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What model truck is it? Please give us the chassis number as there is a substantial difference between an L model and an E model. If you want to do a resto-mod then do what has been suggested here and go with a modern chassis and just move the sheet metal over. But, there are plenty of 40's era trucks running around that are perfectly functional and safe that are still using the OEM equipment. The truck is already a 12v system, but it is positive ground. My $.02 is its not worth the hassle to change it to negative ground, but if that is what he wants to do "hit it Willy". As for the current brakes; if they are functioning properly they will stop the truck as well as any other braking system. Properly adjusted and with a properly functioning vacuum booster they should lock the wheels up if that is what is desired. No, they are not ABS and they do require an operator who knows how to use an older brake system, but they are perfectly safe as is with the possible exception of not having a dual master cylinder. If he is really anal about that than a dual MC can be fitted without a lot of hassle. Besides, if the driver doesn't know how to use drum brakes he/she probably can't drive a non-synchronous transmission either. (or maybe any standard tranny these days) My guess is you are looking at the better part of a $100K bill to make a resto-mod. If you just need to repair the brakes and do some cosmetic work it is probably closer to $10K and the brakes alone should run around $2K.

When I had to re-create the rear fenders for a 72 IH fire truck that were a similar shape I made a plywood form and then bent the metal around that while securing it with clamps to hold the shape. I used 12 ga so it was heavy enough to hold the shape without buckling and was easy to weld. Instead of pop riveting to hold it I'd try tacking it so you can stretch the metal around while heating it to get it to conform. Just my $.02.

The ultimate "V" plow. I wonder where it came from since the body does not look like a standard Mass. dump.

Please hold off for a few days, I have been working the phones on your behalf and I hope to find a taker. I'll call you when I get back in town next week.

Vlad is right, you need to keep it from freezing, but the heat from the curing concrete will do that if the temps are not in "we're in deep Russia" range as long as you cover it as soon as you can. Most slabs can be walked on within 24 hours and as Vlad said need water to cure so they should be kept wet to achieve maximum strength. Concrete is regularly poured underwater to make bridge piers, etc. Keeping it wet will not stop it from curing and if it dries to quickly it may lose strength.

Automated trucks cannot have a manual transmission, so every builder will have to offer an automatic to be part of that market. It seems that the builders are realizing it is not smart to be dependent on another vendor for crucial parts that are in essence sole sourced and that vertical integration is indeed the way to go.

Curing concrete is exothermic, so if it is covered it will stay warm and even a thick layer of hay will work to keep it warm. Concrete does not dry, it cures through a chemical process and will be much stronger if it is kept wet during the curing process, another benefit of keeping it covered. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Concrete The only real issue with pouring in cold weather is if the ground is frozen, which is unlikely in your case.

If you still have the wheel cylinders the best bet is to get them lined with brass or stainless. White Post Restoration is one of many places that do this and they guarantee the work for life. It should run you around $75.00 per cylinder if memory serves me.

I assume you are talking about the bride.

Thanks guys. It was, fortunately, a very uneventful day. The DW and I are on the Cape visiting family for the first time in a couple of years and there is no better place to celebrate a birthday than a place where you can OD on real fried clams with the bellies.

You obviously have a very significant drain on the batteries if they go dead over night. Does this occur with the battery switch off? If so it has to be the wires that runs from the batteries to the switch since everything else is disconnected. The quick test is to disconnect the current carrying lead, most likely the negative cable since it should be positive ground, and observe the arc that occurs as you lift the cable from the terminal. An arc will only occur if there is current flow and the bigger the arc, the heavier the current flow. The real test is to put an ammeter across the wire to detect current flow. With the battery switch off it should be zero. If there is flow I'd play with the switch first and then try disconnecting the wires from the switch to the load and see if that stops current flow. If so it is in the truck's wiring and you will have to start isolating circuits to find out where it is. My bet is it is in the starting or charging circuits since the loss is so large and it is not kicking any circuit breakers. For now I would disconnect the batteries altogether until you have time to trouble shoot it since it may be a dead short in the main wires from the batteries to the battery switch. If that is the case it could very well set the truck on fire while it is unattended.

