1953 Chevy 3100 – Ronald E.

A Work-in-Progress

My old truck story begins even before I started school. When I was very young, I stayed with my mother’s parents on their farm in Webster County, Missouri, near Conway. The place is now known for Starvy Creek Bluegrass festivals that are hosted by my Uncle Don Day and his family. My grandpa had an old farm truck; I don’t recall the year of origin, but it had to be a 48 or 49. The truck was green and was the 5-window version. At the time this was my grandparents only mode of transportation. I recall my grandpa taking the truck into town, (Conway)’ to sell or exchange eggs and other produce at the MFA Farmers Exchange. I would ride along sitting in the middle of the bench seat, between Ma and Paw, as my eight uncles and mother would call them. Paw would take me wherever he went doing chores around the farm. I still remember the day he introduced me to The Williams Place. It was an abandoned farmhouse that resided at the end of an overgrown lane. We went there to cut sprouts, as Paw referred to the task. The sprouts were as big around as a man’s arm and as tall as a two-story house. Paw would bring them down with one swing of his Keen Cutter axe. All that was left were the remains of an old log cabin with huge hand-hewn logs, a big rock-lined well, and a plum tree. This is now home of the Starvy Creek Bluegrass Festival.

That farm and the Day family hold some of my fondest memories of my young life. I didn’t realize it at the time, but that old truck was my first real encounter with the automotive world. When a friend asked me if I would help him restore an old truck he had sitting in a barn on his family farm, I agreed to go take a look. This was April 18, 2015. The truck turned out to be pieces of two trucks. One was the early version 47-51, and the other a 52-54.

My friend, Steve Brown, pulled out a tow bar from the barn and we hooked on to the most complete and most likely candidate for the project. Thus began a labor of love and an endurance contest. When I get discouraged, I close my eyes and remember those days rattling around the farm with Paw in his old 5-window Chevy.

After tearing down the truck, and sorting the remains of both trucks, I realized there were not enough useable parts for a restoration project. At this point, we decided to shift gears and do a rebuild with an updated chassis and drive train. We wanted to retain the classic look and styling.

Early in the project, we discovered that Steve was suffering from Parkinson’s and the disease was rapidly progressing. Steve is a graduate of The Naval Academy, Annapolis, MD and is a nuclear engineer. He has served his country in the US Navy and is now retired. My dream is to complete this project while Steve can still enjoy the finished truck.

Thank you LMC Truck for your help replacing many of the rusted, damaged and lost parts!

Sincerely, Ronald R (Rick) East[lmc_story_gallery]