Hey guys! I have my dad's 1949 3100. For decades it sat at the farm down the dirt road from Dad's place. I think it spent its whole life on that farm, and Dad always admired it. My dad ended up with the truck after the old farmer passed on. I don't know the whole story, but I think the family let him have it as gratitude for the help Dad gave them over the years.
Dad put a battery in it and drove it home. It needed brake work and he parked it in the barn. He tinkered on it, but I don't think it ever left the barn again. That was 30 years before I hauled it out.
I'm really grateful that I have the truck, and feel close to Dad when I work on it. I had to rip all the soft stuff out of the interior due to the stink and carcasses. I followed the threads on this site for getting an old stovebolt going again...new battery cables, checked basic timing, new fuel filter, etc. And you know, she fired up and seems to run pretty good. Got the radiator re-cored and the water pump rebuilt. That's going back together now.
Dad always wanted to fix what needed fixing and get it driving again. Not a resto-mod or a show truck. I'm so glad I had those conversations with him, and I am honoring that approach. It's a neat truck.
Glad to be here, and thanks for all the help already!
1939 Packard Standard Eight Coupe (The Phantom) | 1956 Cadillac Coupe de Ville (The Bismarck) | 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 coupe |1966 Ford Mustang (Little Red) | 1969 Pontiac GTO (The Dishpit) I 1979 Ford F-100 | 1976 Ford F-150 (Big Red) | 1995 Ford F-150 (Newt)
Thanks for sharing your family connection and background with the truck. It looks to have cleaned up very nicely!
It's great that you're honoring your Dad's approach to bring the truck back to life and getting it driving once again will be an incredible feeling.
Keep us posted on the continued work and please do ask questions in the respective Shop Area Forums as we all love to offer whatever help we can in achieving your goal.
PS - Great job on the pictures!
~ Dan 1951 Chevy 3 window 3100 Follow this story in the DITY Gallery "My Grandpa Carl's Truck and How it Became Mine" 1966 Chevelle (Wife's Hot Rod) | 2013 Chevy Silverado (Current daily driver) US Army MSG Retired (1977-1998) | Com Fac Maint Lead Tech Retired (1998-2021)
What happened to the passenger side mirror missing in the "after" photo?
1950 Chevrolet 3100 (Ol' Roy)
1939 Packard Standard Eight Coupe (The Phantom) | 1956 Cadillac Coupe de Ville (The Bismarck) | 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 coupe |1966 Ford Mustang (Little Red) | 1969 Pontiac GTO (The Dishpit) I 1979 Ford F-100 | 1976 Ford F-150 (Big Red) | 1995 Ford F-150 (Newt)
That passenger side mirror just clamps onto the door frame. I guess it was an aftermarket thing. It wasn't real secure so I removed it for the trailer ride home. But your question made me go look thru my stuff to find it!
Jeff - Speaking of rearview mirrors, your drivers side one is actually the extendable arm style used for the "Big Bolt" trucks to see beyond the big beds they had. Looks like the original farmer maybe installed that so he could see better around stuff he may have hauled in the bed or perhaps he had a trailer.
A cool Previous Owner (PO) installed option.
~ Dan 1951 Chevy 3 window 3100 Follow this story in the DITY Gallery "My Grandpa Carl's Truck and How it Became Mine" 1966 Chevelle (Wife's Hot Rod) | 2013 Chevy Silverado (Current daily driver) US Army MSG Retired (1977-1998) | Com Fac Maint Lead Tech Retired (1998-2021)
That's neat info Dan! That driver's side mirror is something! Looks like the farmer welded a nut onto it about half way up the arm. Not sure what he attached there. The truck is covered in that kind of stuff, and it's all really rough. Spare tire mounts and platforms welded to the running board just behind the cab. The rear bumper is a heavy duty one I have seen on other trucks, and he has a rough-cut bumper hitch welded to it. I have nice stock front and rear bumpers, extra straight running boards, and even an extra straight bed box. Not sure if or when I will swap out any of it. I kind of like the story it tells.
He had sheet metal welded onto the bed floor, I guess for hauling grain or seed or something. I cut it out to clean up all the debris under it. The wood slats are mostly intact. He had license plates covering up the holes. Very cool. They were too far gone to salvage. I will be on the lookout for some vintage plates to put back in there.
Jeff your truck has lots of stories to tell. What's great is it's up to you and your vision on what you keep, change or refresh. My truck is very similar, with many unique things my Grandpa did to it decades before it became mine. If your interested, feel free to take a little tour of my DITY Gallery Thread. Many of those unique things remain intact to this day.
Creating your own DITY is an option you can do as well, if you'd like to build a story to document your truck's story, past, present and future.
PS - I'm sure Peggy, our Admin, will be asking me again soon on just when I'm going to get back to updating my DITY? All I can say is SOON - hahaha.
~ Dan 1951 Chevy 3 window 3100 Follow this story in the DITY Gallery "My Grandpa Carl's Truck and How it Became Mine" 1966 Chevelle (Wife's Hot Rod) | 2013 Chevy Silverado (Current daily driver) US Army MSG Retired (1977-1998) | Com Fac Maint Lead Tech Retired (1998-2021)
All I can say is SOON - hahaha. 