The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Big Bolts 2 Ton NAPCO Pickup

My new plan for the 2-ton NAPCO gear I got with my '54 6400, is to install the 4x4 system in a '50 6100 I recently bought. I like the short wheelbase a little better than the long one and the '50 truck is in great condition.

I'm usually an "all original" type of guy, but I'm leaning towards making this truck a 2-ton pickup. The wheelbase is the same as the 1 ton trucks, so I think I'm going to go to single rear wheels and put on a 9 foot long pickup bed.

Anybody seen one of these, or have some ideas/recommendations? If anybody has a lead on a 9' bed, please let me know. I think it'll be a cool truck when I'm done and it will be easy to return to original if I change my mind down the road.

Thanks, George

George,
Sounds like a great plan -- but finding the 9-foot bed is going to be a little challenging. It can be done, though. The bed sides are one thing, but the curved bed to running board panels and the running boards will be a trick. My running boards came from a guy at Carlisle who didn't know what they were and the same for the curved panels (but from a yard in Arizona).

The hunt is on! If anyone can find them, you can. Best to know the measurements and take your tape measure with you when you go to the big swap meets as the 3/4-ton pieces look close (but they're shorter). I can measure mine if you want me to.

Why not leave it a dually? That would look cool -- lots of 4-wheel drive P/U conversions around. a big dually would be different. Or do you want to put super singles on it?

S/F
John

I think he doesn't want to mess with the fenders or tails on the running boards where they fit the fenders.

I also have one I cam measure, or you could stop by and take a look.

The curved filler panels I'm thinking will be pretty simple to make.

Because George has a 2 ton we'll need to do some checking on how the running boards mount, and the height in relation to the fenders. I know the 1 ton cab and chassis boards are different form the 1.5 and 2 ton boards, the distance from the step to the top of the riser is different. This could be a problem making running boards line up with the big truck front fenders and the small truck rear fenders. Possibly the bed can be set closer to the frame, or farther away depending on how the measurements come out, no more than 2" one way or the other I'm thinking.

Grigg

John,

I like the dually 4x4 look, but like Grigg said, I'd rather not have to mess with widening the rear fenders. Having single rear wheels would also allow me to put the truck in my garage, which is handy.

Grigg brings up something I hadn't thought about... lining up the running boards with the big bolt front fenders and normal rear fenders... that's why I posted here. If it can't be figured out, I have also thought of using an old military 101? trailer for a bed.

Another possible option, since my frame from the cab to the rear is under 8', is to use an 8' bed and move the rear fenders
back. I'm sure I could get Mar-K to make 8' bedsides with no fender holes. I don't have a 9' bed around to take measurements from, but from pictures in the gallery, it looks like 9' beds have well over a foot extending past the rear fenders. I brought up a pic of a 1 ton longbed on my computer screen and used a piece of paper to block out about a foot of the bed and it looked great. I would still need to find the running boards/curved filler panels, but are there any obvious reasons why this wouldn't work?

I think I need to visit Grigg's truck laboratory and do some measuring/brain picking! I took the dump bed off the 6100 last week, so I'm ready for action. I might even try to get the NAPCO front axle swapped over this week.

Thanks, George

I have actually thought about doing the same thing with my 56 1.5 ton GMC I think it is a great idea.
I was thinking it would be great to use the big truck front fenders for all the clearance for a set of 44” swampers as far as the rear fenders I was thinking if a guy were to get 4 good rear fenders and cut one set into fourths with two straight lines one vertical and on horizontal you could use the other set to make filler panels and stretch the first set. Essentially make you own big truck rear fenders just stretch them the same as GM stretched the fronts.
I also have a 71 Chevy 1 ton dulie that I have thought about making a dulie pick-up box for buy using the fenders off of a step side and grafting part of them to a wide box as dulies were all cab and chassis and they had no dulie pick-ups

I saved this picture of a 54 4100 Pickup that was on eBay a few years ago. You can see they got a little creative with the rear fenders. Not bad.