‘59 Chevy pickup ABANDONED 48 years ago, will it run?

Rick and Travis find a truck from the best year for car makers. A 1959 Chevrolet fleet side pickup that’s been sitting since the 1970s. We will see if it runs again.
Send dad and me junk to our P.O. Box
P.O. Box 1772
Cortaro, Az
85652-1772
Business inquiries and if you have a car in the southwest you want dad and me to check out email us here
[e-mail]
Interested in pre 1980 abandoned cars or trucks/ barn finds. (Not interested in foreign cars) and 1st and 2nd gen Cummins (89-98) diesels only

[@lucasstiles8012]

Boy I enjoy what these men do for a hobby.

[@robdeakin1166]

I wish you'd put some oil in the cylinders before dry cranking 😢

[@markcollins5026]

Man. or some Marvel mystery oil in the plug holes !

[@psilocybinx4092]

I really don't like taking digs at anyone's work like some people do, but you really need to oil down the cylinders before you start cranking on an engine that's been sitting for even a fraction as long as this. I'm surprised you don't get bad rings on all of the motors you try to revive cranking on it dry like this.

[@glenryan6569]

And leaving fuel line connected to the carb when he sees and says it had no gas cap for 50 years.

[@edwardhanson3664]

That's an Apache! That's a high value find.

[@66skate]

That truck seems well above average condition. Even it it needs a motor swap, It's well worth it.

[@theetravisb]

Yes it’s definitely a willing candidate

[@clintontackett1716]

You're gonna hit 100k subscribers in no time. You're putting out great content.

[@theetravisb]

Thank you I appreciate that.

[@rudybriskar5267]

I hope you bought the truck! Ol' girl needs some love.

[@terryeustice5399]

You can’t win them all. You men have all you could not get it to fire. A great effort! 💯❤️

[@theetravisb]

Did what we could do!

[@gilangus2453]

It's nice the way you respect your father by calling him dad.

[@BrianEBoyd]

Beautiful truck deserves to be saved. Valiant effort.

[@mmoats4294]

You two work very well together. Love the video.

[@theetravisb]

Thank you 💪🏼

[@marygarner5249]

Dynamic Duo is Back 👍👍👍👍👍😁

[@marcusaurelius2770]

Bad engine or not, the owners should still be able to sell it. It's in very good condition, and a nice looking truck. I wonder if that 196,000 miles. The decals leads me to believe it was a company truck.

[@robertspear9134]

What a beauty! I would've loved to have it fire up.

[@1953beetle]

Nice find mate. Take care anyhow.

[@chadlehrke5537]

Round of applause for that starter!!

[@robertvance1873]

Great looking truck

[@craigbowley6783]

A trick I learned is when trying to start an engine that's been sitting for a long time is when you're turning it over pour berryman in the carb it'll clean everything and the engine will run on it.

[@robertpimpo4698]

I woulda took the truck anyway crate motor or could rebuild engine shes in nice shape worth fixing up

[@BoomBoom-bu8qp]

In the future, before cranking anything, put some oil down the spark hole, so ur piston rings have some lube on the cylinder walls, should help, and prevent hurt

[@marygarner5249]

Awesome truck love your videos

[@edwardgalindo9607]

Lawnmower with 5 freeloaders. Lol Love your videos

[@craigbowley6783]

That truck is beautiful 👌

[@carchub]

Can’t win them all I guess! Still it is so much fun watching y’all diagnose these and give them the rundown. Seems like some bad gas got through that engine many years ago and sitting that long was the last mail in the coffin. Cool truck though. Reminds me, good thing that other (61) Chevy truck was stuck in neutral instead of any gear that day. Oh and that hotel radiator! Too cool! Love that stuff

[@jrayholland7654]

Nice ole truck y'all,

[@toybuns1st558]

That’s a beauty

[@1953beetle]

And hopefully a keeper,right?

[@toybuns1st558]

Yup

[@1953beetle]

@@toybuns1st558 😀👍

[@flattiresmisfires]

The beginning of the video the az license plate showed it registered not long ago?

[@THROTTLEPOWER]

Very cool!!!!

[@garrethroman8942]

Unlike a lot of other videos, I like that you attempt to get most of the junk/crud/dirt out of the engine compartment before working on it. Smart.

[@brucemelton4983]

loving the videos mate, that's definitely an awesome truck! good work guys

[@williamhorn4600]

Y'all tried and nice steam radiator, good teaching video, keep them coming, any updates to the kitchen?