Somebody moved the decimal a couple of points to the right too far.

God bless all who have lost so much and will never be able to enjoy life in the same way that the rest of us can. And a big thanks to those first responders and citizens who put their personal courage ahead of their fear and did what had to be done.

Yes, the most miserable assignment of my career. I went from a place that was doing 3K responses a year to around 200 and the highlight of the day was getting called to pick up a road kill deer. Fortunately I was paroled after a few months and went to a much busier place.

When I worked at a very slow running station that was located near the Potomac river one of our sources of amusement was to park at the boat ramp and watch folks trying to back into the ramp at a local park. It was funny, but also downright scary to think these folks were actually driving theses things on the road when they couldn't back into a 100 foot wide ramp from a 2 acre parking lot.

And you can really throw some crap in the game when you consider that the big 3 and IH used pick up cabs as the basis for a lot of Class 8 trucks as well.

I guess the answer is pretty obvious; you wear out the tires before they get to the point of failing from old age. The Michelins are great, but at around $250.00 each I can replace the tires close to three times for the same money with a less expensive brand. I'm sure that is why you went away from them. The new tires are getting here today and I hope to get them mounted tomorrow so I can go to a show this weekend. We'll see how they hold up.

Yep. Trailers in general are such a PIA. It seems like every time I'm out something breaks and I'm very anal about keeping them maintained. I really wonder how the hotshot and car carrier guys keep their trailers on the road. The really funny thing about this one is I had just been thinking about the tires and wondering if I could get one more trip out of them before I replaced them. About one minute later I heard the bang and the TPM started beeping. I guess the trailer gods can read my mind and sent a clear message about what to do.

Heads up if you need trailer tires. I had a tire blow out on the trailer while returning from the Winchester show. Fortunately it happened in a good place and the TPM screamed at me right away, so I could find a safe place to change it out. They tires are six years old, so I guess it is right on schedule to fail. So I went looking and much to my surprise I found that Amazon has Carlisle Radial Trail HD Trailer Tire - 235/80R16 124L for $77.00 each including shipping. Allegedly made in the USA and pretty highly rated from what I could find. They are rated at 75 mph which is 10 mph higher than almost every other trailer tire. I normally run Goodyear Marathons or LT tires on the trailers, but the Marathons have been getting crappy ratings lately and most LT tires were at least $50.00 more, so i decided to give these a whirl. At that price I'll be happy to get three years out of them.

Good luck with it. Pauls is among the best I worked with. I'm sure you already are doing this, but the best bet is to keep on eBay to find emblems that are in better shape. A last ditch effort would be fill the defects with clay, and use the emblems you have as molds to get them cast in brass. If you miss a spot or two the casting will be "proud" of the base and can be removed to make it right. A quick cheap home solution would be to use one of the latex casting kits to cast test sets out of resin to see if you can fix the defects by sanding or filing off the excess. The latex positives could then be used to cast the brass items. Casting results in a small percentage of shrinking, but given the small size of the emblems I don't think it will be noticeable. Cattail Foundry in PA can do the casting and they are pretty reasonable.

And a 500 series ALF as well.

All loaded up and ready to roll first thing tomorrow. Convoying up with a buddy and we hope to be there around 10 AM.

Welcome back Kevin.

Pickled herring is a food staple in a Scandinavian home. My Dad ate a soft boiled egg and Sil (what Swedes call pickled herring) for breakfast at least a couple of times a week. Also served at Christmas smorgasbord as part of the cold (first) course with hard boiled eggs. i'm convinced Lutefisk was invented by the Vikings to prove you had the courage to go into battle by eating it since no one could possibly enjoy it as a food.

A jar of pickled pigs feet used to be a staple at a lot of bars. Nothing like a little salty vinegar to boost beer sales.