JBNeal

VINTAGEPIC: saw these big Dodge tankers posing on the FB

Tucker clay model

VINTAGEPIC: saw this cutomized B-1or2 panel on the FB

VINTAGEPIC: spotted this mid-50s Dodge 1-ton service truck on the FB

Dealer trading has been a thing for a long time afaik as the dealer network was all about moving product from the factory and off the lot, not just vehicles but also repair parts and supplies, as the ebb and flow of supply and demand varied regionally. A more recent example was when Dad went to buy the QuadCab back in 2001: the dealer in Temple drove a dark red 2500 out to San Angelo over 200 miles away and came back with the silver beast out front that is a few ticks shy of 250k. I recall Dad negotiating the price and wanted to know just exactly was involved with the $500 dealer prep and got some song and dance about cleaning the vehicle, installing floor mats, etc...of course the first stop we made from the dealer was to get diesel as the fuel gauge barely moved off of E when he went to start it, Dad said something to the salesman about how come filling it up wasn't part of that dealer prep charge and the salesman shrugged and walked back inside on that boiling hot August afternoon. We got the truck home and are checking out this new buggy, I'm looking under the seats and said "hey I found another feature of that high-dollar dealer prep charge", Dad looks over and sees me produce an empty Fritos bag...he gotta li'l salty but eventually was amused...I think he even called that salesman to ask'm if he wanted it back 😁

My '48 build card showed delivery to Mineola before being sold to my great grandfather in Temple...he did not travel far from Bell County, so the idea that he would go truck shopping nearly 200 miles away does not jive. There may have been an incentive program for purchasing in bulk back in the day so that the factory would not be burdened with excess inventory...one regional dealer might make a deal to take on inventory, then get on the horn to local dealers to let them know they have product to sell...the sales game can be a shifty juggling act, if that movie Fargo is any indication of some of the shenanigans that them fellas were capable of perpetuating

VINTAGEPIC: saw this West TX COE Dodge work truck on the FB

additional information - Dodge Truck Registry Help additional information - Dodge Truck Registry Model Number Decoder

When I've pulled these steering wheels, I put a sacrificial bolt in the shaft bore, steering wheel nut on the threads finger tight, and the puller setup like ya used...keeps the shaft threads intact and keeps the puller square-threaded screw from "inserting"...yeah, my first wheel I pulled ran into this scenario. So I put the steering wheel and nut back on and modified the puller so that the bearing splitter was indirectly resting on top of that steering wheel nut instead of the back of the steering wheel...I cut some scrap angle steel to approximate square tube that would go between the nut and splitter, using vise-grips to hold them together. Made a U-shaped plate from scrap 1/4" steel to spread the load from the angle steel to the splitter, straddling that square threaded screw. Then I carefully backed the square threaded screw out of the H-bar, and it eventually popped out. I was puckering up purty good the whole way, but got r dun without incident...lesson learned

VINTAGEPIC: another poser with the C-1 on the FB

VINTAGEPIC: saw this C-1 doing a photo shoot on the FB

I recommend using the port behind the oil filler tube as there should be enough room for that pressure sensor. One of my flatheads in storage has a brass elbow in the port behind the starter, and there's not much room back there...my guess is that elbow was for an aftermarket mechanical oil pressure gauge that fed pressurized oil through a nylon tube to an underdash gauge.

Indeed, these "big" trucks are kinda small compared to today's full-size pickups, the operators have gotten bigger as well. The big 1948 Pilot-House brochure has this comparison of small 130-lb and large 220-lb driver, showcasing the new larger cab. Judging from the locations of these two drivers' eyes, shoulders, and knees, the big guy is about 6 ft tall-ish, small guy maybe 5'6"...Andy Taylor and Barney Fife sizes. This reminds me of the time some big ol' boy moseyed up to the house wanting to sit in one of the Pilot-House cabs on the side yard. He wanted to get an old truck to fix up, but made the smart and probably experienced decision to see how he fit in this "great old truck" as he kept rambling on about. So I opened the door to the one that I had driven last, he climbed in, and the look on his face said it all as the steering wheel scraped his belt buckle...he decided that these old great trucks were nice to look at, but not quite his size

I had pulled the gauge cluster from the '48 1-ton awhile back so I pulled it off the shelf to clarify my fuzzy memories. The gauges are separated from the housing by cardboard about as thick as the gauge plate. The snap-in lights are not insulated from the housing. The amp gauge has cardboard cup-shaped insulators under both round head screw heads; there is not any insulation on the screw threads to prohibit contact with the gauge plate. The gauge plate mounting holes are concentric with the housing tapped holes, and the housing gasket and amp gauge cup-shaped insulators are tight to the mounting screws.

VINTAGEPIC: saw this COE hauler getting eyeballed on the FB

VINTAGEPIC: saw this tanker on the tarmac on the FB

back when men were men and guardrails had body counts

VINTAGEPIC: saw this tanker on the tarmac on the FB

Horn installation tip: It may be easier to connect the wiring to the horn terminals before bolting the horn to the firewall bracket. On the B-1 and B-2, that hood support brace is right where ya want to stick your head during installation, which makes putting a backing wrench on them terminals a real stretch. Also, might be easier to slip the horn back onto that firewall bracket if the outer hexnuts aren't fully torqued down as shown: