The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk hi,i,m a newbe and need to learn a bit fast

hi im spanners and new to the site but i,ve gone and jumped in feet first i,m about to buy in the next few weeks or even days (with a bit of luck)
a part restored 1951 chevy tow truck but i,m not 100% shure of its correct model and id
i,v been told its an august 1951 kansas built truck with a 235 motor and its production number 3324 and that it was built as a tow truck it has a pto powered winch and the remaims of a crane but the jib was junked when it was put in a container for shipping and the bed has been junked since allthough i have seen a photo of what was left of the bed i know its on 8 stud wheels but its original wheels have been replaced with alloys. i,m hoping some one can tell me more about what model it is/was
i,v been into trucks and towing all my life but never owned one of these
many thanks in advance
mike,(spanners)

Hi, and welcome! With the 8-lug bolt pattern on the wheels, it's possible your truck has either a 3/4 ton or a 1-ton capacity rating. Does it have single or dual rear wheels? The series number will also help to identify it. I believe a "3600" series chassis is 3/4 ton, and a "3800" will be the 1-ton rating. Our resident tow truck expert is Spanky Hardy, and I'm sure he will chime in soon to correct any errors I've made so far.

If you plan to rebuild any of the missing towing equipment, be sure it's made at least as strong as original, and stronger is usually better. I spent a lot of time doing towing and wreck recovery, including rigs in the 40-ton and up weight range. No matter how strong a tow truck is built, there's an operator out there somewhere who can overload it!
Jerry

If your truck has the data plate on the driver side door frame write the numbers down and enter them here:
http://www.stovebolt.com/techtips/vin/vinbuster.html

It will confirm if your information is correct and also if it is a 3600/3800 Model

hi, jerry ,thanks for youre reply
i understand about building recovery equipement as i have built and worked heavy recovery * a lot over the years as it was part of my job
but due to a heart /stroke scare a couple of years back i no longer hold a heavy goods vehicle licence
so smaller trucks it is for me now
hence the chevy.

it is on single rear wheels which is one thing i doubted was right but the seller says it has allways been that way ,,but he can,t tell how he knows ?? strange,,thinks I,

i,m hoping someone will tell me how to I,D. the winch which is pto driven but i may find out more about that when i visit the truck again later this week
this seems like the place to be asking all the questions so i may keep em coming and i,ll try to post some photo,s when i get some good one,s and work out how to do it.
by the way the seller has the truck listed on ebay in the uk at the moment but he,s going to pull the listing now i,m buying
if you can veiw ebay i,d be gratefull of youre opinion
thanks

(He found the link)

I can't see any series identification, as it's usually on the side of the hood (bonnet?) below the "Chevrolet" nameplate. The front axle is definitely 3/4 ton, and the rear end appears to be the same capacity. The front spindles and brake drums would be larger and set up differently for a 1-ton.

It looks like there has been some major modification to the frame where the winch is mounted. I can't tell if the frame length has been altered, but the work definitely does not look like a factory job. Usually, a tow truck would have been assembled by an independent contractor such as the Ernest Holmes company of Chattanooga, Tennessee from a cab and chassis supplied by a General Motors dealer- - - -the factory did not do custom work such as building tow trucks. That one's quite a project- - - -good luck!
Jerry

cheers jerry i think ,tow champ, was mentioned at one point

the chassis has been ,stiffened,, i,d have made a different job of it...

but the winch looks a proper type of thing and the pto fits correctly.

not to keen on the price £6000 uk - pounds is a lot but i dont now what that would be in dollars

but there isnt many of these trucks in the uk,,

do you think its exspensive ? ? the only other way to get one is to buy in the state,s and have it shipped over but the shipping cost and customs and import dutie,s spoil it

6000 British pounds is about 9200 US dollars.

just found out that its 8800lbs capacity maybe this will help i.d the model ?

looked the truck over allthough the building she,s in is a bit dark found out the winch on it is a ,tullsa, i think i spelt that right
anyone know anything about them

also been told the pto has forward and reverse but not shure as i couldnt try it when i looked her over this afternoon

there alot to do to put her right loads of money been spent but in all the wrong place,s so alot to re-do

just got to get the price down

going to have to think of a name for her any suggestion ????????

