This 1950 Chevrolet Pickup looks like it just drove off of a farm after an honest days work. It has perfect patina and doesn’t appear to be overly rusty, which should make a great project for someone. Found here on eBay with a current bid over $6,000, the bids are climbing steadily upward. Currently located in Fresno, California, the ad states the truck is a former Army vehicle and appears to have spent a good portion of its life in California. So what does the future hold for this truck? It could be fully restored to better than new or you could do a custom rat rod, which would be my choice. How about you?
The interior is dingy, but appears to be original and in decent shape. The aftermarket supports these trucks with pretty much anything you would need. The ad does state that the speedometer isn’t working, but the gas and voltage gauges work. The truck is a 12-volt system, which is nice for any modern electronics or ignition systems.
Unfortunately the only picture of the engine is a little fuzzy. You can still make out the straight six which appears to be in mostly original condition. The ad has the following description: “Truck has original motor and transmission. Previous owner said he rebuilt it 10 years ago. Motor fires right up and manual 4 transmission works good…blows no smoke.” If this is true, this would make a fun fix-it-up-as-you-drive-it project.
You can tell this truck was built for work by looking at a photo of the rear. The wood racks are obvious, but how about that thick bumper? It looks like it has probably towed a bunch and has protected the rear fenders from any potential accidents. Overall, this looks like a really solid project and will be a great truck for the new owner. If it was yours, what would you do with it?
Those rear bumpers were made by Barden Bumpers,
& seemed to be EVERYWHERE in the ’60’s & early ’70’s.I had one
on my ’72-1/2 Toyota RN22 pickup,that I bought from my neighbor,
when it was 6 months old.
That engine is a ’54 or later 235 . Good engine, just not original .
Chevy used the 235 in 1950 but only with automatic trans. Used the 216 with manuals trans. I had the latter.used on farm all the way to the mid 80s very reliable truck.
I have a 235 in my 54 3100 truck .
They run great with a three in a tree and single carb and side Oiler .
The body looks good and a Cali car to boot 👢
I can think of a lot of uses for this truck
around my house. Everything from running errands to hauling newspapers
and so much more. To me, it would be
a crime to make all the needed repairs
to this truck and not get any use from
it. These trucks were built to work and
not to be trailered from show to show
as trailer queens because their owners are terrified that somehow their trucks
might get totalled out if some careless
driver throws a rock from a tire that
could dent a fender or smash a windshield. It’s okay to use your vintage
truck to haul something provided you
and those around you are careful when
you’re loading that sofa for Mom or a
new deep freeze for Aunt Minnie. Just
think of the crowds that will gather when you drop those items off at their respective houses and how some of
those folks standing there may be shocked to see someone actually getting
use out of a vintage pickup truck. With
all that said, it’s time for me to hit the
sack! Gotta go to work in a few hours.
Farm fresh, but is it organic??
my favorite Chevy pu style!
Love these trucks…had a 5 window back in the day when they were everyhere……looks like tuck n roll on the upper half of the passenger door…..not oem ! :)
I farm and would love to have this to help with hauling. I can fix it fast and get back to work. I love these. But if someone buys it and gives it “shiny patina” and puts “Dog Poop Sewer Cleaning” or some other dumb graphic on the doors, I’m going to be mad.
It was a common occurance to drop in a 235. The original 216 was fairly adequate but the 235 was better. The 216 would suit me just fine so I’d find one and rebuild it to work, but I wouldn’t get in too much of a hurry. Nice truck. Do a full driver-quality restoration and have a good time with it. I’d even keep the stock racks, or build a new set. It would remind me of the days long ago on the ranch…
This thing sold for 7K and change. Original? I dunno I do not recall seeing these trucks come with the swell cross stitch door panels it is sporting. They are nice and they are old. But were they made that way at the factory? Also I saw no data plate indicating it belonged to the army. The military buys equipment one of two ways. They buy it in bulk as in half a million jeeps all made to various specs with a few various models or modifications. For a civilian already made truck such as this one, it could have been a local purchase authorized by the CG. For example if it was an Armor unit and all they had was Patton tanks and recovery vehicles assigned to it and a couple of jeeps . A pick up could have been purchased by the supply department in order to run around post as a go getter. It would have been painted Olive Drab as per army regs and assigned to a specific command. The bumpers would have had something painted on them as well. Like 2ND ACR/Supply or something. Don’t see any evidence of that other than what I guess could be some OD paint bleeding through. The interior colors don’t support that either. Not withstanding all that I do love this old truck and I would only do enough repairs to it to keep it going like it is. Not to say that I wouldn’t replace the rusty bits with good metal where the cancer was getting after it.
Yeah taking it down to the metal and dipping it and media blasting would be tempting because you do have a lot to work with here. Painting it back to what the factory had it as might be the way to go. After all that though I would drive it and enjoy it.