John Rogers

Looking at the third member in the picture it looks to me like someone installed a 8 3/4 Mopar rear end . The two bosses with 4 empty holes on the top of the housing is where the pinion snubber would go. John

I highly doubt they can be taken apart and reassembled. The chrome part of the knob is once piece and it looks to be rolled around and over the edge of the center to secure it in place. Removing the center part would not be hard at all but doing it would ruin the chrome part of the knob. John

Congratulations, what a great looking truck.What a awesome find. I bet you cant wait to be able to get in and take it for its first drive. John

Welcome Brian. Thats a sweet looking truck you have there. It looks like its pretty darned straight too. John

Thank you for taking the time to do this Kevin. I need to do this to mine as well and actually seeing you go thru it step by step helps tremendously.Its one thing to read about the process but reading and seeing is much better and helps to make the prospect of performing the repair for the first time a lot less intimidating. John

48D, I wonder if Dodge might possibly have changed locations on them part way through production in 1949 or something. My '49 is still mechanically original right down to the wiring and on mine they are attached to the radiator support . Not that its a big deal or anything, just a curious. It wouldn't surprise me if it were the case. It wouldn't be the first time Ive seen a change part way thru a model year. Im actually in the process of redoing the harness .Even though it appears to be in perfect condition visually and has never been altered, there are lot of sections of that old cloth insulation on the wires that falls off at the slightest touch leaving the wire bare such as under the dash. I sure dont want a fire thats for sure John

They are located on the left and right of the radiator on the core support. I just went out and took some pics of the location of them on my 49 with my phone but for some reason I cant send them to my computer. Evidently there was an "update" that changed my phones system last night because the screen looks different today. UGH !!!! Anyway I did some looking through the pictures that I have saved on my computer and found this one.It is not mine nor did I take it I just saw it and saved it, Im pretty sure that it was posted here by a member of the forum some time back. I save a lot of photos from here and anywhere else I can find them for reference "just in case" . I thought it is a great picture that shows lots of detail so I saved it. Anyway I hope this picture helps. I hope I do not offend anyone by posting pictures that they took. I would have posted the one of mine had I had been able to send it to my computer.

There is a great multi part video that shows how to do it. It is for a '48 but Im pretty sure its the same or at least really close for your '54 I think it was done by one of the members here. Im going to try and post it here. I hope that it works its really good and if it posts I hope it helps you. John

Welcome to the forum. Thats a great project, Im looking forward to seeing it as it progresses. John

Welcome Smoke,your truck and mine are almost twins John

Congratulations to you and your Dad. it sounds like you both had a great time together. It just doesn't get much better than that. John

That's a great looking truck you have. Welcome !!! John

My Dad took me out for my first driving lesson in his B1B when I was about 10. I learned to drive in that awesome truck and I double clutched my way thru High School. Here it is 35 years later and sadly my Dad and his truck are both long gone but a little over a year ago I got my '49 because it reminds me of my Dad .I love my truck and its almost like I can feel my Dad with me when I drive it even thought it isnt the same truck. Probably wishful thinking but its still comforting. Here is a picture of Dads truck on our farm in St David, AZ back in the mid 70's.

My passenger door on my B1B will remain locked if the handle is in the locked position when I close it but my driver side door will not. If the handle on the drivers door is in the locked position when I close it, the handle on mine automatically unlocks as soon as the door closes which for me is a very good thing because I have been known to leave my keys in it from time to time while I'm working on it. I always try to remember to leave a window open when Im working on our vehicles just in case but luckily for me my truck is smarter than I am John

I don't know if its the same with a 1 ton but the fuel line on my B1B is 5/16 ". I dont know that the fuel delivery needs are on your truck. My best guess is that it is the same but I dont know for sure. John

Mine has 11 so it appears that the one in mine is correct . For some reason I was under the mistaken impression that 10 was the norm and that for some reason the 11 stud rear end in mine might have been a oddity. Every time I tried to order a new gasket for the third member from both of the local auto parts stored here etc they all had 10 holes in them so Im sure thats what caused my confusion. My Dad had a '49 Pilothouse when I was a kid, in fact I learned to drive in it. Most of our driving here is hwy so a number of years later I swapped out the original rear end for the rear end out of a '69 Polara Mississippi state trooper cruiser which I had laying around in it. Man those were high gears.Probably too high but it worked. Dads truck has been gone since the mid 80s . I got this one because it reminds me of my Dad even though it isnt the same exact truck. Actually the one I have now is in much much better condition than Dads was. I loved driving Dads truck and ever since I was very young I have always had a thing for old vehicles. It might sound strange but having it is comforting and makes me feel a bit closer to him. Thank you everyone for the help and replies. You all have been a huge help. Its been such a long time since I had Dads truck around Im having to relearn or more to the point.... remember a lot of things which I forgot and Im loving every minute of it. John

That sounds like very likely. It wouldn't surprise me in the least to see parts used from different lots or production runs. As far as the rear end housing, there is a drain plug on the bottom right of the housing. When I was in still in HS I remember backing off the nuts that hold the third member and popping it loose to let the gear oil drain into one of Moms roasting pans while I was swapping out gears on my 69 Charger. It never even dawned on me to use a pump to remove the gear lube, Funny how that pan never surfaced again in the kitchen for some reason. I think it might have ended up getting "lost" permanently. I dont think Mom would have understood at all had she known. Luckily she had two of them John

I decided to call Bernbaums and ask them and they were able to answer my question so mow my inner and outer seals are on the way. I have a bad tendency to over think things and make things far more complicated than they need to be. John

The mistake is all mine. Studs and bolts are two different animals and I should have thought out and worded my question better . I do appreciate your reply, thank you . John

Im sorry, I should not have said bolts.The housing has 11 studs. The rear end does not have a cover. 8 3/4 mopar or 9" ford with the removable third member/gear set. The rear diff in my truck looks just like the standard rear end for a B1B but instead of using 10 studs to secure the third member it uses 11. John

Good morning all, I have a 1949 B1B and the rear end housing has 11 studs rather than 10 like Im used to seeing. I have read on here that some do have the 11 stud housing but what is the difference between the two other than the number of fasteners? The gentleman I bought my truck from was the second owner and when I asked him about it he told me that it is the original rear end that came in it.He bought it in 1983 from the first owner which was the local school district here in Benson. Im getting ready to replace the inner and outer axle seals on it and I want to make sure that the seals that I buy are correct. With mine having the 11 hole third member will the axle bearing still be the same? Andy Bernbaum has the inner and outer seals for $9.50 each plus shipping. I gave them a call to check on them and they said that they are neoprene as well. I would really appreciate any insight on that that you can offer. Thank you, John

Congratulations , thats a beauty ! John

Howdy and thats a great truck ! John

I love to hear or read stories like this. This made my day when I read it. Your an awesome Dad. This is kind of how it started for me. From the time I was old enough to start being interested in Dads car, truck all these wonderful mechanical things in our yard . I always wanted to tinker with things. My Dad saw that and nurtured it. He started by showing me how to safely and correctly use tools, put them away when I was done with them. He taught me all he knew and my enthusiasm just exploded day by day. My hats off to both of you. Its a great way to make that father son bond even stronger too. Way to go !!!!!

Welcome to the forum AussiePete