The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Best online parts store

All,
I was wondering if anyone knows what online store has the best quality parts for 1947-54 Chevy trucks? I have not had the best of luck with some because the parts seem to be cheaply made in China. Or am I just s....ed....
Thanks for your help!

fyi....I have a stripped remote control and busted parking brake that need fixed.

Most reproduction parts are made in China. It doesn't matter who retails them. It seems to me they are made to look pretty but not be used. I buy NOS or used when I can.

Ditto. But finding used AD parts at swap meets in this area is difficult. If you have a muscle car or a Model A you would be luckier.

Because most retailers sell the same stuff from the same source, your best bet is to find a retailer who will stand behind what they sell you. That way if you do get a faulty/wrong part, you have a better chance of getting the problem resolved. The problem is; most retailers don't carry everything you need so you will have to deal with the occational disappointing transaction.

In my opinion there is nothing more disappointing than receiving nice new replacement parts for my vintage American truck and seeing that 'Made in China' sticker proudly displayed on EVERYTHING! As Cletis says "buy NOS or used when you can".

Thanks all, I will do just that. If you have any other ideas I will still take those too.....
Maybe that is why the guy I purchased the truck from mickeymoused the door locking lever to the remote control.

I bought several parts for my '46 from Jim Carter Truck Parts and am very unhappy with the fit and quality. Every part I bought had to be modified to work on the truck, and some were very poor condition.

If you can't find used parts in your area try ebay, I've had good luck with ebay parts.

I don't know if everything Chevsofthe40s.com sells is made in America, but everything that I've gotten from them is. It has all fit well, with no modifications necessary.

edit: This includes door latch, front lp holder, wheel bearing, hand throttle cable, manifold gasket, starter button bellows, and some other stuff I'm probably forgetting.

i purchased some wiper arms from jim carter and sent them back. They were thin and light compared to the ones I had. I was not impressed.
I may have to call chevsofthe40's and see what they have to say about there parts.

I have seen price differences of 30. dollars for a brake drum to 75. so I am not sure what to make of it.......

Generally speaking parts are all made in China but there are some parts made in the U.S.A.. MarK in Oklahoma City makes a really great bed and Steele Rubber makes the best rubber products. The best thing you can do is ask here and on other forums for suggested vendors. If there is a better product you'll find it there.

I would try chevs of the 40's. Of course my experience is about 15 years outa date but they were great to deal with then and they are still around so that has to say something. I was building pre internet days when it was a hunt to get the parts you needed wanted and ebay has blown me away with some of the things I have seen over the last moth of browsing. A bit of redundency but still looks like a great place to get what you need.

Mike

Two important reasons for who I choose to buy parts from are service and speed in delivery. Most vendors service seems to be of high quality. However speed in delivery is important for me and therefore for standard parts I use both LMC and Chevy Duty, both in Kansas and able to deliver my parts in two days.

I've had good luck with classic parts, They are very good with returns. And as mentioned Mar-K is great.

love the caption big chevy 3600! i'll check out steele also.....

CLASSIC PARTS OF AMERICA IS A GOOD CO. TO DEAL WITH

Don't forget American Classic Truck parts in Texas. A perennial Stovebolt sponsor. Easy to get on the phone and parts are good and shipped fast.

www.americanclassic.com

There are those that carry odd parts no one else carries. American Classic is one of those; they are just up the road from me near Denton TX but their delivery to me is slower than Classic Parts and LMC in Kansas.

I've had really good luck and recieved high quality parts from Chevs of the 40s and The Filling station, other places I have tried not such good luck.

I have spent many $Ks on parts over the past 15 years, and have bought from all the vendors listed above (and more). None have had parts predictably better than the others (except for Steele Rubber).

My over-riding deciding factors are price and availability (and shipping cost).

My preferred vendors at this time are Classic Parts (nee Chevy Duty), Chevs of the 40s, and Jim Carter. American Classic, The Filling Station, LMC, Ecklers, and Brothers are a close second tier, for a variety of reasons, but they are good.

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. It is a great help!

+1 for the chevsof40s(lighting shipping!), you should check out parts123 and of course speedwaymotors. Godspeed ;)

Because most parts are all mfg by the same people or places and because I always put off ordering until the day before it need it, I have always put the highest importance in speed in shipping. However a great and fast shipper located on the West Coast shipping to Florida might take 2nd place to a not so quick shipper shipping from Georgia. I have found the closer to you the quicker to you.

