International Harvester built their K and KB series trucks from 1940 to 1949. The K series ranged from 1/2 ton to 90,000 lbs and were known for their durability and reasonable price. The KB series was built from 1946 to 1949 with over 122,000 units produced. This is example is located in Medina, Texas which is in the Hill Country region of Texas about an hour west of San Antonio. The truck is a project with no drivetrain and is listed here on Facebook Marketplace. The seller is asking a very reasonable $5,000 which includes lots of parts and a modern Chevrolet Silverado frame, if you want to resto-mod the truck.
The interior of the truck is painted read and looks to be in good restorable condition. The gauges are said to look like new. The seller has included over 20 pictures to show that the sale includes all metal panels, glass, interior panels and hood. The body is said to be extremely straight and has surface rust but only one pace where the fender is rusted through. This is pretty amazing considering this truck is 75 years old and was found in a field.
The bed looks good and the truck looks like it is a roller. The KB-a series trucks were light duty (1/2 ton) vehicles that were powered by International Harvester’s ‘Green Diamond’ inline six engine. The KB line was replaced with the L Series International Harvester truck in 1950. The seller is also including a Chevrolet Silverado frame, if the buyer wants to put the body on a modern chassis. The frame has a fuel tank and all new front suspension.
I love the grill and lines of this series of truck built by International Harvester. The truck looks pretty complete for a field find and make a great restoration. The level of that restoration will be up to the buyer. I personally like the patina of the truck but would prefer a modern drivetrain and braking system.
Someone featured this just to get my blood boiling, I’m sure. I always liked the K/KB series of trucks. Well, the C and D Series, and the L,R,S Series. Hell, I love them ALL. Way too nice to butcher; restore it and enjoy it. You can go 50-55 with it which is just fine with me. Those guys in the imports can go ahead and give that single-digit wave all they want. The interior of this one has got stuff that’s hard to find. There’s a guy who’s 3-D printing the control knobs but no one is duplicating the windshield crank–yet. Engine parts are time-consuming to find but not impossible, and actually getting a little easier. I’m sure that’s newer than ’46 as the KB didn’t come out until ’47 and didn’t have a column shift (there’s a couple of outfits that can make the shift cable) until the latter part of ’48. If I knew the VIN I could find out when that truck was actually built…
Not all of us guys in the imports disapprove of antique American iron. Your truck looks great and if I saw you out on the road I’d definitely give you a thumbs up.
Thanks, Rick. I appreciate that. Maybe I shouldn’t have been so quick to categorize all the import drivers into one group. After all, I have (2) brothers and a couple of friends who drive imports. But understand that it always seems that when a bunch of us get hassled on the road while enjoying our old rides, it’s either by someone with a 2 liter engine/4 liter exhaust or someone else with a European-built SUV that thinks he/she owns the road. I just smile and wave back cheerfully…
Friend here in town built a beautiful street rod out of a ’49 shell and frame. No body mods, used original frame, 350 engine, turbo 400 transmission, an unknown rear axle with a limited slip rear, and upgraded suspension and disc brakes. Steel wheels with salt flats wheel covers and AC to make it driveable in Florida heat. Yes, it was lowered and made one of the best looking trucks of it’s type on the road. He sold it a couple years later when a buyer walked up and gave him 38K cash for it. I tried several times to stop myself from offering to buy it and and still not sure I didn’t make a mistake.
There is no question that these make great street rods/resto mods. Some have become the owner’s daily driver, carrying them countless miles. I’ve seen some with over 50K miles and still going. And while it wouldn’t be what I would do my hat is off to those dedicated builders/drivers. I sell a lot of parts to those kind of people and will likely sell a lot more before I “close the hood.”
Rear Axl (Rose) not centered?
It looks as though the load box (incl attached fenders) is loose and moved a bit away from the cab, which makes the rear axle off-centre, but I may be wrong