| |
BUSY BOLTERS Are you one?  The Shop Area
continues to pull in the most views on the Stovebolt. In August alone there were over 22,000 views in those 13 forums.
| | Click on image for the lowdown. 
====
| | |
4 members (68ironhead, JW51, jmoore, 1 invisible),
560
guests, and
2
robots. | | Key: Admin,
Global Mod,
Mod | | | Forums66 Topics126,776 Posts1,039,271 Members48,100 | | Most Online2,175
Jul 21st, 2025 | | | | Joined: Jan 2009 Posts: 256 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: Jan 2009 Posts: 256 | Matt Hall
Southington CT
gkmjhall@msn.com
After posting a million little questions on here the past two years I figured it was about time I submit my truck to the gallery.
The truck is a 1953 Chevy 3600, aptly named Fern. From 1895 till 1969 my family owned a dairy named Ferndale Diary. In 1969 the processing plant caught fire and was a total loss. Of the fleet of trucks and Divcos Fern is the only Ferndale truck still around.
My grandfather bought the truck new in 1953 for the dairy mechanic to use. Since the stock bumper is fairly weak he swapped it out for two Divco milk truck bumpers stacked and welded together. This way he could push stuck Divcos with his truck. Sometime in the early 1960's the mechanic got a new truck and my grandfather started driving Fern. Once the dairy burned down in 1969 the truck sat around for a few years before getting hauled off to the family farm.
It sat inside a barn at the farm till the early 2000's when it was dragged out into a field to make some space in the barn. From then to March 2009 it sat under a tarp.
I had wanted a project car for a while, despite having exactly no mechanical experience. After originally looking into old VW bugs I remembered about the old truck sitting in the farm field. I first looked at it in January 2009. I knew right then I wanted it. Since it was buried in deep snow I had to wait till spring to have it towed home.
In March the snow was finally gone so I had the truck towed home. With it finally sitting it my driveway it was hard not to think "what have I gotten myself into?" The years had not been kind to it, but it was a piece of family history so I at least had to give it a shot.
So over two years of hard work later and it is finally done. The only work I didn't do myself on the truck were the king pins and carburetor rebuild. All it took was one step at a time and a lot of assistance from very generous Stovebolt members.
Since the truck had a new look I figured it needed a name too. My brother jokingly started to call the truck Fern and much to my initial dismay, the name stuck. Now I happy to call the truck Fern.
Its been in my family for 58 years so far, and it'll definitely stay in the family for 58 more.
Last edited by Peggy M; 04/26/2025 9:23 PM.
| | | | | Joined: Sep 2009 Posts: 433 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: Sep 2009 Posts: 433 | Matt what a great job you did in restoring Fern!!! Thanks for sharing the family history and all the pics...
1954 Chevy 3104 3 Window Hydra-Matic in my family for over 60 Years
Once in a while you get shown the light in the strangest of places if you look at it right... "Scarlet Begonias" Grateful Dead 1974
| | | | | Joined: Dec 2001 Posts: 14,522 Moderator: Welcome Centre, Southern Bolters, Legion Hall | | Moderator: Welcome Centre, Southern Bolters, Legion Hall Joined: Dec 2001 Posts: 14,522 | Matt, you are to be commended for sticking with it and not letting it rust into the ground or worst yet crushed and sent to china.
That is a great story that will be with discussed in the family for meny years. Hey, I'm also glad you left the front bumper like it was. That in itself will start many conversations.
Thanks for sharing such a nice story. Made my day. | | | | | Joined: Oct 2010 Posts: 1,232 'Bolter | | 'Bolter Joined: Oct 2010 Posts: 1,232 | Matt -
That was a labor of love in record time. Really a wonderful job. I especially liked the before / after pics that were taken in the same spot. Thanks for sharing your truck and your story.
- Lonnie My '54 3104Photos that I have shared on Stovebolt via PhotoBucket are no longer available. Please contact me if you want a photo from an old post. lonniecook [at] aol [dot] com. I sold my '54 3104 12/12/2017, but I still visit Stovebolt. OLD STUFF ... houses, furniture, cars, wine ... I love it all | | | | | Joined: Nov 2004 Posts: 2,317 Former Workshop Owner | | Former Workshop Owner Joined: Nov 2004 Posts: 2,317 | | | | | | Joined: Apr 2004 Posts: 438 Shop Shark | | Shop Shark Joined: Apr 2004 Posts: 438 | Magnificent!!!!  Thank you for sharing! | | | | | Joined: May 2005 Posts: 235 Shop Shark | | Shop Shark Joined: May 2005 Posts: 235 | Nice work! What a great story too! Where did you find those mirrors? I need those for my truck! | | |
|
|
| |
