Sheridan's 1946 Chevrolet Truck
1/2 Ton pick-up
Welcome to my restoration page. Over the past few years I have embarked on a project to restore this great truck. Back in 2000, I found very little on the web about these trucks and struggled to even find photos of these trucks out there so I decided early on to capture my journey here for others to learn from the errors, problems and troubles that I was sure to fall into during what turns out to be a much longer, costlier yet more rewarding trip than I ever imagined. I started by simply posting photo collections and that grew into a specific web page about the restoration on my family's web page. Most recently this has grown into a website of it's own, right here www.46chevytruck.com!
Enjoy reading and don't hesitate to drop me a note or send me a photo of your 41-46 Chevy or GMC truck to include in the Photo Gallery. What you will find below is only a fraction of the reference photos I have taken and collected over the years. Let me know if there is something specific you are looking for that is not here. I hope it helps!
My Uncle Don (Hladky) gave me a truck along with the classic IRWIPI story. What is IRWIPI you ask? Well I didn't know at the time either. Over the past few years I've come to know very well what it means: "It ran when I parked it". The fable that everybody hears when they are "lucky" enough to get their hands some old/classic iron! The many other old Chevy Truck fans on Stovebolt.com helped me learn that EVERY old truck that was abandoned, parked, put away, stored, ALL ran when they were parked. After all, that is after all why they were "parked" --- because they ran.
Truck background: I don't know much about his truck other than back sometime ago, my dad owned this truck and sold it to my uncle so he could "upgrade" to the newer style (1947-Advanced Design). My uncle drove the truck until the late '70's, painted it and replaced the bed wood. At some point in the early 80's he loaned it to a friend of his until the master cylinder went out when he parked/stored it in the barn. He could not remember if he could not find a master cylinder or did not have the money for one. Either way it sat in the barn until 2001. I will see about doing a DMV search to learn even more but that can wait for now. The truck was originally built at the Janesville, WI GM assembly plant and I believe it spent most of it's life in Janesville. It was stored in an old dairy barn in Beloit, WI (just South of Janesville). I look forward to driving it back to Janesville where it was originally built in 1947. Although the same body style as the 41-46 trucks, this was one originally titled in 1947 and was one of the 1947 first series models that was built before they changed to the Advanced Design body style. This body style truck stayed in production until about May 1, 1947 when the Advanced Design trucks entered production.
It's been over four FIVE years, three FOUR houses and two THREE kids since that happy day forever captured in the above photos when I began dreaming of soon taking Sunday drives to local car shows and cruises. Even though it ran over 25 years ago when it was parked, it's further from being driven than it was in 1946 before it was assembled and absolutely further than it was on that storied day when it was rolled...I mean driven into the barn and parked. Feel free to join me on my restoration trip by reading below. Hopefully some of what I learned on this journey will help you on a similar project. If not, I hope you enjoy just taking a look at the photos. There are literally thousands more where these came from so don't hesitate to e-mail me if there is a specific photo you are looking for to help you with your project.
Acknowledgements:
To give credit where credit is due, here's a few of the web sites and books that have managed to keep me going in this very slowly progressing hobby: First off, my dad for having owned the truck to begin with and selling it to my uncle Don. Most importantly though, my Uncle Don Hladky for having the vision to put this cool truck away years ago hoping someday to restore it then eventually giving me the truck and getting me started, Stovebolt.com, Jim Carter's Antique Truck Parts Brad's 41-46 Chevy's: "The Art Deco Series"), eBay (an endless supply of parts) and last but not least is the book "How to Restore your Chevy Truck" (both editions).
1970's photo of the truck before being stored |
THIS IS THE GOAL TRUCK A great example of the truck as original! |
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Year 1 2001 | Year 2 2002 | Year 3 2003 | Year 4 2004 | Year 5 2006 | Year 6 2007 | Year 7 2008 | Year 8 Completed truck! |
| Photo Gallery E-mail me your truck photo! | |||||||
YEAR #1 - 2001 |
5/11/2001 - This is the day that Uncle Don and I went to get the truck. The deal was, I had to get his Volvo out of the barn and deliver it to his house. Ends up the Volvo was the easy one simply because its brakes were not frozen. The old tires on the truck are simply amazing. All four were flat but they all pumped right up and actually held air. After dragging the truck about 15-20 feet across the barn floor the brakes "broke loose" (more on that later)! The other catch was I had to take all of the treasures that were stored in the back of the truck as well. Ends up my dad took all of it and simply brought it to the dump the following Monday. 
Year 2 - 2002 - The year of nothing |
Well
it didn't take long (ok...it did take a long time) and I decided to go the route
of a total restoration vs. a driving restoration. The engine was pretty
tight and most moving parts were rusted solid. My thinking at the time was
I could probably get this thing turned around in a couple years. I started
by grabbing my shovel and cleaning out all of the mouse, rat, raccoon crap and
who knows what else kind of animal was using the truck as a toilet. The
bed wood and interior (specifically the seat cover, etc...) was pretty soaked
with urine and crap so it went to the curb along with a 5 gallons of rust and
other who knows what when I cleaned it out. Most of the first two years, I
spent looking for parts, learning all I could about these trucks, and mostly
contemplating how in the world I would go about this project. I've had other car projects but nothing at this level. Not
the Smokey Bear Snuffit on the dash. It will be there in the end!
Year 3 - 2003 - Disassembly and door saga |
10/27/03 - Just purchased a pretty nice door and had it shipped from CA to WI. Unfortunately, Airborne dropped it and caused some damage. Any suggestion as to how I go about fixing this type of damage without making it worse?
11/01/2003 - Yeah, over two years later. It's not that I didn't do anything, I just did a lot that you can't see. Slow work on taking the truck down to the frame while working on some little things to keep me going. It's good to see some progress once in a while so I have taken smaller parts and worked on them to keep me motivated. So much for getting this done in two years! HA!!!
I learned real quick that some of the parts on the truck just can not be saved (at least by me) so I learned to buy and sell on e-bay upgrading parts each time (well, almost each time).
03/16/04 Ok the door saga continues. I claimed the $100 insurance from Airborne and found a "retired body guy" that agreed to "fix" my door. He even agreed to weld in a new patch panel. All for $150. I thought that was a great deal considering I don't have a welder and even if I did, I would certainly screw it up!
