The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Buying advice for 1st timer in Ohio

Unfortunately my job being eliminated has put my purchase plans on hold until winter. That being said, I want to leverage experience of those on the forum to position myself when i can pull the trigger.
Being from Ohio seem limiting in that most of what I've seen is too far gone rust wise. I can't weld, but could get someone to do cab corners or floors, but can't get into it for a ton of welding otherwise.
Patina is just fine with me or else I'll never want to use it as a truck if it's too pretty. Don't mind wiring or mechanical as those things are more in my wheel house.

Feels like to me that places like Iron City garage have the good leads and poach the best stuff that's affordable. Their purchase price leaves little left in my budget of $15,000 to have a road worthy classic.

Any suggestions on online or swap meets in Ohio? Went to Springfield earlier this year but prices for the few there were well out of my range.

Craigslist and FB Marketplace along with local Farm Auctions will be your best bets. Stay away from brokers like Classic Car Corner and Gateway. They are there to make a profit and certainly are not your friend.

BUY FROM AZ OR CA. Pay the $1500 shipping. It will save you thousands and endless headaches.. When you get ready, PM me. I'm in AZ and have lots of contacts. But wait til you are actually ready. You will have to move fast. I'm too old now but used to find and buy many. Fixed them up a little and they all went back east.
Everybody who welds, couldn't weld before they welded.

Where in Ohio are you located?

Bartamos is correct. Most of us that weld now didn't before starting these projects. Practice, practice.
Getting into the game is not cheap, but if you are willing to work at it a few years, ( I'm personally working on year three, but mainly needing spare time) you can come away with something YOU want. A little here and a little there. It also eases the wallet a bit that way. I have an end goal I want, and I am doing it myself....and learning alot about AD trucks along the way.
I picked up my cab from a ranch in Montana so minimal rust being not on the chemical/salty roads as much on a 6400 flat bed truck.
Converting to a 3600.

I see you were looking at the 47 Chevrolet truck on Craigslist. A little rough isn't it?

A lot of people who want the AD (Advanced Design 1947-55 1st) truck have never driven one. If you want an original truck I advise you to find someone that will allow you to test drive one. Take your wife (spouse, or significant other) along with you. Imagine a 200 mile round trip vacation. Oh and don't lean against the door cause it my pop open on you.

Usually the people who restore (bring back to stock condition) love the old style ride and and the aroma of leaking oil coming off the engine. It can take what seems like an eternity to fix all the problems, mostly due to wear. Skinned knuckles and choice expletives shouted out. These good old truck are simply run to death and it can be tough to bring them back to life.

It seems like every week there is a posting where someone wants to buy an AD truck, strip out the drivetrain and replace with a modern creature comfort drivetrain they read about in a magazine or on the Internet. They get a quote from a rod shop and the wind coming through their teeth sounds like a screaming twister in the desert. It is very expensive. Labor is high. So they ask around for cheaper alternatives.

There is a third option. Look for something, that not everybody wants, that's still in good condition.

OP -- Read this: A Beginner's Guide to Building a Street Rod or Restoration Project

My 1954 purchase in 1983 came from southern Indiana, with very little rust. I have way too much money in mine but the value of a classic truck has gone up. And the fun factor is priceless. I am sure I will never get to of mine what I have in it. But the vehicle is the same a new or an old one fixed up. I drove mine today and got 2 thumbs up and a long conversation with a guy who had just purchased a 1953 and I pointed him in the direction of this page. GOOD LUCK.

Tom I'm in the Columbus area but wouldn't hesitate to travel a bit to get the right one. Thought about checking out Carter's when the time comes but that's a little far unless i shipped it.

My main thing to convince the wife is that it needs to be driveable or at least easily moved. I don't have spare garage space so it might sit under a cover in the driveway at times, but mostly garaged. If i can't fix brakes, engine,, wiring and keep it roadworthy as I go I'm probably barking up the wrong tree. Love the 46- early 50's. Really love the mid-fifties but I suspect those are even more expensive to get hands on.

I appreciate that advice. My wife's uncle who redid a 53 forewarned me it's not a comfort ride. I thought i had a 47 but the pictures didn't hold true to the reality of the swiss cheese body. The Babbitt bearings are a bit worrisome but on old 104 in town there was a place that worked on them still.

