The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Panels 'N Burbs Diference in track width between 40' & 50's?

I bought a 46 chev long WB panel.
www.enzoco.com/mike/truck
It was someone's unfinished project. The previous owner put a 2wd 1978 chev fullsize 3/4 ton pickup frame and driveline under it. The tires are out of the wheel wells, and I'm not happy with the look. After I finished drooling over twomany2count's pics of Large Marge, I found a rusted out 2wd longbed s10 pickup with a solid frame and 55k miles. I'm hoping the S10 track width is enough for my 41-46 panel body. I do have a spare rear from a 1991 4x4 s10
if a few more inches of rear width is needed. Has anyone put an S10 frame under a 41-46 panel that can lend some insight? Are the widths really close to the 50's trucks? Does Marge have a 4x4 rear end?
Thanks,
Mike V

Answering my own post. I raised the 46 panel truck way up in the air today and dragged the chassis out from under it with a golf cart. Not pretty, but it worked. The 2wd S10 rear with the stock rims and tires is a really tight fit in a 46 1 ton panel. Like maybe 1/2 inch of inside clearence on each side. The 4wd rear is a few (6 or 8?) inches wider, so it should be perfect. It actually will work out best for me, because my 2wd rear is a 3.08 open and the 4wd rear is a 3.42 positraction unit from a Typhoon. I'm taking pictures as I proceed. I will assemble them into a logical story so that maybe I can motivate someone the way Toomany2count did me with the LargeMarge pictoral. That was great.
Cheers from Cleveland, OH,
\Mike V

Looking forward to seeing those photos Mike!

Some history: I picked up a chesp S10 pickup truck on ebay because the part I *don't* need
was really rusty. The body is really bad on it.
It has 50k miles, and the frame is solid, it steers and stops great. AND being
a long bed 4.3, it has a better suspension than the shortbed 4cyl.
I went out to clean the garage yesterday, and looked at BigRed, the 41 panel truck
with disgust. Because I've been so busy at work, it has sat all summer.
Well, I towed it out of the garage with the golf cart, swept the place out
(instead of a planned super-cleaning) and tore into the panel.
I got the BigRed 46 body off of the over sized chevy pickup frame that
the previous owner attempted to put under it. .
Next I will need to separate body from chassis
on the S10. The S10 frame will need to be lengthened 17 inches
to fit BR's long wheelbase panel truck body. That's a new one for me,
but Marge has provided motivation. (Thanks Toomany2count)
I made a web page showing the day's activities.
www.enzoco.com/mike/truck
I will add to it as I proceed.
My html skills are poor, so let me know if there are dead links or pictures.
Cheers,
Mike V