[@Ranman451]

Can’t win every one, but you gave it a great try. It would be a fun series to see you rebuild the engine and fix up this beauty into a running, driving vehicle like you did with the’46 International. The bones look good, and it would be a great sister vehicle to the ‘46 International. 😊 Nevertheless, thank you for another great episode! You and your father are a fantastic team.

[@larryhullinger4141]

That wasn't plate steel It was a slate bed for a pool table Nice truck BTW Do a video when you get it restored

[@terryjohnston2231]

Dang freeloaders lol😂 DAD JOKES FOR THE WIN🙌🏻🙌🏻

[@kayeninetwo3585]

I'm bookmarking this video as a reference for all of the procedures and sequences to go through when trying to start an uncooperative neglected engine. Even though this engine wouldn't start, I feel that the problem solving skills used in the attempt were first rate. I have a fifties era Ford that hadn't been run in years. Several of the the push rods were bent (and bending) on it, too. After Marvel and Seafoam the valves started working, and we straightened the push rods exactly as they did in this video. It was many years before I got around to replacing those push rods, but when I did, the old push rods were still surprisingly straight, despite the crude method of straightening them.

[@claztube]

1:59 that cup holder is common for boating... That's where I bought mine years ago, at a boat accessory and supply shop.

[@jdpinbaytown]

Too bad it didn't run!, Oh well still always enjoy your video's!, You, NNKH and Junkyard Digs are my Favorites!!

[@theetravisb]

That’s a huge compliment thanks man

[@jdpinbaytown]

@@theetravisb YW Bud!, Keep up the great content!

[@joeclemmons6505]

This is half-ton :the 3/4 has 8 lug wheels/Apache 32.

[@allenbuck5589]

Hard core shade tree but a good old truck. Great try. Thanks from. Sc

[@davidlilly9698]

Really a cool old school truck. I really love it. Good luck getting it running and driving. I'm trying to get my frost car ore truck or van.

[@pauldilorenzo5530]

Nice truck Cummins in its future ? Good video as usual

[@user-mv2pw5ib8s]

Always interesting content!

[@somerandomguy3868]

The vacuum advance always pulls against the rotation of the distributor

[@michaelhill2844]

Nice.

[@waynebowman2315]

That is 1 cool truck , cool video guys

[@chilee6994]

Painful to watch... Beauty truck .. always wanted one of these

[@alertgasper]

shoot, i woulda yanked that stovebolt when i first saw it, found a 216 owner needing some more power and begun a Vortec 350 swap out--or as the kids pronounce it, "LS swap". the nice thing about finding something on a residental property is you can check out how well the rest of the property was maintained and decide if you're looking at a money pit or "just needs a little love" project.

[@stanley67s13]

I have a 59 Belair with three 235,no set place to start plug wires in the rotor as long as it's in the right sequence

[@bobbydelamar606]

That is how an old timer taught me firing order. 15 is too young 36 is too old 24 is just right

[@johnharris2642]

Lubracation would of went a long way. You failed the basic test

[@gotrust4741]

Had a 58 GMC I got and had the same issue with a push rod took the head off cleaned everything up and got the valves unstuck and seated it ran good. Those push rods can’t be bent straight lol

[@johnsvariety]

Great episode. Nice to see you two working so well together. And that radiator is cool too. Going to leave it as is? Or is there work you’d do on it?

[@theetravisb]

We’re leaving it as is

[@davidgriffin6724]

Starting fluid, learn it, love it, live it.

[@rosewhite---]

i was looking forward to hearing it run. did the pushrods bend when valves contacted pistons? squirt cylinders with acetone or WD49 to see if stuck rings will loosen.

[@user-uy7rf9nv7d]

My dad got a 56 chevy truck an i love it

[@evilbeetlekustomscreations4965]

I have my dad's 1959 Chevy carry all that his dad bought brand new, I would love to own that fleetside to match😮

[@billywird]