You can still buy a nice running/stopping AD truck for $15k or less, but you need to have the cash on hand and be ready to be the first guy to the sale. If you find the truck of your dreams you can't tell the seller that you need to go to the credit union next week to get the money...you just lost the truck to someone that's standing there with the money in there pocket...remember, cash talks!

When I buy a vehicle I have it hauled away right then and there...call a local rollback company and away it goes...don't want anything to happen to it while I run home for the trailer or for the seller to get cold feet. If it's located out of town have the rollback guy haul it to his shop for storage until other arrangements can be made. It will be the best $150 you spent.

If the wife's not 100% on-board with this adventure it will never happen...

Mike B

$15,000 up here to buy, restore, and drive would never happen if you took it somewhere. You’d be lucky to do it for that yourself.

I’ve been down the rabbit hole of trying to fix these old girls up. One failure. One success. It is always at least double what you envision it will cost.

Buy the best you can afford. Rust wise, price wise, condition wise and drive it. Enjoy it. Or fix it up more.

Fixing takes way longer than you expect.

EVERYTHING is fixable with some mechanic skills except thin metal welding. But as said, you can learn it with practice. Plenty of us to help with a quick start. Mig is easy. Thin metal is just a certain technique. Just joining sheet metal, not building a roll cage. Good used gas mig $300-$450. Well worth it. Weld when you feel like it. HUGE money saver and very satisfying.

You just buy a wrecked fender, door, hood or something from the era you are building. Cut .040 slits in it and weld them up. Cut out a piece and weld it back in. Even fix the dents to practice dolly work. Sooner or later you get the hang. All other fixes are general mechanic stuff with plenty of aftermarket parts/patches/youtubes. Stovebolt knows it all. 24/7/365.

You just try to get: (takes awhile)

1. Least amount of rust
2. Complete truck as possible. Try to get good glass. Good bones.
3. Good clear title.
4. Best price depending on market at the time.
5. You can go as original or restomod as you wish. NO BABBIT motors. Stay newer than that. Any motor fits. Don't get too pure on that.
6. Fixing brakes, wiring, plumbing, suspension, steering,........easy. Just buy a used running motor anywhere after checking compression. The oil and smoke.
7. No fretting allowed.

The wife thing is common. We don't cover that here. You just make promises you can't keep and say it will be worth a lot of money.

If know who Bob Villa Is, he was a house remodeler on TV. His saying was, "while you are here syndrome. I got trapped in that thinking twice, once when I remodeled my house, budgeting $14,000.00, for a new family room. Actual and a new bathroom $25,000.00. My 1954 3100. Paid $1200.00 in 1983. Drove it until 2011 and wanted updates. Over $40,000 all hired out professional work. It had come from Madison In. and very little rust but in the usual places. cab corners and floor. And only 50,000 miles.

OH47Pickupman bartamos is right,buy some clean straight sheet metal, body work is expensive,slow and often disappointing if the butcher ever gets it done. Bought a 51 6400 running with 90% rubber for 400$ here in corn belt straight off the farm. For 15,000 should be able to buy a cream puff.

Really appreciate that advice. Especially about making promises I can't keep. Been doing it for 29 years so far . Hopefully she doesn't wise u.

I visited a guy selling his truck on Craigslist in my state. I told him I just wanted to see, up close, what a really nice truck looked like and maybe take a short test drive. He was a retiree and had a local restoration/classic/rod shop build his truck for him. They searched and found a 1953 out West in no rust condition. Brought it home and everything was rebuilt. Converted to open drive with S10 rear axle. 235 engine. The chassis was new when completed. New leaf springs with liners. Added modern under-dash A/C and heating. Modern aluminum rims and radial tires. Oak bed. Interior and exterior in dark blue. Upholstery in leather the color similar to a baseball glove. Sound proofing and insulation. He showed me his picture album of beginning to end and he kept all the receipts that went into building the truck. I think this was 10 years ago. He showed me what he had in parts alone. $45,000. He said I was nickeled and dimed to death by small parts but I was determined to have it all done right.

