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I'm restoring my VC5 "Yosemite Sam" DOD May 28, 1940 and started to work on the grill trim. All the grill trim had been painted the same blue as the rest of the truck. So I'm cleaning up the grill trim and I just realized the upper grill trim ( the part with the Dodge script) is mild steel not stainless. All the rest of the grill trim is stainless.
My other VC5 with a date of delivery of March 12, 1940 the upper grill is stainless. So at some point they switched to mild steel on just the upper part that has the Dodge script. I believe at some point during the war civilian trucks switch to all mild steel grill trim as well.

Ernie O.

Hi ernie.

What you have there is a bit of so-called "blackout' model trim, normally 42-45.

Is the bottom edge of this trim completely flat, like ordinary 40 trim, or is it 42-45 civilian blackout trim where the bottom edge has been teamed to look like a 40 trim section? It would be interesting to see photos when you get it off cause all the other VC and VF trim I've seen has been chrome, right up to August 40.

If you look in the Dodge Master Parts List (Tm10-1199) for T202 you will see that there is a listing for two different "DODGE" center mouldings. Part number 596344 was used up to ser.# 8643462 and 598342 was used after. It was my impression that the early trucks has polished mouldings and the later had plan steel. Could 8643462 be the "early/late" cutoff?

Phil H

That serial number could be when the change was made. Yosemite Sam is serial # 8644117. It's funny that they just changed the one piece.

Maybe a trial. It looks like a 40 upper section for sure, not a modified later one.

Ernie I have NOS stainless uppers if you need one WALLY

Thanks Wally, I'll touch bases!
Ernie