The Stovebolt Site Forums Welcome! Welcome Centre Do It Yourself (DITY) Gallery 1948 GMC Model 9434 - "Frame rebuild"

Alright - we carry on. First snow for the season and I have my GMC 48 in my heated shop. He was in my machine shop since last year, dry and well protected.

The tasks at hand: Remove driveshaft, engine & transmission, then front & fenders and cab.

Please have a look at the firewall, I assume the 'red' is the original color. Go back to it or use something close to the green the main color is now? Any thoughts?

One more question: windshield & rear window glass seems to be good and usable. Just cut the rubber gaskets and pull them out?

Yes, you can slice the gasket around the windshield and rear window to get the glass out. That's the easiest way.

On the color, GMC different color choices than Chevy trucks. My first thought was your red was Chevy Omaha Orange, but it's definitely a red. The red on the cab where the bed was is a sign of the original color. This LINK should show the colors available for 1948, although it's for 1950. The same red was available in 1946. A modern paint code for Pimpernel Scarlet is Martin Senour NAPA 98L-1014.

As mentioned, it appears that Red was the original color. But it's your truck. Paint it whatever color you want.

Are the rubber gaskets in bad shape? Otherwise, just curious why you're removing them if the glass is in good shape.

Hello Rich,

certainly, I can pick the color I want and I prefer green. Gaskets, the cab needs to be cleaned, rust removed, probably with a low abrasive blasting and re-painted. All this is much easier with everything removed. Old gaskets are stiff, don't seal well and are a pain to remove and re-install. Just cutting them out is the simplest but no change possible once this is done.

BTW, I noticed the driver side windshield has a rock-chip.

As I mentioned, GMC colors are different than Chevy. While Chevy used only Forester Green as a standard color [on edit] forgot Chevy's optional Seacrest Green [/edit], GMC had 4 different greens in 1948.

If you want to go with one of the original GMC colors, here are the codes. But like Rich said, it's your truck. Pick whatever color you like.

Apple Green - Martin Senour #115 (striping color on earlier Chevys)
Brewster Green - Martin Senour #111 (Chevy stopped using that before 1948)
Morat Green - Martin Senour #98L-1015
Narva Green - Martin Senour #98L-1013

Me again. You all will know what goes on in my head right now. I am ripping my old truck apart, but I am laying in bed and think about 'how & what' to do with the pieces.

I believe I have a very good plan, but, plans are there to be re-drawn. Others have the option to abandon what they started, I have never done it.

My oldest and I had the discussion on this truck some years ago and it went like this: me, I like to keep it stock as much as possible. He, f.... that noise, V8, turbo, inter-cooled, I got the parts, front axle, rear-axle, tranie, frame, just keep the cab & box. Me, no chance, original as much as possible. End of conversation.

Now I start thinking about the engine, the old L6 run when we started the dismantling. No problem to rebuild it to 'as-good-as-new' condition, but than I have my 261 Pontiac with 848 head with a good HP potential. We can make that relatively easily fit and I have nearly double the original pony's.

But than comes - what goes fast (relatively) forward needs to be stopped some how and I think of the TSM Mfg. Kit #1847 front disk break conversion kit. That's were my son starts loving 'you are not original anymore' and he has a point.

What do do?

Jorg , all of my vehicles are virtually 100% stock. I have been driving my 1956 Coupe DeVille as my primary vehicle for 25 years. It has excellent drum brakes will cruise at 80 miles an hour for 9 hours straight without breaking a sweat on its original engine that has never been rebuilt.

I use the 1950 Chevrolet pickup for work and regularly drive 55 to 65 mph on interstate traffic, and in stop and go rush hour traffic on the freeway. It also has properly rebuilt stock Huck brakes. The engine itself has never been rebuilt as far as I know. At least not in the last 30 years.

Four wheel drum brakes when properly adjusted and kept in good order work perfectly with no drama. Why do you think tractor trailers , dump trucks, and box trucks, etc all use drum brakes?

