VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1933-1936 1934 chevrolet station wagon woodie

I was just cruising ebay USA and spotted an auction #221335187989 by seller... carparts2 under the title " 1934 assembly line station wagon body " chev .

Its a 12 x 18 black and white picture of a 34-35 Chevrolet woodie body being lowered onto a frame. \

Interesting part is that the frame , rad shell and fenders are pickup truck and the firewall and cowl area are also truck complete with the outside metal sun visor. Instead of glass windows on the sides it has snap in side curtains.

This is very interesting because Chevrolet does not list woodie wagons as being produced for those 2 years. This must be a picture from an outside supplier of the bodies and body being lowered by them onto the frame.

A few months ago I spotted a sales brochure from a company that produced them. Copied the pictures but lost a hard drive containing those pictures.

Can somebody copy and upload the picture on ebay too this thread.

mike........who always wanted a 1934-35 chevy woodie wagon

Does anybody have any literature on 1934 1935 Chevrolet woodie wagons ????

mike

I found more info.
Chevrolet did sell a station wagon in 1934 and 1935. The parts are listed in the Chevrolet parts price list supplement for special models (dated 4-30-42.)

Under 1934 Chevrolet Station Wagon body, page 5.
used on DB 1/2 ton chassis.NOTE: two bodies were used. One made by Chevrolet and one by Hercules Mfg. Co.,
The parst list shows Chevrolet body parts only. Herc. parts must be ordered from Herc. fg. only.
1935 trucks are not listed?
Under special parts used on 1935 truck "part #377296, oil clarifier, Model J, (service replacement parts availble from Briggs Oil Clarifier, Wash. DC)
The 1934 accessort book does show an optional oil filter for 1934.

Also note the oil filter can be seen on the firewall (left side) on the /////ebay picture.
I also have a picture of a Government 1934 Wagon which I can send to you. Send me your email addresss on a PM

I was kinda thinking military when I stumbled across that ebay auction photo. The wood is painted the same color as the cowl. It seems logical that the oil filter would have been a Govt. Spec. also.

Mike

Back in the day 1933-1935 with Chevrolet producing the roadsters and phaetons by a separate body maker, NON fisher . It only makes sense they also had their own special in house maker I call ( Chevrolet body works ) to produce things in low production like the woodie or depot hack or estate wagon ??? Also Hercules produced woodies.

Interesting side note is that a company in Tampa florida called Hercules motor company was producing 28--29, 30--31, 32, 33-34 ford woodie wagon bodies assembled with custom made cowls for the fairly reasonable price of $20,000 for body only. They also made phantom 2 door woodies. I visited their facility where they were also producing complete cars. They were in an older industrial area and the factory was right next to CRANK AND CHROME TV SHOW. You can see in the older re-runs of the show when the opening pictures of the C & C show opens, its on left of screen. They had the only 2 buildings that did not look like they were going to fall down. Hercules also had a bunch of finished bodies stored in the rear of the C & C show building. Was a most interesting and memorable visit. I do not think they are still in business.

Any info I had stumbled into over the years always claimed there were no woodies produced by Chevrolet for those years. Well all that info can get tossed into the trash can.

Wish I had purchased that brochure when it was on ebay.

Also they produced the woodie exactly as I would have , as a custom phantom. Except I would use passenger car frame , a 1935 standard, because of its X member strength . The woodie would have to use the truck cowl section with the roll out windshield and the metal peak above it.

I have seen phantom custom made street rods in pictures of 34 chevy woodies , but they used the cowl section from a passenger car and it the roof tooo the windshield area just did not marry up well, visually. It looked awkward.

I know there is one built by a shop class in new England, VT NH area and the other was built in minn and sold to a person in California.


mike

Page 169 of Roberstson's Book "... Chevrolet 1929-1939" shows a picture of a '35 Station Wagon. A '34 military version is pictured on page 113 of 75 years of Chevrolet.

Have you visited the National Woodie Club website? www.NationalWoodieClub.com ? I did find an article there from a member who was looking for information regarding restoration of his 1934 woodie wagon and it was on the truck chassis.

Unfortunately I do not have any of those books.

After all these years of owning my coupe 1935, you would think I would have bought them.

mike

STEVE....clicked on the link and mussed around for a bit but could not figure out where the article is on that woodie site.

As a point of interest I was one of the earliest members to join back in the early 70's when the national woodie club first formed in California . Back then club was run by this really short guy whose name escapes me >>>>WILL ??

mike "wood is good" My 35 roadster has about 2/3 the wood of a woodie

I took a stab in the dark with a friend of mine about 100 miles away who has a 34 Chevrolet coach, to see if I had sent him the pictures of the woodie wagon from a fall ebay auction.

Well, luck just follows me around sometimes. Garry kept them and sent them back to me.

What the famous Walter Miller at auto lit was auctioning at that time was a brochure for :

1934 CAMPBELL HERCULES SUBURBAN
with plants in Tarrytown NY, Albany NY, Cambridge Mass

from what I could read in the picture it had 3 options

1--front door glass enclosed
2--four door glass enclosed
3--full glass enclosed with curtain over endgate

here I was searching for a woodie or estate wagon when what I needed to be looking for was the brand new car/truck terminology SUBURBAN

I like the 1933 4 louver truck side panels and the truck front fenders. Wasn't that long ago there was a NOS rear fender on ebay that never sold. Definitely fits this woodie/suburban.

mike lynch.................

