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| | | | Joined: Sep 2006 Posts: 8 Junior Member | | Junior Member Joined: Sep 2006 Posts: 8 | Hi everyone,
I recently came across at '47 half-ton panel truck for sale, but I have a few questions before I commit to it. Most of them were answered in the forum, but I still have one that I haven't yet figured out.
I went and looked at the truck last weekend. It's pretty rough, but I don't think it's that bad. There's a lot of surface rust, but it doesn't seem to be rotten through anywhere. Apparently it's from somewhere in the Carolinas, and I don't think it's moved under its own power since it came to Ohio, so it probably hasn't seen our wonderful road salt.
I know that most of the parts from the front doors forward are interchangeable with the pickups, so they aren't too hard to find. I'll also need a new set of rear fenders, and I found a place that sells fiberglass replacements (thanks to this forum, actually).
My problem is this - part of the frame from around the rear doors is missing. It looks like it was cut out, and a couple cuts were made into the rear part of the roof. It looks like somebody wanted to put something in the back that was too tall for the doorway. The roof shouldn't be too tough to patch, but I need to replace the door frame. Is there any place that sells them? The place that has the truck also has a junkyard full of old trucks and such, and it looks like they've got a couple AD suburbans in there, but I could only see them from the front and side. Do the suburbans have the same door frame, or does it depend on which type (clamshell or barn) of doors it has? How hard would it be to remove the frame from another truck, assuming that one of them has it in decent shape? And if they don't have one that's usable, amd I stuck trying to fabricate something to replace the original door frame?
Any information is greatly appreciated. I'm hoping to go and make an offer this weekend, if it turns out that it can be repaired in any reasonable way.
Last edited by Peggy M; 05/28/2023 8:12 PM.
| | | | | Joined: May 2006 Posts: 8,351 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: May 2006 Posts: 8,351 | I think that the barn door Suburban will be the same. You might try to get the entire door(s) if they have them, rather than try to patch your existing ones. You'll save a lot of time and frustration.
Bill Burmeister
| | | | | Joined: Sep 2006 Posts: 8 Junior Member | | Junior Member Joined: Sep 2006 Posts: 8 | Originally posted by LONGBOX55:
I think that the barn door Suburban will be the same. You might try to get the entire door(s) if they have them, rather than try to patch your existing ones. You'll save a lot of time and frustration. Sorry, I probably should have phrased it differently.... the doors are OK, but the framework around the opening in the back of the truck is what I'm looking to repair, not the doors themselves. Thanks for the reply, though. | | | | | Joined: May 2006 Posts: 8,351 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: May 2006 Posts: 8,351 | Ohhhhh... Should still be the same, if the yard will let you cut out what you need. I'd see if they will let you cut out the entire frame and swap that in, rather than patching the old one.
Bill Burmeister
| | | | | Joined: Sep 2006 Posts: 8 Junior Member | | Junior Member Joined: Sep 2006 Posts: 8 | OK.... that's what I thought (and hoped) since it sounds like the rear doors are interchangeable between the panels and the 'burbs.
So... if I can't get what I need from the yard, how tough will it be to find a replacement? | | | | | Joined: Oct 2003 Posts: 5,152 Cruising in the Passing Lane | | Cruising in the Passing Lane Joined: Oct 2003 Posts: 5,152 | '47 is one of those years where there was a mid-year model change. Does this one look like a '46 or like a '48?
The distinction is important because I can speak to the '47 to '54 model but only guess about the '41 to '47...
1955 1st GMC Suburban | 1954 GMC 250 trailer puller project | 1954 GMC 250 Hydra-Matic | 1954 Chevy 3100 . 1947 Chevy COE | and more...
It's true. I really don't do anything but browse the Internet looking for trouble... | | | | | Joined: Sep 2006 Posts: 8 Junior Member | | Junior Member Joined: Sep 2006 Posts: 8 | Originally posted by OldSub:
'47 is one of those years where there was a mid-year model change. Does this one look like a '46 or like a '48?
The distinction is important because I can speak to the '47 to '54 model but only guess about the '41 to '47... It's the newer ('47-'53) style. | | | | | Joined: May 2006 Posts: 8,351 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: May 2006 Posts: 8,351 | Probably be pretty tough to find, no aftermarket parts like that being made. You might be able to have the section that you need made by a sheet metal shop.
Bill Burmeister
| | | | | Joined: Mar 2005 Posts: 31 Wrench Fetcher | | Wrench Fetcher Joined: Mar 2005 Posts: 31 | IF IT IS THE SAME AS THE 48 TO 53 I THINK I GOT THE PART.YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT.
STEVE | | | | | Joined: Mar 2005 Posts: 31 Wrench Fetcher | | Wrench Fetcher Joined: Mar 2005 Posts: 31 | I FOR GOT THE ROOF. I HAVE A BURB. AND WE CAN GET A PACTH FROM ALSO.
STEVE | | | | | Joined: Sep 2006 Posts: 8 Junior Member | | Junior Member Joined: Sep 2006 Posts: 8 | Thanks for all the info. I'm going to go and look at the truck again soon, hopefully this weekend. When I do, I'll be sure to take my camera so I can get some pictures of it.
jos48, I'd like to send you an email or a private message, but you seem to have both of those options turned off. | | | | | Joined: Mar 2005 Posts: 31 Wrench Fetcher | | Wrench Fetcher Joined: Mar 2005 Posts: 31 | Claancy
you can e-mail me at jos41chevyhotmail.com
Steve | | | | | Joined: Sep 2006 Posts: 8 Junior Member | | Junior Member Joined: Sep 2006 Posts: 8 | Good news - they sold me the rear door frame from one of the suburbans for $50. They're cutting it out for me sometime this week, and I'll be picking up my panel once I can make arrangements with a guy I know who has a car hauler. I'll probably be taking it home next weekend. | | | | | Joined: Sep 2001 Posts: 29,270 Bubba - Curmudgeon | | Bubba - Curmudgeon Joined: Sep 2001 Posts: 29,270 | Good news. Congratulations. If the rear door sill is good, that is even better. | | | | | Joined: Oct 2003 Posts: 5,152 Cruising in the Passing Lane | | Cruising in the Passing Lane Joined: Oct 2003 Posts: 5,152 | Congratulations! You'll love it, they are great trucks.
1955 1st GMC Suburban | 1954 GMC 250 trailer puller project | 1954 GMC 250 Hydra-Matic | 1954 Chevy 3100 . 1947 Chevy COE | and more...
It's true. I really don't do anything but browse the Internet looking for trouble... | | |
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