The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Big Bolts Cab floor rebuild 1950 1.5 ton

So, a few months ago I was driving along, minding my own business, when this 1950 Chevy 1.5 ton dump followed me home. It actually ran pretty well and drove OK, except that the cab floor was so rusty that the forward cab mounts didn't do anything. The cab had sunk down so that the pedals were hard to operate as they drug on the toeboard. The cab tilted one way or the other as you went around curves ... pretty un-nerving...

So, I got new floorpans, new front cab support mounts, a bunch of sheet metal and went to work. I jacked up the cab and went to work.

During the first weekend, I got everything solid. The captions tell the story:

http://picasaweb.google.com/luscombe334/DumpTruckFloor

During the next weekend, I finished things up ... and this thing is like a new truck: it's quiet and solid. My goal is not a restoration ... just a good, useable dump truck. For that purpose, I think it came out really well:

http://picasaweb.google.com/luscombe334/DumpTruckFloorPartII

Hopefully this is helpful to someone...

-Dan

Westminster, SC

Looks great Dan, thanks!

Great job Dan and welcome aboard!.

That looks really good. Well done. Who did you buy your floor mat from?

Thanks guys ... I'm really happy with the results. The change in the way the truck drives is amazing -- it went from a loud, scary (you know this thing should not be on the road) ride to a quiet, solid good riding truck!!

The floor mat came from Brothers. There were pieces of the original in amongst the rust, and this one looks pretty close to original. Quality seems good.

I guess I'm spreading this project out amongst all the vendors ... some of the stuff came from Jim Carter (pedal covers, transmission cover, cab mount kits), some from Brothers (front cab mounts, floor pans, firewall cover, floor mat), and now I have just ordered door stuff (windlace, handles, latches, strikers, etc) from American Classics. Service from all has been great so far.

I swore that this would not become a restoration, but I guess we all know that can be a slippery slope. Now that the floor is sound, the rattling of the doors is annoying and I'm determined to fix that... Who knows what is next?

This is a great group! This is my second trip into stovebolt land -- in high school, I drove and "restored" a 1954 3/4 ton ... still have it, but it is languishing. Not sure why this old dump truck has my attention, but it's great to be back into the stovebolts!

Take care,

-Dan

1950 Chevy 1 1/2 ton dump "Debbie Dumptruck"
1954 Chevy 3/4 pickup "Big Bertha"

Thanks a lot Dan. The floor in my 3800 Dump isn't quite as bad, but I really didn't have any idea what was involved in fixing it until now.

i looked at the pics and thats the same thing im trying to figure out how to do it please send me links to brothers and jim carters i have no clue how to find them yet btw the pics were very helpful in showing me where to start n how to go thanks so very much

Perry,

This site is so full of useful information that it is usually overwhelming when trying to find something.

All the well-known vendors of parts can be found by going to the Links section (there is also a Links button at the top of every page of this forum).

Then click on Parts

Then scroll down the list of vendors by years, Jim Carter sells parts for 34-72 trucks and and Brothers sells parts for 47-72 trucks.

Some vendors have good photos. And, by looking at a few vendors' on-line catalogs, you can get an idea of what parts work for different years (American Classic Truck Parts, for example) and work on different sizes of trucks (Jim Carter, for example).

Whenever you buy any parts, request a free hard copy catalog be included in your shipment.

Another overwhelming section of this forum are the Tech Tips. Take a look and get an idea of the types of advice, experiences, and tecgniques included there.

Tim

American Classic Truck Parts provides monetary support so this forum can exist. Most people report that most vendors provide good service most of the time. Any vendor might have defective or low quality parts but competition works in our favor, and almost all vendors will make good on a defective or unsatisfactory part.

tim thank you so very much im learning this site more and more and loven it more and more
the pics of your 50 floor replacement are just the ticket for me my cab has as much rust if not more than yours after looken at your pics i have a much better idea and i think i can fix this old truck up to look pretty nice
agin thank you so very much

looks great. did you cover up your pto handle hole? or are you going to still cut a new slot for it?

great job did you cut it with a torch or grinder or air hammer or plasma torch heres a pic of what im up aginst
http://s427.photobucket.com/albums/pp359/oldwestrnwear/?action=view&current=scan0054.jpg

i know i have looked at these pics 50 times or more im still amazed at them i cant wait to start on mine

dam i must admit after closer look at my 63 c60 cab floor im in no way even close to as much rust as yours my hats off to you for the wonderful pics and info thanks agin