1946

For the “real” perfectionist After our 44th year, Jim Carter Truck Parts uncovered a big surprise! Facts: Recently, a person came to our lobby offering 10 used ¾ ton hub caps, hoping credit would be offered against a future parts purchase. One of these hubcaps was a real attention getter. We thought it never existed! Because of this, an article...

In the family so many years! This little ½ ton spent most of its life in North Carolina where it was first used on a farm and did the required hauling duties. Now owned by Stephen Caudill of Wichita Kansas about 6 months ago. He purchased it from a family member in North Carolina after the immediate owner had passed...

It is often said that when a person does a complete ground-up restoration on a vehicle that otherwise would be sold to the metal crusher by the pound, the owner has saved it for future generations. Our feature truck for February is certainly one of these vehicles that was close to having been gone forever. Don Ranville of Lee’s Summit...

Jim Winters of Rochester, Minnesota looked two years before he found the vehicle he wanted to restore in his retirement years. He did not want to spend the time and money required for a major rebuilding unless it suited him just right. Many cars and trucks were checked but few gave him that special feeling he wanted. When he saw...

When finding a 1946 and older Chevy/GMC truck cab, identification may be difficult to some. Here is a quick way to come very close to the correct year. The stamped stiffeners on the firewall tell the story. 1936-38 No Stiffeners  1939-40-Two Vertical Stiffeners 1941-46 Cross Design Stiffeners

To keep General Motors truck costs down, Chevrolet and GMC ½ through 2 ton shared many components during the late 1930’s through the 1950’s. However, when it came to the grille, the focal point of the truck, changes had to be very noticeable. The truck designers were limited in creating a new grille as both makes would still have almost...

Though some things were shared between GMC and Chevrolet trucks, General Motors made sure many items remained very different during the early years.  GMC preferred few things to be similar to Chevrolet. Their customers needed to see an almost stand-alone truck with the higher price of the GMC. One very obvious difference is the change in the taillight and bracket. There is...

The parking light assembly on the 1941 Chevrolet and GMC Pick-up Trucks was placed on top of the headlight bucket. From 1942 through 1947, GM used a much less expensive park light housing on civilian trucks.

Owner: John Thompson This 1946 Chevy short bed from Pittsburg, Kansas, may look stock, however, it's anything but! It is a blend of the character of the pre-war vehicles mixed with today's technology. When I bought the truck it was almost all stock but it was in pieces strewn between 3 garage stalls. The truck is all steel and had...

This month we feature a pick up that is used just the way GM intended. It is still a work truck and at 65 years old it is used daily in the greater Kansas City, Missouri, area. The owner is Dennis Odell of Independence, MO. The truck is a 1946 Chevrolet half ton.

The owner is Jim Adams of Pleasanton, California! He has carefully rebuilt this 1946 Chevy 1/2 ton as one that would have been seen in the 1950's. The big difference is that he created it as a high-performance vehicle of 50 years ago during his high school years. For the few that had money in those more difficult times, this is what many wanted to build.

Although my family was in the coal business in Washington,D.C. for many years, and for a brief time I drove a tow truck for a living, my truck passion didn't bloom until after I restored my 1946 Chevrolet Cab-Over (COE) and joined ATHS.

A major change in large truck Chevrolet front bumpers occurred during there years. Prior to 1946 the 1 1/2 ton bumpers and braces were little more that a heavier guage design of the smaller 1/2 ton. The big bumper change was in 1946. (Possibly this was because Chevrolet introduced its first 2 ton model that year.) Now it was nothing...

Keeping the passenger area warm in cars and trucks during the winter was always a problem in the early years. Not only were the heater fans and cores small but the vehicles used recirculator heaters. Thus, the air in the cab was recirculated rather than using dry outside cold air being brought inside and warmed. This helped for quicker warming...

1934-1946 Chevy Truck Model I.D. We hope the following information on Axle, Transmission and Model identification will help many of you with your questions. Accuracy was a concern as we compiled this information. Because GM made so many scheduled as well as unscheduled changes, there is much discussion about these changes. The following is used by permission from Pickups and...

Ad for 1946 Chevrolet 1 1/2 ton dually

I am glad that you have shown an interest in my pickup. It was purchased from a local theater in 1964 they used it to carry a billboard in the back. After purchase it was used to carry feed and seed on the farm. After purchase of a newer pickup my Dad's employee used it to carry fuel and supplies to a bull dozer until the engine was beginning to fail.

During the 1930's and 1940's most of our Nation’s roads were dirt and gravel. Paving had been underway for many years but there was still a long way to go. To protect engine components from a constant attack of dirt, GM designed metal stamped panels that attached to an area where the engine block and oil pan connect. This slowed...

Even if you prefer an original vacuum wiper motor for these years rebuildable cores have become very rare and most New Old Stock units are just not obtainable. Even new ones have their lubrication dry after 70 years. For those that won't accept a slow moving or non-working used vacuum unit, an alternative does exist. New electric motors are now...

During 1939-40 Door window breakage on truck cabs became a problem. As the cloth fabric in the door window channel became worn, the large and now loose fitting side windows were susceptible to cracking when the door was slammed. Complaints from dealers resulted in an improvement on 1941-46 doors. A one piece metal frame was placed around the edges of...

The term artillery wheel is a nickname adapted from a scalloped type wheel often seen on US military vehicles in World War I. The similar appearance at a distance to GM's scalloped steel wheels quickly gave them the name artillery. On GM trucks, this style was first used during 1934-36 as a stock six bolt 1/2 ton 17 inch wheel...

