1955 Dodge c3 b8 Step-side pick-up TRUCK

We had just been written up in the local newspaper when Rich called to tell us about his all-original 1955 Dodge Pick-up. Him and his brother owned a bungalow community and bought the truck, brand new, as a utility vehicle for the property.

“It’s been sat in my barn since 1985” Rich proudly mentioned. “It hasn’t ran or moved since then”

We agreed to come have a look at the truck (even though we don’t normally focus on American classics, this was too exciting to pass up) and get it back to our shop to assess its current state.

The most brilliant characteristics about this truck were how STRUCTURALLY sound it still was and how well it was preserved; the wear on the door sills from its lack-of floor covering, the patina on the paint, the bed sides showing years of scars from heavy use. it was our mission to retain these CHARACTERISTICS, working with, and embracing the SUPERFICIAL imperfections, all while bringing it back to life.

The bed floors on these old trucks were made from an untreated ash wood. The boards were primitively bolted to the chassis cross sections and functioned as an integral part of the truck bed construction. In this case the wood had been covered by a 4x5 sheet of diamond plate steel. Rich had mentioned them doing this with the hopes it would weigh down the back end of the truck and help aide the never-ending search for traction.

There’s something special about old worn paint contrasted with freshly painted trim and refinished wheels.

The interior didn’t need much - the seats were re-covered at some point and this model didn’t come fitted with door panels or a head lining. What you don’t see is a 12 volt fuse and relay panel, fabricated in-house, which was the replacement for the original 6 volt system. The gauges were sent out for re-calibration, an indicator switch was added, and the steering column was rebuilt.