"Wrencher" "Fetch" "Toe Truck" or since you can hang'em high how about just plain "Harry" ...or Moe or Curly.

May as well through in Buckwheat, Alfalfa, or Delores... How about Spanky.... but the Real Spanky may not like it

Hey, how about ALVIN

how about just plain old ,,STOVEBOLT,,, OR ,,,BOLTER,,,

i keep doing my research but i,m awaiting the details of the vin plate as the seller had taken it off and it was in a box at his home ,
i looked over the truck at his place of work

i,m starting to think it maybe a 1ton but on single rear wheels
could i be correct ????
it may have been converted from twin rears as the wheels are very heavy duty alloys

yipeee i got the vin details

5js-h 3324

which according to the vin buster

says its

august 1951
3800 1 ton
137 w/base
kansas city, mo

but should,nt it be on twinn rears ? ? ?

i,m still learning !!

There was a 4-wheel version of the 3800, which was used mostly for a long wheelbase pickup. If the truck was originally equipped with dual rear wheels, the front hubs would have included a heavy spacer between the brake drum and the wheel mounting surface which moved the track width of the front wheels out about 2 inches on each side. This allowed the front hubs to run the same deep-offset wheels that were necessary for dual rear wheels. Unless someone has changed the front hubs at sometime in the past, the truck had 4 wheels originally, not 6. My 1959 3800 was set up with a 10-foot flatbed and dual rear wheels. It had the extended-width front hubs.
Jerry

any body know which transmission (g,box)will be in the above mentioned truck
i,v got a feeling its only a 3 speed i was hoping it was a 4 speed how can they be identified by looking at from the outside the cab was part in bits and full of junk the other day so i couldt try the box
anybody got ant photo,s ??

An original 1951 3-sped transmission would have a shift-lever on the steering column.
http://chevy.oldcarmanualproject.com/shop/1948_51truck/51ctsm0702.htm

An original 1951 4-speed transmission would have shift lever in the middle of the floorboard.
http://chevy.oldcarmanualproject.com/1929_54chevyparts/04/221.HTM
http://chevy.oldcarmanualproject.com/shop/1948_51truck/51ctsm0714.htm

thanks for that tim ,

i,m allmost shure now that its a 4 speed like i hoped.. its definitely floor change.
and as in the second pic the h/brake is mounted on the side of the tansmission..

i,m still trying to find out as much as i can about this truck.

espeically any good photo,s and details about the crane/jib that was on it thats now lost i beleive it to have been made by ,tow champ,, like the one on david colters (54tow) in the gallery
i,d be very gratefull for any photo,s or details

if any one want to pm me i,ll give them my email so they can send photo,s direct to me or just post a link on here
thanks.

still, looking for tow crane/jib details or any other information that maybe usefull

looks like me buying this has fell through


the sellers put the price up

so high that i think he can keep it,,,,,,,,,,,

well i ende up buying a 55 2nd series

the one i mentioned in another tread

so now i,ve got to re-roof the small garage then i can fetch ,her, home ..

Spanners,

Sorry the deal on the wrecker failed. Despite what seemed to me to be a rather stiff price, that would have been a "different piece of work."

With the '55 2nd (Taskforce is the design name for the series), at least you will have the option of a V8 or 235ci in line 6. The column shift is quirky at best; always popping out of gear or, worse, getting jammed in gear! One hasn't really "lived" until when trying to shift from first to second and the linkage sticks in second!

Good luck with your "new toy" assuming your roof is ready for British Winter. Busting knuckles takes misery to a whole new level at 35 degrees F.

CptSkip

she,s allready got a v8 in its a 347 with a strato-flight trans
it do,s run of a can of fuel a battery and a couple of wire,s so its a start i,v managed to post some pics somewhere on here of it and some of my other stuff

Spanners, that's great you've got yourself a truck....good luck with your new toy,now get to work!