I asked him why he was selling it, he hung his head and said that he and his wife drove it to a car show. They won first place in it's category. Coming home his wife told him she didn't like riding in it.

The moral of the story is, you only need a good driving truck that is okay to look at. Leave the wife at home and take the dog instead. JUST KIDDING, but it does show how important it is to include your soul mate in the decision making process.

A very true statement. For me it is more like if you don't enjoy driving your truck you won't drive your truck. It's very true that you should do your homework and find the truck you want, the more solid the better. Good hunting.

Hope you find a rig and join the crew here at Stovebolt,
it said (and I think very true) to buy the best truck you can afford, all the little bits add up to big $$$ that the seller will leave the cost of on the table, living on the left coast rust is a issue I have easily avoided over the years, it is way heavy on labor just to get back to a good starting point..if that is really possible???
I look at my truck and just think about the rubber bits, each insignificant in cost but…….
Enjoy the search…..15k is not chump change, should get you to a sound piece of iron.
Chuck

Bouymaker, My story is a little different. I had told my wife for years that if I found the truck I would buy it. I did and had it delivered and she accused me of trying to sneak it in. This was in 1983 it was in second car quality and that it became when my son got his license in 1988. Then in 2001, she filed for divorce and my part of the divorce settlement allowed me to do pretty much as I wanted. And here I am in our house and shop.

You already seem to understand the advice I am going to give by calling out your lack of welding skills. Do a very detailed inspection of the truck and know exactly what is needed. Compare that to your skill set of what you can an can't do. If there are things needed you are not capable of doing it does not rule the truck out but you need to be fully aware that as soon as you have to hire someone else to do the work the cost of that work jumps significantly.

Bottom line - know what the truck needs and know what is needed to solve for it. Is the work you are capable of doing something you are willing to do and is the work you can't do something you can afford to have done. Even with the best plans these projects are always bigger in effort and time than we budget for.

All that said and being at least double my original planned financial commitment I would not change anything. I even picked up a second truck and am working to get it on the road.

I am in Northern Kentucky and had to go to Indiana for my first truck and Tennessee for the second one.

Ron, I had a similar response from my wife. I had been telling her for 6 months I was going to buy a truck. I even kept showing her pictures of potential trucks. When I finally found one I wanted to buy she couldn't believe I was serious????? Fortunate for me it did not lead to divorce and she has warmed up to the idea. She still doesn't understand why I need two. I don't have the nerve to tell her I would like a big bolt also.

OH47pickupman You know if you have an OK truck that drives for you,if you go somewhere you wont have to stay and guard it near so much. When you have a slick one gotta watch out for your paint,door bites,yoyo's that lay on your fenders,put their foot on your paint you know. I would rather let little boys stand on the paint and look in there !!

dgrinnin Speaking of warm-ups...now my wife knew I was a gear head,over the years she has learned to take advantage of the old trucks. A while back our local historical society needed an old parade mobile,so we fire off the 51 6400...made a half page in our local newspaper !!

If you dont have 'Motor Trend', or other 'learn as you watch' auto repair shows....get them. They toss out little ideas here and there that helps. I've also seen welding tutorials on the internet that have helped substantially. Searching for a say 'steering column rebuild' video is a lifesaver. Alot of us would be paying out the nose for specialty builders if it wasn't for this info and doing it ourselves.
And don't be afraid of asking the locals here for help or advice.
It does also determine how much the spouse will tolerate. Maybe the reason I'm divorced now(probably not).... but I did watch the car shows in the shop and not in the house so she had her programs.

See image below.

If I may add my two cents.

As has been suggested here -- have the money in your pocket when you find the truck you want
because the seller isn't going to wait around for you to try to come up with the cash.

These forums will be extremely helpful when you finally find the right truck. I have found
that you can save time and money by asking here first before you tear into something and
then have to fix not only what you started on but whatever you wrecked in the meantime.

There are different reasons for having an old truck.

I bought my '37 that had been sitting in a barn for 50 years knowing it was going to have all the
mechanical problems you would expect from something sitting that long. Fortunately, the body is in excellent condition so I don't have those issues.

