The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Rear bumper bracket placement?

Do they go to the inside or outside of the frame? Mine were riveted in the middle, sandwiched around the frame and bolted on as in the picture below, which doesn't seem correct. ...or is it?

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5179/5548587334_31bdb39fa5_z.jpg

Mine were on the outside of the frame, just bolts, no rivets (if I remember correctly), I can look when I get home though

Mine are outside which is the correct position for these brackets.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/advance-design_parts_co/8129078038/in/set-72157631867396207

GMJager - The rivets hold the two parts of each bracket together, the bolts were what was holding it to the frame.

Brad Allen - THANKS! What type bolts did you use? I was thing Grade 8.

Outside here to, but it's a 3600 and the two pieces are factory
riveted together on all the bumper brackets that I've seen,
front, rear for all years.

It's only a matter of a few cents, but no need for grade 8 bolts,
this isn't a highly stressed area unless you're hanging a
trailer hitch from it. Grade 5 or even a grade 2 bolt
would be adequate.

Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

So what about using stainless bolts and getting hit from the rear?

...says the guy who has had no rear bumper for a couple years.

I think I used grade 5 just because I had some available. I will give you this advice, when you mount the bumper leave everything loose until you get all the holes made, then tighten!

Ya want to spend the moolah for stainless, go right ahead, least
they won't stain the bumper bracket after they've been in place
for 62 years like the original plain steel ones did. Some guys
re-assemble their whole truck with SS.
If'n ya get hit from the rear year bumper is gonna fold up long
before even the cheapest pair of 1/2" bolts will shear, (bout
18,000 lb. to shear both grade 2's).
Might ad to Brad's advice that you also may need to adjust the
brackets to line up with the holes in the bumper. I use a big
old Crescent wrench (18") to re-bend the brackets.

Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

What is the difference between front and rear brackets? I bought a pair that were hand labeled rear but I think they are front. It doesn't really matter except for just to know. They worked for me.

Also, about how far below the bottom of the tailgate should the top of the bumper be?

I finally got around to putting the rear bumper on my truck but I think it hangs too low rendering my tow hitch inoperable. I can take it back off and flip sides which will raise the bumper significantly but, (will it look "stoopid").

Denny - I have a handful of the right size in stainless along with stainless washers, lock washers and nuts. I'll be powdercoating the brackets, simply because I have the extra black powder and the tools to do so, and eventually coating the frame with POR15 or similar so I'd hate to have a set of rusty bolts ugly up my purdy work.

FriedGreenTmater - The rear brackets angle down in the middle. These are good examples of where it should sit. In the second one you can really see the angle in the bracket.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7419/9219955748_4ca8434421_b.jpg
http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3824/9217203391_8b6c21fe35_b.jpg

Great pics, nice truck, thanks.

Mine looks to be about the same relationship to the tailgate vertically. I guess I will have to figure some other way around the hitch problem.

You mean everyone doesn't????

Not us 95% purists John.

Nice pictures Eric, shows the dip in the rear brackets
just perfectly. Need that for the tailgate clearance.
Hope my '50 "Mariner Blue" 3/4-ton
turns out looking half that goot.
Like the shot with the corn in the background, perfect
setting for one of these old Stovebolts.
DG

I wish that was my truck! Mine has far less paint and quite a bit of "custom floor ventilation" that has been added over the years.

Mine is the Chev (obviously) in this pic - http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3767/9289778751_ea6458c286_o.jpg

Thought you might have finished it up over the summer. Anyway,
that's still a nice looking truck and I'm full of envy.

Denny G

Thanks Denny! At the rate I'm going, the finish line is another 10yrs away. Heh. Took me almost five hours tonight to get the dang bumper on. Bout 30min of that was cutting out the old rattling bed bolts and cross sills then the next four hours were spent playing hide n' seek with tools around the garage and wrestling with the bumper and brackets. ...and I figure at least a good 30min was spent just cussin' and starin' at it with my hands flappin' around. Good times.

Remember, it's not the time, nor the money, but the task at hand
that's the important factor in this endeavor. If your not
havin' fun with it then ya need to think about another hobby.

Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

Agreed 100%! Actually, I really am almost finished with it. My goal was to keep it on the road as long as I could while working on it and after about 2-2.5yrs I am just about at that point where I'm ready to do the body work - not this winter but maybe next. That means finally taking it off the road and pulling the cab. At that point I'll blast and coat the frame and start thinking about paint colors.

That sounds exactly like my plan, cept I've been enjoying
driving it so much I'm going into my seventh winter of,
gonna get the body work done this winter.

DG

I'll probably do the same for a couple/few years. My frame is solid but rough to the touch and orange and my front cab support is disappearing around the mount. Right now I'm enjoying the heck outta it. Driving to meets, drive-ins, cruises, burger joints and occasionally the office. It's a sight in our office parking lot and it must look a bit strange to see me driving it in a suit.