The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Big Bolts Building a Pizza Truck: 1955 Chevy 5700

Hi All,

I am beginning the build of my mobile pizza truck. It is a 1955 Chevrolet 5700 that I am building this on. I am going to document the progress here for anyone who is interested. I need some help though, with finding parts and I also have a few technical questions. I made my questions below in bold.

Where do I source rear wheel cylinders? I am going to be adapting Randy Domeck's disc brakes on the front along with running stainless steel lines from the master cylinder to the front and rear brakes. The master cylinder went bad (thankfully I was in front of my house) so it's time to redo the entire brake system the right way.

I also would like to replace the rubber which holds the driveshaft sections up to the frame? Where in the world can I find those?

I plan on using steel I-beams to give me height to clear the rear wheels. I want to run these along the top of the C Channel frame rails. Does anyone know how much the rear suspension travels? Is a 4" I-beam enough to ensure the body on the truck will clear the rear wheels?

Here's a picture of the truck from my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/luccislice...0000.1528762146./189769911686643/?type=3

Here's the cut steel for the base of the truck, this is what the oven will sit on top of:
https://www.facebook.com/luccislices/photos/a.135317413798560/251828705480763/?type=3&theater

I know I will have more questions and will post them here when I run into those issues. They aren't issues really, just problems that are going to be fixed.
I have to have this truck ready for two weddings next June, so here we go! Let's do this!

I used to live in Broomall, close enough for pizza.

Ed

Not far at all! If you ever come back to the area, let me know!

Unless your oven weighs a LOT more than it seems it should, suspension travel won't be an issue. You might even need to remove a few spring leaves to avoid beating things to death from the rough ride. I-beam is overkill- - - -space the bed up with a piece of 4" or 6" channel iron if you need to- - - -that's what dump beds, etc. are built with.

Don't scrap those rear wheel cylinders. They can be bored out and relined with brass or stainless steel, as long as the castings aren't broken.

Driveshaft hanger bearings should be a stock item at any professional-grade auto parts store- - - -NAPA, etc. They're pretty much universal regardless of vehicle manufacturer, and about 3 sizes cover everything from pickups to tractor-trailers.
Jerry

Thanks for the reply! The oven weights 2500 lbs with the base it sits on. The steel I already cut up is 1/4" square tubing. I can get 4"x 3" x 3/16" at a bargain price right now from the steel supplier near me. Do you think that will be okay to go between the frame rails and the base (floor)?

The frame rails are 1/4" so this middle spacer would be a little thinner than what is on top of it and below it.

That rectangular tubing will be far stronger than the C-channel it's sitting on. We used 3 X 4 X 3/16 to build dirt track race car frames, and didn't have any problems, so using it to support your oven won't stress it at all. Just put 45 degree gusset plates at the corners to minimize any flex and you should be good to go.
Jerry

Anthony,
I would recommend you skip the stainless brake lines and go with copper-nickel alloy. It is much easier to work with; no cracked double flares, and very easy to bend and will not corrode. Look at www.fedhillusa.com for information. They sell the original European alloy called Cunifer (Cu for copper, Ni for nickel). NAPA sells a chinese copy but it is 40% lighter in weight with noticeably thinner walls ( I weighed two 25 foot rolls of 3/16 inch line, one was NAPA's and one Fedhills). It might work, but for my trucks I prefer to stick with the original alloy that is used in some European cars. Let us know when we can come over for pizza!
Kent

Thanks for the info on the rectangular tubing. That's the route I am going to go. I attempted to Tig weld last weekend and think I was a little over ambitious. I'm going to switch to Mig welding the frame together and give that a shot this weekend. I have done mig before and feel more comfortable with that. Should have just tried that in the first place! So i have to switch out my gas shielding bottles this week.

Kent, thanks for the info on the brake lines. I really like the suggestion about them because I have the basic hand tools to form lines and make flares. So stainless would probably pose a problem. I'll good with the fedhillusa.com so I don't go the cheap route. I want the brake system to be reliable.

I'm going to have a lot more questions. I think I'll be doing the Mechanical work on the truck itself through the winter. I was thinking of actually swapping the engine with a Chevrolet performance block. https://www.jegs.com/i/Chevrolet-Performance/809/12530283/10002/-1
It also comes with a warranty, and the newer sale Vortex heads. The roller cam is a nice benefit as well. I would add the Pro-Flo 4 edelbrock system to this. Should make a reliable package with decent power. What do you guys think?

The engine you linked won't have the front motor mount bolt holes, so it will require adding side mounts.

The engine I linked here will have the bolt holes and will bolt in just like the factory 265 V8.

https://www.speedwaymotors.com/GM-12681429-Replacement-Base-Truck-350-5-7-Crate-Engine,330667.html?

Mike B

Hello Anthony, I 'm not sure if you've ever heard of Nomad Pizza Co? They have 2 Reo Speedwagons they've converted. They added a few other features for storage, AC power/ even a sink I believe. They should have some photos of their setups on their FB page might be of some insight. Most of the fabbed top section was a combination of stainless and aluminum.

