53 Five Window Beach Cruiser Build Thread

[Colins53]

Hello all,

I recently joined the board as I acquired a 53 Chevy Five Window in need of restoration a few weeks back. It is a fairly original truck in really rough shape. Spent its life on a farm and sat outside untouched for some time. It has a 6 cylinder from a 55 in it and a 4-speed on the floor. Other than that, all original. Originally red, now painted a very rough black. No interior. As far as metal, all of the typical spots require attention.....the fenders need small patches, but are ok, the bed needs the cab-side panel, but is also ok. The cab is another story. It needs floors, corners, inside lower doors and touch ups on the firewall. The frame is good, hood is good and the grill is shot. I am debating keeping the cab and repairing vs. buying one in better shape. I hate to see one that could be fixed go to the crusher. Guess it just comes down to a decision on how much time I want to spend on it, but any thoughts are welcome.

The plan is to make this truck a beach cruiser. Not a show truck, but not a rat rod. Somewhere in between. Something I won't be upset to see a scratch on as I plan on driving it. I plan on hauling my long boards, kayaks and possibly even jet ski's with it. That being said, I have read through many of the threads floating around regarding rear end swaps, front end swaps, air ride, etc.....and I am pretty comfortable with my plan for addressing the issues with the truck. I do have two questions I would like to ask. 1) Any thoughts on retaining my 55 motor and 4 speed vs. the LT or LS swap? How do these 235's run with a rebuild and a mod or two? I know the 55 is more desirable than the 53 and I don't feel I need an LS in this truck and the swap might be a big time killer, but I the power must be acceptable, so I am considering the option. I guess reliability is also a consideration. Thoughts? 2) My goal is to keep as much of the work in-house as possible. I am not a novice, but by no means a professional. I have many of the tools required, but are there any areas you guys feel must/should be done by a professional shop? Either due to the importance in the quality or for the purposes of time? This will be the most extensive restoration I have done so far.

Thanks guys for the great build threads. This is an incredible site for information and inspiration. I attached a pic of the front from when I got it home.

[63 & 64 Bowties]

Welcome to the board. Always good to have another 47-59 guy here.
I guess if you've looked through some of the build threads here you may have an idea of what you want to do to your truck. I assume it still has the 53 torque tube rear? For a basic v8 swap you'll have to swap it out too. As far as keeping the 55 motor, I guess it all depends on what you're gonna use the truck for. In my opinion, if it's just an around town truck you'd be fine. But, if you plan on any interstate time, probably not. Just one thing to consider. Either way, you've come to the right place for advice. And of course, we're ready for advice from you also. Good luck with it, and remember to take lots of pics. We like pics.

[Colins53]

Good Morning. Thanks for the feedback. You are correct, the rear end is factory. I do plan on swapping it, but am still considering the options. Leaning towards the explorer, but would welcome any thoughts. Prefer something I wouldn't have to cut down and as you can tell, I am not specifically going for hp here so I am not worried about blowing it out. Other issue for me at that point would be the bolt pattern...I guess I would have to switch the front to a ford bolt pattern as well. Planning for air ride. Good point on the interstate time. I doubt I would have much highway time, but it may still make a difference. Man...I just hate the thought of dumping anything good from the vehicle like the motor.

Anyone watch the Trucks! TV episode where they painted their 49? They called it a fauxtina paint job I believe? Anyone like or dislike that?

Also, are the welder series front ends worth working with? I looked them up and they were priced $100 less than a fully welded model from what I could tell. I am fortunate to have a hot rod shop just around the corner and they are promoting the TCI and Heidt's front ends, which I know are great, but Speedway has them for less. Just curious what everyone thinks of the differences in quality amongst these options.

[mylow53]

I can't remeber is the 55 235 a oil singer or dose it have an oil pump? If it dosent have the pump you may need to add an external one if you want the valve train to last. I ran a 1960 235 for 20 years. It's a good combo I'f you like going slow. I believe there are some ways to either change the tranny to get a higher gear ratio. Or mayby the rear needs to change to get the truck up to speed. As for the cab show us some of the dammage before you decide to replace it. Mine was an Oregon truck and was relitivy easy for me to repair. Howevr if your complete floor is bad youau need to get a better cab
good luck
GT

[OrrieG]

I drove my 59 as a 235/3 speed truck for 10 years. It was my daily driver in town, on weekends I would toss on an 8' camper and head to the hills. When I got to Idaho I swapped in a granny 4 speed. One summer we (wife + 2 small kids) lived in it for 2 months traveling around the west. We got used to not being in a hurry, as top speed loaded was 55 on a good flat road. In mid 80's I converted to 283 th350 part time 4wd. Instantly gained 20 mph on the top end which made the 3 hour drive to my mountain places much nicer. Gas mileage did not change. My recommendation would be to find someone that has a stock truck and talk them into a day long road trip so you can judge for yourself. Inliners.com is a good resource for hot rodding 6 cylinder engines, the bigger ones (292-304 ci) can make some serious torque and horsepower, in the 60's my transmission mechanic in Oregon ran a rail with a six that beat SBC rails.

[b00sted]

I have a 402 BBC that I thought about putting in my truck and have decided not to. I have a turbo here that I am just going to put on the 6 ccyl. I have turocharged everything from my hayabusa's to VW beetles to racing diesels and my turbo buicks.. so why not..

A turbo coul dbe your answer to all you questions... Just a bit of fab work... I am planning on using a later model 6 for my truck though.. I need the cid...

[Colins53]

Hi Mylow,

I read through your thread prior to joining and must say you have done an incredible job. Much of my build will ultimately mimic yours so please don't hesitate to throw out any feedback you have. I attached a pic of the floors and the corners looking down from the inside. The firewall has been covered by riveted sheet metal by the prior owner and I have yet to remove it. It is safe to say I have the same repairs to the firewall corners as you previous tackled. You will also notice the lower pass side door in this pic which needs replacing as well. Pretty rough. The sheet metal alone I priced at around $1200. I have found cabs only requiring a corner or something small for around $700-$900 delivered. That makes the choice pretty easy, but in the past I have preferred not to give up on original pieces. This one is probably too far gone though. Since you have done most these repairs, I am real curious to hear your perspective.

[OrrieG]

I am an old junker but sometimes you just have to let stuff go. It looks like your cab does have a good desirable 5 window section and top/a pillars/cowl that some one could use. Unless body work and fabrication is the most fun thing you like about these builds I find a good cab and let your go to someone that can use the upper parts.

[mylow53]

i agree with orrie you might want to look at a different cab. you could save this but it will be a lot of work. and I cant tell from the picts but the patch panels may not cover all of the rust on say the cab corners. the have additional metal but it's hard to see how far up you need... unless this is a family hair loom i would cut your losses... i figure if you swap cabs you will have more original metal then if you don't.. so long as it's manufactured in the 40's and 50's you can claim the high ground... i really don't like the "new" cabs
oh and don't toss that cab it may come in handy. i needed a small strip on the belt line that Marc gave me from a 49...
GT