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55 to 59 chevy truck owners

935K views 3K replies 212 participants last post by  DOUBLEDICK 
#1 · (Edited)
My name is Richard Johnson and I am building my second Apache truck.I drive this truck every day and am doing everything I can to make it a pleasure to drive and still be a good work truck.I like modern drive trains and stock body and interiors.I am looking for other guys that have and drive these trucks to talk to and share Ideas and designs for custom made parts with.I have sent private messages to a few people on this board and only one person responded.At his request I sent him pictures of my custom sway bar mounts so he could make some for his truck.Without sway-bars these trucks are no fun to drive.I am curious to see what others have done and share ideas.
 

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#2,753 ·
then the pass side
i had stuck a drawer under this side to make up for lack of glove box



after




and of course the built in drawer is still there :D


construction pics: first a piece for the seat belt


and then the drawer front, again just cardboard, wood, tape and wax
 
#2,754 ·
radiator cover

nothing wrong or ugly under my hood, just lots of stuff next to the radiator
dual horns, ac drier, relays, wire and the over flow tank


just trying to make it look nice







and some construction pics. again; cardboard, tape and wax
2 L-brackets fasten the cover to the top 2 bolts of the radiator
pre-fiberglass


glassed






more glass inside
 
#2,757 ·
thanks guys :D

i consider myself a man of little talent, but unlimited tenacity.
i just keep at it until i get something i like

banjodr: look at fatman ifs, i have the basic package on truk
the fatman x-member is heavy wall 3x4 tubing, a lot of the x-members out there are bent up 10 ga steel, i just wouldn't feel comfortable at 80 mph on 10 ga steel

i had truk on a hoist the other week looking at all my welds, fasteners and general inspection
the good: all welds good, no hairline cracks or failures of any kind
the bad: the nuts on both my motor mount bolts were gone, luckily both bolts were still in place though.

i leave for the hot rod power tour on june 2nd, everything is looking good for that
woohoo! anyone else going to any part of it?
 
#2,760 ·
57 stepside door glass

hello fellow hotrodders. i have removed the window, vent window, and regulator from the door of my 57 chevy stepside. how do i get the glass out of the frame? it looks like theres screws holding it in but they have been spot welded by whoever did the glass last. are these frames normally salvageable or am i lookn at buying a new frame? where should i post this question if this is not the best place? thanks for your time.
 
#2,761 ·
rear lower shock mounts

Are these lower shock mounts on your truck originals?? I accidently threw mine away in the tear down process. I need another set as I have done the same exact thing you did flipping the axle. If they are not, please let me know what vehicle they came from so I can find another set. Thanks, Tim.
Roadkill58 said:


notice i reinforced the frame over the c-notch, top of frame is 1/2'' from the bed.
if you c-notch more you will have to raise the bed wood.
as is, i had to trim a bed wood bolt over the punkin.

Ogre,

I see your u-bolts go over the axel tube. Mine is a little different.

Take a look at my journal and you will see what I'm talking about.[/QUOTE]
 
#2,762 ·
i used the stock upper and lower shock mounts for truk.
i started out with monroe-matic 33086 shocks and changed over to air shocks to keep truk off the bump stops.
the plates and spring pads came from a trailer supply store
the u-bolts came from a suspension shop
easy peasy :D
 
#2,764 ·
Hey guys, I'm finally jumping back into my project truck after far too many years. I've been slowly wading through old posts, but haven't come across the info I'm looking for. I would like to know what size tire I can squeeze into the stock fender wells on 16" wheels and what backspacing will get me there. I plan to have the same size wheels and tires on the front and rear.

My truck is a '55.5 3200 and I'm planning to keep the drum brakes and stay with a six lug setup. My truck is a couple thousand miles away at the moment and I'd like to buy the wheels and tires to take with me to make it a roller when a pick it up later this month.
 
#2,769 ·
i assume you have a setup in mind but you don't say or post any pictures
so it would be hard to give you any advise

anything can be adapted to anything.
you have a lever on the clutch that needs to be adapted to the rod on your clutch master.
figure how much throw the mc needs and figure where to drill the hole to hook the rod on the lever.
i usually draw it full scale on a piece of paper and then transfer it to steel.

easy peasy :D
 
#2,771 ·
'57 3200 project

Hello all, I am very new at this, haven't turned a wrench in about 30 years, but here I am trying to fix up a 57 Chevy 3200 pick up.
I'm sure this has been discussed at length many times, but I am attempting to swap out the stock rear end with a posi unit. I am finding conflicting info, (to me). I measure 57 inches backing plate to backing plate, yet I am finding that the rear ends of 62 inches is suppose to fit. Obviously, I must be measuring differently. I wellcome all comments.
 
#2,772 ·
this has been covered many times in this thread.
55-59 truck rearends are 62'' flange to flange, that would be why a 62'' rearend is recommended.
3rd gen camaro/firebird/trans am rearend is 62'' wide, that is what i run in mine.
lots of good info over at chevytrucks.org scroll way down
it will take some time, but read all 2770 posts before your post, lots of good info in this thread
 
#2,774 ·
1957 chevrolet truck tie rod ends

Hey guys, I need to replace the tie rod ends in my 1957 chevrolet truck. Any input on using oem type or changing to modern tie rod ends. I read somewhere that if I change to modern type then I will need to press out the ball on the steering arms? Brothers has them at a good price, but just wondering what I am in for. I kept the straight axel on my truck and used Posies dual leaf springs.
 
#2,775 ·
Hey , Guys what been going on , I haven't been here in awhile. I'm looking for a piece of frame crossmember for my 57 that I took out and through away a long time ago for a suspension mod I made. Anyway the crossmember i'm looking for is the last crossmember at the back of the frame between the rear shackles , it's a heavy piece thats rivited in. Does anyone have one thats in good shape and has not been all cut up ?
Gene
 
#2,776 ·
dude, nobody is going to have one of those unless they put their truck on a whole new frame, and who in the hell would ever do that? what would be so hard making one?

this horse's petute comes over to look at my truck and asks me if i know what the difference is between a 55 front fender and a 56. i said yes, the fender spears are below or above the crease. he says 'no, the 56's are rounder above the headlights'. i told him all the aftermarket fenders say they are the same part for both years and he thinks i am being a smartas. whatta ******. glad he never called back. where do people get all these stupid ideas from?
 
#2,777 ·
dude, nobody is going to have one of those unless they put their truck on a whole new frame, and who in the hell would ever do that?:welcome: what would be so hard making one?

this horse's petute comes over to look at my truck and asks me if i know what the difference is between a 55 front fender and a 56. i said yes, the fender spears are below or above the crease. he says 'no, the 56's are rounder above the headlights'. i told him all the aftermarket fenders say they are the same part for both years and he thinks i am being a smartas. whatta ******. glad he never called back. where do people get all these stupid ideas from?
 
#2,780 ·
I took that crossmember out of my pickup when I put in an aluminum gas tank in the back and replaced the leaf springs with a 4 bar setup with air bags, now I want to go back to leaf springs. I know I could make one out of box tubing but I figured someone did what I did and took theirs out also.
 
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