Without a compression gauge to get your actual compression readings it is hard to tell if the engine will start, but what you are getting by checking the compression by hand should be enough to possibly get it running. The starter motor is dragging and that has a lot to do with the cranking of the engine as well. It appears to try and start and the amount of blowby coming up through the crankcase does indeed indicate excessive ring wear and possibly stuck rings. I have seen mechanics put two twelve-volt batteries in series (giving 24 volts) and really speeding up the cranking speed nut it can only be for a very short period of time. I had a friend of mine asking why his dad's 62 Ford Falcon (original engine) needed a jump in order to start. Well, I went over and checked the compression on the engine, and it was about 90# on all six cylinders but it would not start unless we jumped the battery. And while trying to crank it the starter was squealing, and I asked him if he was going to do anything about that starter. He said no as he had convinced himself that he was going to rebuild the engine anyway. The cause of the starting problem was indeed the dragging starter motor. then engine being old and tired needed a healthy starter motor to get the engine started. This engine you guys are working on is obviously tired. Of course, those six-cylinder Chevrolet engines are easy to work on and that engine can be in framed right in the truck (the beauty of the cars and trucks of the fifties and earlier). A set of rings and the valves done (either ground or lapped) would start that engine right up. Of course, that entails expense, but the truck is worth it in my opinion. I was rooting for you guys to get that one started up. By the way my dad told me that farmers told him that they preferred the step side beds as when they are transporting livestock the animals are protected from breaking their leg(s) on those inner wheel wells. And of course, you could always tell when you saw one of those step side trucks going down the road with cattle enclosures. I think that if I were trying to get one running that has sat, I would pull the plugs and lubricate the cylinders and try to roll the engine over by hand and makes sure there is no resistance to rotation. Sometimes when we try to crank an engine with the starter we can indeed bend push rods trying to move stuck valves and such. It's just a suggestion. Enjoyed the video though.

[@Iamaverygoodkid]

man chill

[@redredmane5544]

Well, they gave up and probably had the old truck towed to the "bone yard." That's basically the "graveyard of old cars and boats." 😔

[@Cougracer67]

To determine distributor rotation, just look at the vacuum advance! The timing marks are on the flywheel. Why didn't you put some oil in the cylinders right away??! Did anybody ever tell you guys to loosen rocker arm bolts a bit at a time so valve spring pressure doesn't bend the rocker arm shaft? Why are you choking the carb with your hand after pouring gas into the carb?? After priming, it needs air to run! A person has to be smarter than the engine to get it to run, and a 235 Chevy is about as simple as they come!

[@bobsmith-hd2hi]

lol god damn

[@jeffscott8323]

I had a 59 Apache. Stepside. 235 sixbanger. Good old truck.

[@Baystateboy125]

The ‘59 Fleetside is my all time favorite!

[@davidjones5269]

Gotta love the ashtray

[@redredmane5544]

Sometimes, you get an old abandoned car out and all fixed up, only to discover the reason why it was parked in the first place!!! For many many years, that old truck was probably used to haul extremely heavy stuff. When hooked up to a good strong battery and given fuel, It's like a 95 year old man on his deathbed with "life support" just BARELY keeping him breathing. There was nothing wrong with it mechanically. There just wasn't any "life" left in that old tired motor. Odds are, one day many years ago, while on an extremely strenuous job, that old motor simply quit running.

[@jessekauffman3336]

Awesome truck

[@jimpatnode4445]

What town is this one in? Sure was hoping this would be a runner.

[@theetravisb]

Gila bend

[@stevejohnstonbaugh9171]

Where is your Marvel Mystery oil and your pump oiler? I missing seeing them at work. A good dose of MMO on those valves would have been helpful. 😊You battery operated blower is SUPER! Really does the job. Things turned around when the pump oiler and the MMO came out! I think you made a mistake by throwing in the towel on this one. The body and styling were fantastic. What ever they were asking it was a good deal just for the body alone.

[@MeMe-YouYou]

That beer/cup holder is one normally used in boats.

[@ericcranston8158]

Please go to Harbor Frieght, invest $5 and get a dead blow hammer that isn't steel on steel.... CM'ON MAN!!!!

[@haroldrogers6083]

That 58 has a look of the Chevy Camio with that Fleetside bed on it . With all the things custom on and in that truck. it was someones sweetheart ! it would not be a suprise to me if that 230 or 235 has been hooped up !! Great dash also !!

[@billywird]

That would be a Chevrolet Cameo and of course a GMC Suburban. Those beds were fiberglass panels if memory serves me correct. Of course, that is a fleet side bed and if memory serves me that was the first year offered on Chevrolet trucks. Of course, it was also a long bed truck. The truck is a basic six-cylinder three speed the engine being the 235 six-cylinder engine. Of course, one could order those trucks with a V8 which would be a 283 Chevrolet engine or a Pontiac engine in the GMC version. Also 1958 signaled the introduction of the 348 engines but I do not know if it was available in the 1/2-ton pickup of which this vehicle is. I would imagine that possibly a person could order one though. These are good basic transportation trucks and could serve as a valuable starter truck for young people who want to get involved in these old trucks.

