1929 Hudson hay wagon?

Unknown
Unknown
edited November -1 in HUDSON
Here's an unusual situation. I'm not a Hudson collector, I'm a farmer. I have a very old farm hay wagon that was built many, many years ago using the running gear from a Hudson Terraplane. The deck is too aged and weathered to use as a wagon any more and so I was going to rebuild it. As I looked closely at the undercarriage, I realized that it is really very complete and in good condition. The frame is completely in-tact with the original differential, springs, brakes, steering linkages, and four wooden-spoked wheels, hubs, hubcaps and tires that still hold air. The modifications to make it a wagon were just bolted on and no frame welding or cutting appears to have been done. I tried to look around a bit on line and get wheel-base measurements etc. that could tell me what year car it might have been. I am guessing it was a 1929 or so from the extremely limited info I have.



I am wondering if this might be much more valuable to someone as a complete Hudson rolling-chassis than it is to me as a hay wagon? How would I determine exactly what I have? How would I best find someone who is looking for this? How much would a restorable rolling-chassis be worth? Any help would be greatly appreciated.



Thank you,

John V

Comments

  • Jon B
    Jon B Administrator
    If it's a Terraplane it's no older than 1932 (and at that, it would have been called an "Essex" Terraplane). What indicates that it's a "Hudson Terraplane" -- the hubcaps?



    In the 1930's, Hudson stamped the serial numbers of its cars on the frame rails (this would be on the passenger side up in the vicinity of where the front axle passes beneath the frame). Earlier Hudsons had then stamped on the frame rails way out at the back (passenger side as well). You could also look on the axle housing, at the top, on the right side of the differential. You might have to wire brush to frame to find indications of this.



    If you can find the serial number, you can post it here and we can tell you the year and model of the car.



    (PS -- when I say "passenger side" I am assuming this is a left-hand-drive car! Hudson also made cars for export with the steering wheel on the right. "Passenger side" would take on a whole new meaning, in that case!)
  • RL Chilton
    RL Chilton Administrator, Member
    Do as Jon mentioned above, and remember that pictures are worth a thousand words, especially when trying to identify something. You can e-mail me any pics you might have and I would be more than happy to post them here in this thread.

    It probably would be worth more to someone who had a rotten frame, or body only and needed a rolling chassis for their restoration than it is to you as a hay wagon, but hey, depends on how much that hay wagon is worth to you, I guess.
  • Lee ODell
    Lee ODell Senior Contributor
    Ya never know what you'll find under a hay wagon.



    A neighbor of a friend of mine who bought and sold Duesenburgs, found a complete rolling Duesenburg frame and suspension under a hay wagon.



    Lee
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    Thank you all very much for your responses. Jon, I'm not actually sure what gave me the impression it was a Terraplane, I could be completely wrong about that. Anyway, I crawled around under there today and looked for numbers. I couldn't find any frame numbers but there are some large wooden cross members bolted on right in those areas so they may be hidden from my view until I get the chance to tear the old hay-deck off. I did find a number on the differential though, it's on the front driver's side of the diff. casting (US drivers side) next to where the drive shaft would be if it was still a car (or a self-propelled hay wagon). The number seems to be 19328. I'll attach some photos to this post if I can figure out how, if not, I'll email them to Russell (thank you Russell). If there are specific parts or areas that would help in the ID process, just let me know and I'll shoot some pictures of them.

    Thanks again!

    John

    (PS. As far as it's worth to me as a hay wagon... I'll bet these things were spectacular cars but to be honest, it was never that great a hay wagon. I'd like to see someone turn this thing back into a nice old car.)
  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User]
    From the looks of the pictures, it would appear that the frame, rear, etc. came from a truck. The number of leaf springs is way more than a car would have and the differential looks much larger than a car rear. Just my $.02.



    Hopefully, someone with knowledge of the Hudson trucks can shed more light on the subject.



    Kevin C.
  • oldhudsons
    oldhudsons Senior Contributor
    the tire size, which seems to be clearly visible, looks to be "6.00 x 16"!?

    '29 Hudsons used either 18" or 19" wheels depending on w.b. length.
  • faustmb
    faustmb Senior Contributor
    John,



    I'm glad you posted here, someone can make good use of your wagon. It would be helpful to know where you are located? There may be someone local that could check it out.



    Good luck,
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    It makes perfect sense to me that they would have used a heavier truck frame to make a wagon out of. I hadn't even realized until now that Hudson ever made trucks. I Googled "Hudson trucks" and found out that there were some real beauties back then. Now I wish to heck I had the rest of it!



    By my count there are 14 spring-leaves on the rear axle (each side) and there seem to be 10 leaves in the front so I'd guess that you're right on about it having been a truck. And yep, those are 6.00-16 tires on it. So... is there anyone who would know what year/type of truck might have had 16" wheels with wooden spokes? Does that rear-end casting number mean anything to anyone? Is there something else that I could give details about that would help?



    Sorry about posting from an "undisclosed location", I'm located in upstate New York about 20 minutes from Rochester.



    Thanks again for the help,

    John
  • barrysweet52
    barrysweet52 Expert Adviser
    I was waiting for GG's (Guru Geoff) comments before replying. I believe the Clark's are in transit to Warrnambool Victoria for the national Australian HET rally - starts this Sunday. I have several identical diffs, with the same number, that came out of 1924 to 1926 cars. The photo of the chassis and brake linkages are the same as my 1924 Hudson. The chassis and diffs were similar to look at for most of the 1920's. It was common to put extra spring leaves in to carry heavy loads. Wont comment on the wheels, but have a few ideas. Regards, Barry
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