The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Big Bolts need info on a 48 chevy 1 ton single wheel truck p

hey guys i have a guy wanting to trade me a 1948 3 window single rear wheel 1 ton beast of a truck with a step side rear bed, looks from the pics like its in good shape he said everything was there except the generator an easy fix, 4 speed on floor, going out this Thursday with camera and look it over.for a m1 garand i have 500.00 into

has orig 17in split rims on it with orig hubcaps still on it. few questions: prob 216 and a 514? rear end gearing??

what would be a comfortable driving speed for this truck if its 216 granny 4 speed and low rear end? im thinking 40mph??? wouldnt want to wind it up tight,

i live in a small town and she would only be used for putting around and back and forth to the home depot thoughts on this truck and driving speeds guys?

how good of a deal dose this sound guys? THEN i have to work on the boss cause it wont fit inside the garage...

Those nine foot beds are hard to come by, and real useful for trips to Home Depot and such. If the limited speed doesn't bother you I'd say snap it up!

Of course I say that as someone who has bought four of these old 1-tons in the last few years, and has yet to get even one of them on the road...

Jump on it and enjoy it sounds like a great find.

who else is driving this big of a truck everyday driver or fun ride with 216 17in wheels and orig low geared rearends around??? whats a comfortable road speed on these ol gals?

Hey dbone
I drive a 1950 one ton. Its a 216, with the 5.14 rear, and 17 splits. I drive the truck 35-40 miles a day, in a rural, and city environment. I get about 16 mpg, if I just let the truck determine my speed. I find I'm in fourth at about 20mph unloaded. So its not ever screaming. It runs really nice at 45mph. It'll easily do 50, even with two thousand pounds in the box.
I've got a short grain-box-flatdeck. I love the volume, but the nine foot bed is so cool. I'd go for it. When you park next to a half ton, they look so tiny and low. In fact, 15 inch wheels parked next to you will look like your hubcaps fell off. The big brakes are great as well. Even loaded it stops easier than my '49 pontiac.
If you have any specific questions, just PM me.

We used to drive Dad's '46 1 ton pickup at LEAST 45 to 50 mph all the time. In fact I think it was usually faster than that. (actually, we whaled the crap out of it!!! )

The old 216 eventually did bite the dust, and was replaced with a later 235.

Actually, though, 45-50 was a good comfortable speed for it.

When I first got it, mine felt like it was screaming at 48-50mph. It was happy at 35-40mph. But if I stuck a 2-3,000 lb load in the box she'd trundle along nicely at 50, although I wouldn't want to have kept it up all day. One of the first things I did was try to find replacements for the rotten tires. I ended up changing out to 235/85R16LT tires on used aluminum rims at a lot lower cost than original-type bias tires would have set me back - the only ones I could find were Chinese - and I am well pleased with the ride: smoother and quieter than original, and excellent tractability in snow.

I have since changed the pumpkin out to a 1972 unit with a 4.10 ratio, and that, too, has been worth it. She went from being the most awful fuel hog to not that bad. I can now cruise easily at 60mph or more, and 55 is a thoroughly relaxed speed. Before I did this I found low gear completely useless and I was always in top gear. Now, what I have is a well-balanced, good-looking, astonishingly hard-working truck. It gets more attention at shows, too, than your basic lowered 1/2 tonner. Not that that matters much, but it does feel good.

Oh, and for what it's worth, I paid more than 4 times that for mine. But that doesn't matter so much, because I just stole this one here: https://www.stovebolt.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=517977#Post517977 so now I'm even.