The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Making a Stovebolt Bed TF Pickup Rear Fender Brace Question

I need help...I finally started working on my 1956 3100 that's been sitting in storage for over 15 years.

My question is this...does the rear most rear fender brace attach to the bed side through the bed side "L" bracket or below it? Is there a bolt head showing about 10" in from the tailgate just above the floor? I have new sides and there are no holes provided for the attachment of this fender brace.

Hope this is clear...thanks!

Mike B

assembly manual sect 11 sheet 19 - brace appears to attach under the floor, probably one of the L bracket wood bolts, maybe you have the wrong angle on the flat end? there weren't any bolts in the bedside other than the actual fender bolts that I recall - the center and front braces at their top ends attach to a fender mounting bolt

Bill

Thanks Bill,

I saw the assembly sheets, but they are not clear. The braces are factory original and did attach to the bed side somewhere. The original bed sides are long gone and the braces have never been removed from the fenders, so I know they are right.

The repro bed sides do have a hole punched in the side metal, but the "L" covered it when it got tack welded in place. It seems to line up with the brace but puts the bolt above the floor. I want to be sure it's correct before I drill it through.

There wouldn't be much support if it's attached below the floor as that is unsupported bed side extending down about 4". and the brace isn't long enough to reach the fender bolts.

Mike B

yes, that drawing isn't very clear at all, maybe they hadn't quite figured it out yet I recall my 57 stepside brace rods attaching to the cross sills [front or back face], and the fleetside does that too

Bill

Hi Mike,

Just looked at my 55 second 3200. The brace attaches just as you describe. It is above the level of the wood, goes through the angle, and is about 9-1/2 inches forward of the lowest fender mounting bolt. It angles forward slightly. I would be happy to give you a more precise measurement if you like but I don't know if I may be comparing apples to oranges or in this case 55's to 56's.

Hopefully someone with a 56 will check in.

Thanks Peter...

Is your bolt a Clutch Head or Hex Head type?

Mike B

Hi Mike,

That bolt is a hex head on my truck. Looking at the FAM page Bill referenced above (sect. 11 sheet 19) both the lower and upper brace screws are listed part #443785. It looks to me that the lower one is drawn as a hex head so it follows that the upper one would be also. On the other hand, the upper one looks like it could be clutch head in the drawing.

How's my logic here? A lot of things have been changed on my truck, so no guarantees of originality.

Good for you though researching this small detail.

My logic tells me it should be a clutch head/button head (same as the fender bolts) so items loaded in the bed won't get damaged if the slide past it.

Anyone have an original truck they can look at to settle this for me?

Thanks,

Mike B

Anyone have an original bed that they can look at for me?

Thanks,

Mike B

I found an original bed in the junk yard this past weekend and it had a clutch head bolt through the angle iron at the floor holding the rear most fender brace...mystery solved.

Mike B