Hello Stovebolt. I've read several very similar stories on this forum about Grandpa's pickup. Here is my version. Way back in the good ole days of 1956 my Grandpa bought a brand new 1956 3200 long bed. Forest green and white. As a farmer in South Dakota it made perfect sense. Shortly after he bought his new truck, he and Grandma loaded up the whole family and moved to Salem, here in Oregon, to run a farm in West Salem. Yes, for those that might be familiar with the area, there used to be farms in Salem. With five siblings I can't begin to describe how much fun we had as kids going to Grandma's and Grampa's. Of course the farms are long gone now. Some might call that progress, I'm not so sure about that. Flash forward a life time, my brother (not a car guy) bought Grandpa's pickup in 1987, for $700 shortly before Grandpa passed away in 1989. I was in the Air Force stationed in Alaska my brother was in Navy stationed in Washington. He drove it for several years before parking it in 1991. It was parked and covered for 31 years. Finally one day he called me and wanted to talk about the pickup. I told him I would give him the same $700 he gave Grandpa he said no he wanted half if I ever sold it. I was ecstatic. I also told him I would fill it with dirt and plant flowers in it before I would sell it.
So, here I am. Plan A is just get it running and driving again, then think about restoration. It took three weeks to get the motor to rotate. Soaking in Mystery oil and working the crank back and forth by hand. Next is fresh oil, spark, fuel, coolant breaks etc...... the list goes on.
Sorry for such a long post, but I'm very excited. I look forward to tapping in to the vast knowledge this forum can provide. Thanks in advance for future advise.
Welcome Phil! Really enjoyed your story and the history of your truck.
Last edited by Peggy M; 02/26/20241:38 AM.
~ Peggy M 1949 Chevrolet 3804 "Charlie" - The Stovebolt Flagship In the Gallery || In the Gallery Forum "I didn't see this one coming. I don't see much of anything coming. :-O"
Opps. I got so excited about the post I forgot to look closer.
Ok then. The WWW, as you can see here in their forum, it covers a lot of territory. We hope to get some better "regions" in there. Wanting to see who is where; who wants to do what; all that stuff.
Sorry BC59 for the error.
~ Peggy M 1949 Chevrolet 3804 "Charlie" - The Stovebolt Flagship In the Gallery || In the Gallery Forum "I didn't see this one coming. I don't see much of anything coming. :-O"
Welcome, love to read about the truck being part of your family, love the photo and patina your truck has. Can’t tell if is original paint or if its and old repaint but I love the look᠁. As a person who has a restored truck w nice paint I hope you will at least briefly consider not fully repainting your truck, to me trucks are only a “survivor” once, wearing every glorious mark the years put there, that is until the day they get that full respray. Having said this, It is your truck and you should do whatever YOU want to do, any way you go it is the right way.
As for my house? I know not everyone would appreciate riding around with the unrestored look as much as I᠁᠁.and I don’t know if I would change my mind too after a while᠁..
Mom told he he repainted it with a broom. Same color sort of. I too like the patina, just not sure how to keep that and do the rust repair around the bottom of the doors. Thanks for the welcome.
Welcome to the Stovebolt madness. There is no cure!
Martin '62 Chevy C-10 Stepside Shortbed (Restomod in progress) '47 Chevy 3100 5 Window (long term project) ‘65 Chevy Biscayne (Emily) ‘39 Dodge Business Coupe (Clarence) “I fought the law and the law won" now I are a retired one! Support those brave men/women who stand the "Thin Blue Line"! Hug a cop! USAF 1965-1969 Weather Observation Tech (I got paid to look at the clouds)
Welcome to the garage Phil. As for keeping the patina, doing the rust repair is just adding your own patina. When you pass the on to another family member, years from now, they will know more about the truck. Great story about the history and please keep us up to date on your progress!
Don
1967 GMC 9500 Fire Ladder Truck "The Flag Pole" In the Stovebolt Gallery '46 2-Ton grain truck | '50 2-ton flatbed | '54 Pontiac Straight Eight | '54 Plymouth Belvidere | '70 American LaFrance pumper fire truck | '76 Triumph TR-6 Of all the things I've lost in my life, I miss my mind the most!