One series of the famous "drop out" GM differentials was used between 1946 and 1972 on 3/4 and 1 tons. The complete assembly (often called a pumpkin) will interchange during these years with no alteration. The highest gearing in this series is the 4.10 ratio and is found in most 1967-72 3/4 tons with automatic transmissions. Therefore, those "low gear...

Locating a pair of seat cushions for the 1939-46 truck has become very difficult in recent years. These early trucks increased popularity is the main reason for the shortage. Even when a pair of cushions are located the asking price often does not justify the purchase because of the age damage to the springs and frame of the lower cushion...

During 1941-46 a unique device was used in the front of both frame rails of Chevrolet/GMC trucks. It was designed to serve two purposes. This forged steel 'horn' was a spring hanger as well as a connection for front bumper braces. These horns are securely riveted into the end of the frame and were designed to last for the life...

  One of the more asked questions on the 1941-46 GM trucks is regarding horn contact parts. Most have been damaged over the years and new owners are unsure how they were originally assembled. Below, is a diagram from a 1940's GM Master Parts Catalog and gives an excellent view of the parts used in the assembly. Most items are...

The unusual side doors on these Suburban and Panel trucks will fit on the more common pickup cab, however, their looks will tell the observer that something is not correct. Across the top of the outer skin is a horizontal stamping or groove. This groove is a continuation of the stamping that runs the length of the body to help...

The two series of exterior door handles on GM trucks between the years 1934-46 are certainly different yet they share a few similar features of interest. One characteristic which seems strange today is that the handles lock the right doors only, not on the left. This occurs on GM trucks from the early 1920's to about 1959. At this time...

Mechanical components on trucks were usually kept for many years by GM. Unless an improvement was needed, there was no need to change a proven design. An excellent example of this is the rear ½ ton axle bumper. The design was used from 1929 through 1946 on Chevrolet and GMC ½ tons. A rubber bumper is held down on the...

Some beginners tend to place 1936-46 cabs in the same category. Don't do this! The 1936-38 and 1939-46 are a totally different design. Very little interchanges. The early style provided excellent building blocks for the new design 1939-46 trucks.

Did you ever wonder why the 1934-46 GM trucks show major rust on their horizontal flat sheet metal? The mystery is solved! These pictures show without a doubt what a wonderful home Chevy and GMC trucks provide for field mice. After the truck has been abandoned at the edge of a pasture, placed in a salvage yard, or just stored...

In evaluating the available paint colors on 1946 and older GM commercial vehicles, one should keep in mind the general attitude toward pickups and large trucks during that era. Unlike today, customers bought and owned trucks for work! After five o'clock and on weekends most trucks were parked and the family sedan became the driver. This relates not only to...

Serious early truck restorers often ask 'What is the interior color of the original cab sheet metal parts, versus the exterior color?' The answer for the 1934-46 trucks is simple. The removable panels from the cab interior were always the inside color. If a component was welded in as part of the cab structure, it was sprayed the exterior color...

I am glad that you have shown an interest in my pickup. It was purchased from a local theater in 1964 they used it to carry a billboard in the back. After purchase it was used to carry feed and seed on the farm. After purchase of a newer pickup my Dad's employee used it to carry fuel and supplies to a bull dozer until the engine was beginning to fail.

Charlie has owned this truck for over 30 years, since he was 12 years old. He bought it with paper route money. His parents said "What are you gonna do with that truck" he said "gonna drive it". And he did just that after scraping out the oil pan and replacing the fuel tank.

I found this truck in Fall City, WA and it is now in Soldotna, Alaska. I shipped the truck From Tacoma Wa to Anchorage Alaska on Totem Ocean Trailer Express (TOTE). I have driven it about 500 miles since I bought it.

Our 1946 Chevy Truck looks stock from 50 MPH or 50 feet away. My husband (Denny) did all of the fabrication and modifications and designed the chassis to comply with the air ride suspension. We moved the gas tank from under the seat to the rear of the chassis.

I bought the un-restored Suburban in 1996 from a Kansas source I found in Hemmings Motor News. It must have been home to a thousand mice for 20 years or more; most of the stuffing from the seats was above the headliner, in the glove box, in the doors, etc.

This is my 1946 GMC 1/2 ton pickup. It is designated Model EC-101. I purchased this truck two years ago from the man who restored the truck with the exception of the bed. He had built a wooden bed from pressure-treated pine. Fortunately, he had the original metal bed, which has its original all-metal floor; and it was in surprisingly good condition. I had a body shop sand blast the bed and my local vo-tech school did the paint work. I was given several old Jim Carter Truck Parts catalogs with the truck and found out quickly that Jim Carter is an amazing resource for owners of these trucks. I purchased the rear fenders from Jim Carter and they are clearly the best fiberglass parts I have ever seen.

I bought this 1946 Chevy truck after it had served for many years in the Bell Telephone System, the prehistoric internet that Bell Labs would later upgrade. After helping with the creation of the net, the truck was in pretty sad shape. The guy I bought it from had overhauled the 216 motor and was starting a restoration but wanted to sell it. Unfortunately, he had no antifreeze in the water, and, when we started it up as we were discussing the sale on a January day after a cold snap, it formed a boiling cloud of steam from the exhaust and a river flowing down the street from a geyser spewing out a crack in the side of the block. We discounted the price to $150 and my dad and I towed it home.