The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Where is the crank bracket mounted?

I've got a 1950, 3604 that I am adding a crank to the tool box. I have a picture of the crank bracket and and I am going to fab one, but where is it mounted on the truck??
I'm making a crank to keep under the seat from a 36" length of 3/4" round stock with a 1/4" x 1 1/2" dowel pin through the business end. Hope it is going to be strong enough using a 1020 Cold Rolled round stock.
Denny Graham
Sandwich,

You are strong enough to hand crank an inline six but not strong enough to place a head back on? LOL,
Scott

The crank is handy for adjusting valves and initial timing, not just for starting. Learn how to do it properly if you have never started a vehicle with a crank.

I tried to hand crank my 216 once and ended up with blisters, a whacked arm, and an elongated hole in the grill lower filler pan. I know where I would like to mount that hand crank.

Don

Come on Scott, quit pickin' on me! Holding 75lbs at arms length while leaning over a fender is a little different than spinning a 6:1 compression engine over once in a while. It’s mostly for effect anyway to keep under the seat/tool box. Or just maybe for an emer-gency if the battery does get stolen on me in the middle of the desert. Now if ya wanta help me out with my original question, i.e., where’s the bracket mounted I’d appreciate that!

Yep, Baldy, I’ve started model A’s for the fun of it and hand propped my biplane sometimes. Pop was a journeyman mechanic from the old school back in the 20’s and 30’s. He broke an arm starting his Dodge once and taught me the respect due the hand crank early on. Ya just don’t want to shake hands with it like it was a long lost friend. I was a kid growing up in the 40’s and 50’s and the only thing that really needed any hand crankin’ was the John Deere. And your correct, it's easier than pullin the engine thru with the fan blade, like I was doing a couple of weeks ago for an inital valve adjustment.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

I'm just teasin'. If I were to guess at where to stow it, I would say under the seat, with everything else,
Scott

can you get the crank thru the grill of a 50 without damaging the bars and have it line up properly?

Denny, Do you have a bracket to hold the crank?
I have never seen one, I've owned several AD's during my life but if it had a crank it was just loose under the seat with the jack.

NO, NO, NO, you guys are missing the target! I expect the crank handle to rattle around under the seat, that’s part of the charm, I'm talking about the "starting crank support bracket" that supports the front of the crank when it's inserted. It's mounted somewhere up front, around the grill. There's a picture of one in Chev's of the 40's catalog on page 54. They did away with them with the advance design trucks and I was just wondering where it was mounted on the earlier models. My guess is that it mounted on the center bumper bolt.
Yes, it looks like a straight shot through the grill, I think it will just barely clear the notch in the lower radiator tank. I have the radiator out but the measurements look good and I think I sighted it once before and it looked close. Gonna have to have it chrome plated or it just taint gonna look good.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

Denny,
Go for it on the crank, I was given one recently but don't have anything to use it on. I had a 1932 coupe years back and hand cranked it. My uncle with a Model "T" F**d taught me to hand crank his "T" and when you know how it's not too hard. Just make sure you don't put your thumb around the crank so you can get out of the way when it kicks back. Lots of broken arms back in the old days from not knowing this trick. Another thing, always start pulling up so if it kicks your arm is on the way out of the crank's path. A chrome plated one will look good when you clean out under the seat too.

NO, NO, NO again, I mean chrome plated bracket, man that darn bracket keeps getting lost doesn't it! Taint gonna chrome plate the crank, it's just gonna rattle round under the seat.
You got it right on the startin procedures, like I said, ya dont wanta hold hands with the crank, just kinda pull it round an out one turn, case she kicks back!
Think we bout wore this one out guys.
Denny G

on my 38 the bracket is mounted center of the bumper. the bolt holding it holds nothing else it is dedicated to holding the bracket alone.

Hey Denny????
When you get it figured out??? I'd love to see the photo's of the finished product....as I would love to do the same thing on my '49.... and a chrome plated crank support bracket in front of the grill.. would look awesome...
Michael

I would "hide" it just inside the grill, but that would require a bunch of disassembly and fab work to make it strong enough,
Just throwin' out my opinion here,
Scott

I have never seen a crank bracket on a AD. Have I missed something? Also, I don't think the ADs came with a crank. I do know they came with a jack and lug wrench. In my 53 restoration packet, there is no mention of a crank! I think the indent at the bottom of the radiator and the provision for a crank at the harmonic balancer is just a carryover from the ART DECO days.

The only thing a hand crank was good for after the electric starter was protection. I always wondered why they continued to provide those slots in the pully. I guess some of the old guys didn't trust those "new fangled contraptions".

Right you are AD, that's what I said this mornin;
"They did away with them with the advance design trucks and I was just wondering where it was mounted on the earlier models."
I'm beting that there were a lot of those Advance Design farm trucks back in the '50s that had a crank under the seat and a make shift bracket mounted on the bumper. I know mine is gonna be set up for it. Just because the book don't list it, doesn't mean they never used it.
Denny G

Denny,

Here's a pic of the front of my 46, showing the location of the bracket you're looking for. As you can see, it isn't chrome, but it is mounted to the center of the front bumper.

As for the AD having the crank discontinued??? I would agree on the later AD models. However, I think some of the early AD's still come with cranks.