Now even though I can't weld, I think I know what a good weld looks like. Here's my dilemma: He "fixed" my door alright. He did a great job straightening it out and putting a new skin on the lower 3-4". The bends on the bottom are beautiful. He is a really good spot welder. I've never seen someone weld a panel in by placing 1000 spot welds next to each other. Unfortunately, he did not but weld it but then again I guess I was not specific in my instructions either. Apparently his old body shop believed in using a lot of filler and was not too concerned about the body contours.
Now the dilemma is do I even try to get someone to "fix" this now or should I purchase the skins they sell at Jim Carter's and have them "professionally" installed? As of now I spent $130 to purchase the door - $100 insurance + $150 to "fix it" for a total of $180 in the door as it stands. I believe the skins are around $80 and professional installation would be ????.
Year 4 - 2004 - Parts hunting, new box and small parts progress |
7/27/2004 - Moved on past the doors ... time to let them sit for a while. I sold my original box on e-bay and delivered it to the buyer at the Jefferson, WI Car Show and swap meet. The guy that bought it was going to use parts of the rear fenders to make a good set for his '41. The bed panels were pretty beat up and I'm not sure how someone would even begin to try and straighten them. So, I replaced the box with one from Mar-K. I had heard they made great reproduction boxes that were correct in every way. It's true! It's a great quality box! Was real fun assembling it in the basement and seeing Marla's face when she came down and saw it for the first time! Sold old box on e-bay - $325; Purchased new box - $1,300; Look on wife's face when she finds a completely assembled 1/2 ton box in the basement: Priceless!
08/05/04 I found what appears to be a good solid pair of fenders on E-bay today and won the auction!!! Both of my front fenders were likely used as bumpers over the years and are in really sad shape. I Probably paid too much but they look good and the seller ensured me that they are "original, clean and appear to be free of any major past repairs".
08/20/04 OK - I'll probably never trust anybody on e-bay again. The fenders arrived and it is very clear that either I had a fast one pulled on me or the guy that sold me these is blind in one eye and drunk in the other. Some areas of the fenders have almost a 1/4" of bondo! ARRGGGHHH!!! I ended up getting them chemically stripped and it appears the between my original fenders and these I could (maybe) make one great pair.
Instead of a Monkey pile - here's a fender pile:
08/30/04 Time to focus on some other things to get my attention off those fenders. I had some fun sandblasting parts and priming and actually finish painting some of the small parts. I found a place in Butler, WI called U-Spray where they rent time on various cabinet blasters with various media. Makes for good motivation to keep going to see something looking nice vs. covered in rust! I love clean freshly painted parts! Here are some before and after photos of the first few parts that I completed.
| Before | After |
 The air cleaner looked pretty scary but as you can see, it cleaned up real nice! |  Restored this one: bead blasted it, painted it and replaced the decal |
 The lower grill baffle was pretty trashed. |
 I found an NOS part on E-bay!! |
 The horn looked pretty bad. Not only rusted but the front was bent up. |  Found one on E-bay and was able to combine the two of the to make this one! |
Note the numbers on the glass are clear here. Use caution when cleaning ...they "wipe" off! |  Replaced bezel and re-faced all the gauges. I ended up finding an NOS Speedo with 0 miles |
 |  Here's the oil filter all done. I bead blasted it, painted it and replaced the decals. What a difference!! |
 The old buckets were pretty solid but the chrome/stainless parts were pretty bad and would need to be re-chromed or replaced. |  This was the first working of the headlight buckets....ends up I found NOS buckets on e-bay with NOS chrome & stainless parts! I sold these. oddly enough, I made money on the whole transaction. |
01/26/05 It's been a while but the door saga continues and I think it ends here. I dropped them off last year with a guy that came highly recommended (www.restorick.com) and I've seen some of his work and it is truly impressive! A friend from work recommended him and was instrumental in convincing Rick to take on my charity case (Rick's a Mopar guy through and through). I actually gave him both of my doors and the inner panels and he had them dipped, welded up some holes, re-skinned them, reworked them and primed to preserve them until I can get to them. I could not be happier with the results!!! They look great!
02/25/05 We decided to move to OH back in November and today's the day! Good thing is, the Company picked up the tab to move the truck along with the rest of our belongings. Reliable Carriers came and picked it up. Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures but it was the only vehicle on the 53' trailer! Rather humorous to say the least! On the way to Ohio, the driver mentioned he was picking up a concept car in Detroit from the auto show. On the Ohio end, the driver laughed and said he swept up a bucket of rust that fell off the truck in transit. That much less cleaning up I need to do! If you ever wondered how many boxes it takes to ship a disassembled 46 truck - 116 + shipping the drive train with the cab on it.
4/10/2005 - HA! another year and again not much real progress on the truck. I did make a trip down to SC to pick up a rebuilt 216 from Jimmy Bryant. Jimmy was putting in a 235 in his '48 1/2 ton. The engine was pretty clean already but I cleaned it up even more and put a new coat of paint on it. I hope it runs as good as it looks! THANKS JIMMY!
Year 5 - 2005 - Disassembly completed! |
8/27/05 - After four years I finally got the engine and transmission out. Now it's time to get the frame and cab stripped.
10/23/05 Over the years I have collected over 1,000 photos of '41-'46 Chevy & GM Trucks to gather ideas and help determine what is and is not original. I have placed a few of them out here so you can see several different color combinations. Click here to see them .
01/01/06 Started the New Year off right by working a little on the truck. I decided to start disassembling the front end starting with the Drivers side front wheel. I remember getting the truck out of the barn and having the front wheels frozen. After dragging it about 30 feet and an additional good tug with the tow strap, I remember them "breaking loose". I learned today what happened when it "broke loose". Ends up it looks as if Uncle Don really did run the brakes down to the metal. It was metal to metal and the brake shoes are not what broke loose. The drum actually split: If you click the photo you can see the hole/crack in the drum. It completely split and you can spin the front 1/2 without the back moving. The back was still frozen to the brake shoes (absolutely no pads left). Here's a shot after I got the front half of the drum off: I guess I need to start looking for new drums too!