Thanks Mike! I didn't realize the motor mounts would be different. I wish this engine would come with the Vortec heads or just as a short block. Either way looks like this is good engine to go with. I am going to pull the engine and trans in my truck shortly and evaluate everything, then decide what direction to go with.

I know I am going to stick with a 350 (that is what is in there now, originally came with 265) and the SM420 transmission. Are there any automatics that would blot in place of the SM420 out of curiosity? Without having to change the driveshaft.



Hi, Yes I have heard of them. I just started reaching out to a few other pizza trucks and they will definitely be on my list. Thanks for reminding me of them.


Update:

I got the perimeter of the flatbed for the truck welded together today. I will post pictures this week. Have to build the inner bracing now. I'm still struggling with what I should use to give me the 4" of clearance to have the bed clear the rear wheels. I was thinking of getting some 2" or so, heavy duty rubber mounts which can handle the weight to go between the truck frame and a piece of 2" x 2" x 1/4 square tubing. I'm trying to protect the oven from the roads around here as much as possible. We have potholes everywhere. I am going to be adding shocks to the front and rear suspension, but I figured I can dampen the vibration through the truck body. Has anyone ever done this or seen it done?

I would get mounts which I could either pass a U Bolt through the holes or I could mount them through the frame. I really don't want to start drilling holes in the top of the main frame rail though. Any ideas or help here is appreciated.

Truck bed mounting is important and people have worked out the details years ago.
I've seen instructions in old manuals but can't seem to find an online reference readily.

The gist of it is don't weld, don't drill into the top flange of the frame, or drill the side rail any closer to the corner than the flanges are wide.
Generally beds are bolted down with U-bolts around the bed long rails and truck frame rails. Legs of the U-bolts pointing down and a thick flat bar with two holes to match under the frame. If the frame or bed long rials seem flimsy at the flanges the space between if filled with a small wood block (end grain up) to support the bed and or truck frame just where the U-bolts are, usually notched so the inside U-bolt leg keeps it from falling out.
If the frame is long or the bed is exceptionally stiff heavy springs are used between the u-bolt plates and the nuts on the rear most several sets of U-bolts. This allows them to move somewhat independently and not break one or the other.
The front (or sometimes the rear) of the bed is often more securely bolted to the truck frame so it won't slide forward or back. One method is a 4-5" piece of angle iron bolted to outside of truck frame, second flange pointed up and matching angle bolted or welded to the bed frame, the two remaining flanges are bolted together.

Bed is usually isolated from the frame with a 3/4" or 1" or up to about 6" piece of wood. Modern trucks still use wood or there is a 1/4-3/8" plastic strip sold for same purpose. This may need holes drilled to clear rivet heads.

Mounting the bed on rubber mounts sounds risky, and or the reward is negligible. It's an old heavy truck, it'll ride like one.

Anyone have old factory literature on bed mounting?

Hey Grigg, sorry for taking long to get back to you. Have been busy with the truck.

I ended up ordering two 4" x 3" x 12' White Oak beams that I am going to put between the chassis and the frame I am building. From there I am going to U Bolt everything to the frame (sandwich the white oak beams) and then also add some brackets with bolts on the side of the chassis to give it some torsional relief - here's an example of what I am talking about: https://www.rac-germany.com/fileadm...ac-truck_main_frame_subframe_Germany.jpg

I also read through Mack's body building manual. Here's a link to download it, some good info in it. https://www.macktrucks.com/-/media/files/body-builder/manuals/mack-section-0.pdf


I have to source some good long U-bolts. Trying to find out where I can source them from.
Attached are some images of my progress so far. The welder I am using has worked great, it's an Eastwood MP200i and I am using it to MIG with .030 wire. I are using 2" x 2" x 1/4" steel for the base the oven is going to sit on, beveling all edges before joining them.

I also put the deposit down on my wood fired oven so that will be coming in about two months Have to get this frame complete within the next few weeks.

Years ago (decades actually) I used to work in the parts department of a Peterbilt dealership. And IF I remember correctly we used to be able to go to a spring and axle business, give them the measurements of the u bolts needed, diameter of the bolt, and they would bend whatever we needed, and thread them to the length desired. JP

Update:

I was able to get the majority of the frame built out and began securing it down as well. I found U-Bolts that are long enough from an online store and am able to modify the square plates so it keeps the 2 clamps close together. Here are a few pictures.

I still need to finish the last row of cross braces for the frame. However, on 12/26 the pizza oven arrived!! I have been waiting for a nice day to take the top and side off the box so I can check it out. I should be able to post pictures this weekend. Next steps are finishing the frame and getting the oven on. In the meantime, I plan on pulling out the 350 engine and the SM420 trans and rebuilding them. Here's a picture of a pizza I recently made as well to get your taste buds tingling!