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New guy checking in here.

I recently bid on (eBay) and won what was advertised as a "1951 Chevy 1-ton with 13' flatbed dump body". It turns out the guy didn't know what he had ... it's not a 1-ton. My first hint of that was the two-speed rear axle. Sure enough, it's a 6400.

The truck's going to need some serious front suspension work, but it will run and drive again. My first thought was to simply repair it and use it around the farm, but it seems to be a better candidate for a complete restoration: I haven't seen many Big Bolts with a hood ornament and sunvisor. The engine compartment is complete and appears original. The only missing body part is the left running board.
(GOT to do a bunch of research before I put a wrench to this truck.)

Photos please... we gotta see some photos
Welcome

Photos coming ... as soon as I get my computer tech to install the new digital camera software.

Greetings, Ozark 1!

Y'all sortta hit the jackpot when you think yer gonna get a one-ton and ya end up with a Big Bolt. Cain't do any better than that!

If you really do need a running board badly, you can post in the Parts Wanted section of the Forum and check in what's for sale as well, and you'll have a running board in no time.

Welcome to the Garage.

glad to hear that its a big bolt. just got to love them. have fun with it, another one for the road, welcome...mike j

What was the ebay Number, we can see it like that. I've seen a bunch of Big Bolts listed as 1 tons lately on ebay. I notified the sellers about their mislable, some changed the listing, some didn't. Always remember, if it doesn't have the pickup style bumper, it's larger than a 1 ton.

Welcome to the Stovebolt Ozarks_1!

I own a '51 4400 and a '52 6400. You've found the right place to meet others with these big trucks. Glad to have you here.

spanky, the eBay number was 7959967287

[img]http://i21.ebayimg.com/02/i/03/94/0f/63_1_b.JPG[/img]

WOW! $237.50! WITH A DUMP BED! NICE SCORE!

[img]http://i10.ebayimg.com/01/i/03/93/82/bb_1_b.JPG[/img]

I'd have paid $300 for the bed, cylinder, and PTO alone! (it would look sharp as a tack on my '46 2 ton!)

Those "i will not ship" auctions usually end low, which means a local man can snag a real deal on 'em.

Congradulations!

Good deal Ozark. That Fulton Sunvisor(if it's not damaged), is worth $250, or more.

Oh yeah, That's not the orig. engine. Looks like maybe, a mid 60's 230ci.

spanky, you got my curiosity up, so I just had to check the engine. Casting number on the head is 3836848 (From what I've found, that makes it a 1956 model 235 engine.)

That oil filler cap, being in the center of the valve cover is throwing me off. Never seen a '50's truck like that, that I can remember. Could be a head, off of another motor. Get the casting number off of the right side of the block, ahead of the starter.

All right ...

The block casting number - located ahead of the distributor - is 3769716.
The stamped number between the starter and distributor is F0314A.

F0361A would be a 1960 235.. don't know what a 14A would be.. but your casting number of 3769716 matches a 1960 235 exactly.

3769716 shows up as a '58-'62, or a '60, or a '60-'62 235 block, depending on the info source. Another person recently asked about this same casting number. His was from 1961.

The engine serial number breaks down as follows:
F=Flint engine plant
0314=assembly date=March 14
A=engine type code=235 with 3-speed manual trans. used in the passenger cars.

Unfortunately, since '57, the engine serial number does not designate an exact year, and neither does the type code, which was used for several years. To pinpoint a year, you'll have to find the casting date code on the block (probably above the starter). It'll be a letter followed by 2 or 3 numbers.

The 3836848 head was used on the circa '56 and up 235's.

If the 03 indicates month (01 Jan, 02 Feb, 03 March, etc) and the next numbers indicate day (14th) then what would the 61 in the F0361A indicate as listed on the inliners.org website?

I'd like to get solid data on the engine numbers for inclusion in the VIN Cruncher, but all i've really been able to find is alot of conflicting information, or at the very least, confusing.

Fumblin, that 61 threw me too. Must be a typo. My parts manuals list all of the engine serial number suffixes from '56 thru '65. This site lists inline 6 suffixes up to '82. The general format is Plant/month/day/suffix (w/o the slashes) for '57-up. For '57-'59, the month could be 1 or 2 digits. For '60-up, all months were 2 digits.