01/02/06 I'm on a roll....two days in a row. I spent a couple hours on the truck tonight and got the other side broke down. Lord help me remember how the heck to get it all back together! I got done quicker than I thought with that, so I pulled off the entire front end.
I also found a local guy today to sandblast the frame for me. I still think I'll stick with chem strip for the front and rear ends as well as the cab but am debating if I would just get the frame sandblasted to save some bucks.
01/10/06 I was watching TV with Marla (wife) the other night and I made a comment about wondering with all the discounts, etc out there, how much it really costs GM to make a car. Her comment was "I would think that if anybody knew, you would". Subtle; but I got the point! This drove me to do the unthinkable and I updated my "parts acquired & sold/balance sheet" today. It's getting ugly but the list will only grow from this point........... I try not to look at the cost column but so far it is not too bad and I'm about where I thought I would be!
01/14/06 Had some fun today with Payton and Taryn and went for our first "ride" in the truck. I also got some other work completed and pulled off the rear end. Not much left to take apart now!
01/20/06 Just accepted a job in Chicago (same company) so it looks like we're moving again! I'll be sending all the remaining "dirty/rusty" parts to get sandblasted or stripped so I am not moving rusty parts again! Time to move fast! Hopefully, this will be the last move for a few years! This truck has put more miles on it in the past two years without running than it did for almost 30 years combined! I guess it wasn't running then either!
01/26/06 Dropped off the cab, all the front end parts including those rusted up brake parts at American Metal Cleaning in Toledo, OH. Can't wait the get them back! The cab fit real nicely on the small 4'x4' trailer I picked up for $129.00 and I built a cab dolly with 4"x4" and wheels I got from Harbor Freight. It works pretty slick. No serious measurements taken or anything. I just rough cut everything and lag bolted it all together. The trailer is small enough that I just tip it up against the all in the garage when it is not being used.
02/10/06 I picked up my cab and other parts from American Metal Cleaning today. Not sure that I could be happier. The cab looks great and only two surprises. Looks like there was very little filler used on it during its many paint jobs over the years. It's pretty cool - the bolts that were frozen tight are all loose now. If I ever do this again, the first step would be sending it in to get "cleaned" before battling the rusted bolts.
I got the patch panels from "metalman" at Wheelwright Restorations in Wheelwright, MA and will have them installed and the entire thing primed in the next couple weeks. If I'm not mistaken, I believe all of the patch panels for these trucks that the major parts suppliers (like Jim Carter's) come from Wheelwright Restorations. He does great work!
As you can see in the photos below, I also had the steering & brake components done as well as the bell housing, valve cover and rear cab panel. All turned out great!!! Just look at the 01/01/06 entry on the brakes to see what a difference this makes!!!
3/10/06 Over the past 14 months I had driven past an Auto Museum just south of Toledo, OH about once a week. I always thought I should stop and check it out for the slim chance there may be a 41-46 Chevy or GMC in 
there! Who'd a thunk? THERE WAS!!!!! So I had to bring Marla and the girls back. Ends up this is the exact truck I have at the top of the page as the "goal truck". It was sold on e-bay to Snook's Dream Cars in Bowling Green after it failed to reach to reserve price a couple times. I watched these auctions and saved the photos of it. It is by far the best original restoration I have seen yet. The only two things I could find that were not original were the marker lights were the '42-46 style and the dash was not painted with the unique hammer tone as original. Other than that I can only hope mine turns out 1/2 as nice!
03/11/06 I got my cab back today along with the patch panels installed in the front lower cab corners! Bill (the body guy from work) agreed to help me out with this task! He also filled in the "extra" holes and put a coat of primer on it. He did a great job! Thanks Bill!!
Change of plans....we're in the process of moving back to WI. The truck gets to go another 300+ miles without running this April!!!!!!!!!
4/9/06 Today I loaded up the cab and trailered it back to WI. The rest of the truck will go with the household goods on the United Van lines trailer later in the month. I got some interesting looks driving down the interstate trailering this! 
4/18/06 United Van lines picked up the "rest of the truck". Actually they sent a trailer for the frame, rear axel and the two 216 engines I have. The "REAL" rest of the truck will go with the household goods tomorrow.
5/6/06 I went a little crazy today and bought three fenders on e-bay from "Mikes-desert treasures". After five years of looking for a good set of fenders, I finally found some good solid fenders that will require very, very little body work once I have them stripped!!!!! I got the two front fenders and one rear fender. All three are GREAT!!! Now I have a full set of solid metal fenders that are all (other than finishing) in perfect condition!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Now it's time to sell off some of my extra parts to get some of my money back and make room in the garage, After several years of searching I finally have a good set (all four) of solid metal fenders that need little to no work to get them ready for paint!!! If there is anything learned here, it is being patient. I never did find that illusive set of NOS fenders but these are close enough.
I also for the first time have a large enough garage that I should have room to move around once I get all the moving boxes out of it and get my stuff organized. It should be nice. Is there such a a thing as a large enough garage or is that as illusive as the NOS fenders?
Year 6 - 2006 - The fun begins - No more rust, dirt and grime! |
5/17/06 I updated my parts list page for those who are interested in the five year chronicle of parts hunting.
6/9/06 Finished putting together the front brakes today: The before and after is something else to look at. The real test will be if they actually stop the truck once it is back together.
8/5/06 Spent today loading up the last bit of parts to get cleaned up. Being back in WI, I dropped them off at Restoration Specialists in Franklin, WI (Milwaukee). I dropped off the frame, all four fenders and the seat springs. Not sure how well the seat springs will come out because they were breaking left and right.
I also did some work on the bell housing, clutch and brake petal assembly and finished painting up the axle and few other parts. Ran into a snag with the tie rod ends. Just recognized that the new replacement tie rod ends are different than the old ones so I'll be rebuilding the old ones. Problem is though the end caps are froze into place. I was able to break one of them out by applying some heat but the other one is stuck pretty solid. I'll just have to keep working on it and hopefully it will eventually break loose. In two weeks I should have a nice clean frame (and fenders) to begin putting everything back on.
