Here we are, guys and gals, I've finally remembered to bring my camera to the shop, with a charged battery, and snapped some pics of the flatbed on my 52 M-1. From my description in an earlier thread, the concensus was it may not have been anything more than someone's homebuilt deck. So I'll share these pics with the guru's and solicit the opinions herein. If it doesn't have any historical significance, all that rotten wood will have a date with the sawsall and Mr. Garbageman. ;-)

The deck is made from 2x8 tongue and groove boards, held down to the crossmembers with 16d nails going through the tongues, like nailing a hardwood floor. There's a 4x4 crossmember in the front and back, and 2 2x4 crossmembers in between. All that is sitting on 4x6 's atop the framefails. Heavy angle iron with stake pockets welded in surrounds the deck on 3 sides. The angle iron was attached to the wood with long carriage bolts and tie hooks underneath at each one. Up close, you can tell quite a bit of craftsmanship went into building the thing. Detailed angle cuts, clearance notches cleanly routered, etc. She was, at one time, hell for stout, but the elements have taken it's toll on it pretty good. The catty-wampus sagging on the left is from disintegrated wood.

 

Interestingly enough, my neighbor Chris has a 46 Chevy 1/2 ton Flatbed truck that is EXATLY the same construction and mounting (cut to fit on frame) as this one.

 

It looks homemade to me, definitely not a Ford bed. It looks like it has a good 3/4 of frame to work with though. I'd add a matching piece of angle iron to the front and work off of that. The Ford beds have metal crossmembers. Build some some racks and you have good looking bed.

 

That is interesting, Julie. And it makes me wonder if, instead of it being "homemade", if it could be an aftermarket, factory-built bed, much like some of the things one can buy today, from various suppliers, since it doesn't appear to have come from Ford/Mercury. It just seems too detailed for the typical backyard "farmer special", if you know what I mean. Would anyone have any experience with anything like that?

 

Looks like the 2x4 runners on top of the
frame my be the original wood
and the 4 long ubolts are stock looking
Joe