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Hello all! I am a new to the Stovebolt community. My name is Aaron and I have a 48 6400 and a 49 4100.
6400- I have been working on the 6400 for the past two weeks. I bought it from a local scrapper. It has been sitting in his "lot" for possibly the past 20 years. So far I have removed the valve cover and made sure all the rods and rockers are not stuck with rust. There was a mouse nest which had to be removed. I then poured a quart of oil over all of the rockers and rods. Checked oil. Next I hooked power up to the starter and made sure it spun. I then proceeded to make sure the clutch and throttle worked. Brakes are shot but the wheels spin! Transmission seems to work fine. Next I aired up all of the tires (that would take air) and jacked the wheels up out of the dirt, mud, and ice. Earlier we tried using a bobcat to lift the truck out of its pits. No luck. A simple bottle jack popped it right out though. Using the wheels as a crank; I put the truck into gear and spun the engine over several times. It was stuck at first but with a little persuasion and some dirty talking I got her spinning. There is a tree growing up between the cab and rear driver side tires. Today I will cut it down and clean up the box/flatbed for transport. Today I will also put gasoline into the carb and try to get the engine to sputter. Any tips or advice? Did I miss something?

4100- The 4100 has been in my family for several generations. Possibly since new. It has had its engine either replaced or remanned (216) at least once in its life. It is sitting in a barn for now. The down side of the 4100 is that it has a hoist but no PTO or hydraulic pump. In order to drum the bed/box; you must have a tractor or some other form of hydraulic power to actuate the hoist. The only work I have done to the 4100 so far is remove the starter. there is a mouse nest in the bell housing and neither the engine or the starter will spin. I have posted links to both trucks pictures below. I hope to have an update for you all by this evening. Hope everyone here has a great day! Thanks!

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/...0337054351561346?authkey=CJSz7KDO-db9_gE

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/...31094764648340642?authkey=CISu-ci_k9rRbA

Fitz
Welcome to the garage!
And check out this tech tip on how to do a first start.
https://www.stovebolt.com/techtips/engines/Dead%20Engine%20Start/index.html

Don

Very nice, Stovebolt Collective

Good photo/smile, Phil

I know some stuff may be lurking, as always, but they look in mighty good shape metal wise....at least compared to some I've drug home! I think I already said it but "a truck will earn its keep". Good catch/fine.

sounds like you are well on the way to getting the 6400 moving under its own power! (hopefully, engine is allright)

Update. Went over and worked on the truck. Got the engine to spin with the starter but only by jacking up the rear end and helping spin with the wheel. I don't seem to have enough power from the battery. Had the previous owner take his wrecker and load it up on our trailer. Got it home and torched off the old bed and blew out the cab. There is a LOT of work ahead. On the bonus side; we found a 1945 quarter in the cab! Pictures below.


https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/...3330564533239506?authkey=CLKVzaa9msuN1gE

Px will not open, look forward to view.

Ed

Picture link worked for me...

Mike B

I need pretty much the whole front end lower steering controls. Anyone have any good leads?

I found a 1950 6400 that was parked 24 years. Rotated the engine but good that I didn't try to fire it up. After engine tear down I was amazed with the sludge and carbon built up in the oil pan and galleries. Mine has an early 1954 261 in it with no oil filter, so this gunky state must be a simple lack of oil changes. Starting it would have ruined the engine on a few minutes. But, based on the rest of the truck's condition, it's safe to assume that it had very little maintenance other than to repair breakdowns. Like the steering drag link that instead of a ball and two cups, mine has a ball, one cup and then two stacked flat washers on the other side. Front springs are broken and on disassembly, looks they've never seen a grease gun, pins nearly worn through. To get inside the brakes, had to disassemble from the rear and remove the drums, hubs, cylinders and shoes all together and then break them apart. Cylinders were frozen but the wheels turned, but couldn't get the drums over the wear grooves.

For suspension and front end steering parts I've got several things ordered from Jim Carter OldChevyTruck.com. Just make sure you get the specific parts that fit the 2-ton.

Fitzy, looks like the floor in your truck is in pretty good shape!

Thank you Rich.

I think there is a hole in the driver side window support for a spot light. Anyone know anything about this?

Pretty common.

Ed

They were a dealer or owner installed accessory...

Mike B

Just got the engine and truck running under their own power today! Video links are below. There will be more videos to come as well!


https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/...7068396033572818?authkey=CLvvtNnRs5WBnAE

Looks good

I can see at least one bent push rod, .. easy fix

sweet! That is always a great feeling to bring them back to life!

If you have one bent pushrod, make sure to check all the others for freedom, some others may be bent, too; or get bent if not checked first.

Ed

So the lower right cab corner has some rust holes in it. Weld a patch or fiberglass it?

most weld in new metal, I have done both but normally consider fiberglass as more of a temporary fix since I normally leave the swiss-cheese metal there for it to grab onto and help shape it.

