Stewart’s 1949 Diamond T

I’ve been told my truck was originally a fire truck in South Lake Tahoe CA;
their first “professional” fire truck ever. Originally delivered with a
standard pickup body, which was removed and a “kit” fire truck body or similar
was installed. There was probably some sort of pump as there were a couple of
cut-outs on the original dash which must have been for pump pressure gauges etc.
The truck was in service there until the mid-1960’s, and then sold off to the
second owner, who removed the professional body and installed a flat bed and he used (and abused )the truck for about 10 years, then literally abandoned it in a vacant lot here in Southern California it sat
there from 1977 until I bought it in 1997. The owner’s son told me they would
load as much as three tons on the truck – as evidenced by several broken
spring leaves and a break in the frame, long since welded with a big fishplate.
We got five of the six tires to hold air and thus were able to pull it up on a flatbed and take it to my friend’s place where we dismantled it down to the frame and started a 2 year restoration. The old Hercules engine was coaxed to life but after the oil got warm the pressure dropped to zero and rather than rebuild it, I opted for a remanufactured Chevy 283 with a mild cam, bored out a little, 4-bolt main – I have Corvette valve covers on it but who knows??? The old flat bed was discarded and a bed from a big GMC pickup installed, and red oak wood stakes custom-made all around. Neither my mechanic friend nor I knew what the cab interior should look like so we lined the whole thing with
leatherette. The dash is an overlay on the original, with instruments – including a
tach and voltmeter – from another project. The Chevy engine filled the engine
compartment and there was no place for the fan, so there is a thermostatically-controlled fan in front of the radiator. No space for the horn either, so a boat horn is mounted on the front bumper – looks like a siren, but isn’t.
I am driving it less and less these days and have offered it for sale but my
wife is very upset about it so probably will keep for a couple more years.
It’s an attention-getter for her real estate business, so what the heck?

Stewart
Murrieta CA