The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Big Bolts 3800 series flatbed

I've recently acquired a 49' Flatbed Chev, can some one tell me what the original size wheels were. This ol' beauty has 16" wheels on it, and the previous owner said this was standard for the single axle 1 ton..???

I would think that the standard wheels were the 17" splitters with 17x 750s. If you have 16" rims that fit the front end, you are very lucky! You can put 16 x 235x 85s on and they are fairly close to the original size.

As mentioned this truck does have the 16" wheels on it, and I was thinking that it should of had 16.5", as that I thought was the more prominent size then. And I do feel lucky just again owning a old truck again. I'm still trying to figure out just what engine is in it though, as I've posted in the "engine and driveline" forum I need to do more research to figure this out. As the serial number found by the distributor, leads me nowhere..in case anyone has some further thoughts as to which engine this is, the number is as follows; FII2IJ.

Advance Design 3800 series Chevrolets, came standard, with 17in. rims. If it has dual rear wheels, 18in. rims were optional.

Spanky, would u then assume there has been a change out? Cuz it definately has 16" wheels on it now.

Oh yes, most definitely. Previous owners statements, are incorrect.

I also had a 1 ton and it had the 18 inch wheels. I did put 17'5 tubless wheels and tires on the front because i got them cheeap

Now with that knowledge known, 17/18" vs. 16" wheels for this 3800 series platform, will I face serious questions trying to order brake parts, or are some numbers on the backing plates or drums that will help to have and know, just what may have been done in the past, during this suspected change to 16" wheels.

it may be only the wheels have been changed not the whole brake assembly

Thadley,
the true 1 Ton will have 12" drums in the front and 14" drums in the rear. In addition the front springs have 7 leaves and they are 2" wide. What a great truck they are, real working beasts!

As the current owner of a '49 Chevy flatbed with the original brake drums dealing with tire/wheel/brake issues; if the original brake drums are on there, the 16 inch rims won't fit over the drum (from experience), so the drums (and maybe the rear axle) probably aren't the originals if the 16s fit. Unless I missed something, which is not likely! :rolleyes: Well, maybe ...

Okay guys now I'm getting more confused, maybe I'm not getting some thing right, with a VIN fo 6GSG1844, does this not refer to a 3800 series? And does this not imply a 1 ton??? Lastly, this could also have a eight bolt pattern, and could have single rear wheels, right???????????????

I have some 19.5 wheels from my old D@#$e that are going on my 3800. I scored some Bridgestone 19.5 radials cheeper than I could buy new 17's plus I got away from split rims. And these are heavy duty,more truck like!

The No., on the ID(VIN) Plate, of a '49 Chevrolet 3800 series 1 ton truck, should start, with a, "GS". 1948, was "FS", 1950 was "HS", 1951 was "JS", & 1952 "KS".

Thanks Spanky, I believe this is a 1 ton, with the info u provided' "GS", this Truck has no badges as they have been removed, {sure would like to get some}, and I'll use Truckernixs' info and look at the springs when I get back to Truck. And wouldn't one think that it would be alot of work to change out the drums to accomodate 16" wheels from the original 17" or 18"s????

Using the VIN that you provided, I went to the American Classics web site (see link above) to their VIN decoder; according to them, your truck is a 49 1-ton (3800) built in Oakland, CA in July 1949. It's either a 3808 or 3809 (since it has a platform bed) with a GVW rating of 8800 lbs and was production number 1844 or the 844th 3800 built for the 1949 model year. Since it's rated at 8800 lbs, it originally had dual rear wheels according to the truck data book that I have. The maximum GVW for single wheel 3800s was 6700 lbs.

But to ensure that's the case for your current situation, you need to check the serial number on the rear axle; if it starts with a "SA" or "SB" it originally had dual rear wheels and hence had 18-inch rims/tires, if it starts with a "SC" or "SD" it had a single rear wheel and had 17-inch rims/tires. If it starts with something else the axle probably has been replaced. In my case, the axle serial number started with "RA" and was determined to be made in '48 but it was consistent with a dual rear wheel axle. My truck was built in the earlier part of the '49 production year so they probably used a left over axle from the '48 production run or the axle manufacturer used a calendar year for their serial numbers instead of the model year that Chevy used (my guess). My 18-inch rims have an 8 bolt, 6.5-inch bolt pattern with an approximately (this one is from memory) 4.5-inch center hole.

Also, the original brake drums (which I'm very confidant about) that are still on it are 14-inch inside diameter. If you have 16-inch rims that fit over the drums, it would seem that someone has at least changed the drums (something that seems to be pretty difficult from what I've found) if not the whole axle (something I was considering since I was having problems finding the original brake parts - since resolved). One other consideration might be that the 16-inch rims I tried to use were tubeless; if your 16-inch rims are tube-type, they may be able to fit over the original drum (I haven't tried that combination so that would be a guess on my part).

If anyone has better information than I've found; please correct me as I'm still relatively new at this.