8/7/06 Thanks to some guys on Stovebolt.com, I did a little digging and found the missing link for the Master cylinder/brake pedal linkage! Works like a charm! I also found a couple sets of NOS Tie rod ends to replace the frozen one that I can't get off. Now I can use destructive methods to remove it and simply re-thread the rod for the new ends if I really get destructive.
8/16/06 I got a pair of NOS tie rod ends today so the dilemma of the tie rod ends is over. Now I can cut the old frozen one off and I have a replacement! Here's a photo for those that are wondering what the difference is. Ends up to upgrade to the newer style it requires some machining (and obviously would not be original). The "modern" style was purchased from Jim Carter's. The photo here will show you what it is you are getting vs. original style.
9/1/06 I got my frame and fenders back from Restoration Specialists in Franklin, WI today. Ends up they needed to run the seat frames through a second time because there was still some rust showing. The fenders and frame look very clean and I spent the night starting to finish the frame and prep it for paint. 
I put a thin coat of Zero Rust on the fenders to protect them until I can get back to them. The fenders will probably be one of the last things that I finish so they can just be bolted right up after paint.
Here's a picture of the fenders propped up in front of the cab. It's great to finally be seeing some progress and be done with all the rusty, greasy, dirty work. Now the fun begins!!!
10/14/06 Completed top side of the frame and flipped the frame over to work on the bottom. Lots of work to smooth the metal back out from the 60+ years of surface rust. Weather is getting colder and progress has gone into stall again............
12/9/06 Spent the most of the last couple months just sanding on the frame here and there. Added to the parts collection in preparation for the reassembly phase. Also added a page with 41-46 information and photos that should help identify 41-46 trucks. Not sure who the author of the first portion of the new page is so if you know, e-mail me so I can give credit where credit is due.
12/22/06 Went to work today in an attempt to remove the oblong spring bushings. Considering most of the bolts snapped from 60 years of rust I was not optimistic that this would be an easy job. A "tech Tip" on Stovebolt.com suggested making a bushing puller with the following from a hardware store:
1 - 3/8" x 6" carriage bolt with threads along its full length.
1 - 3/4" "T" connector (perfect inside diameter for the old bushing to be pulled into)
2 - Reducers to for more leverage in pulling stubborn bushings (not listed on the page but I found it to be a nice "upgrade")
1 - large/thick washer
1 - Nut for the carriage bolt
The concept is pretty simple: the head of the carriage bolt is the same size as the diameter of the bushing. The ID of the "T" Connector is large enough to accept the bushing as it gets pulled through. Simply tighten up the bolt, smack the head of the carriage bolt and it should break free and crank out with relative ease. If you can find grade 8 hardware it may help. I stripped out several bolts/nuts attempting this but adding the reducers to the t-connector provides more grabbing power than what you get using the nut and is a nice "upgrade" from what is listed on the Stovebolt page. It does work and prevents you from having to bring everything to a machine shop to get things reamed out.
Installing new bushings:
I also discovered that the carriage bolt, washer and nut can be used to help get the new bushing installed. Some people say a small vice will work if you don't have a press. I found it to be very cumbersome and difficult to get squared up. Try this; it's much simpler.
Thread the carriage bolt through the new bushing and the spring perch.
Line up the bushing with the hole then put tension on the nut/bolt.
Tap the head of the carriage bolt with a heavy hammer (hitting the head of the carriage bolt prevents damage to the new bushing). Start very slowly with very soft taps to ensure it goes in straight.
Tighten the nut, hit the bolt head, tighten nut, hit bolt head ....
Repeat until the bushing is in place. It works pretty slick!
Here are a couple photos of the final results. No more sloppy, oblong bushings:
12/29/06 I finished up replacing the bushings today. The front passenger side bushing was so bad I had to drill out the center of the pin then use the method above to remove what was left without risking drilling into the perch. Below is a photo of one of the bad bushings next to an NOS bushing. As you can see they were all pretty trashed and well overdue to be replaced. I was fortunate to have found NOS springs for both the front and rear so I did not have to mess with replacing the bushings on the springs.
I then spent some more time filling in more of the small pock marks from the rust that was on the frame. I've come to the realization that this is seemingly a never ending job. I have the outsides of the rails and the cross members looking great. The tedious areas are the insides of the rails and a few tough spots in the cross members where the sander does not reach. I'm not sure it's worth it. Especially since I plan on driving the truck. Some of the areas are just going to have to have the "rough look" vs. a "smooth look". If someone is looking at the underside that closely I probably just ran them over and they won't be looking in the tight spots of the frame anyhow.
12/31/06 Painted the frame today. My garage has never been such a mess. Crazy enough, it has been in the mid to upper 40's this week so I was able to break out the hose and give the garage a good cleaning when I was done.
01/01/07 Flipped the frame back over so it is right side up. I can't stand the fact that I did not fix the rust pits on the inner rails. I'll be taking the time to do it. For now though I'll move on to something else. Just sick of sanding at this point. I've been using Evercoat's Metal 2 Metal to fill these pits. It is an aluminum filled body filler that is best known as the "nearest thing to lead." It works great but is a bit tough to work with as it sets up fast.
Here's a few before & after photos:
01/08/07 If there was ever any question about the value of networking and enjoying a hobby with others, its value was clearly identified today. Just yesterday, I posted a parts wanted add on www.Stovebolt.com for a rear bump stop retainer because one of mine was rusted up so bad it was broke in two when it was removed. Within minutes, fellow "Stovebolter" John Sandoval responded with the needed part. Not only did he respond with the needed part, he "donated" it to the cause! Thanks to John and the Stovebolt page! If you have not clicked it, click John's name above to see his great truck! As you will see, he has done a fantastic job building his truck. And much quicker than I am moving I must add.
01/16/07 Somewhat stuck on something that should be simple. Replacing the bump stops for the front axle. Before attempting brut force, I'm wondering if there is a "trick" of the trade out there that helps ease these things into place. These are some pretty hard rubber with little give to them. Come to think of it the original ones did not come out easy either.
01/20/07 Here's the solution....rather simple as expected. Freeze the rubber bumpers. This will make them shrink slightly. Spray them with a silicone lubricant then lightly pound them in. Here's the pictures with the new bumps in place. 