So if i patch the cab corner and weld in new. How do I get the bend right? Are there pre-bent cab corner patches I can just cut and paste?

Cab corner patches are probably the highest selling patch panel for AD trucks. Everyone sells them. (Well, maybe not the corner hardware store, but you can get them from any vendor that carries AD parts.)

You might want to put a drip-hole in those lower rear cab corners. Those ventilation holes also served as weep/drip holes. My bet is that plugged weep/drip holes were the cause of the frequently-found rust out (plugged by misc debris and mouse/rat nests/droppings)?

So I have taken the whole front end apart and am about to remove the cab. The inner fender panels are about rusted into oblivion. The kicker panels in the cab will need to be welded. Tomorrow I will start sandblasting the frame. I am weary of doing the sheet metal work.

on the panels you can't get replacements for (like inner fenders) you may find it easier to sandblast and lay fiberglass over. I would be interested to hear from others how that works long term. I have also seen some weld and grind all the little rust holes, as well as taking new metal and welding in small (or large) patches from donor panels or whatever. My dad did a ton of welding on hos 40 Chevrolet sedan, welded patches in from a donor car, made replacement pieces from multiple smaller pieces, bent and welded together to form whatever he needed, etc. I think he was welding on it for over a year! I would probably have blasted it and fiberglassed over it. I think the difference is, in 20 years, the metal under the glass may be rusted and gone again, not sure though.

Here is a good link for AD cab restoration

Woody is a pro

....link...

Here my amateur attempt at a lower cowl inner outer, rocker arm rust repair.

...click...

Althought repair panels are availiabe , my experience is that they are poor at best and I had to cut, bend, rework work them the get them close.
I wish I would of left more original metal on the truck

Oh man this is a great thread. i like the video and the photos. It brings back so many memories for me. I would say your biggest challenge would be brake drums, if they are bad. If the drums are good, everything else is rebuildable. What a great piece of hauling history!

The sand blasting has begun. Hoist is complete and ready for POR 15 and then red paint. Next will be the chassis. Image link below.

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/...7472405140653954?authkey=CIaInPLozpbcngE

POR 15 applied and International Red added as top coat to the hoist. My father did the finish painting. Looks darn good! Picture links below.


https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/...60131940883525554?authkey=CKjIqoDm8raseg

sweet!

Ah, the joys of living in the 'rust belt' !

Ed

Ok, I need help. I've been trying to get the rear drums off all afternoon in 90 degree weather. I've about had it. Any advice?

Sorry, this has been a long thread, what year, make, size truck?

1948 6400?

1948 Chevy 2 ton.

Next question. Could I replace the chevy 235 with a chevy 250? Will the Muncie 4 speed fit?

Ok! Brake drums have been removed. We had to take a bottle jack and a chain and use the jack horizontally against the axle to pull the hub out until fell off. Pictures linked below. Any recommendations on how to clean/sand/paint the brake components? Are there replacements?

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/...6561188223500385042?authkey=CLOhhdyE4r06

I suppose you are going to take the wheel cylinder off to rebuild it so you may as well take it all apart. If you have access to a blasting cabinet then you can make them all look pretty and paint your color of choice......or like I did for many years just clean them up on the bench grinder the best you can and repaint. Back then I used gas to clean the backing plate but now I use Kerosene, brake clean which you don't get much in a can for the money, or citrus orange....purple power/simple green or a putty knife and steel brush.

I'll open a can of worms here but IF the brake shoes are good and clean I'd scuff them up a little to get the glaze off unless you have new ones. If it goes it has to Whoaaa..

So it has been a busy month. I have continued sand blasting and am half way done with the frame. I need some encouragement. I am SO sick of sand blasting. Its 95 here today and I need to finish up....
I got the rims split. I have a total of 8. Seven are the "multi-piece" rims. The eighth one is a "widow maker" (I believe). Picture links are posted below. It is the rim with part of the tire still on it.
The spring U-bolts were half way corroded through so I had some new ones made for the truck. I also acquired a 6' by 10' Omaha Standard box that is in amazing condition. It came off a 55 Chevy. It can be a flat bed, grain box, or half the slats in the sides can be removed and the gates raised to hold livestock. The guy I bought it from also had an almost mint Chevy Viking 60 Series with a stock 261 in it that was for sale. I have pictures of that too. Is anyone interested in it. Should I post it somewhere else on the forums?
The rear drums are turned and the new cylinders are ready to be installed.


https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/...7670314150550866?authkey=CJGG5fb824P8ywE


Viking
https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/...7675875571502146?authkey=CKSu8q3Gtvi9pAE

I feel your pain. I scraped so much mud and caked grease off my frame before I even got to your point. Don't weaken, wait until you start taking the dents out, it goes on for months. Now looking back, I want to do it again, at least my mind says that, my body says hell no.

The sand blasting is finished! I also put on the final coat of POR15!