power_hungry Posted January 12, 2011 Report Posted January 12, 2011 Found one for sale. 1 ton, maybe? BIG wheels with split rims. Engine may be frozen... Gonna look at it again Friday. Paint is bad, but it doesn't seem to have any rust through, missing the tailgate, but for the most part, its all there. Is this a fairly rare truck? I can't find much about it so far. Thanks for any info.. Quote
41/53dodges Posted January 12, 2011 Report Posted January 12, 2011 does it appear military in design or civilian? Quote
power_hungry Posted January 12, 2011 Author Report Posted January 12, 2011 It's civilian. The chrome has been painted over, but looks like a larger (taller) version of a 1/2 ton truck. Bolt pattern is 8-10 inches, 8 lugnuts, I believe. Quote
Young Ed Posted January 12, 2011 Report Posted January 12, 2011 I don't think dodge made any 4x4 civilian trucks prewar. Even after the war the 4x4 truck was the power wagon and had a totally different grill. Post pictures when you go look again. Quote
power_hungry Posted January 12, 2011 Author Report Posted January 12, 2011 I took a pic with my cell phone, but left it at work last night. I'll post it, and get more on Friday. The owner said it was a rare truck, of course... Quote
41/53dodges Posted January 12, 2011 Report Posted January 12, 2011 does it look like this? this is a 4x2, 1.5T i have heard of swapping the axles with something else to make a 4x4 out of it. Quote
power_hungry Posted January 13, 2011 Author Report Posted January 13, 2011 It's not quite THAT big. The tires pretty much fill the front fender holes. I can't find the card adapter to upload from my phone. Guess I'll have to wait 'til Friday... Quote
Tony WestOZ Posted January 13, 2011 Report Posted January 13, 2011 Dodge made their first 4x4 in 1934. Not sure it was 1 1/2 or 2 ton. I believe there were some civilian 4x4s made in 40-41. They would be a rare beast. ask here, there is not much these guy`s don`t know about Dodge 4x4`s. http://www.dodgepowerwagon.com/wwwboard/ Quote
power_hungry Posted January 13, 2011 Author Report Posted January 13, 2011 Thanks for the link, I've asked my question there. I'm looking forward to getting more pictures tomorrow! Quote
power_hungry Posted January 15, 2011 Author Report Posted January 15, 2011 I'm thinking this is an authentic Dodge 4x4 ... Quote
power_hungry Posted January 15, 2011 Author Report Posted January 15, 2011 I believe the WC model confirms the 4X4 originality? BTW... The phone number on the "For Sale" sigh in the previous message is not valid. It was at one time, but it has since been re-assigned to someone who has no clue about this truck. Quote
Young Ed Posted January 15, 2011 Report Posted January 15, 2011 My 46 is also a WC and certainly not 4x4. I suspect thats a pickup stuck on a powerwagon frame. It looks like they had to trim the fenders to get them to fit. Compare to my truck Quote
townwagon Posted January 15, 2011 Report Posted January 15, 2011 The Serial Number of 81100595 is for a 1942 WC, which is a 2wd 1/2 ton truck. The body has all the markers of a standard 1/2 ton 2wd truck. The chassis or at least the axles are from a 1940-41 1/2 ton Military 4x4. Those trucks were also known as WCs, but they were actually numbered things like WC-1, WC-12. The tags for those trucks is square, and found on the glovebox door. They have a very different front sheetmeal, rear fenders, and other details. For sure this is not a factory 4x4 truck. It is factory parts from multiple trucks combined into what you see. Check the frame number, it is located on the drivers side of the frame facing out above and slightly in front of the front axle. That number will most likely not match the 81100595 door tag number, and it will most likely be for a 1/2 ton WWII military 4x4. If the number matches the tag, then someone just swapped in the axles. Most of the time when I find trucks like this the whole 4x4 chassis was swapped in underneath the 2wd body. I have seen multiple examples in the past of this type of swap. Eric Quote
power_hungry Posted January 15, 2011 Author Report Posted January 15, 2011 Thanks for the info, guys! Had it been the real deal, then I'd have considered it. I like the truck, but hate playing guessing games when it's time to buy parts. The price is tempting ($500), but I have enough projects as it is. Anybody else interested? Quote
townwagon Posted January 15, 2011 Report Posted January 15, 2011 The parts issue is not that big of a deal. Most likely the entire chassis is WWII 4wd 1/2 ton, and all the sheetmetal is 2wd 1/2 ton. It is pretty easy to find the parts for the chassis, axles, etc. Some body parts may be expensive if you want top condition. Both styles of truck used the same basic engine. $500 seems like an okay price if it is not all rusted out, or otherwise damaged. If you want a real Power Wagon they look very different. If you want that 2wd body look with factory 4wd you better buy that truck or something like it. The only factory 4wd truck that Dodge made that looked like that (with some minor differences) was the VC-3. Those are very hard to find, expensive to get parts for, and much weaker than the truck you found. I attached a picture of one, there are maybe 10 known in the world (only a couple of which are restored). The truck you found is as close as you are going to find for a reasonable price. Eric Quote
41/53dodges Posted January 15, 2011 Report Posted January 15, 2011 i would buy it if i were you! i love the 39-47 civilian look, hence why i have the big truck, but 2 is enough, for now.... Quote
power_hungry Posted January 16, 2011 Author Report Posted January 16, 2011 Believe me, I'm tempted. I like the civilain truck, but I like the looks of the military truck, too. I think I need to get my '40 sedan painted and on the road, first. And put the engiine of the Porsche back together... Then see about taking on another project. Quote
Dodgeb4ya Posted January 16, 2011 Report Posted January 16, 2011 1950 Dodge car. Hard to read though-D34? Quote
power_hungry Posted January 16, 2011 Author Report Posted January 16, 2011 Nice looking truck, Ed! Quote
power_hungry Posted January 17, 2011 Author Report Posted January 17, 2011 I went by today and took a look at the frame. No tag on it, or it was covered by the snowplow bracket. Then I sat in it. My head almost touches the ceiling (without the headliner) and the legroom leave something to be desired. Are Pilot House cabs a bit more roomy? Or Power Wagons? Quote
41/53dodges Posted January 18, 2011 Report Posted January 18, 2011 PH cabs are much more roomy in my experience, i have no clue about PW, and my 41' that was pictured earlier has great legroom and headroom, but i use a cinder block for a seat! i think that PW and civilian trucks of the period used the same cab. Quote
Young Ed Posted January 18, 2011 Report Posted January 18, 2011 PH cabs are much more roomy in my experience, i have no clue about PW, and my 41' that was pictured earlier has great legroom and headroom, but i use a cinder block for a seat! i think that PW and civilian trucks of the period used the same cab. Yes the flatfendered power wagons use that same basic cab into the 60s. Of course that doesnt mean they didnt change the seat somewhere along the way. I'm 6'2" and come no where near the roof in my pickup. Quote
Fernando Mendes Posted January 27, 2011 Report Posted January 27, 2011 Dodge Command car VC-1:) Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.