I pulled the brakes and rear end apart and didn't have any unpleasant surprises. The wheel cylinders just need rebuild kits but the master cylinder is fairly pitted. It might have to be bored out and have a sleeve installed. I checked out a 2 ton master cylinder but they have an extra hole for the brake light switch. It would work but isn't quite the same so I'll keep the army version. The brake drums have a few grooves worn in them but won't need turning. None of the shoes were down to metal.
The rear end is in pristine condition but I'm going to check out a 54 Chev automatic car rear end with 3.55 ratio. It looks like the gears will fit. On an old Chev truck website they list 3.55 gears for the 40s half tons so that's probably where they came from.
The king pins and steering are really tight as are the spring bushings. The tie rod is quite kinked up so a little press work is in order. None of the shocks are siezed and they all seem to work.
This truck has overload springs but they aren't listed in the parts manual. Did some have them installed originally or not? It looks like a factory installation.
Any of the old CMPs I've come across in Sask seem to have very little wear on them. It's my guess that with no windows or heater there'd be a limited amount of time that a farmer would want to use them.
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