[@Cougracer67]

235's also had Babbitt bearings and splash oiling (just like the 216) until 1953 Powerglide models and then all 235's in 1954. The first 235 came in 1941 big trucks.

[@tom-ehill2713]

My fave truck!!😎

[@markcollins5026]

Man. nice but you should put some lube or Marvel mystery oil in the plug holes before doing all that cranking !

[@user-db2zs8cl8t]

To begin with as soon as you pulled those push rods and seen them bent I wouldn't went any farther with that boat anchor ⚓

[@morgansword]

The truck is a standard shift or manual transmission so it can be towed till the cylinders are getting hot or at least warm. It will run as I owned a lot of those and this is a common issue with this motor/engine. Once it is running with towing, keep it being towed a far bit more to keep that heat going. Once it turns loose and finally catches its breath.... it will run fairly well but chances are she will smoke for a while and just maybe need rings. Also, if valve settings are too close, its not going to get all of its volume of air possible. It would be like a short breath on your own lungs. That is a high dollar truck in most areas and listed will sell quick!!

[@richarddavis3007]

Put oil in it to build compression

[@josephg41]

24 volts might do it. I had a '63 impala SS 327 that had 30 at best psi on every cylinder but one. After a couple trys it popped off, then after getting some heat in the rings, compression picked up and it would crank fine on 12v.

[@iamgermane]

Knew some guy in the service who restored one. Since the guy and his buddy were mechanics, they rebuilt the engine/transmission and rebuild the body.

[@PaloDuro1021]

That leaf blower looks like a kids toy.😂

[@rogerhector5885]

probably is lol😅

[@That70sChannel]

15-36-24 I don't know if I'll ever need to use that, but I'll remember it.

[@JoeBob1955]

The California license plate on the front of the truck is not original to the truck. That is a trailer plate that someone just hung on there.

[@markkrauss5994]

1/2 tons are 6 lug 8 lug are 3/4 ton

[@debrathomas9502]

Put it in gear and drag it down the road then you can get it started

[@EricB-somejibberish]

Great try - would be nice to see a summary of what steps could you take if you wanted to continue working on that motor, or does 'tired' mean its done

[@davidbrown-55]

Very nice. How much for the truck?

[@bernadettegarbers9552]

Sumtimes the coil gots overlooked and doesn't get changedout....

[@kenfrazier616]

if you could drag it and let the motor spend and create heat she may just fire up, been setting a long time, sure your dad knows that old school trick

[@daynadiggle8169]

Swinging cup holder is from a boat .

[@williammutchler9722]

Would love to have a truck like that

[@Garagem80s]

That starter motor was turning very weak, why didn't they try to drag and force that truck to start!

[@rubenfuentes3779]

For as old as those guys are you would think they would pour some real gas down the carb before they even took it apart if it starts it starts im sure it was running wen it was parked

[@markduncan6690]

The Talking Hand!

[@user-xv2bq5xy3w]

Man you guys need to start using some lubrication might help a little bit I can't believe you're not putting any lube in the cylinders and on the valve train

[@izzynutz2000]

Marvel Mystery Oil and PB Blaster are your friends Marvel down the cylinders and PB Blaster to loosen everything else up

[@user-ht1xu4gv2u]

ATF and kerosene soak cyl switch it

[@victorhugocedillo9475]

Valió la pena ir por la Chevrolet y ganar un radiador clásico

[@tradrodsandcustoms]

That cup holder is from a boat, hence the swinginess

[@jeremylindeman1620]

Any way your looking to part with this Amazing heavy ½ton truck????

[@pennypincher6730]

1950 was the start of the transition automatic cars and bigger trucks could have a 235. By 53 all cars and trucks 235 was optional. And 55 216 was removed and 235 standard last year used was 62 230 took its place.

[@richarddavis3007]

Their is a bolt in the end of the pump for it to come off take the cover off to get to it call wes

[@kenthartness1168]

Wonder what happen when ya pump 50 year old gas into a engine

[@kenthartness1168]

Oh maybe ruin valve seals stick valves and bend pushrods I guess

[@dannysettles5646]

Pull it off and it start

[@wayneparks6195]

That plate of steel is worth as much as that truck.

[@MeMe-YouYou]

Looked like it was a slate top for a pool table to me.