Good Evening All,

Happy Thanksgiving. I am new to your forum but an avid Chevrolet guy. I have restored a 1947 Chevrolet 3800 dually going from a splasher 216 to a well built, full pressure 1962 - 261 with a nice 848 head. I stuck with the SM-420 but I have a T-5 on my wish list to get me a little quieter in the cab. I love my truck - but I'm ready for the next chapter.

I owned a 1957 Chevrolet 4 door wagon as a younger man. I grew up in Queens NY and sold the car to *I believe* a guy from Brooklyn in the mid 1970's. It was green, 283, powerglide. I have visions of re-uniting with that car but I'm not holding my breath - I hear of guys chasing their old car and passing by too many good ones waiting for "their old one".

I'm really fond of model year 1956, and I would one day like to find another wagon. I would give a hard look at a 4 door, take a good long drive for the right 2-door. I'm not so sure I would sell a kidney for a Nomad.

I seek to learn from your forum as I did from 'stovebolt.com' about my truck. My real interest lies in what to look for when you find something of interest on ebay, at a car show, on a forum, or at a local auction. By that I mean:


  • Where can I expect to find rot on a body - typical for the wagons
  • Same for frames - where should I poke around and thoroughly inspect ? Can the frames be repaired?
  • What part is near impossible to find, and you would pay dearly for? (On 1947 to 1954 1-ton trucks, you can't buy, steal, or barter for the rear brake drums or shoes - they are not available after market)
  • Are the after-market parts (sheetmetal mostly) any good? A lot of guys went down the LMC road on the trucks and ended up with panels that are hardly square, don't line up, or take a ton of work to half fit. (Sorry LMC)
  • I seek to find a good driver and go from there. 6 cylinders raise my eyebrows after tweaking my 261 to almost perfect. I really want a wagon. 3 pedals a must.


Anyway, thanks for reading my post and I will be making my way around your forum learning as I go. I will make sure I stay away from the "classifieds" because I don't know enough - yet - where to stay out of trouble.

Best - thanks for looking

Joe
Morrisville PA