Ted, I have a 49 as well and when I was on the hunt for one missing support rod, I made it myself with rod stock from home depot. I'm sure I'll get hammered for posting that I used h-depot materials, but it seems to be working, and I could not find anyone who sells them aftermarket. (To shape these things the right way, I would have needed to heat up the ends and try to shape it while hot, which seems to be less forgiving unless you are a really accomplished blacksmith...too many heat cycles can't be good for steel) Using 3/8" rod stock and some piping that was 3/8" I.D., I cut it to length and used JB Weld to hold them together. One word of caution is that the splash pan has 2 holes at the end of a depressed area that I believe are drain channel holes, and the holes you NEED to mount to are the two that are offset toward the driver's side from the hand crank hole. (Look at the last pic in the series and you will see that I was mounting them incorrectly in that picture). I had fun hammering and shaping the ends using my axe as an anvil and just kept on comparing to the existing rod for angle alignment and used a grinder to smooth things out and shape the ends. I would not recommend using one rod as a template for the other now that I know that the "offset" holes are the ones you need to aim for attaching these rods. Unfortunately for me, I had to remake mine since it was too long. The cool thing is that while you are letting the JB Weld dry, the hole alignment becomes easy if you get your lengths cut right and loosely bolt it in place wile the JB Weld dries. mark
They were used on '49 1/2 ton trucks. Yes they can be made, but they have very specific lengths and bends in them, and they are not identical to each other. If you get it wrong, you will not be happy when you align the front clip. It would be best to find an original set. I can help you with that if you send me a PM. Carl
1952 5-window - return to "as built" condition | 1950 3100 with a 235 and a T-5 transmission
Carl, if right on. If I remember correctly there is about 1/2" difference...and makes a difference when you tighten them up. I saw the specs somewhere....I think the manual for my52....or assembly manual??
