entitled to their opinion, now be prepared to be slammed. Many will agree but the purists will rake you over the coals. Do not take it personally. If the attacks get too far out of hand I’ll step in. Lol🛠

47, I agree with all your points. My 3600 came with tube shocks so got that covered. I also did extensive cab insulation, used peel and stick from Lowes Home Improvement on the floor, back of cab, roof and all the area inside the outer door skin I could access. Then over that I glued 3/4" black closed cell foam. The old truck is really pretty quite, easy to heat and not too hot in the summer. I'm running 215-85-16 tires and it drives very OK. Think 1970 Chevy truck OK, not 2017. I've got the added weight component covered with the steel flat bed. Ride is good, even of wash board roads. On the high speed gearing, 4.10 gears (stock was 4.57) and a .72 overdrive T5 tranny work great. The stock 216 pulls the high gears fine at 60-65 or level road, any hint of hills and 4th or 3rd are just a shift away. 60 mph is a very easy/nice cruise speed.

Yep, it ain't stock but it's low mileage (just rolled over 50,000 miles) and it suits my needs just fine.

RonR

No slamming from me. That all sounds like excellent advice for a driver.

If I can ever find one that isn't a basket case, and all the parts there I agree.....otherwise I "take what I can get" and "use what I have". My pickup has parts from even Buick and Ferd. Now, if I ever run up on a nice complete......... you get the picture.

My '50 looks pretty much stuck unless someone crawls under to see the T-5 and the open drive shaft and limited slip rear end. If they do crawl under to look, I make sure to kick some dirt in their face, just in case they have something "smart" to say. If they come up and have nothing "smart" to say, I feign ignorance as to how they got dirt in their face.
While that doesn't seem fair, well, it would not be possible to kick dirt in the guy's face it I waited for him to stand back up, now would it?
Carl

"My '50 looks pretty much stuck" . . . sorry to read that.

Now that's funny:)

Tough crowd. I tell ya, I get no respect. Take my wife,
please...
BTW, I refuse to edit this error. I can see that it would be selfish of me to deprive y'all from your Schadenfreude.
You funny guys will have to look that one up.

Well chosen word in my case - "armchair malice" (with cup of coffee in hand)

After driving classic cars and trucks for many years, my bottom line is:
If I don't enjoy driving it....I won't. And if I'm not going to drive it, it should't belong to me.
So, I make whatever changes to the vehicle I need so that I can enjoy driving it.
I'm by no means a purist, but if I have an "original" vehicle, I will TRY to keep it that way, but still make changes if I want to drive it.
As you guys know, if you don't drive them, it will be claimed by something else.

My 49 is stuck too,,,,,, back in the garage every day LOL....

Good list. I can see doing them all, one day......

I carried a 500lb tiller in the bed and that was the best ride that truck ever gave me. Even with it's knee action shocks.
The 216 didn't even know it was back there, except for when I had to run at 55 for about 20 miles, then the 216 started telling me "no mas, no mas" LOL. I sure could have used alot more sound insulation then.

I have become a convert. I used to believe that a vintage vehicle should be maintained factory stock or you have ruined it. I have 3 old rides. My 47 Jeep is still nearly stock. It likes to go 40 MPH. I live in the country, in southern Ohio, in the middle of nowhere. I head out on any remote county road, and in a few minutes 3 impatient cars are stacked up behind me. The Jeep is going to get a 30% overdrive. My 54 3100 is getting a 350 engine and 350 automatic and a 3.08 blazer rear end. My '50 Ford custom has a 302 and C-4 automatic. Zoom-Zoom. I love to putter along 40 MPH on a warm, sunny day. But I can't find a peaceful road remote enough to do it. I still like my ride to look as stock as possible, but you better be able run with today's traffic, and be able to stop when the idiot on the cell phone in front of you just realized he/she almost missed their turn...........

I'm with Victor on this , make it how you want it so you are comfortable driving for pleasure , you and your fellow road users will all be safer for it.

If it is no fun driving your classic , then I cannot see the point in owning it.

Respectfully ...

'40 Chev daily driver these last 20yrs .

Most of my daily driver concerns rise to the top when it sits outside in winter.

The frost plug heater (under the intake manifold!) is my #1 winter improvement. At 20 below or colder, 4 hours of the heater on a timer lets it start right up like a warm summer day. I'll also use a magnetic heater overnight on the oil pan when it's really cold.

For winter weight, I've used firewood, rocks and a 1959 Mercury Mark 35A outboard.

Rocks from a favorite fishing place.

Old Merc.

The best use of a Mercury outboard I have ever seen. Ballast!

I completely agree with the daily driver improvements . I'm building a 1950 gmc 1/2 t . the engine was rusted with no cyl head. I found a 292, camaro diff with a 2.73 posi, however I got 2 sm420 's with the deal , so I'm using the one with the open yoke. hopefully the long bed ( is 7.5' long?) will help with the ride. I guess i will find out when its done.

Sounds like you're going to have a NICE driver. Good Luck and keep us in the loop.

RonR

My three approaches and I like them all; MILD: 57 3100 with 235, brake upgrade, BW overdrive, and radials---65mph cruiser. MEDIUM: 37 Buick with 1952 263 straight eight, 2004R OD, open rear, tube shocks, radials, a/c---my long distance cruiser. WILD: 52 with 435hp LS, OD, Nova clip, coil over rear, and lots of bells and whistles. The Buick gets 13mpg, the 57 @ 17mpg, and the big hp 52 right at 23mpg. Love that LS engine. All my rides MUST look like they were designed, no chop and drop.

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