What's It Worth?

I'm looking at a '39 Ford pickup bed for sale, I really need one to finish my ride. It is in good condition, normal wear/tear, very little rust, and it has the original tailgate. The floor is cut out from a previous installation on a Z'd frame pickup, and braced. My question is... what's a legitimate offer? I think the guy wants way too much ($1200), but the only beds I've considered up to this point were "re-pops" and they are pretty close in price.

Any help out there?

Thanks!

 

If you're going to fix your truck as a nice driver, the re-pop price is the same and the re-pop is American made, I'd go with the re-pop. That way there's no rust repair or love affair with bondo. You can have the bed installed in 3 hours compared to 3 weeks of repair for the same price. JMO.......Mike

 

Does it have fenders? If it has steel fenders on it, that's probably a good price, those rear fenders are super hard to find. If it's just the box with a tailgate and no floor, then I would expect you could buy a workable used one for quite a bit less.

 

don't think a reproduced bed is a quick and easy install. if it comes assembled it will need to be disassembled to paint correctly, if it has a wood floor it needs to be varnished in the very least. if it doesn't come assembled [more likely] it needs to be received [truck freight] uncrated, parts primed and test fitted, they always need a little massaging, lots of bolts, lots of edges to paint [parts when hung will fill a paint room]. just something to think about.

 

what he said ,but i would still buy the new one as long as it looked like the original. OH AND I SOLD THE OLD ONE NO FENDERS FOR 450,IT WAS JUST DENTED UP

 

$1200, IS TO MUCH . YOU SHOULD GET THE CAB TOO FOR THAT .
my $.02
"AND THE BOWTIE ROLLS ON"

 

It depends what your time is worth to you, if indeed you need to assemble a repop. I am always a fan of trying to make the old metal work whenever possible. This is one of those individual value judgements...things in this world are worth only what someone will pay for them. Nothing more and nothing less.

 

A used one would require the same amount of work, plus stripping the paint, stripping the wood, filling the rust spots and doing the body work.....hence, a shitload more work, unless he's just building a driver as I stated. This is not my first rodeo.

 

i wasn't arguing with your statement... and i never would.

 

IMO $1200 is way too much for what you are describing unless it is totally cherry which apparently it isn't. Northern Classic Truck sells an excellent repop for not much more and it includes everything down to the bed wood, nuts, bolts and tailgate chains. Yes, it is some work to put together but shouldn't take any longer than repairing the bed you describe.

 

400-500 sound like a reasonable price. I don't know why people want to sell junk for a price that it will never well for, them they let it sit so long it goes bad

 

But maybe your last! Ha

 

Thanks for the input fellas... I should know tomorrow whether or not he'll accept my offer. I kinda figured it was a high price, but I'm new to the parts buying game and thought I'd run it up the flag pole. I'm with Bad Frog, I try and "salvage" what I can from original metal when I can. I will never understand the huge mark-up on parts, etc... the last Good Guys Show & Swap, and even the local Glendale Swap was unbelievable! Guess we can thank Barrett-Jackson and American Pickers for increase in "value". Stay tuned for the final unveiling of the finished project, hopefully in time for Viva Las Vegas in a couple weeks. Enjoy the weekend H.A.M.B.er's

 

if you buy it post a picture.

 

I maybe should have worded it differently. I took absolutely no offense to what you said....sorry

 

no worries. i have to explain this to customers when they see that a bed costs X amount of dollars and then i have to bill them for all the additional hours [it can add up] thought op should consider these facts to help in his decision.