I posted about a week ago about buying a '48 F6 in South Dakota ( I live in north Alabama)and going to get it. I had never been in that part of the country, so was kinda wanting to go get it myself rather than hire it hauled. I looked on the tractor site that I use frequently, and found a guy who needed a John Deere tractor hauled from Tennessee to Minnesota, so made the deal with him and headed north. Delivered the tractor, drove about 220 miles west, loaded the F6 and headed home. That's about 1150 miles from here. Seems that I spent lots of time stopping for gas. That 454 Chebby loves gas.I stopped about 300 miles from home, in southern Illinois, and a young guy on the other side of the pumps saw my truck and we started talking. He told me about one about 2 miles down the road that had been for sale for about a year, said it looked really good. So, I says to myself "self, you might oughta check this out, after all, what's a couple more miles?" Yep, you're right, it looked lots better than the one I was hauling. Matter of fact, looks like 4 times the truck. It's a '52, has the 239 v8, was repainted several years ago, must have been kept inside most of it's life, almost no signs of rust anywhere, but hadn't been cranked in about 3 years, and the guy wanted just a bit more than I paid for the '48. So, I just got it home a few hours ago, and am tickled pink with it. It seems that I had to drive 2500 miles to find this truck that was 300 miles from me. But look at all the fun I had! Hauled it with my tractor-hauling truck, '85 F250 xtd cab, 460, auto, 101K miles. It likes gas too, but pulled the gooseneck trailer quite well. Can't wait to see if the flat v8 will fire up. The oil looks good and motors not stuck, so a little fresh gas and fresh battery might do it. To late to try it tonite.
The '48 has a good flat dump bed on it, and I'm thinking about putting it on the '52, building dove-tail type ramps, and using it for hauling antique tractors to shows.
Just so fired up, I had to tell somebody!
Stan
I'll try to post pics of both trucks in a few days.

 

Great too hear about your new toys, and sounds like quite a catch. So what kind of tractors you got? There used to be a show around here that had a few steam tractors, and Hart-Parts(?), they were pretty neat to hear and watch. My dad owned a Massey Harris 44, watched him work on it when I was little. Those were what lead me into older vehicles, flatheads, and somehow to hot rodding, weird huh? Well, good luck with em!

P.S. It'll all stop when we have all the old trucks in our garages and are tired of haggling others for theirs.

 

Have 2 Ford offsets, a 1962 541 with Sherman combo auxiliary trans, and a 1964 2000 Offset high-clear. Have a 1948 Earthmaster that I restored last year, a 1952 MM Avery V, and a 1969 Massey-Ferguson 165 Diesel that's a work tractor.
Got the '52 F6 running this evening. No brakes yet, so I just drove it down a long driveway across the road from the shop and back. Running pretty rough right now. Took the carb off and apart for rebuild, soaking overnite in cleaner. The truck had sat for several years I think. The gas in the tank was really rotten. Drained it, the sediment bowl on the pump, and blew fresh gas through to the carb. Then the truck ran. The carb was leaking, and must have leaked the gas out before it had time to turn rank.
The exhaust is just straight pipes back about midway of the truck, and that 239 V8 sounds fine when its running smooth. Think I may need to rebuild the distributor too, seems to me there's to much play in the breaker-plate, and I'm not sure all the sputtering and skipping is due to the carb. Should know soon.
Stan

 

Stan I think you got a good Idea for us "collectors " drive around with a car hauler with something on. It brings out the comments like you got "Yea there's one like that just down the road". or "I know where there is one of those" Or the the best is " I had one of those and I still have a box of spare parts that I was going to throw out would you want them " Of coarse the answer to that is "NO" I have enough spare parts

 

OK, the '52 F6 cost me another days work at the machine shop Friday. I had to check out "just a few small things" before I started my "real" work.
Put a fresh battery in, spun it over, no compression. Pulled the plugs, sprayed a bit of Liquid Wrench at the valves, then pumped about 3 squirts of ATF into each cylinder. Let that soak while I took the gas cap off, smelled the gas, and sure enough it was rotten. Found that there's a shut-off valve in the tank outlet, so I screwed it out, drained the tank, flushed it with fresh gas, took the sediment bowl off the pump, cleaned it out, put a new gasket on the bowl, blew fresh gas from the tank to the carb, sanded the points, adjusted them, cleaned the plugs, and got fire to the plugs.
Dumped a bit of gas in the carb, and that sucker fired right up! Stuck valves all came loose and that flat-8 on straight pipes sounds pretty good. Gas did leak out of the carb, so after driving just a bit in the dark with no lights, I pulled the carb and took it apart for rebuild. Should have the kit in a couple days. Next part is the brakes. So, I got thru "checking a few things out" about 11:00 pm.
No real work today.
Can't believe what a good truck I lucked into. Still has the jack and at least part of the tool kit. Has the jack handle, 2 lug wrenches, an offset combo wrench, and big socket for the wheel-hub-caps? Don't know what else should be there. Also still in the bag, but it's kinda rough. Truck has turn signals by Signal-stat. Is this original or later add-on?
'Nuff for now.
Stan

 

The second F-6 sounds great. I just found a '54 F-600 flatbed. How difficult would it be to make it a dump bed? Also, it has a 5 speed trans with 5th gear anoverdrive. How common are these trans? Also, I think it will need new tires. About how much should I expect to pay for these big boys? Can I get retreads?
Thanks, Abe

 

You would have to have a hoist installed. A shop would have to do it be cause there is fabrication, welding and hoist's aren't light either. I think you transmission should already have a spot for the pto. If it doesn't you may be out of luck. I don't think they make electric hoists anymore? I'm keeping the electric 3-4 ton hoist on my 51 Mercury M-3(ton). I'm just going to raise the floor on the box so the fenders sit normal and I don't really know what hoist costs either maybe a $1000?

Nathan

 

my old man is looking for a new cab for my 49 f-1.
the floor boards are rusted through and they are 100 bucks a half.
and long time ago some one shot the back of the cab and not i got a cab that lookes like swiss cheese.
not good at all.
but i got a 51 f-3 cab.
in 51 they started a new from end and it doesnt match the front end i got now.
so im gonna stock out the 49 and hot rod the 51 out.
i wanna get ahold of a NASCAR motor and a fiberglass front clip.
she will float as the cops try to catch me.
hehe

swanny

 

>The second F-6 sounds great. I just found a '54 F-600
>flatbed. How difficult would it be to make it a dump bed?
>Also, it has a 5 speed trans with 5th gear anoverdrive. How
>common are these trans? Also, I think it will need new
>tires. About how much should I expect to pay for these big
>boys? Can I get retreads?
>Thanks, Abe

Hey Abe,
I just priced new nylon bias-ply truck tires today in Huntsville, AL. For 8.25-20 lugs for the rear $139 ea. Highway ribs for the front $101 ea. I was thinking about radials, but he said that size is kinda hard to find, most folks not making them anymore, but I only checked at this one place.
As for the dump, I have a '48 F6 with a dump that I plan on putting on the '52. It runs off a pto on the side of the 4-speed T9. Changing them doesn't seem to be so hard a job, just requires a way to lift the beds. I have a forklift which I built an extension for, also an overhead hoist with a chain-hoist on a trolley. The complete bed just replaces the flatbed on the truck frame.
Good luck
Stan

 

Do you happen to have a steering box for a '53-'56 F-600? I need one and thought you may have one or know where I could get one. Thanks and good luck to you.

Terry Emrick

 

Terry,
Sorry I'm so late getting back to you. I don't have a spare steering gear, and don't know of any local salvage yards that has one.
Sorry.
Stan