RE: [ihc] RE: Tiring David

["Ed Sohm" <idaemes@xxxxxxxxxx>]

>and where and how the bumpers attached...

Rear bumpers were completely optional, there are many flavors. Rarest of
all
would be the stamped sheet metal style to match the front. 'IH approved'
aftermarket bumpers were shown in the Neccessory catalogs, most were
probably dealer or TSPC installed. Lots of dealers had local sources of
'custom fit' bumpers as well. In any case, they all attached to the back
of
the frame rails, with varying amounts of required drop fabricated into
the
mounting arms. My favorites are the tread plate surfaced hitch('step',
or
'Barden' style) that wrap all the way around the corners. Some attach to
the
back corner of the fender, the really slick ones leave a small gap there
and
have a vertical flange about 1" tall that follows the fender contour.

Jim

In this area of the country (Midwest), in the 70's, pickups often came
without bumpers and spares.  When farmers traded in their old 3/4Ton,
the kept the old spare for the new truck.  People's needs in a rear
bumper varied so much that they had the dealer, local farm store, or
welding shop put on the style they wanted.  My dad's '72 Chevy was
purchased to haul hogs to market and had a Luverne bumper that set back
in so he could drop the tailgate all the way down and back up to chutes
to load and unload.  I remember asking my day why our pickup came from
Michigan but had a bumper made in Minnesota and why the spare tire and
rim looked different from the other 4. That was the only new vehicle he
has ever bought, maybe he ordered it that way, but there sure were a lot
of Luverne bumpers around. 

I realize that this doesn't really apply to a '50s IH from WA.  

Ed