New Member here! seeking info for 1947 Ford Panel Delivery

[harvest]

Hello Ford Barn members, im a new member and was directed here by a member from the early ford v8 club.I have a 1947 ford 1/2 ton panel v8 delivery that my brother and I have been restoring for the past 5yrs (off&on) little over 600 hrs so far,and we are trying to figure out what seats would have been in this when built at the factory.Truck is almost ready for paint. I was told that this truck should have bucket seats in it? Would anyone possibly have some info on these seats? Im trying to make this truck to factory spec as possible. The engine is not original, i had placed a rebuilt 50/51 merc flathead v8 in it..The orig engine was toast and had to be removed.. That is the only thing i can say is not factory spec..Its been a long 5 yrs and cant wait for us to get it out on the blacktop! Another Q, would anyone know how many of these 47' 1/2 ton panel deliverys were produced? Thank you

[fords]

No info on seats and number produced. Just wanted to Hello - I just sold a '47 1 ton flat bed and its cool to see other '47 ford truck guys out there. I will keep my ears open for any info I can for you.

[Royal Ryser]

Welcome. This is a good place to get info and meet some good people.

[harvest]

thank you

[Mart]

Hi Harvest, that's a nice looking old panel you have there.

Look, I'm no eggspurt, but I just did some googling and a lot of panel trucks of that era had a drivers seat, and a separate passenger seat, that may have been optional.

The separate seats would allow the driver to access the rear area from the front if necessary.

Someone will chime in with a definitive answer, but that's the way I'd be leaning, towards separate buckets rather than a bench.

That said, although you want a 100% resto, I wouldn't delay the build waiting for the exact seat to show up. If a pickup bench shows up, throw that in and get the old girl out on the road. If buckets turn out to be correct, they can be found and fitted at a later date. It may be that buckets or a bench were optional.

Mart.

[36tbird]

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You might check out early VW front seats as a temporary alternative.

[41panelmark]

Welcome, glad you found your way in.

[Ken Crans]

welcome to the Barn im thinking your going to have a hard time finding seats. another idea is looking into Speedway motors, they have a low back seat that looks simular i had them in my F1 panel. if you do find seats, Snyders has the springs for restore. good luck

[42panel]

Welcome aboard. I have a 1942 1 ton panel truck and it came with bucket seats. The driver’s side seat was mounted on a track to enable it to have a forward and back adjustment. No height adjustment. The passenger seat was available as an option. It was installed in a fixed position, in that it didn’t have the forward and back adjustment as the driver’s seat had, but the seat back could be folded forward and then the whole seat folded forward to allow access to the cargo area. I do have one of these seats but without the mounting track. Message me if you have any questions.

[rotorwrench]

The commercial panel delivery type trucks were limited in there production so the seats will be hard to locate. I would place telephone calls to all the western salvage yards that still hang on to the older vehicles that I could find out about through Hemmings & on-line sources. Also keep in mind that these type of seats were used clear up into the 50s and many were likely made by Budd or other sources in the Detroit region. I saw a pair for a mid 50s type on flea pay and they wanted a lot of cash (near $1500). They sit up high with adjustable tracks to fit the narrow drivers compartment and fold forward to give access to the rear.
I found this photo set that shows a rear shot. http://www.collectorcarproductions.c...040&EventID=65

Another alternative would be aircraft seats from older machines like the early Cessnas or Beachcraft models like the D or H-18 or maybe the twin Bonanza. Aircraft have seats that fit in tight spots. Buckets from an old Corvair or Mustang might fit too. We used a set from a Corvair in and old Chevy COE my Dad had years ago but bases might have to be fabricated to get them to set high enough.

[alan]

some books show for 1946 5,539 unit built but say info on 47 is incomplete, came standard with one seat bucket style, optional second seat. some jeep seats of the period are very close to the second seat folding up and over like the original

[Pete Fl/Wi]

I only had the backrest and frame for my 40 panel. I could not find the base seat. I went with Speedway low back buckets and I am very happy with them. They fit width wise just fine. Here is a picture of the original seat but it is now long gone.
Pete

[al's28/33]

the Standard Catalogue of Light Duty FORD Trucks 2003 edition states no known production numbers are available and the passenger seat was an option, as well as AM radio, right side taillight and heavy duty radiator. Your truck would be called the Sedan Delivery based on pics. The Panel Delivery was 122" wheelbase and looks like the image in rotorwrench link.

[Graeme / New Zealand]

Originally Posted by al's28/33

the Standard Catalogue of Light Duty FORD Trucks 2003 edition states no known production numbers are available and the passenger seat was an option, as well as AM radio, right side taillight and heavy duty radiator. Your truck would be called the Sedan Delivery based on pics. The Panel Delivery was 122" wheelbase and looks like the image in rotorwrench link.

Weren't sedan deliveries car based like the pic below while panel deliveries were truck based?

GB

[al's28/33]

Yes Graeme, I believe you're correct!

[41panelmark]

Originally Posted by al's28/33

the Standard Catalogue of Light Duty FORD Trucks 2003 edition states no known production numbers are available and the passenger seat was an option, as well as AM radio, right side taillight and heavy duty radiator. Your truck would be called the Sedan Delivery based on pics. The Panel Delivery was 122" wheelbase and looks like the image in rotorwrench link.

I have to disagree, it is definitely a panel, sedans of those years were lower profile with different front clip.

[41panelmark]

Originally Posted by Graeme / New Zealand

Weren't sedan deliveries car based like the pic below while panel deliveries were truck based?

GB

42 through 47 1/2 ton and up were truck based. 40 and 41 1/2 ton's shared similarities to the p/u and standard car, 3/4 and up would have been truck based.

[41panelmark]

Originally Posted by Pete Fl/Wi

I only had the backrest and frame for my 40 panel. I could not find the base seat. I went with Speedway low back buckets and I am very happy with them. They fit width wise just fine. Here is a picture of the original seat but it is now long gone.
Pete

That looks like a bench seat out of a car. Your panel would have had one single seat and possibly a second or passenger seat as an option.

See the photos below of my panel and another panel.

[harvest]

Im 100% sure its a panel delivery not the sedan delivery.. thank you for these last few pics..I really would like to find a set of them buckets in that last post! wow, nice interior! Many thanks for this helpful info and pics posted! i do have a pair of 1948 gmc panel truck bucket seats that i could use with the metal backing, but that would be my last resort!

[Graeme / New Zealand]

Originally Posted by 41panelmark

42 through 47 1/2 ton and up were truck based. 40 and 41 1/2 ton's shared similarities to the p/u and standard car, 3/4 and up would have been truck based.

Yes you are correct I have just looked up Illustrated History of Ford by George H Dammann.

here's the page :

GB