02/25/07 – It has been WAY too cold outside to get anything done so I spent some time today working in the house on restoring the seat. I dropped off the springs to get dipped a couple weeks ago at Restoration Specialists so they were clean metal to start with then painted them with black Zero Rust. 
I purchased the seat kit from Jim Carters along with the burlap and other padding materials. It was clear that the materials would not be enough to make the seat look nice, so I of course resorted to e-bay to see what I could find. I quickly came across factory second memory foam mattresses and purchased a 2” thick piece big enough for the seat back and a 4” piece big enough for the bottom. This ended up being money well spent! The total cost for the foam was under $50 and I had enough left over to make a nice pillow for the kids.
Here's a low down on the steps I used in this project: Using wire cutters and a box knife, I removed the old cover from the seat. My dad tells me that way back when he worked at the GM plant he helped himself to one of the seat covers off the line. It was trashed along with everything below it including an old Mexican type blanket that my uncle remembers putting on the seat a long time ago. After removing the remaining seat covers and the various girls undergarments that my dad and uncle must have stashed in the old seat covers in their younger years, I was ready to go.
I made sure the seat covers were plenty warm before trying to pull them into place. I've heard you can just put them in the sun for a while but there is no sun in February in WI so I just did everything inside. After repairing a couple springs, I pulled the burlap over the seat springs and attached it with hog rings.
I then used spray adhesive to apply the layer of 1/2" thick grayish colored padding that came in the kit. With the new base foam in place, I precut a piece of the 4" memory foam and placed it on top. 
Then I pulled the new seat cover inside-out on the seat foam and rolled the edges down over the sides. I started in the front and worked toward the back. I then flipped everything over so the top of the seat was facing down and I could see the springs. In order to get the seat cover down to the springs, I placed three 45lbs plates on top of the springs which helped compress them. I secured the cover to the springs as originally done with the clips provided in the kit starting from the center with only a few of the rings along the back edge. Here's the final result. I was pretty pleased for my first reupholstery job!
02/2507 I added a photo gallery of various colored 41-46 trucks. Send me your truck and I'll add it to the page with your info.
03/02/07 About a month ago I went to install my engine and found that the rear motor mounts that I purchased from Jim Carter's were too wide. After some research, I found several other people that ran into the same problem. They too ordered part number ME217 out of the Jim Carter catalog. The catalog lists these as correct for 37-47. THEY DO NOT FIT. One of the guys recommended that I try catalog # ME218 which is listed for 48-53. I notified the people at Jim Carter's that it appears that they have another catalog number incorrect but have not seen any changes to date nor have they responded. The ME218 fit perfect. So......if you have a '46 1/2 ton DO NOT ORDER ME217 rear motor mounts. Instead order ME218. As you can see in the photo, the ME217 mounts are too wide and they interfere with the frame cross member and will not work.
03/03/07 Way too cold to be in an unheated garage today. I wanted to get the engine in today but instead decided to stay warm and updated the web page. I added a Discussion board. I often get e-mails from people that have found this web page and figure it may be another good way to share. Use the link below and drop me a note.
03/24/07 Got the engine installed today. This feels like a good turning point in the project and I look forward to being able to get the small parts installed and trying to fire it up. One small step at a time....... Here's a couple photos including one "before" shot. 
4/15/07 This weekend started a bit frustrating again. I cleaned up the 3 speed and put a fresh coat of paint on it. After getting it looking good it was time to install....crap....the spline on the replacement clutch from Jim Carter's is incorrect. The spline on the 3 speed has ten teeth and the one on the replacement clutch has a lot more. After I got beyond the frustration and removed the replacement clutch and pressure plate I went on and began working on other things.
I completed the tie rod ends project I started last summer and this time everything went together rather nicely. Now the two front tires move together vs. independently. The last steering component is rebuilding the steering box. I installed the side cover and valve covers as well as replaced all of the hardware with stainless hardware.
I also began working on some of the small things on the block. Put the intake/exhaust manifold, water pump, fan blade, draft tube, generator, starter, carb and distributor. Ends up I need a distributor cap. Seems the '48 has a taller cap than the '46 so I guess I have more for the for sale pile when things are running. I figured out the starter and carburetor linkages and included photos below for anybody struggling with how these come together with the springs, etc...
Overall, I ended up making some pretty good progress this weekend.
4/17/07 I called Jim Carter's to see about returning the clutch and pressure plate assembly. Julie seemed pretty helpful even though I purchased the clutch back in August of last year. She referenced that they did have some problems with some of the clutch kits and was not at all surprised. Ends up I will be sending them my original clutch and pressure plate to rebuild vs. going with a completely new set. This is probably what I should have done to start with considering I am trying to keep things as original as I can. I am also returning several of the other parts that I got in the past that were not as described (i.e. hood corners, motor mounts, battery floor cover). From what I hear they are pretty good with customer service so I'll let everybody know. Stay tuned............
It's officially the start of year 7 of the restoration!!! Not sure where the time has gone but I am sure where a bunch of my money has gone....
5/25/07 I've been puttzing around on various things the past month. I was very fortunate to have found a pile of NOS parts that are typically very hard to come by: lower valance, inner fenders, air baffles and fender extensions. At this point almost the entire front end of my truck will be rebuilt with NOS parts.
I also (for the second time) rebuilt my gauges and if I may say so myself, they look pretty darn good and bit better than the first time (see photo above).
I also got my clutch and pressure plate rebuilt and will be installing it in the next few days. Jim Carter's was great in working with me on the exchange!
7/10/07 I got a new Domain name for my truck web page(s). www.46chevytruck.com will eventually be used for this page. I just have to figure out how to get this one to automatically switch over to the new address and redirect visitors. No need to mark the page now, hopefully, next time you log in, you will automatically be taken there.
07/13/07 I am finally at that stage where I really need to get going and get the body work and paint done so I reached out (once again) to Dave at PaintWerks. I have been bothering Dave about once a year for the past three years so he's probably thinking it is that crazy guy with the truck again. I hope to hear from him soon to figure out how to get things going. I have every body panel that I need with a few spares that will be sold once I decide which ones will be best served for my truck (don't e-mail me for parts just yet). I will also be looking to figure out where to get my grille re-chromed. I already have all of the other chrome parts ready to go. I bought the reproduction parts but will be keeping my originals in case down the road I want to get them re-chromed. The reproduction parts look pretty good. I did not buy a reproduction grill because I have not heard anything good about them and they cost as much or more then replating my great original. I found a great lower grill and an NOS upper grill. Anyhow, I'll post again once I hear back from Dave.
