falconvan Posted March 22, 2019 Report Share Posted March 22, 2019 I found this in Kentucky; its a 58 Dodge utility truck that was retired from a local fire department several years back. Other than some rust here and there and a bad repaint this thing is solid as a rock and runs and drives really nice for a 61 year old truck. 230 inch flathead with a four speed. Not sure what I'm going to do with it yet; the guy i got it from had it licensed and used it for a weekend cruiser. For now I'll probably just put a new factory floor mat in it, replace the dry rotted tires, find some matching hubcaps, and cruise it to the local shows. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jomani Posted March 23, 2019 Report Share Posted March 23, 2019 Nice find. I wouldn’t think it would be common to find a service bed on a half ton truck. ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dodgeed Posted March 24, 2019 Report Share Posted March 24, 2019 Beautiful looking truck, pretty much just the way it is. New tires, clean up the wheels some, and leave the rest alone. Looks terrific. Have fun. ? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted March 25, 2019 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2019 Yeah; that’s about it. Not going to mess with a full restoration. The door bottoms are bad but I’ll tackle that later. I just want to fix a few things and cruise it around to the local shows for now. It had some old household carpet that was really nasty so I pulled it out and ordered a factory rubber floor mat. I went ahead and patched a couple spots in the floor and put some por-15 on it to protect it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HughForrest Posted April 1, 2019 Report Share Posted April 1, 2019 Be sure and post a pic of the mat when you get it. I was thinking of getting one for my '59. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlashBuddy Posted April 1, 2019 Report Share Posted April 1, 2019 I put a new mat with fiber pad in my '50 and was surprised by how much the noise level decreased. Even more fun to drive niw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted April 1, 2019 Author Report Share Posted April 1, 2019 Here you go, I got the mat from Roberts Motor Parts. It fit OK; the only pre cut hole was for the steering column and it wasnt in the right place. But it's better tThe only serious rust is the passenger door and I found a replacement this weekend that needs a lot less work. I put a new floor mat in, cleaned it up, adjusted the brakes, and ordered some tires. I’m using these Dakota wheels as the original were only 5” wide and I couldn’t get a 235/75/15 on them. Other than replacing the door; that’s about all it needs. (For now)? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
59bisquik Posted April 1, 2019 Report Share Posted April 1, 2019 (edited) I found a fitted mat on ebay that fit much better. Unfortunately, I cant seem to find the link now. Edited April 1, 2019 by 59bisquik Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted April 1, 2019 Author Report Share Posted April 1, 2019 Yeah, I ain't crazy about this one but since I paid for it I'll use it for a while. Maybe it'll relax after it lays flat for a while and the summer heat hits it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted April 3, 2019 Author Report Share Posted April 3, 2019 A little fresh rubber makes a difference. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greg g Posted April 3, 2019 Report Share Posted April 3, 2019 Baby's got new shoes!! Nice find. Fire vehicles usually have ow miles but hard usage. Enjoy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted April 4, 2019 Author Report Share Posted April 4, 2019 Yeah, it's only got 72,000 on the odometer. It feels really tight and solid when you drive it; it doesn't have that old worn out farm truck feel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HughForrest Posted April 5, 2019 Report Share Posted April 5, 2019 Looks good. Is the mat flat, or contoured over the tranny tunnel/shifter area? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted April 5, 2019 Author Report Share Posted April 5, 2019 Flat. It’s ok; I don’t think I would buy another one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted July 24, 2019 Author Report Share Posted July 24, 2019 Time for some steering and brake upgrades. I found this donor truck; planning a front frame stub swap and rear end swap. I’m keeping the flathead; it runs too good to change it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Young Ed Posted July 24, 2019 Report Share Posted July 24, 2019 11 hours ago, falconvan said: Time for some steering and brake upgrades. I found this donor truck; planning a front frame stub swap and rear end swap. I’m keeping the flathead; it runs too good to change it. I need to find one of those to fix my dakota!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted July 24, 2019 Author Report Share Posted July 24, 2019 What do you need? Most of this is getting parted out except for the chassis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted August 3, 2019 Author Report Share Posted August 3, 2019 Selling off the body parts to make room Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted August 12, 2019 Author Report Share Posted August 12, 2019 This is all I need, rear end swap first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkAubuchon Posted August 13, 2019 Report Share Posted August 13, 2019 I want to do the Dakota swap as well couple of question? 1. I have a 1950 blb standard bed what is the wheelbase length 2. What is the best year Dakota and which wheel base. thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted August 13, 2019 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2019 From what I read the first generation Dakotas are the best to use. Not sure on the wheelbase; I'm not using the whole frame so I wasn't concerned with it. The Dakota frames have a kick up past the cab that would not have worked with the service bed unless I wanted to raise the floor in it. I'm going to cut the frame at the firewall and mate the Dakota front stub to it; plus change to the Dakota rear end. You think it had enough rear springs? The Fire Department that had this must have really hauled around some heavy gear to need all this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted August 15, 2019 Author Report Share Posted August 15, 2019 (edited) Got the Dakota rear swapped in; perfect fit. Even the driveshaft will work with a u joint change. Just leaving it bolted in loose until I get the front clip in and see what the front ride height looks like. Edited August 15, 2019 by falconvan 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted August 19, 2019 Author Report Share Posted August 19, 2019 Got it all stripped down; hopefully we’ll be doing some frame surgery next weekend. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fernando Mendes Posted August 19, 2019 Report Share Posted August 19, 2019 Dodge 1958 Sweptline vermelha e branco.bmp 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
falconvan Posted August 20, 2019 Author Report Share Posted August 20, 2019 Nice! Those Sweptline trucks had some beautiful beds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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