Vintage trucks are a hot segment of the collectible vehicle marketplace.  Everyone wants a quaint old half-ton pickup in a bright color complete with wide whitewall tires, a small block Chevy, and an automatic transmission.  Once they see the prices of such vehicles, their search grows wider.  Once it gets into the three-quarter and one-ton sizes, interest starts to wane.  Nobody seems to want them.  So, what do you do with a commercial-size classic truck?  That is the question for this 1936 Chevrolet one-ton-rated flatbed for sale on Facebook Marketplace in Whitesboro, Texas.  This barn dust-coated former farm truck is in remarkably good shape despite certainly working hard for most of its life.  With a low 38,000 miles on the odometer, it is likely this truck rarely left the confines of the farm.  Can you think of a retirement gig for this truck so it can be spared the indignity of being unceremoniously parked out in front of an antique shop and slathered with pastel house paint?  Or worse, having its cab, grille, and fenders removed to make a hot rod?  Is the asking price of $14,000 reasonable?  Thanks to T.J. for the one-ton tip!

Commercial trucks tend to have a very low survival rate.  We see all manner of heavy-duty trucks on the highways today being used as basic transportation complete with jacked-up suspensions, fancy wheels and tires, and beds that will never see a bale of hay.  These are called “bro-dozers,” and they are a fairly new phenomenon.  Back in the day, you certainly didn’t pick a truck of this size and capacity for personal transportation if you could help it.  These trucks were equipped with low gearing and massive springs to carry such heavy loads.  They rode like the proverbial oxcart as a result and were only slightly faster.  Owners used them and abused them until they could give no more.  Rotting in the field or being hauled away by a scrapper was the fate of most of these honest workhorses.

Yet, out of a dusty Texas barn, emerges this 1936 Chevrolet one-ton flatbed truck.  The seller tells us that this is a late 1936 model.  The significance of this is that previous models used a lot of wood in the structure of the cab.  Wood was used as the framework for bodies on most prewar cars, with the practice waning as stamping technology progressed.  If you are a restorer, it is good news that you won’t have to deal with replacing the intricately shaped wood framework.  Aftermarket suppliers for popular vehicles such as Model A Fords can supply pre-cut and shaped kits.  Other vehicles have to rely on the ever-diminishing woodworking experts who specialize in such work.  Technological advances may have a cure for this in the form of 3-D printing, but that hasn’t materialized yet.

The seller also tells us that this truck is complete and solid with a wonderful patina.  Glimpses of the body show that the truck was originally painted a darker green color.  Unfortunately, all the valuable barn dust is obscuring the condition of the existing paint.  There don’t appear to be any surprises hidden under that rust.  However, it is always good to see the true condition of the body before you invest in a phone call or a plane ticket.  We can see that the truck will need six tires and a rather large trailer to cart it home.

A look inside reveals a very presentable interior.  Given that we are so used to trucks so luxurious that their interiors would be standard fare in a Lincoln or Cadillac a few decades ago, this truck’s interior can only be described as spartan.  Trucks of this size and vintage did not have power steering, power brakes, or even synchromesh gearing.  The controls were heavy and maneuvering one of these beasts would certainly enhance your upper body workout routine.  It was a place for hard work at a level we have all become unaccustomed to.

One interesting feature of the cab is the location of the fuel tank.  Some of the older readers may remember when trucks came with fuel tanks behind the seat.  Well, this one takes the storage of hundreds of thousands of BTUs of energy to another level.  Imagine pulling up to the pump in your new, fancy Chevrolet or GMC pickup and opening the passenger door to access the fuel filler cap.  One tends to wonder why fuel tanks stayed in the cabs of trucks for so many years.  Frames were narrow at this time, so fitting a tank between the rails to help in a side impact would be problematic.  Still, there was a whole lot of unused space under trucks of this era and later.  There had to be a better solution.

As for the engine, the seller tells us that “it will run but it doesn’t run.”  It would be nice if this statement was clarified a bit.  A fair guess would be that the engine turns over, but no attempt has been made to get it running.  Regardless, Chevrolet installed their “Stovebolt” inline-six-cylinder engines in these trucks.  The engine was rated for 72 horsepower and 155 ft-lbs. of torque.  That doesn’t seem like much through modern eyes.  However, the twin miracles of gearing and patience helped these trucks make it through a hard day’s work.

In all, it is a neat old truck that should be preserved.  There aren’t a lot of trucks of this size and vintage still running around telling their story.  We have to consider the historical importance of such vehicles during the Great Depression.  Having one around for people to see as evidence of that difficult time helps put how good we have it now into perspective.  I hope the seller finds the right home for this truck and it gets displayed regularly.  It definitely has a story to tell.