C8 progress in Texas

[David DeWeese]

Hello all on the MLU forum!
I was given a Chevrolet cab 11 C8 from the estate of a friend named Carl Tong in Scobey, Montana, just a few miles south of the Canadian border. He passed away only a few weeks after being diagnosed with cancer. He will be missed.
The truck was stored in a barn on the family farm for around 25 years, and is fairly well preserved, but lacking some badly needed items; one 13" wheel and adapter, and the original rear body.
From information I have gathered on this forum, it appears to have a modified 2B1 rear body installed on it.
I may have a semi-valid use for the rear body. Also on the same farm, I aquired a 13 cab F15a needing a rear body, windshield frame, roof, left door and both seats.
I was going to wait to post needs for these trucks as soon as they arrive next month, but it has occurred to me that it might be best to inquire on these items now, before the trucks are moved 1500 miles south. Parts for CMP's are fairly hard to come by in Texas.
I am very motivated to save these trucks. Any and all help on these items will be GREATLY appreciated!
Regards, David DeWeese

[Bob Carriere]

Hi David

Your a lucky man to have such vehicle willed to you but they may come with a curse...... collecting these old trcuk can become an obsession.

Parts are available....BUT..... getting them to Texas will be very expensive. As you said..... not to many of them down South.

Repro manuals are available from Alex Blair which is a fixture on MLU........ I believe that you will find them invaluable.

Don't know your bank roll but you might want to consider estimating the direct and indirect costs of getting all the parts down to Texas before you move them to your place.

Even more parts are available outside of North America such as Dirk in Holland who still has NOS parts.

If you have questions fire them up on the forum to see if we can help you out.

Bob Carriere
PS.... soon to be Great Frozen North !!!!

[rob love]

I can't help you on Chevy parts, but I just wanted to say I had dealt with Carl many times over almost 20 years. He was active in both the military vehicle circles, and in the firearms community. He is missed.

[David DeWeese]

Thanks for the replies, Bob and Rob! Carl was a real individual! I took several trips to Scobey for MV's, and parts for them, over the last several years, and Carl never ceased to amaze me with his endless, almost encyclopedic, knowlege of all things military.
As we were sorting through his stuff, me and his brother, Mike, found literally hundreds of photographs of the MV's he had collected and sold over his many years in business.
A couple of years ago, Carl showed me the C8 in the barn on the farm. He was very proud of this truck, and it was the only one he kept for himself. I feel a responsibility to put this truck back in proper order, as he never found the time, but always wanted to.
Thanks, David

[David DeWeese]

Well,...Old Man Winter crushed any hope of retrieving my trucks until spring. I guess it is a good thing though, as it will give me some extra time to try and find the parts I need.
Still looking for the following:
(1) 1 Chev C8 13" wheel and adapter, and rear body, (yeah, I know, good luck on those, but have to ask anyway!)
(2) roof panel for cab 13
(3) left door for cab 13
(4) both seats for " "
(5) complete windshield frame for " "
Thought I might enquire again on these, as my original post from November was now buried far down the list and forgotten.
Any help on these parts will be greatly appreciated, as shipping cost on these larger parts would eat me alive, if not aquired before the trucks are transported to Texas.
Thanks, David

[rob love]

Are you looking for the inner frame which houses one pane of glass, or the outer frame on which mounts the two individual windshield assemblies? If the latter is what you are looking for, I have a perfect one which has already been sandblasted and painted. I am about a 6 hour drive from Scobey, but I may be able to drop it off to someone in MooseJaw when I go through at Easter if that would help you out.
Price for the frame is quite negotiable.

[David DeWeese]

Hello, Rob! All windshield-related parts are needed. Will PM you.
Thanks!

[sapper740]

Originally posted by David DeWeese
Parts for CMP's are fairly hard to come by in Texas. I am very motivated to save these trucks. Any and all help on these items will be GREATLY appreciated! Regards, David DeWeese

You're telling me, Dave! Texas is blessed with many things, unfortunately CMP parts ain't one of them. I am slowly realizing that taking a long road trip to Canada with my trailer in tow might be the only way to get an original box for my truck. I'm looking forward to seeing your trucks when you get them home and to getting you out to some reenactments with them. Plano is only a short drive from Corinth so give me a holler when they're here.