07/24/07 I spoke with Dave from Paintwerks and he suggested that I put the truck back together to get a good feel for how all of the new and old parts will fit back together. This will assist with determining what amount of body work will be needed prior to final paint so there are no (or limited) surprises when reassembling with fresh paint. So, I spent some time over the weekend reassembling my box and some time tonight bolting together the front end parts. Considering that the only front parts that are not NOS is the one baffle that is in gray and the lower/large portion of the grille, everything fit very well.
Now I have to round up a few guys to lift the cab back into place on the frame so i can really get things bolted up.
I also believe that I found an additional body shop right here in my backyard that not only does body work and paint but it looks like they also do custom exhaust. I'll be calling them this week to see about getting the stainless tube you see in the photo above bent.
It's all coming together now.................. I am now at a point where I am willing to sell the extra 6 fender extensions that I have. I have an NOS pair and three others that are not NOS but are almost as good because they have been stripped to bare metal. If you are interested, let me know and I can throw them out on e-bay.
08/12/07 Although I have not placed the cab on the frame, I have been working on a few things. I started working on the steering wheel. It had one area that had a rather sizeable chunk out of it and a lot of cracks After reading around, I found that the kit that Eastwood sells works pretty good. It uses a two part epoxy that dries hard as a rock yet sands nicely. I have the steering wheel in primer now (not shown) and I am trying to find a match to the brown that was used on the instrument bezel. This will be the brown I use for the Steering column as well.
The big thing I started was painting the interior panels in the correct original beige hammered finish as original. Hammered paint has a unique cloud to it (some people call it crater like). GM used it during the early and mid-40’s on the interior parts including:
Seems the Hammertone paints work best when the parts are laying flat so that became challenging for some of the parts that have 3 surfaces that show. 
So what did I learn here? As nasty as Toluene is; it is your friend when painting Hammertone finishes. To ensure I was not breathing this stuff in, I wore a 1/2 face 3M respirator with Organic Vapor and P100 Particulate cartridges on it. It allows the effect to come out (as shown in the wiper cover and the defroster duct above. I did not thin the paint enough when painting the dash and the upper panel, so there is little Hammertone effect. Now I am debating if I want to sand and try again... the question here becomes how much is enough?
In addition to the other things, I was at a car show today and thought I would look for a car with especially nice looking chrome and begin asking around to see who people used. First one, I found Custom Plating Specialists, Inc in Brillion, WI. I sent the owner an e-mail to see what it will run to get my grille chromed as well as getting the grille trim pieces and the three stainless dash pieces polished up. I am awaiting an answer. I need to get the grille completed before we paint the truck because the top of the lower portion of the grille needs to be painted the body color. I have a great lower grille I bought on e-bay a few years ago, an NOS upper grille and three sets of trim to choose from. The quote for getting these chromed was $500 for the lower and $175 for the upper.
I also spent some time finishing up the front end overhaul including the steering gear box. I actually have it steering again!!! What I found very strange was that when I took the steering box apart it was full of axle grease. Thinking that this just did not seem right, I began to research it starting with the manual. It states that you should use Chevy steering box fluid which was discontinued many, many years ago. After researching it further I found that others have tried various weights of oil and many find it a problem with it leaking out. I went with the concept of finding the heaviest weight oil I could get - STP Motor Oil treatment. Thick as molasses and does not leak (at least yet).
08/16/07 I played around today and placed the dash, seat and a door panel in the cab to get a "preview" of things to come! Marla and I took the first "ride" and the girls quickly jumped in to "ride along"! Payton and Taryn were the smart ones...they wore their bike helmets.
08/26/07 Took some time today to run the front brake lines. I used stainless lines and am pretty pleased with the results. I had to look at some old photos to figure out where the lines needed to be run. Here are the results. I will post photos of the rear once I complete it. I also ran the fuel and vacuum lines today also using stainless. They too turned out looking pretty nice. 
09/03/07 After getting the quote for polishing up the grille trim and dash trim ($200) , I decided to give it a try and convert my bench grinder into a buffing wheel. Off to Home depot I went and I bought everything I needed. A rough cutting type compound for the first pass and a jeweler's polish for the second. I took me a couple hours this morning and all said & done, for under $30 and did it myself. I just followed the directions and made sure to not let the parts get away from me. Now I have all of my stainless parts cleaned and shiny like new. There a very minor scratches that I could not get out that a pro likely could have (I probably could have too had I continued to work at it but they all turned out great and you have to look really close to see any of them. 
09/29/07 The day finally arrived. I actually dropped off the box today at Paintwerks! I took the time last week to disassemble it so it would fit in my little trailer. Now the search for the proper colors begins. As shown above, I will be painting it the correct Brewster Green with black fenders & running boards. Plan is to assemble it with all stainless hardware. Now I need to get the cab back on the frame and finish reassembling the front end to test fit everything. Which ended up being a good exercise for a few reasons. First off not everything it perfect and some things needed some persuasion with the body hammer. Secondly, I had to figure out how it all went together and figure out what bolts to use. I would hate to have been trying this for the first time with fresh painted parts. 
10/07/07 Yesterday I got a couple neighbors over and we lifted the cab and placed it back on the frame. Today I put it all back together with the exception of the hood which is just sitting in place. Looks like everything is fitting nicely. It was a little on the difficult side to get the driver's side fender out enough to make room for the lower piece that goes in between the fenders. 
Marla got in the truck this time!
Overall, I am pretty pleased with how everything looks. There is one gap at the passenger side fender extension that is a little bit big but I will end up going back to work that one before I pull everything back apart. With all of the NOS parts I used in the front end I am really amazed how well things came together. In total, I used the following NOS parts in the front end:
NOS Upper Grille
NOS Panel
NOS Baffle
NOS Skirts
NOS Extensions (L and R)
NOS Headlight bucket (L)
NOS Inner Fenders (R and L)
Trying to figure out the best order to assemble is a bit on the perplexing side. I ended up assembling and reassembling a couple times to get it right. Better now then with newly painted parts! Once all together everything firms up real nicely!
