F-1 peekup discussion.. need some ideas for a digger hauler!

I know you got pics, lets see 'em!

What about ideas for suspension... track widths of stock front ends and clips, what options does a guy have for doing it on the cheap?

Prices? How much for an F-1 with a cherry body... minimal rust, not beat up. I got a line on one that fits that bill, but I don't know what they're selling for.

What about red trucks? Mine will have to be red. Has anyone come across any old Ford short beds that have original red paint? I know it's a weird request... but what can a guy expect to pay for a cherry original paint F-1 or F-100? Or one with a very old re-paint?

Sam.

 

A lot..............F-1's are the hottest thing going lately.

Ask Mike....he knows.

 

$5403.25

 

Nice photo Sam

 

Sam,

You just missed a screaming deal on Preacher's '55. He got $5000-ish for an unrestored (never needed it) truck with a later 312. I was about two seconds too late!


Ed

 

If they are ****py, they tend to be really cheap. I bought one for $100 and another for $350. "Street Rods" seem to go in the mid-teens I think. I would guess that a stocker like you describe may be anywhere from 6000 to 8000. That being said, I'm not too sure because I haven't really thought about resale.

They aren't too expensive to re-do either. There isn't much chrome to worry about, and not much upholstery either.

I have a rear suspension from Ch***is Engineering in mine. I haven't driven it yet, but as far as fit and finish etc I'm happy with it.

Mine also has a *****en-Camaro clip that the prior owner started to install. I have had the front sheet metal on mine and track width didn't appear to be an issue. I am running rather narrow steelies though.

Engine compartments are m***ive.

 

another pic

 

all gathered from the hamb and carnut. maybe ebay too.

 

in case you didn't realize yet, i love lowered f-1's/f-100's

 

blah

 

lowered is good

 

Years ago I had a 48 F1.
283 SBC with a Muncie 4 speed, 60 model F100 rear end (with 3.50 gears).

I used a MorDrop axle and it was a great little truck. Red with 56 F100 red steelies. Mine drove and stopped decent. I pulled a car trailer with a 69 Nova SS on it. Could have used a little more power pulling the car (like a 327).

Simple to work on, parts are easy to come by (here in the Southland anyway) and they are easy on the eyes.

Sounds like a plan.

 

M-ll, 4 in wider than stock...............OLDBEET

 

sam,

haven't kept up with prices, but here's a bit of info:

minimal rust on these means that the front fenders are not quite rusted through (but nearly so, though) in three places on each side. the upper half right in front of the wheel opening above the seam between the "halves"; the bottom 4" at the back of each fender; and right under the headlights. please note that AV8's truck is the exception, not the rule.

patch panels are made for all six of these places, but are very pricey. at least for my budget, anyway. swap meet fenders are made from unobtanium. there are several 'gl*** manufacturers who make one-piece fronts and also individual pieces. if you need names of 'gl*** companies let me know. i've called them all at one time or another and have all the info stored in one place.

i aspen/volared clarence. i wouldn't recommend it unless (1) you're not wanting to s****e the ground, or (2) you cut the frame at the firewall and reposition it upward in order to get the body lower. basically subframing the truck with its own subframe. i've seen every front clip imaginable installed in these: M-II, aspen/volare, a mul***ude of gm subframes, gremlin, LTD, a ford twin I-beam, and some others i can't remember. i'd go for a gm subframe of the correct width if i were going to do another one.

if you ever do subframe one, check out where you want the wheels to fit front-to-back in the openings before you cut anything. the stock position is a tad rearward of where they probably should be. visibly, that is. not as bad as 53-56 f-100's, but some. you might want to position the subframe a bit forward to center the wheels in the openings. i believe that the front wheels on clarence are about 3/4" forward of stock, but don't remember exactly.

when you're looking for one: if you're going to use 'gl*** front fenders consider finding one of the larger trucks. except for the fenders and speedometers (and the bed, of course) they are identical to f-1's, but the cabs are usually in much better condition. of course that means you're also going to have to find a frame. but the advantage there would be that you can shape the frame however you want, including kick-ups at the firewall and the cab back. thus allowing you to s****e the ground without losing any floorboard (leg) room.

although there's nothing wrong with the looks of a stock bed, you can use the original fenders and build a killer bed with sheetmetal and some tubing (round or square).

clarence has an 8" of a very common width. don't know what that width is without measuring when i get home, but i've seen the same width under mustangs, fairlanes, etc., from the 60's and early 70's. the width would be perfect if i had a bit more offset in the rear wheels. as it is the rear track looks to be a bit narrow. it looks pretty stock, though.

i'll probably think of some more to add, but my brain's empty for now.

 

For you, and what you wanna do, a Camaro subframe with a small block Chevy/TH350 combo would probably make the most sense...gives you disc brakes, newer steering and several engine options as well (in case you DON'T wanna run a small block Chev...I'd use frame mounts from a late 70s Trans Am and run a 307-350-403 Olds myself...but that's just ME!).

HotRodDrummer's blue truck has a Camaro/Nova clip in it...thing drives anywhere...and blew past me on the freeway like I was standing still!

Go with a faded red look...start with a 52 Deluxe Cab half ton...paint "SAMford Salvage" on the doors...run a GM 10 bolt rear to keep all your wheels in the same bolt pattern and give you easily serviceable 'modern' drums...and call it good!

