Sorry, but I can't tell you anything about the KC assembly plants. Carl, the guy that started this thread lives in Texas and is much better informed about the plants.

I only know from my list of serial number data that I've been collecting that I have a couple of 48 F trucks that were reported as being assembled at KC. There are several more in 49 and the most listed from '50

 

I've had this truck for about 18 months and have been actively working on it for about 12 months. Sometime back I post the Serial# info here but never got the firewall info. I'll bet I spent 8-10 hours combined scraping, sanding and wetting the firewall trying to find the stampings somewhere in the center where everybody told me it had to be. Finally, I just gave up. Over the past week as we were preparing to paint the engine we sanded down and shot the firewall in a gloss black. that's when my wife says, "hey Joe, what are these letters and numbers over here stamped in the driver's side corner."

Well there it was, finally! Then as I was cleaning up the engine, I finally scraped and sanded the top of the block to find the engines birthday that I could not find before.

So here is the info

Engine date of manuf. H30M

H=July
30= 30th day
M= 1950

The firewall codes MNR9J729

M = Meadow Green (Wish i had found that before the paint job, but still happy with MY color)

NR = Norfolk, Va.

9 - 9th day

J = September

729 = build number

 

That is cool you were able to find the rest of it. Makes the sense of ownership a little more complete.

I wasn't able to find your earlier post - when did you post that or what is your serial number?

Only thing I noticed was the production date. J was the code for September since Ford didn't use the letter I. (They kept that for the number 1 for some strange reason)

 

98RT478377

I think I put it on here, about 18 months ago.

Oh, OK, September not October, my bad. I forgot about the no I.

I went back and fixed it. Kinda wonder why they didn't use the same code as they did for the engine dates.

 

I've wondered about that too. Your's seems to support the build date and the engine assembly dates - about 5 weeks between engine assembly and vehicle assembly. That's moving them along pretty good.

 

My 50 F1 is a Norfolk truck and the stampings were way over on the drivers side down low like yours. I guess it was a unique thing for that factory. So maybe thats a heads up for those of you who have trucks near the east coast.

 

Don't know why I never did this before!
My F3 Stamped on firewall: 7 KC 6 K 5
Plate on firewall: 98RY 255835 KC
Glove box plate: 98RY 255835 WBY
It is green, 239 V8, 4 spd on floor, Flat bed

F1 Stamped on firewall: LB 3M 175
Plate on firewall 97HC 166471 LB
Glove box plate not original
Flat 6, 3spd on floor

Brian

 

Thanks Brian for including your trucks to the data base.
The F3 stamping says, as you know,
7/ Meadow Green,
KC/ Kansas City,
6K/ 6 October assembly and 1949 serial number 255835 concurs
and vehicle #5 down the line.
Glovebox plate WBY is the model designation.

The F1 is Long Beach assembly plant
3rd Dec, 1948 and is one of the earliest 49's I've seen
vehicle 175 down the line.
You've got the rest.

 

mtflat,
WBY is the model designation: do you know what it stands for or means?
My F1 is Birch Gray now but when I bought it in "75 it was red and black but yellow under the hood and behind the seat. It was in pretty rough shape so never really figured what the original color was. There should be a number before the KC, right? ...will look again but don't think so.
Thanks

 

I don't know anything definite on the WBY except the Y corresponds to the F3 Y in the serial #.

There's a better than even chance your F1 was yellow to start with. Right, there should be a number in front of the KC stamp. Some got it and some didn't.

Yellow is the one color I don't have nailed down, but I think the code number was 16. I stand to be corrected.

 

Thanks so much for the information everyone i will be looking for some more info on the truck and see if there are any more #'s or letters and let the thread know.

Thank you again

Robin

 

mtflat,
Re. F1: why 3rd Dec. 1948 and not 1949?
Brian

 

Robin, you're welcome.

Blsd49, several factors created some overlap in production details.

At the time Ford was using the calendar year as the "cut-off" for model year on trucks.

Also, assembly plants were given blocks of serial numbers and used them as they produced trucks.

1948/49/50 serial numbers are consecutive (more or less) with only a prefix difference separating 48 and 49 ~ 88RC vs. 98RC There is no prefix distinction between 1949 and 50.

I've seen 48's overlap into the 49 serial numbers based on production codes, and 49's like your's that got a jump start on the calendar year production.

'49 trucks built in early December 49 are in the general serial number range of 275-280,000.

 

I originally entered this thread on 4-25-2006 and just in the last week got back to it. Many days and nights of reading the whole thread ! WOW! You guys do great work - you have helped MANY of us ! ! Since 2006 have gotten computer crashes, new computers, programs, etc like many others. I have edited what I sent in originally and this AM actually got the frame rail #s and corrected the firewall data.

Item #7 - looks like PANP18
G64

I changed the "R" to a "P" - was a scratch that made it look like an "R".

Frame # 97HC313570

Can you tell me what her birthday and other info is? I do know she was from Norfolk plant. Father-in-law willed her to me in '83. I didn't know until he had passed away. "Restored" '92-95, drove her to St Louis area in '99 - '05 and drove her to PA when we moved in 2005. She can't wait to get back South to N.C. in a couple years.


[quote=JimBenson41;3627000]
1 - 1950 F-1 late (or believed to be)
2 - VIN # 97HC313570
3 - Bed - Raised Panel see note below
4 - Not sure if original but very possible
5 - Trans 3 sp, 2,3 syncro
6 - Floor shift
7 - # PANR18 G64 On firewall above hood spring on driver's side. ERROR #

Black Possible late '50 since when installing wiring kit, gauges weren't exactly like manual layout and seemed to be cross between 50 and 51 schematic. Been too long to remember what exactly was different. Windshield wiper motor on driver side, dash braces cut/bent and had pass side wiper . Looks like late modification.

Rear axle, left front spring hangar was bolted to frame not riveted. Found when trying to figure why truck went down rd "sideways". P.O. put too long of spring on left. Left wheel /axle must have hit something really hard but no visible fender bed damage so may have had bed replaced. Farm pickup. Bed floor had thin wood planks under where two sheet metal layers had been welded to front and sides. (Didn't know others had sheet metal flooring until reading other posts.)

Sun visor on left side. Small rear window. H226 flathead
to you and all contributors.

 

Welcome back Jim. Birthday is 18G or July 18th. It would have been a mid-50 truck. The gauge issue, like the springs, might have been compliments of the previous owner.

You might have been right before you changed the firewall code. MP is Memphis and NR is Norfolk but there wasn't an NP. Back to the drawing board, huh? : )

Norfolk used a "P" prefix on their serial numbers. A is the code for Black. Next 2 are the assembly plant. After that is the date code. The 64 designates the car/truck down the line.