[David DeWeese]

Mr. Heuring! Great to hear from you again! Respectfully, if you are waiting for me to get one of these trucks up and running, better bring your lunch.........
Have many "irons in the fire" at this time, as most of us do.
Might never get either one of these trucks restored in my lifetime, but I will try. At the very least, they are saved from the scrapper.
My trucker in Wyoming, who originally came from northern Montana, is now a "reformed" scrapper who still tells me; "no telling how many of these trucks I turned upside-down and cut up for scrap metal" over the decades he has been in business.
I, personally, don't want to hear about it!
Your road trip may not have to be necessary. Will PM you.
Regards, David

[sapper740]

Dave, I sometimes don't get my PMs for several days after they are sent to me. I recommend that you email me at sapper740@grandecom.net to ensure I get them in a timely manner. Looking forward to hearing from you. Derek.

[David DeWeese]

Hello all,
I finally received my 8 cwt CMP from Montana today after a 2 year wait for it to be delivered. Learned that you should NEVER pay someone ahead to do anything!
The truck has some problems as it has a 5 lug front axle and a modified 2B1 rear body. Have three of the original 13" wheels, but only two rear wheel adapters and none for the front. Will check the engine number tomorrow to see if it is correct for the truck.
I received this truck while helping to settle the estate of a good friend who died of cancer. Being a thousand miles or so away from the closest parts source for this vehicle, I am at a great disadvantage. I would like to restore the C8, but will need some help.
Regards, David

[cletrac (RIP)]

I was wondering how you were coming with your delivery plans. I take it the 15 cwt didn't make the trip too. I wish you luck on the restoration and let me know if I can help.

[David DeWeese]

Hello David,
No, the F15a was pushed into a coulee on the property after the farm changed hands.
Going to try and do this one right, but may take some time. Thank you for all your help.
Regards, David

[Mike Kelly]

David

What a gem . It is a No. 11 cab and it's in very good shape - believe me.

There are a few of us on this forum with C8's . Myself, David Pope in Canada, Andrew up at Dubbo in NSW . A guy in California Dennis Deck , but he has dissapeared .

Nick Bullock in Yorkshire has one too, it was measured up for the 1A2 body plans .

The 1A1/2 body you need , not 1B , you will have to build a replica. The plans are available

From my research, they used a civilian front 'I' beam axle from the 1940 Civilian 3 ton truck - the part numbers are same .. But they adapted the lighter brakes to the axle .
The rear axle is the 1940 civilian 1 ton truck axle .. same springs , 4.55 -1 ratio.

My article is here : http://www.geocities.com/vmvc1au/8cwttwins.html

Glad to see you chose the GM version ... the inferior Ford version would be too difficult a job ..
Mike

[aj.lec]

Congratulations David
It does look to be in pretty good order

At least you are in the right country to get chevrolet parts at a reasonable price
As mike has said the c8 is pretty much built around 1940 civilian components including the chassis with only a few changes here and there
So for all your mechanical components it will be easy for you to source
wheel spacers are rare (In Australia at least)so you may have to get some custom made if you can not locate some

Good to see another one saved from the scurge scrappies

Post a few more pics .They are always good to see
Look forward to seeing your progress
Good Luck (not that you need it with a chev)

[Tony Smith]

Originally Posted by Mike Kelly

David

....There are a few of us on this forum with C8's . Myself, David Pope in Canada, Andrew up at Dubbo in NSW . A guy in California Dennis Deck , but he has dissapeared ....

Mike

From the CMP Yahoo Groups:

"Dennis Deck wrote (Monday 13 Oct, 1.30am):
I recently sold my 1941 Cab 12 C8 CMP to Chuck Anderson in Oregon. He
is going to finish the restoration project I started many years ago."

[Chuck Anderson]

I just picked it up from Dennis last week. I'm starting by rebuilding the carb and figuring out wiring & dash. Unfortunately there isn't another one locally (at least that I'm aware of), so I have nothing to look at to see how things should look.

Could I trouble a fellow C8 owner to post some pictures of the dash & how the top front of the cab mounts onto the top of the windshield?

I wish I would have taken more/better pictures of the smokin' nice C8 that was a the MVPA show in Portland last August. At the time I had no idea I was two months away from getting one.