Hi Mike, I found it by clicking on board index which will bring you to the bulletin board and it was under the New Woodie Discussion at the bottom of the page. It is an old posting-2010, but it might be interesting to see how it ended up by now. On my original search I just typed in 1934 Chevrolet woodie . It didn't appear to be too active a site, but I think it's your best bet.

I have 3 pictures of the advertising in subject talk here.

If somebody would like to post the pictures to this thread I would be happy to send them to them via email.

you can contact me direct at mike350 at rogers dot com

subject line in email woodie suburban

mike

Hey Mike; thought I'd chime in here regarding the National Woodie Club - the founder back in the day was Will O'Neill, passed away quite a long time back. Seems to me I read about him in Rod & Custom magazine on quite a few occasions. Surprised you haven't made a Woodie yet?

Ah yes Will O'Neill, great little guy met him at one of the early nsra national meets 1970--1975. He signed me up for NWC

Well let me say this to those who follow my SHAZZBOTT UPDATES . After a spring and full summer of rebuilding and refinishing the wood parts for my 35 chev std roadster, its not that far off of building a woodie wagon. I learned how to construct a water wood soaking pipe and how to make a steam pipe to bend 8 foot long one inch thick lengths of northern ash to create a top holder/ front seat surround support pieces. I did this to avoid duplicating the original chevrolet giant finger joints and scarf joints, throw in some mortise and tenon joints too.

I am getting there slowly and hope to assemble the wood parts onto the 35 frame this spring. Right now my 35 coupe swallowed a #4 bolt and made dents in the cylinder head and piston. Just need to install distributor and get it running so I can park it outside weather permitting and start doing SHAZZBOTT stuff again. I have a full house gas furnace in my 2 car garage and get toasty in under 5 minutes.

Actually all the NOS parts I have collected over the years to make a 34-35 phantom woodie.>>>rad shell, radiator , hood tops, runningboards , left front welled fender, like nos right front from Oregon, bumpers and all kinds of smaller parts including top quality used rear fenders.

If I had not spotted that 35 roadster on ebay last year, I would be looking for a 34-35 chev truck cab or quality firewall cowl section with windshield to begin a scratch build.

mike

went back to site again and followed your directions. found the guys post. problem with that site is that there is 245 posts threads and 90% do not even have a single reply to any questions. So much for it being a useful club to join to get info on woodies. JMHO

mike

A picture chevgene sent me showed the woodie wagon of this body style in 1933 surveying erosion issues in the various areas of USA. So your guess of painted wood would make sense.

mike

Intresting that the Briggs oil filter was mentioned as the Chevrolet 1934 accessory catalog shows an AC oil filter.

Also found one picture of a wagon and it had 1935 artillary wheels but picture stated it was a 1934 model. So there were 1935 units also.I suspect it was produced with chevrolet's blessings (and mainly for govermennt use) in both 1934 and 1935.

The wagon body was produced by outside body builder for other years but never mentioned in Cherolet literature. They would be installed on a chassis with a flat faced cowl like a school bus was constructed on a larger chassis.

SAM RUSSELL, thank you for posting the picture of the 1934 Chevrolet " SUBURBAN " woodie that we have been posting about.

We want to call it a woodie but the literature calls it a suburban. Looks great as a woodie too me. I also like the fact they used truck as the basis and the peak over the windshield in my mind looks like it belongs.

Good looking vehicle doubt if many have survived. First I have ever known of one, until I had run into walter millers auction on ebay for the brochure.

mike thanks RUSS...........

Yes, Sam, THANKS for posting that Suburban photo!!! Is there a 1933 Suburban photo someone could post - #296061; just above or am I reading it wrong? That's happened recently (& before!). Sure wish I could recall what year my Grandpa's Pickup Truck was - 1933 - 1936. Remember standing on tiptoe on the running board to see inside the cab!!!

I found a picture of a 1933 Chevrolet suburban woodie actually its another brochure for a ;
" 1932 1933 ? Chevrolet Hercules Campbell woodie brochure wo9578-1325xw " --- this how it appears on ebay

search by
ebay item # 350727899233
seller name autolit.com

this is very similar to the picture of the 34 suburban body being put on the frame posted in this thread. Ad text say 1932 1933, but to me this is clearly a 33 by the truck hood. I think this is the brochure pictures I stumbled across before.

mike lynch

Thanks Mike - I'll have a look at Walter's Brochures! Love that assembly line photo that Sam posted! Must be one hidden in a garage, shed, barn, granary or some outbuilding somewhere just waiting to be discovered.

A scan of the front cover of a 1933 Chevrolet parts book. This will help document the fact that Chevrolet manufactured and sold "Station Wagons" to the National Guard and CCC in 1933.

Thanks Chipper. Now I know where to look!!! Get out the passport.

chevrolet called them station wagons and Hercules Campbell versions called them suburbans....in their literature....interesting.!!

There could not possibly be two different wood vehicles produced ??

Is there an actual Chevrolet JOB NUMBER to look up to see if they made any of them here ?? Or even USA Chevrolet job number.

mike

My friend in phoenix / Albuquerque area, Jay hertz was telling me that he saw the woody/suburban as pictured going thru an auction in texas couple of years ago.

Said never occurred to him that they are that rare as produced for the national Guard or the Forestry Service.

he has a great collection of 32--35 chev open cars and a 32 coupe .

mike lynch................