How fast do you want to drive in an antique truck? If you put a V8 in it are you really going to be driving 80 or 90 miles an hour? I doubt it.

I'm a firm believer in not trying to reinvent the wheel with my vehicles. The engineers that designed them knew what they were doing and they function perfectly when properly maintained.

All of my vehicles with the exception of the modern (post 1972) Ford trucks, have breaker point ignition, single brake reservoirs, and drum brakes.. I have never been worried or afraid of driving any of my vehicles in modern traffic on any type of road.

I understand the limitations of each vehicle and I don't attempt to drive beyond their limitations.

I vote for keeping it stock. One advantage to that is that if something breaks, you have a shop manual right in front of you that tells you exactly how to fix it.

Otto 😥 you saved me from going 🤪 thank you, I am back on the ground now.

Question: I recall we did the brakes many years ago, new hard lines, new master brake assembly and new wheel cylinders, but kept the shoes, just cleaned them up. The drums went on our lathe and we cut the grooves out, but I have to measure how much we cut, remembering that we had a discussion on it here and we did it very careful. The question is - can one get new brake drums for this truck?

If they're the same as the Chevrolet 3100, I'm pretty sure the filling station or Jim Carter or somebody sells them

👍

I just checked Jim Carter. They have front and rear drums. Make sure you have the deed to your house ready.

The Filling Station has them, too for a little less. https://store.fillingstation.com/sh...&search=brake+drum&searchtype=FT

Thanks Otto, that doesn't look too bad. Let me measure all components once they are off and I will talk to them.

Great help!

I like "looking stock" if you can. I kept the 6-cylinder look, but swapped to a 235 on my '46 truck. I kept the torque tube driveline, but changed to 3:55 gears. I did stay with the drum brakes all around. I have to plan out my stopping distances and getting use to leaving space in front of me. I do worry a little approaching yellow lights or people pulling out in front of me. I don't know that there's a disc brake kit to fit my year that is just bolt-in. I mostly see them for '47 and newer. I have just over 500 miles on my truck now and it has done well.

John, planning your stops is the way everyone should drive regardless of the vehicle. It's the way everyone used to drive. Modern cars that do everything for you have made worse drivers out of many people rather than making them safer drivers.

The last few days have made a difference. The front is now bare. Lots of bend steel and I need to see how I re-build this.

Here some pictures from today

Bend rad-mount and frame cross member.

Straighten the bumper mounts or get new ones?

Straighten them. They are pretty squished, but can be straightened (don't use heat if you can help it.) It'll probably take a shop press to accomplish it.
Original bumper mounts are spring steel and have nice rounded corners. The aftermarket replacements are mild steel and have sharp corners. Overseas junk.
Maybe you can find some decent originals by posting a want ad here or finding a wrecking yard with old stuff.

Your engine seems to be a 1945 216, cast Jan 6 1945. The 3838549 number goes from 43-53. Not that it matters.

Thanks Kevin,

That's my thoughts, too. I believe straightening them would be relatively easy, if I had the measurements that I have scribbled into the attached picture.

They are also horizontally bend, now pointing upward and I think I can bend them down already before I remove them, one reason why they are still on.

Joerg,

I believe they should point upward just a bit. What I would do is use the frame horn as a lever for straightening them first. The two bars are joined by a rivet about where the arrow is on the attached pic. I believe they point straight forward until that rivet. I do have a set of repop bumper brackets in the box that I might be able to measure for you.It would be easier than measuring on the my truck, because the weather is getting nasty and the apron is in the way, requiring laying on the ground. My original front bumper brackets were trashed, but I was able to find a good pair at a wrecking yard.

Let me know if you'd like those dimensions.

Yes, Kevin, if possible, give me the measurements. I will clean this all up and try to massage the steel to it's former glory.

I found below new brackets, but they look different. The current, smashed brackets for reference. Let me see if I cam locate the old front bumper, at least I can use it for matching the bend & holes to the right spots.