Southtowns27

It can be fixed. Start calling around and find a small shop with a frame machine that'll work for cash. Should only cost you a couple hundred bucks. I've seen my fair share of bent frames (circle track racing) and it's amazing what a frame machine can fix.

Here are a couple pics of my fiance's truck right after we got it home. She had been looking for a toy and I happened across it on Ebay. It wasn't running or driving, but I had it ready for the road in less than a week. The first pic is how it looked when it arrived. The second is after a lot of elbow grease, lol. It has 83,000 on the clock and drives perfect again.

Here's a question, how rare are 6v electric wipers? From what I've seen most trucks had vacuum.

How does the rear bumper rate? My fiance's truck has one and several people have offered to literally buy it right off the truck.

My fiance has a '50 B2 with a three on the tree. When we got the truck 5 years ago, the 2nd gear synchro was puked. It wasn't possible to do a 3 - 2 downshift without double clutching it. I called around and around and finally found a semi-local shop that would be willing to look at it. I can't remember what was wrong with it now, but they fixed it. It had worked fine up until the end of this last summer. We're now starting to get a slight catch on a 3 -2 downshift, sometimes it's a full out grind. I'd really like to get this thing fixed for good. If anyone has any idea what's going on here, please enlighten me. Or, is there a well known reputable place that deals with these old trannys? Thanks in advance

Thanks for the replies, I'll check those out

I was able to track down a pretty nice original radio for the fiance's '50 B2. The unit is all there, but needs some attention. Does anyone know of a reputable place that fixes up old automotive radios? Thanks in advance

Thanks for all the input That's what it was that I couldn't remember. I read somewhere that the right side brakelight was an option. The bracket that it's bolted to is definately a factory part. It's a mirror image of the one on the left. I've since found the original taillights and replaced the ones in the pictures. The rear wiring harness is still original and intact and has the plugs for the taillight to plug right into.

Thanks for all the great comments so far. We're located near Springville in WNY for those who asked. I didn't realize how many of these trucks were actually still around until I found this site. I've only ever seen 1 other PH locally. It's a '52 and ratrodded. Does anyone know if the low-side box is a rare option? I remember reading somewhere that the trucks came with a high-side box but the low was still available as a special order in '50. I'm trying to determine if the truck was a special order or if someone just bought it off the lot. It has the low side box, spare tire, rear bumper (which several people have offered to buy right off the truck), sun visor, electric wipers, deluxe cab and I guess there were 2 choices of suspension and this truck has the heavy one (I can't remember how I determine that, I probably read it somewhere). I feel like there's something else too, but can't remember. Anyway, any additional insight is appreciated!

I'm a new guy here so I just figured I'd share a few pics/story of our truck. Technically it's my fiance's truck but she always says it "our" truck. She won it on Ebay 4 years ago. I talked to the owner of the truck several times and everything seemed legit. She won the auction sight unseen and I had it trucked home from Selah, WA to western NY state. She's the 4th owner. It was originally bought as a farm truck in WA state. The original owner left it to her grandson who sold it to the guy who owned it before my fiance. The PO bought it in non-running condition and made it worse. He attempted a 12V conversion and failed. He also attempted a 4 speed conversion and failed. Then he Ebayed the truck. When the truck got here I immediately went to work on it. First thing I did was put the generator back on and put the wiring back the way it was supposed to be. I checked the oil, dumped a little gas in the carb and it fired on the 2nd revolution. Perfect. It wasn't pumping gas to the carb so a little blast of air back through the fuel line fixed that. The plugged fuel line probably explains the 12V electric fuel pump that was sheetmetal screwed to the inner fender . I also rebuilt the carb and gave it a full tuneup after I knew it'd run. Fired it up and wow, it ran like a clock. The 6V charging system worked perfect too. Still don't know why the PO tried the 12V convert. Next I tackled the 4 speed "conversion." The truck came with the original 3 speed. I replaced the 2nd gear synchro in it and put it back in the truck. Everything hooked back up and worked perfect. I threw brakes on it and got new tires for it and we were ready for a road test. The thing ran and drove great and still does. It's got 81,000 miles on the clock and gets driven A LOT. I did some research and the truck is 1 of only 8000 built at the California plant in '50. Anyway, here's a couple pics: The day it came home: After all the mechanical and 2 days of wet sanding and buffing: Yes, it gets used as a truck:

For oil, do NOT use an oil with an API rating of SM. SM rated oil is designed for new vehicles with cat converters. They removed most of the zincdialkyldithiophosphate (zddp) from the oil. In plain english, they removed the lubricant for the flat tappet lifters on the camshaft. Apparently, when zddp burns in an engine, it kills the cat converter. Without the zddp to plate the lifters/cam you'll knock the lobes off the cam, sometimes within a matter of minutes. Go to tractor supply and get their 10W-40. It's rated SL and will work fine in your engine. If you don't have a tractor supply nearby, go to wal-mart or a parts store and look at all the oil. Check the API rating circle on the back of the bottle. Anything SL or before (SH, SI, SJ) etc is fine. Most 10W-40 is still SL, most straight 30 and 10W-30 is now SM. Don't use it!

Stupid question, but how do I remove the dern horn button??? I tried pushing it down and turning it a bit, but to no avail. Maybe I'm just not trying hard enough?

Well, the horn on our 1950 1/2 ton decided to start blowing itself. Whenever you'd turn the steering wheel several turns, like when trying to park, the horn would turn itself on and maybe turn off after some period of time... I've since disconnected the power to it, but I really need to fix it. Can someone please explain how the wiring in the steering column works and how to repair/replace it? Thanks!!!