[rob love]

Originally Posted by David DeWeese

I finally received my 8 cwt CMP from Montana today after a 2 1/2 year wait for it to be delivered. Learned that you should NEVER pay someone ahead to do anything!

Not paying in advance is important. Even more important is if you are paying with beer or alcohol to get a painter to spray your vehicle. Never give the painter before before or during the job.

I hope you do Carl proud on this truck David.

[Alex van de Wetering]

David,

Great truck! It's good to see more and more 8cwt appear on the forum. Does your C8 still carry the data plate on the dash?

It almost looks like someone has only removed the door-curtains a short while ago (?).

Alex

[David DeWeese]

Thank you all for the replies! Have been "lurking" on this forum for quite a while, but had nothing to add to the discussions as I had no truck here to comment on. I can honestly say, however, that this is the most polite, helpful and dedicated group of people to their hobby I've ever seen. I am glad to have aquired this vehicle as I know others will jump in with the advice and help I will certainly need!
Alex, the data plates is missing, but I do have a photo of it attached below. My friend removed it for safekeeping, but it was never found. David Pope posted it in his "C8 Data Plate" thread a year or so ago. The serial number was added to the list of known C8's.
Do the plans exists for a reproduction Duple body for this truck? All the rear body types for this truck look good, but the Duple body is my favorite.
Thanks, David

[Mike Kelly]

This is a scan from Mike Connifords old booklet: CMP 8 cwt's.

[David DeWeese]

Hello,
The radiator on my cab 11 C8 is missing. Someone had apparently installed a substitute radiator in it at some time and cut a hole in the upper front right sheetmetal to access it. Is there a correct replacement radiator available for the truck? How did one access the original radiator to fill it?
Thanks, David

[Mike Kelly]

cab 11 radiator pics

BTW you are better off installing a thermostat as I got into trouble when not using one. The coolant circulates without any restriction and the upper header thak becomes pressurised as the coolant is forced into it . Coolant ends up squirting out the cap with gusto .. With theromstat fitted , problem solved . Thay also have a pressure relief tube ( which i still have to fit ) from the rear of the head to the filler neck .

Mike

[David DeWeese]

Thank you, Mike!
Wow, I'm sure my local radiator shop will not have that upper fill fitting. Now I know why the previous owner added the access port on the front sheetmetal when they replaced the radiator. Will start measuring!
Thanks, David

[David DeWeese]

Was rummaging through the pile of parts which came with my C8 today. There are two gas tanks here with different filler neck locations. Is either one of these two correct for the C8? From the many body grounding straps found on the truck, I assume it was originally the wireless version.
Thanks, David

[Mike Kelly]

Dave

The red one is the original C8 tank for the 1A1/2 body... you'll need two of course - LH and RH . The other one in your pic is a normal Ford cab 13 tank with a short filler neck ! .. You can see the Ford style sender unit on it with its supressor capacitor still there. The capacitor is there cos there are points inside the sender unit that create a tiny spark ! No, the tank won't blow up with it fitted.

We were discussing the brass plates on a previous forum topic .. the plates screw onto the top on the DND type tanks .

The Duple bodied C8's have a unique tank with the filler neck mounted onto the outside facing end/side cover of the tank.
Mike

[David DeWeese]

Mike, thank you very much for the ID on the tanks! I piled all the parts and sheetmetal that were in the shed with the C8 into one location to be brought down with it. Thought it best to get it all, and sort it out later. Ended up with a lot of 13 cab stuff I can't use, but still better than it being scrapped!
Thanks again, David

[aj.lec]

The second photo in the last group shows that you have the fuel sender unit for your c8 tank
Dont misplace it they are hard to find

[Colin Macgregor Stevens]

Dennis Deck is still alive and kicking. (Dec 2009) He wrote to me about another C8 that turned up in Montana. Older restoration but done with a US cargo body instead of the correct short cargo box and large stoolsbox/spare tire carrier.

[David DeWeese]

Hello Mr. Stevens,
A little bit of Dennis Deck's C8 project actually made it's way down here to Texas in the form of one original 13" wheel and the four 15" aftermarket wheels seen in his "as found" photos.
A contact in Billings sent me information a while back on three cab 13 Fords he located close to him on a ranch, so I guess a few CMP's have filtered down across the border into Montana over the years.
Would love to see photos of the C8.
Thanks, David