The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Fender Welt

When replaceing the fender welt on the rear fenders of my 54 pickup do you use any sort of adhesive to hole the welt until you get it bolted in or is it just a dry fit?
Thanks

I dont think welt was used on the rear fenders, but heres a thread discussing it

https://www.stovebolt.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=645093&page=1

This member posted some pics a while back.

Good Luck

Nope, wasn't used on the pickup trucks. If you insist on having something between the rear fender and bed side then you might concider using tar paper/felt paper which is what they used for an anti-squeak gasket at the front.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

If you opt for installing the welt, I'd suggest you use weatherstrip adhesive to secure to fender flange - makes it a whole lot easier when bolting up the fender.

I don't agree with you Denny, at least for not all of the ADs. I bought a 51 3600 for parts when I was restoring my 53 3100. The 51 was a old farm truck with the bare essentials and it had fender welt on the rear fenders, in terrible shape but they were there. I doubt it very seriously if a farmer would have put this welt on the truck.

Boy Ron, that subject has been discussed literally hundreds of time on this site and a few of the others that I frequent. I’ve got a friend that believes that also because there was a ½ ton at the golf course that he worked at when he was a kid. After all these years you really don’t know what the previous owners or their kids may have done.
Visually I don’t see why they would use it at the rear because of the angle that you normally view the joint from. It’s a different story at the front because you see both sides of the joint straight on from the same angle and any discrepancy is quite obvious.
If fender welting were installed at the factory you would see a lot more examples of it. Instead what we find with nearly all of the AD’s is the fender bolted directly to the bedside and on very rare occasions one with beaded fender welting. It just seems logical to me that these odd balls are because a previous owner thought it would look better with the joint in trim.
Back when they were relatively new and the fasteners weren’t rusted tight, it would have been a simple matter to loosen the screws and slip welting in place. Would have been a nice easy project for after supper one evening.
So I guess what I’m saying is, unless I see documentation that some came from the factory with rear beaded welting I’m gonna go by what I’ve seen and what nearly all of the people that I’ve talked with have run into.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

I have parted/sold 10 A-D pick-ups and 13 bigger trucks in the last two years, the trucks were spread over 4 states and I have not seen any with fender welt on the rear fenders. If you look at your front fender welt it is die stamped with the appropriate cut-outs for bolts and bends. The point being if it is factory they would have done it the same way for the rears and someone would have some to show us. When you build 300,000 + trucks a year in multiple plants if you don't need to add something like that you don't. Think of it this way if it cost .50 cents a truck and you didn't need it would you add it?

don't any of youse have the 47-55 assembly manual? doesn't it show details like the welt installation, either/both front and back?

Bill

I use it all the time do you have a page number? I don't recall seeing anything on beds/rear fender installation in the manual?

that was a question Brad not a statement, I'm not into AD's - suprised the 47-55 manual wouldn't show installing fenders, in the 55-59 manual the rear fender install is under 'sheet metal', not with the bed assembly, and specifies application of "sealer" under the bolt flange

Bill

Bill,

Mine was a question too as I did not recall ever seeing anything in 47-54 version it has almost no information in it on beds.

Check out the 47-55 Chevrolet Truck Factory Assembly Manual

Section 11 (CAB AND SHEET METAL INSTRUCTION MANUAL)

Sheet 19.00 - REAR FENDER TO BODY & CENTER BRACE INSTRUCTION
Models 3102, 3103, 3104, 3112, 3604, 3804 (pickup truck models are in bold)
No anti-squeak is shown (rear fender is shown)

Sheet 20.00 - REAR FENDER & BODY ANTI_SQUEAK INSTRUCTION
Models 3105, 3106, 3107, 3116, 3805, 3807 (all panel body trucks)
Anti-squeak is shown (rear fender and beaded fender welting is shown)

I figgered there'd be an answer in the assy manual - interestingly, the TF 55-59 manual also shows the pickup fenders in section 11, sheet 19

Bill