10/31/07 Got a little creative with the Pumpkin carving this year. Several years ago I saw that someone had made up this pumpkin so I gave it a shot this year. Certainly looks like a truck to me. I even made the grille resemble my original grille!
I ordered my Brewster Green and Kildare Green paint from Jim Carter's. I special ordered it in order to be able to get the PPG that Dave at Paintwerks wanted. The ideal situation would have been if Jim Carter's would have just shared the formula with me but they would not (certainly to get the sale). It has been a few weeks since I placed the order and still no paint.
I also ordered a hood hinge. Can't say I am perfectly happy with that one. The hinge has holes pre-drilled and the holes do not even come close to matching up with either one of my hoods. I will likely be returning it and will use one of my original ones.
11/11/07 Finally painted the steering wheel and added the photo above (8/12/07)! Looks great but I made the mistake of not worrying too much about the very small hairline cracks thinking that the PC-7 would take care of things. No such magic. I have 3 hairline cracks. I ended up painting this with the single stage paint that Jim Carter's sells. It turned out looking real nice and the color matches pretty nicely to the original brown that I had on the steering column. The Steering wheel & parts, the steering column (down to the box) are all brown on this year truck. This brown matches the brown on the instrument panel.
11/19/07 Today is a very good day. I paid Dave at Paintwekrs a visit this afternoon and I was able to pick up some of the first painted parts. So that is what Brewster green looks like in real life! The left hand photo of the tailgate hinges is without a flash, the center photo as well as the wheel photo is with a flash. This is a really neat color and is pretty much what I have had in my head the past 7 years. Talk about nerve racking; waiting to see how the very expensive paint actually looks once sprayed on parts. I love it! It can almost look black in absence of bright lights. In the light, it has that "dark green olive" hint to it that I have had in my head as "brewster green" . Don't ask what the paint code is for the "Brewster Green" because I do not know. This was custom mixed based off of the color that Jim Carter's sells. What you're looking at is Brewster Green DBU and DCC matched to the Jim Carter paint they sell. I also had the Kildare Green matched in a PPG DBU. If you go this route, do no
t expect that the people at Jim Carter's will know much of anything about the paint. What we found is that they do not. They do however, have a supplier they get the paint from that seems to know their stuff. We had a mix up with this custom order because when Carter's
received the paint in their warehouse, they put their typical stickers on it indicating it was something other than what it truly was. It took Dave from paintwerks a few calls to get it straightened out but he got to the bottom of it. Lesson learned? Stick with your local paint supplier or go into it with the knowledge that they are the third party selling something they don't know a whole lot about. Carter's ended up setting the two paint people up to talk it through with each other.
In addition to picking up some parts with actual paint on them, I got a peek at the box which was still hanging in the paint booth as well as dropped off the rear fenders, running boards, headlight pods and some misc. items that will be black.
Here's a photo of the tail gate being repaired. Unfortunately when it was
shipped it was damaged slightly. I should have returned it or filed a
claim with the shipping company right away but I didn't and this ends up being
the only body work that was needed on the bed before paint.
Mar-K makes a great product!
I also got a rebuilt 3 speed from George Wells who posted it on the Stovebolt forums. He set me up nicely and now I don't have to worry about rebuilding my 3 speed. Thanks George! You can see George's truck in the Gallery. He actually had his truck in a Japanese magazine!
Click my photo gallery page to see it.
12/08/2007 I picked up the rest of the bed today and talked with Dave at Paintwerks
about the fitting of the running boards to the rear fenders. He has the
lion's share of the metal work done on the rear fenders and has the headlight buckets in primer. They are looking pretty good. I bought a second set of running boards on e-bay but we ended up deciding that the original boards were the better of the two pairs so I ended
selling them. Here's a photo of the box sides:
These things are like mirrors!
I also got the bed wood back from my dad who did the work to stain and poly them. They are going to look great in this bed!!
The grille saga has also expanded into something new. I found a freshly replated grille on e-bay and bought it paying top dollar thinking that I could sell my current grille and be ahead of the game about $300 in the end. The grille looked GREAT until I tried installing it. Unfortunately someone had not test fit this grille before spending the money to plate it. The bottom is slightly out of shape and would require too much bending in order to get it to fit and would likely ruin the chrome. Fortunately, there was a money back guarantee but I am out the shipping costs both directions.
I got a refund from the seller and shipped the grille back to him in CA.
On his end, it seems the grille was damaged in transit so UPS returned it to me
to take a look at a initially declined the insurance claim. As of today
(12/18) it appears UPS is paying up on the shipping claim so all is well and
everybody comes out even on the deal except UPS insurance (I got my $ back and the seller got the
sale price for the grille through the original auction). Lesson learned: stick with a reputable Chromer as well as the parts that you know fit
and do not ship your good parts if you can avoid it. I am back to my original plan which was the best one in the first place. Have my grilles chromed. They are in perfect condition so I was crazy to even think of doing anything otherwise. I located a very good shop a few hours from my house so I'll be making a road trip one of these Saturday mornings.
01/23/08 It is WAY too cold to be doing much with my truck!
I do not have a heated garage and the temperature has been below freezing for a
while now. I was working on my rear brakes and grabbed a socket and my
fingers froze to it like a grade school kids tongue stuck to the school yard
flag pole. My small heater just can not keep up with the sustained cold.
When I had a smaller garage it was pretty good and even when the temperature is
closer to the freezing point, I have been able to at least get it to 40-50F but
not in this frigid weather....burrrr.
