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I'm thinking of buying a Chevrolet 1 1/2 ton that runs, but I'll definately need parts. How hard are parts like things for brakes to come by?

Excuse the ignorance here. My prior mechanicing work on military vehicles is limited to Jeeps and Dodge 4x4s.

Pat Holscher wrote:I'm thinking of buying a Chevrolet 1 1/2 ton that runs, but I'll definately need parts. How hard are parts like things for brakes to come by?

Excuse the ignorance here. My prior mechanicing work on military vehicles is limited to Jeeps and Dodge 4x4s.

Hello Pat, well I can give you all you need to know about the Chev in a sentence or two.

You can get service spares OK - lots of standard military stuff, and the engine is a stovebolt six so no ball of fire but no problem. Hydrovac is smaller than the GMC unit and you need one that works.....

Apart from that, all you need is a complete vehicle. It looks like a GMC 6 x 6, but it really isn't. The unique parts on the front are the running boards, engine side panels (with CHEVROLET stamp) and radiator grille (round bar rather than GMC flat bar) I think there are some differences in the cab floor too,

What it boils down to is completeness. If you can find a complete truck - even a tired one - then it should be no problem,but if you are missing the bed or any of the unique cab parts they'll be hard to find.

Gordon - who knows absolutely nothing about horses and cavalry stuff... 8~)

Thanks Gordon.

Just talked to the guy today, and it runs out he's swapped out the motors with a different Chevrolet engine. He has two, and will sell them both, but it would be a requirement to get both from the sounds of it, given as a person will need parts. Neither one has a box.

Given all that, I think I'm going to pass on it. There's one here locally that's nearly complete, if a person assembled it all, and I was hoping it was that one. I could have had a nice 1 1/2 ton and used it for a feed truck. But these ones sound like a lot more work than I have the time or knowledge to do.

If anyone is interested, the trucks are located in Pinedale, Wyoming. He's advertising them for $750.00.

They tend to get hard used, and he will have swapped-out the engines because the original stovebolt just had splash lube on the big ends so it wasn't as tough as the GMC 270 with full pressure oiling.

If you find a complete one, grab it. The alternative is a 1940 Dodge VF which was the Dodge attempt at the same weight range, but again they tend to be hard beat and incomplete.

You could just about use a 3/4 ton Dodge WC as a feed truck, but I'll admit the body shape and carrying capacity wouldn't be ideal.

Back to work,

Gordon

I know that a lot of the Cargo Chevy 1 1/2s are missing beds. I also know that there where three types of beds fitted to the trucks a all steel, a steel/wood, and a all wood bed. what do each of these look like? would it be possible to reproduce a all wood bed? I have seen a steel wood mix. I have for the one truck a all steel bed (needing alot of work). But havent seen pictures or actualy seen a all wood one.

I will agree these trucks where driven hard and commonly put away wet. More common is to find the truck still in the spot that it died in. striped of its valuable parts.

Jason

Let me faint, I found the holy grail, a complete bed for my Chev. All metal with tail gate, tool box, and all troop seat hardware. I have a winch truck to boot. Now I have to decide to do my Chev 1.5 ton or a hammered 3/4 ton Dodge Command Car. Tom

Tom @ Snake River wrote:Let me faint, I found the holy grail, a complete bed for my Chev. All metal with tail gate, tool box, and all troop seat hardware. I have a winch truck to boot. Now I have to decide to do my Chev 1.5 ton or a hammered 3/4 ton Dodge Command Car. Tom

Hmmmm, do both?

Tom @ Snake River wrote:Let me faint, I found the holy grail, a complete bed for my Chev. Tom

Maybe you did, or maybe you didn't.

I've been told the Chevrolet cargo truck bed and Dodge VF beds are identical, with the exception of the placement of some cutout or notch for the fuel filler - no personal experience.

So, if you've found a VF bed we'll just have to find you a VF chassis-cab to go under it - and then you can get on with looking for a Chevrolet bed.

Gordon