I wanted to send a thank you to Classic Parts and to those posting on this forum. We brought home a 1953 3600 truck in September of 2009. With the help of Classic Parts, many of the postings on this forum, and a lot of time, my son and I have completed our truck. Once the weather warms up, we plan on spending some time putting miles on the odometer instead of camping in the barn. Here are a few pictures. One of them shows the truck before we got started. Thanks again.
Nate!!!!!! Quick Nate, go check ifn your trucks still parked outside!!!!!! Nice truck! Well done! (you can tell me, is it Nates truck?)
Nice job! Wow - And you did that all without asking any questions, just reading about it here on the forum? That's a very nice looking truck. I like the color. Enjoy the freedom out of the barn.
Congratulations! That is truly outstanding in it's field! If you and your son did all that without asking questions, then you must be the answer man. Feel free to chime in. I am sure you must have learned a thing or two to share. The before picture looked pretty good to start with. Great job!
I Got That ! I dunno if anyone else did/will tho' . That certainly is a very nice truck you have there , now go enjoy it with your son ..... BTW : underhood pic would be nice... .
Speaking of vendors Living close to Classic Parts would be absolutely fantastic! GREAT looking truck, Msty! We need more pictures, however. As Nate has mentioned, under the hood, inside the cab, underneath, etc. There are LOTS of folks like you that get on here but don't post. You have knowledge that might help someone, also. Hopefully that was your first of many posts. Don't forget~ We have a thread for member pictures on here, and that would be a great place to have a shot of you and family standing by that beautiful truck of yours! Welcome!
More info and pics - 1953 3600 I'm sending another post because my first one did not appear to work. I apologize if I end up sending two posts with the same info. Thanks for all the feedback. I did learn a lot, especially how to estimate twice the amount of time it takes to complete something (just ask my wife). The postings on this site proved to be worth more than many of the parts. Thanks again. Hopefully, I can provide useful info from time to time. Anyway, more about the truck. The engine is not original. Based on the numbers, the engine is a 194 cu. in. from about 1965. It runs so nice that I decided to leave it alone. It will get the truck to about 55-60 mph with no problem but I don't want to push it anymore than that. The interior needed a complete redo. The floor boards were replaced because of the usual rust. I rebuilt the gauges with the help of another set from the junk yard. They all work great, including the speedometer. The heater unit required a disassembly (because the fan fell off the blower motor), cleaned up, and rebuild. It works great. The truck came with a later model bench seat installed so I found an original in the junk yard. Not the best springs but it looks good with new upholstery. All the glass needed replacing except for the corner glass. These two pieces are original with all the scratches and dings but they have character. This is one area of restoration that I found to be difficult. I have to admit that I broke one windshield side during install and one vent window glass while rebuilding the vent windows. Both doors have new window tracks and work well. We replaced all the weather stripping and seals throughout the truck. It actually is relatively quiet when going down the road. The truck was taken apart to complete the body work and paint. I did all the body work and primer but I got the help of a friend to paint all of the parts in his booth. I finished with the wet sanding and buffing. The original color (under the light blue) was a dark navy blue. We decided to go with the lighter color to help hide any problems with my body work. The bed was done with poplar and an ebony stain finish. We wanted the dark stain to contrast with the light color paint. The chassis is all original. The only thing I have had to do was bleed clean fluid through the brake lines. The brakes work great and the steering is tight. We added turn signals in the front and two tail/brake lights in the back. The truck originally came with one installed. For the most part it is ready to go. We would like to add a radio at some point. Here are a few more pictures of the finish product along with some showing the steps in between.
Very clean, very nice work in a relatively short time. The best part, I'll bet, is that you worked with your son on this project. My 16 year old was 12 when we finished ours. We had a great time and have enjoyed many trips and car shows since. You are right though, a radio is a necessity if you have a teen riding shotgun. Congrats on a job well done. Gater
Good Job ! Those Thinwall engines are pretty good but *very* fragile when it comes to overspeeding them or dirty oil....... It's still not too late the re-spray it the correct gray color , it'll look better and older too . Or , if you want to showcase the fact that it's a thinwall , short stroke I-6 , the correct color for a 194 C.I. is CHEVROLET BLUE , sort of pale blue color .
55~60 AND a 3/4 ton??? Nice! I must have missed the part where the back end gear ratio was updated? Thanks for the additional pictures! That is truely a sweet looking ride!