 

or sam, you could do it NICE, give us a call, we can set ya up wit the dakota front end, TRUCK PARTS for A TRUCK!!!!

you want to tow with this?.... DONT DO A CAR CLIP!!!!!

we could set you up with either a complete frame or a simple front crossmember for either an F-1 or F-100

Or just rebuild and drop the stock axle, but if ya wanna tow... do not clip it!!
track width is about 61 in, front and rear, same as.... a dakota!

the BFD would look *****en behind an old truck

 

I found this one in my files. HRP

 

[ QUOTE ]
Prices? How much for an F-1 with a cherry body... minimal rust, not beat up. I got a line on one that fits that bill, but I don't know what they're selling for.

Sam.

[/ QUOTE ]

A buddy of mine just grabbed a '48 F3 (97% original) driven by a little old lady (he met her) who was selling it to move to Hawaii. Straight 6 flat head, spare parts, service manuals - just over $1,000. He got it in Idaho (via eBay), so I'm ***uming it was worth a little less there.

Very, very straight.

 

this one cracks me up... don't remember where I found the picture...

 

I have $3100 in this, I drive it every day, it has an older 350/350 conversion, I also need to figure out the cheapest way to lower it.

 

Who needs a trailer...?

 

Good F-1s are tough to find, particularly at bargain prices. I recently saw a restored '49 for sale in the foothills, east of Sacto. Original red truck!, with V8 and three-speed, full body-off job with all the mechanicals rebuilt, needed nothing other than being dropped about a foot. (It made mine look like a lowrider!) Asking price was $17K. An F-1 in the condition mine was when I bought it will fetch $6K and up and sell in a heartbeat.

Good F-100s are easier to find and except for the high-enders are selling for less than good F-1s. I have a friend in Camarillo who has dealt in F-100s since the early '60s. (He's owned over fifty '56s, better than half of them big windows!) He's getting back into dealing F-100s full time, and I'll put you in touch with him if you're interested in an F-100.

Fuller just did a full Jaguar series 3 conversion on a '56 F-100 that's still in his shop, front clip and box off so you can see how he did it. It's probably the easiest suspension conversion you can do. Sorry I don't have full pictorial coverage of the job yet, but here's a shot taken during mockup. Check the relationship of the spindle to the frame rail. Is that low enough for you?

 

How's this for coincidence? Just got home from Tardel's where a fellow showed up with a '51 M-3 -- a Canadian Mercury 3/4-ton HD -- very nice "tour car" resto/refurb, 255-cid V8, HD four-speed. $17K asking price, a bit steep for a LWB HD pickup, but it would make a killer dually conversion!

Check this site, Sam. Good crowd, lots of activity, and some great deals. One member sent me a pair of Posies' reversed-eye front springs with about 4K miles on them because he kept s****ing his bumper on his driveway approach, so put a set of new stockers on top of his dropped axle. Just gave me the springs and seemed pleasantly surprised when I insisted on paying the shipping. I bought stainless windshield trim (kinda rare) from another board member who sent me detailed pictures of the trim showing the "damage" -- a ding so tiny he had to use a pencil in a closeup to point it out. You could still barely see it, although the blowup was so big the pencil looked like a fence post! But wait! There's more! I told the fellow to set his price, which he did -- fifty bucks! So-so F-1 to F-7 (same cab) trim will sell all day long for $100 and really great trim like this set won't go looking for buyers for very long when priced at $150-$200. But wait! There's more! The fellow built a *****in' shipping container with a pine frame and Luan plywood front and back panels, all scewed together! The trim sits snugly and safely inside. You could run a UPS truck over this shipper and not hurt the trim. There are some great gearheads there.

http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=41

Sorry, guys . . .

 

You forgot the link. Or I'm blind. Probably blind.

 

AV8 - Is that the FTE website?

 

I keep going back to the Jag front suspension as a viable option. I saw one at the wrecking yard and it looked CLEAN. I don't think I want my truck SLAMMED... just lowered enough to look right.

At this point, I'm gonna soak this all in and keep looking for a nice truck to build. I like the F-1's... F-100 don't start looking good to me until 1956... then after '57 they turn to "dog" again... and then pick up in '63 with the small window uni-bodies.

I think the one I really like is the '57... but they seem more rare than the F-1!

Sam.

 

I bought a 51 once for $50 and drove it 150 miles home. We were coming home from a BTO concert in 1974 and my buddys 62 Impala had the generator nut come loose. We pulled into a gas station and tightened the nut. The old guy said he had a truck he would sell but had to get $50 for it since he had just licensed it. We s****ed together the fifty and I told him I would take it if he filled it with gas. Damn fine old flatty. Piss poor heater tho.

 

Hey, if it's a '57 you're after, have you seen this? http://www.craigslist.org/eby/car/36426731.html

Also, I think a member of the Strangers is selling one of the "Kousin Kleatus" trucks. I don't know what year it is, I can't find the ad.

Found it--it's a '60: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=469638

 

Whatsa matter? You can't stand to have a 37 Chevy pulling that old Ford?

Just kidding, Sam and I have actually discussed this a lot, he wants his own truck and has a soft spot for the old F-1 and F-100's. Seems that F-1's are getting tough to find that are decent and reasonable prices.