It has been quite a money pit but that expense is easily offset by the satisfaction of getting the old girl back on the road. For me, it's not so much about having a reliable driver, (at least not right now), or going to shows, it's about the experience of hanging out in the garage, learning how to fix problems, and anxiously waiting for the FedEx truck to bring more parts.

I'm also keeping everything original and hope someday, in the distant future, a new owner will be grateful that I preserved this cool old truck.

mig welding is something even the inexperienced can pick up quickly. I snapped some pics of my nephews first welds and what they are like now. Actual welding time was probably around ten hours from chicken poop to very decent welds.

37 Chevy truck with room made in firewall for a 427 big block---his first attempt:
[img]https://i.postimg.cc/QVkfSFff/37-Hauler-Don-s-for-sale-86-006.jpg[/img]

Present day welds on a 1940 International pickup floor and 1957 Chevy rear shock pockets (overhead welds).
[img]https://i.postimg.cc/BLCw8by7/Int-and-57-floor-001.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i.postimg.cc/xqT6x0BY/Int-and-57-floor-002.jpg[/img]

Coilover, you are correct. not to be sexist but on a program I watch, Matts offroad recovery, there is a 26-year-old girl that works for him and he started her welding on some of his builds not too long ago and now he just turns her loose after a few instructions and she goes to town it.

If you're looking for parts the Dave & Ed's swapmeet 3 times a year in Canfield is good, takes about 6 hours to see everything.

If I had to do it over again thoughts.


I would buy a truck with the body work mostly done if not all done if I could find a started project that someone else could not finish. (aka funding was lost)
. Nothing takes more time than body work unless you are just replacing the whole panel with aftermarket. between the cutting fabricating. sanding priming etc.

Engines can be fixed for a lot less hours or found running where someone has pulled and gone restomod with a LS or crate 350 etc.
The rest can all be broken down into smaller projects. Or upgraded etc. And 90% of it is bolt on / wrench turning or pulling wires.
While your waiting make the decision are you going garage queen to start and you love just working on them more than driving them.
Or you want to drive it and work projects as you go. I was the latter. So found my truck (way to much rust) did the minimum to make it a driver. And my son has it as his daily driver since he was 16 now 23.
We worked on projects as we went with rules of no more than 60 days downtime for a major project. Like rewiring the whole truck, disc conversions, new rear end after old one exploded. AC installation etc.
Restomod but driver was our plan.

If you love just making them not driving then another route may be your plan.

And once you know the plan and its a plan a real plan written down priced out and thought about.
Buy what you can and keep it on the shelf. Reasons. Its ready when you are. aka a perfect rainout and they garage is free this weekend to put on new brakes. You don't have to wait on shipping or delays. Keep two projects ready on shelf one gets used spend the money and replace with new parts next project. Second its cheaper in the long run. I have yet to see parts prices go down on any of these trucks over the 7 years.

Price thoughts.
Spend a lot do a little, spend a little do a lot. On the initial buy.

Lastly and most importantly.
1) MAKE A PLAN to start. I cannot tell you the number of extra parts or stupid minor wasted expenses for not having a plan.. Follow the plan. It can be changes or modified as you go but that just means more planning so you don't get sideways.

2) LASTLY AND MOST IMPORTANTLY> ITS YOUR TRUCK, NOT THIS FORUMS, NOT SOMEONE ELSES you make the call that make you happy. Seek out opinions but only right one is YOURS period. There is no right way, best way, only way to do these trucks. The right way, best way, only way is the one that makes you grinning from ear to ear while your rolling down the road.


PS. These guys will keep you from getting killed or getting really bad lung disease. So do pay attention to safety advise. (how many times on forums do I see guys talking about sand blasting without a respirator.)

tut's59 Your right about the dog,ours would see me loading chain saws and proceed to go crazy. He loved that 51 3600 wood hauler,he'd watch for squirrels from the dash if we saw one I'd stop and let him tree it. In the fall would make a new clean cardboard headliner,had a good heater,we'd all go to the woods. Big fun bringing a big load out going thru the "gears" still tuff today !!

Back at it with a 52 I'm looking at Saturday

For all following along with the conversation started by OH47Pickupman, see Here for the new conversation about his prospective truck find.

Going to lock this thread down as the conversation has moved to the new post.

See everyone over there.