1955 Dodge truck

Hey guys, I have been a member here for a little while but never really got a project off the ground. I just picked up up a pretty cool old 55 Dodge pickup that I plan to get running, driving, stopping safely and drive it pretty much as is for a while. I have started trying to gather parts and was wondering if the 58 trucks share a windshield with my 55? I ask because I found a fair price on a windshield for a 58 locally and hope it would work.

Here is a pic of my truck, I will take some more here pretty soon.

 

Glad to see others with the Dodge bug. I'm working on a 1950 1/2 ton when I figure out how to post pics I will. Could you take some pics of the underside of the bed and where it mounts to the frame? I'm a little lost in that area. Thanks, Don in Elnora IN

 

There's a 55 doner in Penn Valley Ca. Look it up on Craigslist...windshield look good.

 

NAGS cat. lists your w/s W425, in use 1955-1962. The early cab was held over on big series rigs.

 

I appreciate the help! Looks like that 58 windshield will work after all. Guy will give me that and the passenger door glass for $150 if I pull it, so I don't think I'm taking too bad of a beating. I have worked on tons of 72-93 Dodge trucks, but this is my first Dodge of this vintage, so I am sure I will have lots of questions along the way. I will be sure to start a build thread once I get it in to my new garage and start diving in.

DonJenCat - I will see if I can get some pics under the bed in the next couple of days, hope I can be of some help.

 

Don - Here is a pic showing the way the bed is SUPPOSED to mount to the frame. In my unfortunate case, somewhere along the line the wood in the bed was replaced with diamond plate steel welded to the box sides and to the frame!

 

Here are some pics of what I have to start with. Hopefully I will get a carb kit and water pump on it in the next week or two and see if she will fire!

 

Cool truck,do u have 16" wheels on th e driver side???if so,do u happen to have the centercaps.
I need a pic of what they look like.

Thanks

 

Unfortunately the truck didn't come with any center caps.

 

ya got a late '55, them cabs were used thru '60 on 1/2, 3/4 & 1-tons, up thru '75 on higher tonnage (CNT, Big Horns, etc.)...'54 & early '55 cabs were different. That front bumper looks like it came off of a 2-ton cuz it's wider & taller than the stock bumper. I think the bottle cap hubcaps were used from '55 thru '66, but ya might want to do more research on that one if you're going to keep the stock rims

 

yep I have a early 55 dodge.. does the 53 front end fit on the early 55

 

I don't think the '53 front end is a direct bolt-on as the '54-'56 frames were different...the frame shape was modified so that the steering gearbox that was mounted on the inside frame rail on the '48-'53 was moved to the outside of the frame in '54 to allow for more tire clearance while turning as well as to accommodate V8 engines.

 

Long time since I have posted...winter in Wyoming makes working outside on a truck pretty difficult! I have made some progress recently, though. I rebuilt the carb, added Pertronix ignition, had the fuel pump rebuilt and with the help of my 9 yr old step-daughter running the starter while I sprayed ether I got her to run for the first time since the 70s! I only ran it for a couple of minutes due to no water pump or radiator, but it sounds nice! I saw some steam from one corner of the head so I will be doing a head gasket, new plugs and wires, water pump, and radiator and I think she ought to move under her own power again. The pic below is of my helper

 

Good Luck with your build. Those old Dodges are tough sturdy trucks. I have the same problem with my windshield. Saving money to obtain another one. I removed the side vent windows in mine and went to the local glass shop and had one piece glass cut for each door for $40 each. I've cracked one and need to get another one cut. E-bay might be your friend in looking for parts for these old trucks.
Steve-

 

that looks pretty neat.

 

There is a guy up the road from me that has a 55 with a good windshield and good back glass that I need. I struck a deal with him to let me rob everything off of the 55 that I want and take a darn near complete 37 Plymouth pickup off his hands. The Plymouth has been sitting up out of the dirt and the cab is about as rust free as something that old is going to be. I am stoked to have found it!

 

Great Truck, I have 1 too, being in Canada, my engine is a long block 251 w/4spd trans and 80s dodge rearend with 3.23 gears, 60 mph all day long.
The tries and rims are or should be 15 inch, you can buy new repop hub caps, park light lenses and a whole lot more from Robertsmotorparts. New windshields are 3-4 hundred bucks.....good luck