Maybe, I'll invest in a garage heater for
next year when they all go on sale for the end of the season. What has
been happening during this ridiculous cold is Dave has been working on various
parts finishing any required body work and painting them. So far, the
entire box is completed and I just got a call this week that the rear fenders,
running boards, headlight pods and some of the other smaller items are completed
and ready to be picked up. If you read a posting from last year about
my fenders:
I have certainly learned one thing about what it takes to make a
fender and other parts "perfect". I thought I had some pretty darn good
fenders but I quickly learned that I am glad I did not start with what I
originally had or I would be in for far more than I expected as it relates to
the cost for body work and paint. As it is, I will end up spending
considerably more than what I originally anticipated to get this thing painted -
Paint & body work budget will likely be close to being blown away before we even
get to the cab - OUCH. Don't get me wrong, the results are
far beyond my expectations and almost to the point that I will likely be
concerned about driving the truck in the end (which is concerning in itself
because after all - it's a truck)! The size of these parts does not help. It was rather funny when I dropped off
the front fenders for Dave. We placed them in his shop next to an old
Porsche he was working on and they looked Massive. The massive size of the
fenders on these trucks takes a lot of work to get "perfect" - don't under
estimate it if you are getting help (especially if you are paying for the help).
What have I learned (again)? - While certainly not news to
anybody, if you think you are going to spend $1; expect to pay $4! That
way if you end up only spending $2 or $3 you'll be pleased. Don't
underestimate or you may stall out your project and never finish it. After
7+ years - this one won't be stalled out.
1/26/08
I picked up some parts today (running boards, RB aprons, rear fenders, headlight
pods, side window frames, tail lights & brackets). They look great!!!
The rear fenders and running boards are something else to look at. The
photos do not do them justice. The black on the Brewster green looks
really nice. As you can see by the photo on the right of the page, the
rear fenders have the subtle crease line along the back tops of each of them.
We
even took the extra time with the rear fenders to make sure that we matched up
the original rivets that hold the rear fender brackets to the outside of the
fenders. Often you will see that these are shaved flat or bondo'd over.
See the close up photo of the rivets (and my living room in the reflection)
We had to order 100 rivets so I have quite a few extra! I was also able
to assemble the headlight pods and the tail lights. The chrome bezels on
them are not the best but they will have to do for now. I may end up
getting them quoted out for re-chrome.
We are almost ready to get going on the cab so I'll have to round up some
neighbors to help me pull it off the frame again. This will be a good
chance for me to finish up all the mechanicals and get the thing running.
While my last target completion date was this spring, I think a Labor Day target
is far more realistic while providing me the time to not have to rush things
just to get done (not sure it will ever be "done").
2/15/08
Last weekend I loaded up the cab onto my 4'x4' trailer and delivered it along
with the hood to Dave at Paintwerks. There's not much stranger than the
looks of this cab tailgating my little Buick. Made it there just fine.
This time (unlike when I tailered it fro OH), I left the wheels on the cab dolly
I made. The cab dolly was pretty simple to pull together. No real
science behind it, I just lag bolted 4x4's into a square at approximately the
same distance apart as the frame rails then bolted on 4" caster on all four
corners. Once I got to Dave's with the cab, we spent some good time
walking through all of the "problem areas" of the cab, doors, hood, etc...
We also decided to order some more single stage of the Brewster Green to be sure
we do not run out. We're using the single stage for areas like the bottom
of the cab, interior , under the hood and similar locations.
Unfortunately, there's a lot of work to be done yet. Another lesson
learned here. When I had the lower cab patch panels put in (3/11/06), I
asked Bill to put a coat of primer on it to protect it until I could get to this
point. Unfortunately, it appears that Bill did not take the time to prep
the surface as he should have and the primer in some of the areas of the inside
of the cab is flaking off. This is very concerning considering the $ and
time that is being put into the final body and paint. Lesson here is
"don't get ahead of yourself". Take your time and only do things like
metal stripping if you are actually ready to dive into the body work and final
paint. I supposed the flaking primer is better than a rusted hulk but
probably will be spending more than I need to at this point to correct it.
02/22/08 Dave sent some progress photos tonight. Looks like he is moving right along with the project. Here are a few of the hood and doors. Dave indicates; "These pictures show the uneven surface that was there and all of the areas that need work to make it flat. The red paint is epoxy, the gray is high build primer and the uneven red is the guide coat. From here, these will get blocked, reprimed and blocked again. They should then be read for final sanding and paint. I will have pictures after the first blocking. You may be surprised at how many defects will show up."
Here are some photos of the hood. The first two are of one of the cracks
on the hood where the hinge attaches and the resulting repair. The others
are of the hood itself. The drivers side of the hood panel was clearly the
side that was opened more often during this truck's life. As you can see
the damage that was caused by laying it over the top when opening needed some
attention. It looked originally like someone had taken a hammer to it and
pounded dents all over the length of the hinge.
02/28/08
The top of the cab is ready for the first high build. Dave is working on
the bottom half now. The real bad part is the literal bottom of the cab.
There was quite a bit of surface rust under it prior to getting the cab chem
stripped (see 10/23/05). I guess
if you are looking for a good surface for the final paint you got to make sure
it is perfectly flat. The 60+ years of use as a truck certainly does not
help things. Pretty scary when you consider that this thing looked pretty
good when it came back from being stripped. I guess it is pretty hard to
tell how many dents, etc are in it without any color on it.
I spent some more time working on the clutch and ended up busting the clutch fork retaining clip. Because I did not have a spare, it set me back another week to order a replacement (and a spare). I started rebuilding the distributor and realized that I have one from a newer 235 engine. I guess it will work but ended up digging through my box of old goodies and found the correct one and started rebuilding it. If anybody is interested I have a Delco-Remy Model 1112403 Serial number 9G08 that I am willing to sell. It has good points and condenser and is in overall great shape. I do not have the cap for it
03/08/08 Got some more photos and a note from Dave: "Things
are moving along this week. Doors and fenders are re-primed and look great. I
started on the top half of the cab today and it is cleaning up better than
expected. Everything is looking very good. The single stage paint will be ready
late next week. I am planning to get back on the truck the following week. The
spare wheel also looks good." I
paid Dave a visit earlier in the week to drop off the new windshield frame and a
couple misc. parts (gas cap, brackets, etc.) for paint and got a good look at
the progress. Everything looks great! The cab probably took a little
more work than what I had expected, but there was a lot of metal bumping that
needed to happen in order to limit the amounts of filler that was needed.
While the cab photo may look a bit alarming, overall, what you see is an
extremely thin coat to be absolutely sure everything is absolutely flat.
From what I understand, this could very well have been accomplished with a
couple coats of high build primer.
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