1951 Ford Other Pickups

Automatic

For your consideration is a 1951 Ford Pickup. I built this truck in 2004/05, and put it on a 1984 F-350 dually chassis. It has a good running 460 gasoline engine, and a good shifting C-6 automatic transmission, with tilt steering and shifter on the coumn. The 460 has an alumnium intake with a 780 CFM Holley with vacuum secondaries. It has a new Crane Cam that is hydraulic with new lifters. The duration is about 270 degrees, and gives it a mild lope while still having the torque for pulling a trailer. The cam duration is similar to what was the 429 Cobra Jet. It has hanging brake and gas pedals from under the dash and the power brake unit is mounted on the firewall. The dimmer is on the floor for the hi-beams and was new when the truck was built on this frame. It has all been converted over to 12 volt with a GM single wire alternator. The power steering is very smooth and easy to steer. I built this truck when I was restoring old tractors and bulldozers, and planned to use it to haul them on my goose-neck trailer to tractor shows. Therefore, I built it very heavy duty using the F-350 chassis and the Dana 70 and Detroit Locker rear end with about 4.10:1 ratio. The rear-end has the extended hubs that will accept dually wheels, but I'm using single 16"x8" aluminum wheels front and rear for now. The one picture when I was moving it with the loader/crawler shows the dually wheels on that axle. The original extended front hubs were removed and replaced with standard hubs. The tires are all 16" Load range E as would be on a normal truck of this size. During the constuction, a goose-neck hitch was welded into the frame using 8" channel to mount the 2 5/16" ball. The rear bumper has a standard 2" receiver hitch, and the rear bumper is from the front of a 1956 F-750 to be substantial enough for the hitch. This truck was built to haul heavy tractors on a trailer whether goose-neck or bumper pull. The wood in the bed is treated 1"X6" wood. I have the metal strips, but need cut to size and bolted in place to cover the cracks between the boards. The bed is a pickup "long bed" for that year. It had to be widened to fit over the wider late-model chassis. The bed's front header was modified to be wider, and the tailgate was fabricated from scratch using pipe at the top and bottom and welding heavy gauge sheet metal between. An inner panel for the tail gate was also, made, but it's not yet been installed. I attempted to let the pictures tell the story about the truck. The cab and front sheet metal were from an F-7 tanker fire truck that had 20" wheels. I reshaped the front wheel-wells to fit the 16" tires better. The nice thing is that the big trucks in those days (F-7 and F-8) had wider fenders than the pickups. Therefore, when I matched this truck's sheet metal to the F-350 treadwidth, the tire's outer surface was even with the sheetmetal. Since the bed had to be widened, the rear fenders were nearly flush with the rear tires. I left the 1984 front bumper in place to give a hint of what was under the truck. If one will look under it, the twin I-beams and front coil springs will reveal that the chassis is a later model Ford. The front and rear brakes, brake lines, gas lines are all new. The rear brakes are manually adjustable rather than autoadjustable. It has new front springs, new shocks, and new king pins. The front was realigned at a truck chassis shop so that caster and camber would be correct with the existing weight, because the original 1984 chassis was an ambulance with a box-body and was much heavier in the front. The rear leafs springs still have the original number of leafs as it was when it was a dually ambulance. The gas tank is 1984 original and has an in-tank electric fuel pump. It makes starting easy after sitting several months, because it can pump the fuel to the carburetor, before attempting to start it. The frame was painted after the modifications, but before the cab and bed were mounted. All the lights and turn signals work including the dash lights and high beam indicator. The speedometer is connected and accurate to within 2-3 mph. All glass and seals are new. The driver's window was chipped and caused a small crack in the upper rear corner. The window regulators work moving the door glasses up and down smoothly. When the small vent windows in the doors were permanently removed, I had the new one-piece glass cut to fit the openings. The channels are not complete at the front, although I have the channel material to do so. Without all the channels in place, the side windows rattle a bit when they are rolled down. The truck cruises the highways effortlessly and very nicely. I've had it up to 90 MPH with no strain, very smooth and tracks within the lane while on the interstate. The transmission shifts very strongly and quickly. The down-shift linkage needs more adjusting, because doesn't downshift without slowing down. I have a temporary radiator in it for the present. I have the original F-7, which looks more natural in the opening. The original radiator is in good shape, but it seemed to get hot while idling after a drive. Later I discovered that it needs a shroud to pull the air through the radiator at slow speeds or idle, because the fan sits back away from the radiator's rear surface. I've not installed the heater, because this was to be a "fair weather" truck with the intention to transport tractors and bulldozers to summer tractor shows. The cowl scoop works nicely, and pulls in a lot of cool air into the driver's area while driving. I have a lot of loose parts that will be included in a box if the truck sells. I've not driven the truck over 30 miles away from home and I've driven it to work a few times. I have put on less than a thousand miles since it was remounted onto the later chassis (mostly in 2005 and 2006). Yes, the colors are bright. I had two granddaughters at the time that wanted me to paint it their favorite colors. The long-term plan was after getting the truck completely to my satisfaction was to take it apart and paint it all the metallic burgandy, with aluminum painted rear bumper and grille. In the meantime, I've lost interest, sold the old tractors and/or bulldozers, and my granddaughters are late teen-agers with other things on their minds. I have no idea how many miles are on the chassis. Ebay required that I enter a number so I entered 100K. The cab, fenders, and hood were from a 1951 F-7 fire truck that had 24,000 miles on it. The odometer now shows about 25,000 which means I put about a 1000 miles on it after getting it drivable. The bench seat is 1951 original with no tears. I soaked it with Amor All, and it brought back to the original softness and the sheen. If you have questions, please use the Ebay question/answer system. The truck has a clear Ohio title, and a VIN plate to which I have antique tags issued. If your state is other than Ohio, be sure to check with your state's laws for modified vehicles. And no, I will not let it be driven away with my license tags. The truck doesn't leave the farm until paid in full and cash is in hand. If Paypal is used, I must have the cash drawn from the account and in hand before releasing the truck. Shipping and transportation is the responsbility of the buyer. I would recommend that it be transported rather than driven away, because it's been a couple of years since I've driven it much, and never over 30 miles at a time. I have not yet started the truck this year, and it is still under covers. It needs a good cleaning, because dust has settled in where the tarps didn't cover. I have a modest reserve on the truck. I won't divulge the reserve amount. The truck is about 15 miles south of Dayton, Ohio and about 5 miles off I-75. Times are changing, and I'm finding out that I'm not getting younger. Time for somebody else to enjoy my stuff. The hard work is done. Buy it and make the finishing touches that suits you the best. I have a lot of loose parts in a box that goes with the truck. It runs and drives like a late-model truck with the late model chassis under it. The intent was to have the "old truck" look, but have the "new truck" performance and driving qualities. Buy it, then, enjoy those "thumbs up" as you drive it around or tow a trailer with it. x