1951 Pilot House dodge truck

1951 Dodge Other Pickups Description

This is a 1951 Dodge Pilothouse pickup truck. The "Pilothouse" name comes from the industry’s first pickup cab with corner cab glass resulting in much improved visibility and a higher, more spacious cab. Chevy and Ford trucks are commonplace at car shows, they’re hot rodded, restored original and look better than they ever did on the showroom floor however it is rare indeed to see a Dodge Pilothouse truck at any of these venues.

We purchased this truck over three years ago from a gentleman in Fort Collins, CO. Our first look revealed it was going to take a lot of work to get it road worthy. Again unlike Chevy and Ford trucks of this era, there are virtually no reproduction parts available. We had to search far and wide to get parts. As an example, the pickup bed sheet metal and tailgate came from Illinois, the original bench seat was sourced from Oregon, and the rear fenders came from Wisconsin etc. I had to fabricate some necessary parts that are just not available today.

I decided to keep the truck as original as possible since it still has the correct flathead six cylinder engine, 4 speed non synchro transmission with granny gear and original rear end. It also has a unique split exhaust manifold that was normally not an option for a ½ ton truck. The split manifold allows for the installation of true duel exhaust which really sounds good on the old flathead six.

Work List:

1. Replaced fuel tank sending unit

2. Installed speedometer cable

3. Refurbished heater

4. Installed Heater switch

5. Replaced broken glass (windshield, doors, rear window, rear quarter windows)

6. Replaced weather stripping windows/doors/hood

7. Sourced Dodge pickup bed and tailgate (Illinois)

8. Installed rear tail lights

9. Installed front turn signal lights

10. Installed turn signal

re Replaced front/rear wheel cylinders

15. Replaced rear brake lines and “T” block

16. Sourced replacement bench seat (Oregon)

17. Sourced rear fenders (Minnesota)

Sourced dog dish hubcaps (Wisconsin)

22. Replaced bed wood

23. Replaced shocks

25. Replaced temp sending unit

26. Rebuild Carter BB carburetor

29. Fabricated wiring harness

31. Fabricated replacement floor pans

32. Fabricated battery tray

33. Fabricated battery hold down

34. Fixed Horn Button

39. Fabricated choke cable

40. Fabricated Door Stops

41. Replaced Exhaust Gasket

43. Replaced Manifold Intake Gasket

44. Replaced Manifold Exhaust Gasket

45. Replaced Head Gasket

46. Reconditioned Head

47. Fabricated floor covering

48. Installed shifter boot/trim plate

49. Replaced Headlight

50. Sourced lower bed side panels (Oregon)

51. Installed Starter Rubber Button

52. Installed Brake/Clutch Boot

53. Installed E-Brake Boot

54. Fabricated glove box

Fabricated door panels

56. Fabricated headliner

57. Paint

1.