The old farmer I bought my 46 from has an original 48, and he's sure got a crank with it.

See Here!

It looks like a crank was neither standard equipment nor an option or accessory on most Advance-Design trucks but, as Jed stated, it looks like it was available in 1947 and might have be available into 1948 (as least with the 3103 Commercial, Utility vehicle in 1948) - see link to the Master Parts Catalog, below.

A crank was available from 1937-19...model. (thank you Kieth Hardy for TOCMP)

How/where is the crank positioned on an A-D truck (through the center hole in the front bumper)?

Tim

Thanks for the pic Jed, very nice lookin 46.

Of course I’ve read the parts manuals, accessories pamphlets and all, and realize that it was not an option in 1950.

But if I were a profitable farmer in the fall of 1950, (I know, the two don’t really go together) I would have stopped by my local Chevy dealer on my weekly trip in for mama’s groceries. And had the parts guy order me one to keep under the seat, just incase I drained the battery getting the Farmall H started.

Tim, over the bumper and pan and between the two lower grill bars (notched out for it) under the radiator (notched out for it) then slides into the home plate.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

Denny,

Glad to be of help, and thanks for the positive comments on the truck.

This has been an informative thread for me, as I always believed all of these old trucks, (at least up until 1954) came with an auxillary hand crank.

They all certainly came with a crank hole in the grill structures.

Tim, the link you posted may have the answer to why the farmer's 48 has a crank. It's either a ton and-a-half, or a 2-ton truck. I would assume that either of those classifications would come with a "Commercial" label?

Hey Tim, got a question for ya. This is off subject here but I think we bout covered it all when it comes the a three foot chunk of 3/4 round stock.
Do you have any idea where Keith found the 1929-1957 master parts catalog to scan? I bought the catalog that the vendors are selling but it only goes up to 1950. There has been many times that I had wished for a later parts listing in hard copy.
Is it being reproduced? And one other thing, when I worked as a Chevy parts man back around '60, I never remember seeing any thing like these. we always had a large, 6inch thick post binder that we would update with revisions every week or so.
So obvously there is a lot of information being left out of the "Master Parts Catalogs" that are on the market now.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

Denny,

The 1929-1954 Chevrolet Master Parts Catalog is often listed on eBay. The 1929-57 and 1929-62 MPCs are less commonly listed. I have a 29-54 but I am looking for a 29-62.

Kieth Hardy put a lot of work into posting the 29-57 MPC on TOCMP web site. He has indexed it very nicely - things can be readily found (better than a hardcopy MPC).

Tim

Naw, there tain't nutin' better that a Hard Copy! That said, I agree with ya on the effort that Kieth has invested, he's done an absolutly outstanding job with his site. I'm constantly in awe of it everytime I go there. We all need to keep in mind that it helps to support an effort like his once a year or so. I'm sure that a couple of bucks from anyone that uses the site would help garantee keeping it there.
So let me get this straight, your saying that Chevrolet, (GM) published these abridged hard bound MPCs to the dealerships? I was never aware of that.
I wonder if there are any plans for anyone to reprint the 1929-1962 edition like they did the 1929-1950?
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

My crank support is supposed to be on the bumper. It's in a box in my garage right now.

Jed - a picture is worth a thousand words and you just proved it. Great looking truck too! Looking at your picture makes it clear to me why I elongated the hole in the lower filler pan.

Denny you still have a open invite to come on over here to Western IL and take all the pictures and measurements you may need to. I still have the 51' 3/4 ton I am working on when time allows. It does have the crank, the housing on the end of the crankshaft and the hole through the bottom of the grill below the bumper. I unfortunately am not sure what you may need pictures or measurements of and can not get pictures of some areas you may need. I am about 90 miles west of Springfield, IL. not exactly sure where Sandwich, IL is.

I'm stupid and ask stupid questions.

If you stick the handle in the front of the harmonic balancer and get the engine started the whole thing starts to turn. Like a propeller. It is a good thing to have that support on the front so it doesn't wobble too badly. I hope you get your hand(s)out of the way and don't have your thumb hooked.

How do you get it out? Does the truck spit it out? Or is there a trick to this?

The visuals of this make me smile.

You can laugh at me now.

d

The truck spits it out unless it backfires, then it eats it and you.

The socket on the harmonic balancer is designed with a "swirl" (for lack of a better word) that kicks the two engaging pins on the crank handle back as the engine speed exceeds your speed. The problem is that this is not an exact science and sometimes it likes to tenderize your forearm prior to eating it. :blat:

Denny - Here is a photo of the Hand Crank Support Bracket . It is at the chrome shop.

Yep, that's it Don, thanks. It looks just like the one pictured in the Chevs of the 40's catalog. I made up a cardboard template to get the length correct for mine and I have scaled the width from your picture in Photoshop. Looks like about 2" side and the slot is 1.25 across. The only thing I'm not sure of is what the original thickness was. I'm assuming it would have to be about 1/8". I picked up a 36" piece of 3/4" round stock last weekend and need to pull the damper before I can use the crank. The crank slot has been mushroomed over ever so slightly and the 3/4" shaft won't slide in, I turned a plug to .740 and it goes. Some back yard butcher using a BFH to drive the damper on at one time or another bent the tips a little. I'll repair that when I pull the engine this fall.
Thanks for the help.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL