1936 ford truck vin help

P

Pointbreak450

Junior Member
A few years back I acquired a 1936 ford truck. I was never able to locate the VIN on the frame as the one located by the engine compartment was long gone. I unbolted and took the bed of the truck off and was able to locate the VIN stamped on the frame. Most of the information i have been able to find is that the vin should start with *18-, but that was also for passenger cars. My VIN starts with a *48-. I also read that trucks may have a different serial prefix. . Any help would be greatly appreciated. I have uploaded a picture for reference. Thanks again for any and all help.
 

Attachments

  • frame.jpg
    frame.jpg
    86.6 KB · Views: 96
Believe the 1/2T numbers are the same as the cars. Have you looked at VanPelts site? That back location does not normally have the prefix, only the one ahead of the firewall has it.

http://www.vanpeltsales.com/FH_web/flathead_serialnumbers.htm

That would look like a 1939 frame to me. Not enough numbers for a prefix. I'm far from an expert on commercial production numbers (the pickup was referred to as a commercial vehicle, larger than 1/2T as Trucks).

Your number looks like: 4,855,XXX

1939 was: 4,661,001 to 5,210,700
 
Last edited:
Yea. Vanpelts was the first place i went to. There was a section on there that stated:(a) The serialization applied to trucks and commercial vehicles using these Ford engines. They may have different serial prefixes, but would be inclusive within the serial ranges shown. In other words, passenger car totals must be combined with truck and commercial vehicles to arrive at total usage of the engine production numbers shown.

Yea the VIN on the frame in front of the firewall is long gone. i sanded very slowly to see if i could ever unearth anything and was never able to. The vin i did locate was under the bed and that could explain the missing or different prefix. What about the VIN under the Cab?
 
1935 frames up to 1941 were very similar.
 

Attachments

  • 35-40 frame diagram.jpg
    35-40 frame diagram.jpg
    75.2 KB · Views: 54
Pointbreak450 said:
Yea the VIN on the frame in front of the firewall is long gone. i sanded very slowly to see if i could ever unearth anything and was never able to. The vin i did locate was under the bed and that could explain the missing or different prefix. What about the VIN under the Cab?
Click to expand...

Minor point, but they are not really referred to as "VIN" numbers, they are Serial Numbers on the old Fords. The numbers are there and can be located if you are willing to do what is required to locate them! :) There are several methods to "raise" them. BUT, they can be very difficult to locate. The front one can be anywhere from the area around the firewall to the front cross member. The number you posted the photo of is the correct number of digits for a 1939 frame. Is there any evidence it is truly a 36 frame?

Update: Too late with the last post!!! :)
 
Any chance someone slipped a '39 frame under your truck? The '39 frame would have come with hydraulic brakes but I am not enough of an expert to give you the exact details on the differences in the frames. Post the question here or at earlyfordv8.org.

Charlie Stephens
 
Yes you are definitely correct. Not a VIN but a serial number. I am almost positive that the serial number up front is all but gone. I really spent a lot of time searching and trying. The body i received is definitely a 1936 (not a 35 or 37).
 
Pointbreak, if your interested in IDing the frame (beyond the serial number which is fairly conclusive!) post some photos of the whole frame and the front cross member area. There are experts here on the Barn that can tell you the minor frame variations.
 
Pointbreak450 said:
Yes you are definitely correct. Not a VIN but a serial number. I am almost positive that the serial number up front is all but gone. I really spent a lot of time searching and trying. The body i received is definitely a 1936 (not a 35 or 37).
Click to expand...

Almost impossible to totally destroy the numbers, it upsets the metal when it is stamped and it can be retrieved, but may not be worth the effort.
 
More than likely someone slipped a 39 frame under it. When i found her, she was buried in a garage here in California. All the fenders, headlights, running boards were in the bed of the truck.
 
To add to all the good info already given you.....Ford stamped the serial number in three places along the drivers side of the frame. Only the serial number by the steering box had the prefix number (ie 18-) The other 2 numbers were stamped without prefix. Your serial number indicates that the frame was stamped with the serial number of an engine manufactured in January of 1939.
 

Attachments

  • 36 frame serial no location.jpg
    36 frame serial no location.jpg
    46.9 KB · Views: 52
AGAIN/ more /Re: 1936 ford truck vin help

Greetings,
Can some one please verify this VIN number if it corresponds to a 1- 1/2 ton Ford truck?
What year?
What frame length (?)
41277546
thank you.
Marty
 
Remove the cover plate on the floor of the cab above the transmission and check the number on the transmission housing if it is original to the truck the number will be the serial number of your truck. When ford installed the transmission in the truck they transferred the trans number to the truck frame. I checked mine and they match.
 
Big truck serial numbers in the early to mid-1930's started with a "BB18-" and then a seven digit number. The number on the transmission housing was stamped on the top of the left frame rail about where the firewall comes down to the frame. Like jers36 mentioned, the number stamped on the transmission will most likely be the same as the number on the frame.
Also, the serial number only provides an indication of the approximate date of the completion of the engine and transmission assembly. It does not contain any information about the truck (frame type, body style, paint color) like we expect to find on today's cars.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top