1937 Plymouth PT50 pickup. Let the build begin...

This is my (wife has claimed it) '37 Plymouth PT50 pickup. She has been wanting this truck for awhile. Been promising it when my 'Cuda is done (check out my twin turbo 'Cuda build thread). I was told that was taking too long and I needed to start the truck. So now aside from running the shop, building the 'Cuda, I am starting the truck. It's just the beginning, so just a few pics.

So here is the little guy, about 95% original.

The truck is just too complete to hack up, so I'll remove the body and store the frame and drivetrain. That means building a frame. First order of business is suspension. I chose to go C4 Corvette. It works good, has good brakes, and will be more than adequate for this truck considering it will be sporting wide white radials on widened artillery wheels. The other advantage is the tone wheels for the ABS are accessible. I will be using ABS and stability from the donor truck. More on that later.


Okay looks crazy!! I don't know the back spacing or width of the tires I will use, but do know the diameter. I cut the template wheels to that diameter and set and leveled the car at ride height.

Then I removed the suspension and build a jig that would locate all the suspension points. The jig has the ability to be narrowed without loosing any geometry.



I also made it capable of turning the wheels at the correct inclination. This will let me see how much tire fits under the fat fenders and not rub.

and a jig for the rear.... Have this Viper 44 center section been around awhile, I'm betting it will finds it way under the truck as well.

and the heart donor...2011 Ram 5.7 VVT 390HP. Truck is completely wasted, but the engine trans are fine and only has 12K.

And that's as far as I got. I'll pull that engine and trans next week and start laying out the truck. This is not a street rod!!! It will be 100% stock outside and 75% inside. Gotta have A/C, but found a cool old Desoto head that I will make work. (jigs are in the front of the picture)

Wow! Cool project, though that truck is really sweet. I would have a hard time altering it, though it will be a much better driver in the end.

Nice work on the jigs. That's the way to do it. A lot of work, but no nasty surprises and a much better product in the end.

I am a hot rodder at heart, so I will be following this one.

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Wow! Cool project, though that truck is really sweet. I would have a hard time altering it, though it will be a much better driver in the end.

Nice work on the jigs. That's the way to do it. A lot of work, but no nasty surprises and a much better product in the end.

I am a hot rodder at heart, so I will be following this one.

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Thanks, all you have to do is drive it. 45 MPH max. Stops horrible. It's a parade truck, and I don't want to drive in parades. I'm trying not to alter it. I will pull the body and restore it and save the frame driveline intact. If I have to modify the firewall, I'll drill the spots and remove it and build another one. That way the truck can be put back stock pretty easily. Someone already told me, "it's too nice to cutup and too nice not to drive" . I'm trying to find a happy medium.