Hey guys, first post here so bear with me. I was given a rust free (cab and fenders anyways) 1949 m155. Its a fire truck, but the pump is ruined and the fire truck specific parts are hurting. It only hs 13000 miles, which includes pump run time. I have been looking for an M68 chassis to put this on. I have a couple of leads, but am curious as to what parts, if any, besides the cab, sheet metal, engine and transmission are compatible. Could the frame be shortened to match the wheelbase? are front axles interchangeable etc? I know its a lot of questions, but I'm finding the local "experts" really have limited knowledge, such as the guy who insists the M68 came with dual rear wheels

 

Welcome to the forum! As I'm sure you're aware, but for the benefit of other readers, the M-155 was the Mercury version of what we in the States know as a Ford F6. In Canada, it was considered a 3 ton truck. The cab, running boards, and front end sheet metal all interchange with the 'normal' pickup trucks, and would be the same as a M-68, or F3 in US terms. Engine and trans could be used, too, if you wanted to go that route.

For all practicality, trying to modify that large truck frame to pickup status is not a good idea. Sure, anything can be done, but it's really heavy stuff compared to a M-68 frame. The same with the axles. F1/3=F47/68 parts will interchange on the M68 frame, but the big truck stuff is totally different, and the extra low gearing of the 155 is very undesirable for a driver.

If having a M68 truck is your ultimate goal, do yourself a favor and keep on the lookout for a pickup chassis. It'll be much easier in the end. There's bound to be someone near you that has a ratted out old truck with a good chassis you can swap your good pieces onto.

 

Welcome to FTE! Sounds like you have a great truck. As 52 Merc has already said, if you want an M68-F2-F3 size truck find an M68-F2-F3 with a complete chassis and swap all the body parts and engine and transmission to it. All of the sheet metal parts are the same between the M68 and M155 and so is the engine and transmission. The axles and frame are a lot heavier though. If you do decide part out the M155 chassis, with only 13000 miles, the brake parts especially would have some value.

 

Welcome and let us know your location as it makes it a bit easier to help you in your search .

 

I am in Nova Scotia. Guess I didn't fill out all my information!

 

Nice truck! Nice work!

 

One quick question, how wide are the grill and fenders on your M-155? Canada pulled an interesting trick on their longest wheelbase 2 ton trucks and used the wider F-7 / F-8 width front sheet metal. In the unlikely event you have the wider sheet metal it does not bolt on the smaller trucks.
The third picture down in this thread has an example of a wide front 2 ton truck: https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...seum-pics.html