bradyjames
Active member
Hello my name is Brady James and I am from Sacramento, CA. I am putting together a 54 GMC Panel truck and I've got big plans for it! I'm excited to rat rod it out. I've included a pic when I first started working on it about a month ago, but have done a lot of mechanical work since this photo (all new brakes, lines, mechanical stuff, carburetor rebuild, etc...) I'm just getting it mechanically sound and road ready so I can drive it...haven't worked on any of the cosmetic stuff yet. This panel truck was sitting on the side of my girlfriends grandpas barn in Placerville, CA for the past 15 years.
The most interesting story I have on this rebuild so far is about how I acquired an original 1954 bench seat steel tubed frame from the wrecking yard for $30. I've been searching high and low calling every upholstery shop and restoration service place from California to Timbuktu and no one had one. My sister works for Schnizter steel and they own Pick N Pull. So I thought I would go on their website one day and do a search for a 1954 Chevy 3100. Within a 200 mile radius, they had only ONE in stock and it was right down the street from my house. I couldn't believe it. So i trekked down there and the guy behind the counter told me the truck was not in stock! I said impossible I just looked on your website and it said it was. So he let me in the yard, and guess what I found...the 2nd to last truck was that ol' 54 3100. It was a skeleton but it had the original seat frame and had the old front wheel ball bearings in PERFECT condition which they gave me for free!! I couldn't believe it. Later that night I found the same ol rusty bench seat frame on ebay going for a $1000. I was flabbergasted!
The finished seat is the style I envision my seat looking like.
Stay tuned for more and happy rat rodding!!
-Brady James
The most interesting story I have on this rebuild so far is about how I acquired an original 1954 bench seat steel tubed frame from the wrecking yard for $30. I've been searching high and low calling every upholstery shop and restoration service place from California to Timbuktu and no one had one. My sister works for Schnizter steel and they own Pick N Pull. So I thought I would go on their website one day and do a search for a 1954 Chevy 3100. Within a 200 mile radius, they had only ONE in stock and it was right down the street from my house. I couldn't believe it. So i trekked down there and the guy behind the counter told me the truck was not in stock! I said impossible I just looked on your website and it said it was. So he let me in the yard, and guess what I found...the 2nd to last truck was that ol' 54 3100. It was a skeleton but it had the original seat frame and had the old front wheel ball bearings in PERFECT condition which they gave me for free!! I couldn't believe it. Later that night I found the same ol rusty bench seat frame on ebay going for a $1000. I was flabbergasted!
The finished seat is the style I envision my seat looking like.
Stay tuned for more and happy rat rodding!!
-Brady James