Sorry for the long winded response and I hope this helps clarify the situation and not muddy the waters. Feel free to contact me directly if I can help.
Jim

My 51 1 Ton has the 14" drums on the rear and I have no issues with a 16" rim. The only problem with the 16" rims seems to be on the front because the setback causes them to hit the tie rod ends. This problem has been discussed at length but I don't recall any mention of a problem with the rear.

Changing out the rear drums would be quite a job and I don't know how one would go about it. There would have to be a backing plate from a donor that could be adapted to the axle. It is probably more feasible to change the whole axle. In my case I am only going to change the pumpkin out for a better ratio.

That was a lot of good information about the serial numbers and all. I have never checked for numbers on my axle.

Truckernix; are you using tube or tubeless 16-inch rims and how wide are they? When I tried to replace my 18-inch rims with tubeless 16-inch rims from a '79 Chevy dually, I couldn't get them past the flair on the drum to seat them. I assume (uh oh, there's that word) that a tube-type rim wouldn't have as much of a drop down in the center and may well fit over the 14-inch drum.

I was able to run the 16-inch rims on the front but did experience the tie-rod rubbing problem that you mentioned. There are some rub marks and a slight cut on one tire but it didn't cut through. The only fix that I'm aware of (I read it on a web site somewhere but there weren't any specifics) is using a narrower rim with a narrower tire but I don't know what size rim and tire would fit the bill. If you have some information in that regard, I'd appreciate it as I'd still like a cheaper alternative to using the (relatively expensive) 18-inch tires.
Jim

Rocky,
my rear rims are 16" tubeless type with of width of 7 or 8". Now on the front, I have adapters on at the present (I am still in the project stage). For the front, there are OEM style trailer rims made by Hayes, which are 7" wide and fit correctly. Now to some, because they are trailer rims, they are not acceptable. Apparently there were some vans/trucks in the 70s that used a rim that would work. I don't have the details on that.

All I can say is WOW, what a wealth of knowledge from u all. Now I've got to print this info for the reference so as when I get back to my truck, which is in Prescott AZ, and I live in PHX, AZ, I'll have this info with me as there is one thing for sure, and that is, I know my senior brain won't remember much of what was said..... But I would like to add, about the 16" wheels touching on the tie-rod ends, this may be a possibility because, first, I've not looked at that, nor have I even driven the truck(bought the truck 10/21) as I trailered it to my house. I'm still in the process of solving some issues, such as radiator(newer 235) with some misfitted(radiator) look- alike, water pump(need short shafted) and brake MC of which had to removed to chisel off the filler plug, and now I need to find a new plug, etc. But oh how I anticipate the drive, now that I'm getting closer to that, with a clutch that allows me to shift, thanks to these Pages..and all of the info and knowhow needed to do repairs and secure parts, etc. Kudos' to all who participate!!!

Hey Rocky,

The only thing I can add to your vin decode explanation is that Thadley has the 844th "GS" built at the Oakland Plant. Each Plant and Series started with 1001.

Mike B

When I bought my 1949 3800 in 1997 it was stock for the most part. It came with the 18" tires, duals in the rear.

I replaced the front tires with brand new ones that didn't cost too badly. They have since gone up IF you can even find them.

This summer I came across a 1960 1 ton in a salvage yard that had 4 very good and 2 good tires on it. The truck went into salvage in 2002 and I suspect the tires had been put on just prior to that as they look new treadwise.

The salvage man decided that he would rather not remove the tires from the wheels so sold the mounted tires for $25 each. He next decided that he would rather not remove the wheels and offered me the entire truck for another $100.

It had a PTO transmission, 235 engine with 848 head, and the engine turned freely. I eagerly purchased the entire truck. If I recall correctly the truck also has a good windshield that I'll sell in the future.

I would consider anyone lucky to NOT have 18" tires because of the excessive cost for their replacement.

The 1960 18 inch tires and wheels fit my 3800 perfectly.

Windy,
If it's not too much trouble could you post a diameter measurement of the 18" tires? I'm running 8X17.5's (stock on my '62 one ton),at 30.5" tall,and with my current axle ratio I'd like to find some taller wheels and tires for it. New 17.5's will cost me about 130.00 each,so if I can get taller rubber for about the same money I might as well. Thanks!
Speed

My 7:00 X 18s show a diameter of 33 inches.
The axle hole diameter of the rims comes in at what appears to be 4 5/8 inches. Of course they are 8 bolt.

Sure too bad the old 18s are so hard to come by. Looks like some manufacturer could gear up every few years and crank out a bunch and have the corner on the market. What market there is.

I have found the 18s available through Coker and Miller Tire Companies, but not cheap compared to the $70 mounted price I paid in 1997. Freight hurts badly.

If you have a flatbed and no clearance issues, the 315x 75 xR16s have a diameter of almost 35". They are also 12" wide. They take an 8" width on the rim.