Normally deal with Classic Chevy Truck Parts but on this parts order I need the basic dual chamber master cylinder conversion for drum brakes and they don't carry one.
Looking for another reasonable parts supplier that does have it and accepts paypal as payment. Any recommendations?

I just came across this site, I am not sure if they take paypal but they seem to have a fairly extensive collection of master cylinders. I plan on ordering some body parts from them in the next couple weeks.

http://www.classicpartsusa.com/category/1959_Truck_Parts_Brake_Master_Cylinders

Check out Ecklerstrucks.com, not sure if they have the part you need, but I know they accept PayPal.

Get a MC for a 1975 Chevy 1/2 ton from Rock Auto if you have drum/drum.

Check it out.

FYI: Your local parts stores can probably order it.

Lots of mechanical bits for our old trucks are still available from the parts stores.

Things like :

• rebuild kits for various things
• water pumps
• master cylinders/brake boosters
• linkages
• seals/gaskets
• electrical switches & components
• other...

The gist of what they carry or can find are things are that were not model year specific or... anything body related, they probably will not have. However, any part that was used across multiple years and maybe multiple vehicles, they can probably find something.

If you are doing a bone stock concourse event restoration, then this probably does not apply to you. If you are trying to keep your truck running and driving, it is an option you should all be aware of.

As cletis mentioned... NOS/used parts are another way to go. I've used several on my old '65 c10. Check out the Swap Meet section of the forum to start your search.

To all 'bolters, please explore the Links section here at the Stovebolt page. It has been growing and growing ever since this site was founded, which was even before it had a forum. There are links to vendors, links to companies that perform services to various old vehicle components, lists of books and much, much more.

The links section contains :

first up is the: Index page, which lists every link we have.

The break down:

• Parts sources
• Services
• Electrical
• Truck Sites
• Clubs
• Insurance
• Publications and Literature
• Street Rods
• Fire Trucks
• Tools
• Trailers
• Modern Iron
• Other Neat Stuff

Our fellow GM Truck fans over at 67-72chevytrucks.com(which now covers all years of GM full size trucks and the S models) have this Review Board to review quality of parts/fit, etc. and good/bad deals and excellent/terrible customer service and everything in between. They cover parts vendors, eBay sellers and transactions that take place within their forums. They also have a sub-forum there that covers 'Bad Deals' and scammers of various types. This is a good place to research things.

Some really good suggestions here. I have heard good things about chevs of the 40's, and of course Steele and Mar-k. Fair shipping rates and price are very important as well, but I have to agree with Cletis about the china issue, I have bought used parts from Tom Myers and have been satisfied, but sometimes you can not always find what you need in salvage yards and of course things like wiring harnesses and brake items need to be new. Steve

I don't know if this has been mentioned or not but try NOS parts on ebay. I have be able to find some parts on there for a good price. Also if you can't find NOS and have to go aftermarket, try Chevy Duty out of Kansas. I have bought a ton of good parts from them. They are well priced and good quality. I have bought everything from weather stripping to repair panels and have never had a bad part from them. They also ship very fast.

And they are great folks. +1 for American classic

Golden State Parts here in Carson City has about everything I need for my 49 3100. If you guys are familiar with Concourse Auto Parts (Ford) they are the same bunch. Since they are here in town, I don't know about their website. I know they sell around the country, though.

Golden State used to be in Orange, California. I went there many moons ago!!

I have tried many of the ones mentioned, but another good one is Bowtie Bits Antique truck parts.....

Don't know if they are the best or not, but Chev's of the 40's has always delivered their products as promised. I have never had to return anything, so I am not sure about their customer service on that end of the business.

I wonder if Concourse bought them out? They share the same sales floor and warehouse.

I have bought a load of parts from chevs of the 40s, all good stuff and no complaints.
Also http://www.truckandcarshop.com/
They have a good range, excellent easy to use online ordering, although most of the parts are made in taiwan. I have been very satisfied with all the repo parts so far.
I had one issue with a tapered kingpin, otherwise totally happy.

It has been my experience that, as your project begins to wind down, many of the odd-ball parts you find you need seem to not be carried by the bigger vendors like Classic and LMC. I have found both LMC and Classic (Chevy Duty) to be great suppliers but fail to carry many of the "fast moving" parts you can find at other vendors.

Chevs of the 40s has superb customer service. I've had good luck with Brothers also.