1938 Chevy 1/2-ton PA Coal Truck"A Man's Legacy"
Here's my 1938 half-ton truck. I found this truck by sheer accident. I've owned it over 20 years now.
I saw an ad for a '72 Chevy truck in our local Merchandizer and went to look at it. Turns out it wasn't what I wanted but this '38 was sitting in the back corner of the big, dark, dirty garage.
The owner was close to 90 years old and was in the worst stages of Alzheimer's. He had a man who was taking care of him and was his power of attorney. This man was told to sell off the vehicles ... except the '38 truck as this truck was the old man's pride and joy. The old man owned a coal delivery business in a small town. He used this truck to deliver small loads of coal to the homes in town.
I live in the coal region of PA so coal was very common to use back then.
This old man bought the truck brand new. He was meticulous with maintenance and keeping records of what he did.
Anyway ... I asked the caregiver if I could look the truck over. He said, "Yes but it's not for sale." I said if you would take my info and should you decide to sell it. I'd be interested.
Some time passed and I got a call. I gave him $100 down to hold the truck till I came to pick it up. When I went back with a trailer the caregiver came out and said that old man can't tell you his own name but he knows that truck is leaving and he's going crazy. He asked if I'd go back on the deal. I couldn't bring myself to do it ... hurt the old man, that is.
I took back my down money and left. I was very disappointed but felt it was the right thing to do. The friend whose trailer I used really got angry at me and said I'm an idiot and I will never see that truck again.
Well, a few months passed and one day there was a knock on my door. It was the caregiver. He lost my contact info but remembered I drove an orange '72 Chevy truck and he drove all over the town I lived in to find me! He spotted the orange truck!
He said the man is in very bad shape and the family said all property must go ... including the truck. I paid a rollback to pick it up for me as the other guy was not an option anymore ... lol.
I got the truck home and owned it ever since.
After the old man passed away, there was auction in his garage. He had tons of things from being in business since the 1920s. I found the windshield crank handle in a box of junk and bought that! He had the windshield gooped closed as it leaked. He removed the handle but kept it. Luckily, I found it!
The auctioneer went on with the sale and at one point he looked at me and said I have a few pictures you may be interested in. I got original pics of the truck piled high with snow in the bed and also a little note book with all the dated maintenance he did to the truck. If he so much as touched up the paint ... he jotted it down.
I got the tuck running ... all it needed was a battery and fresh gas. I had to clear the float needle a few times but that's it. The carb didn't even leak.
I checked the brakes and rewired the truck.
I drove it around for a few years then one day the brakes locked and I parked it.
A few years passed again and I decided I needed to run it again. I rebuilt the brake system and been running it. Two years ago I bought a 235 to swap into it and been picking up parts to do a T5 and open driveline conversion. I also plan to do a dual master cylinder swap.
That's where I'm at now and how I came to this site ... and oh by "pre68daves" guidance, too.
I want to leave the truck visually as I found it. I feel the patina tells a story. You can see the wear on the door where the mans arm wore through the paint and where his knee rubbed the paint away on the inside panel. The steering wheel is worn smooth where his hands always held it. That's all lost in a restoration I feel.
I feel privileged to have this truck actually. I love driving it. It represents a time when being self-sufficient and hard work was a way of life. It's simple and to the point. I work in auto collision and see what "trucks" have evolved into now and my '38 really defines the word "truck."
So there's the story. I hope I wasn't to long winded...
