Comments on: Auto-Biography 26: There’s a Future in Your Ford

By: TOTitan

TOTitan — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 02:52:01 +0000

I have a newer truck (04 Nissan Titan, KC 2×4) but I use it the same way you guys do your old trucks. I installed lowering shackles which brings the bed height down to 32″, and Firestone airbags which allow me to carry unbelievably heavy loads without bottoming out. Lately I have been pouring concrete for a back yard project, and regularly haul a full pallet of concrete mix home (3150 lbs, airbags set at 85 psi) with no problem, and a normal ride height. When I ordered the truck, I made sure that it had three important packages: Off Road which has skid plates and beefier wheels/tires, Utility Bed which has the factory bedliner, extra adjustable tie downs, fender mounted storage, and 12v outlet in the bed, and Tow Pkg which upgrades batt, cooling, has trans temp gauge, and frame mound slider hitch and a socket to plug in trailer wiring.
I have always had old trucks before this one (63 Intl., 79 F250), but I can tell you that its really nice having A/C and lots of power while I’m hauling my stuff

By: jpcavanaugh

jpcavanaugh — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 19:08:45 +0000

I came across this link late, from your use of the photo in another article.

I once owned a 63 F-100. Mine was the short bed Flareside (Stepside for those who speak Chevy). Also had the 6, but mine had the 4 spd tranny with the granny low.

My 63 was before the Twin I Beams – a straight I beam axle with leaf springs on either side. Plus, a prior owner had decided that the suspension wasn’t heavy enough and added leaves to the springs.

Honestly, mine was a miserable, miserable vehicle to drive. I used mine like you did, as a weekend workhorse. I always looked forward to driving it, but was always worn out when I parked it.

I can see where your F-100 could do it all. Mine could too.

By: fincar1

fincar1 — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 20:35:55 +0000

I came here from the link in the ‘36 Plymouth article. I’ve had a couple of ole pickups that were little more than motorized wheelbarrows. There was the 1950 F-1 V8 with its granny box and that distinctive sound the old Fords made going through the gears. It had a ratchet rear end – some sort of early positraction – and it would climb anything the tires would stick to. It didn’t have a whole piece of glass or a straight body panel on it, but it was a real hauler; I pulled a stalled two-ton truck off a railroad track with it once – a (slow) train was coming.

By: WildBill

WildBill — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 14:48:49 +0000

Takes me back to my days on the farm and our ‘67 Chevy with the straight six and three on the tree. It had the wooden bed and many patches on that. Dad always claimed he never needed 4WD, just a good set of chains, he was probably right. Wish I had that old truck now. Thanks for the great article!

By: TMiller

TMiller — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 05:41:49 +0000

I reside in Oregon also and I have to say a lot of pickup trucks hardly get used for pickup activities. Most of the time you see a lot of chromed out, loud, and obnoxious looking vehicles that hold no purpose. I have a 91 F150 with the 300 and I can’t see why someone, out here needs anything more. 18 MPG, the ability to haul wood, bark dust, gravel, etc around and having enough power to enjoy cruising.

Your doing the truck a great service: using it for what it was designed to be used for.

By: Paul Niedermeyer

Paul Niedermeyer — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 16:06:39 +0000

Lumbergh21: I love old Chevy trucks, except for the beds with the wood planks that rot out. My Ford’s bed still isn’t rusted out after being outside for twenty years. Just yesterday I was hauling gravel, and I winced a bit when the loader dropped a yard (one ton!) of gravel pretty quickly in the bed. What a racket! I hear the Ford beds from this era are the toughest, and my experience backs it up.

By: Facebook User

Facebook User — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 22:08:35 +0000

Nice article, but you would have been better of with a Task Force Chevy Truck (55-59) ;-). I’ve got a 58 Chevy Fleetside that I’ve used for hauling my stuff to and from college and hauling compost for the garden. I love the 235 “Stovebolt” inline 6 and the “3 on the tree”. The only concession I’ve made to modernizing the truck was installing a Pertronix electronic ignition module inside the old points distributor, and one day, I’ll probably be sorry I did that. There’s nothing wrong wiht drum brakes, you just need to know how to drive to use them, something that it seems most people are incapable of now-a-days. I actually like the mechanical steering, and the truck comes with a theft deterrent system stock-manual starter pedal on the floor (Young Mechanic: Do you have a kill switch somewhere sir? I turned the key and it won’t start.) :-).

There’s no better feeling than driving through the mountains with the windows rolled down and a cool wind blowing across my face as I head for my favorite fishing spot in the Old Buckin’ Bronco. It’s like being a kid again.

By: cheezeweggie

cheezeweggie — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 17:14:29 +0000

What a great editorial. I was told by a car wash owner how nice my mirror black truck is. I told him that I just finished hauling two dead pine trees. He thought I was crazy to use my truck to haul trees. I told him that’s what I bought it for…

By: Steve Biro

Steve Biro — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 16:24:48 +0000

God, how I love sturdy old pickups. The only problem for me, as a resident of New Jersey, is that something this old and special is required by my state DMV to either be updated to meet emissions standards – or wear an historic license plate which limits the amount of miles you can put on it every year. But a 1980’s vintage F-150 with the 300cid inline six is a possibility. Right now, I’m making do with a Ranger… four-banger, manual transmission, standard bed, standard cab and two-wheel drive. No, it’s not nearly in the same class as Paul’s old steed. But it’ll do for now.

By: Mud

Mud — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 17:47:34 +0000

I LOVE this one.

The closest I have to your F-100 is my 79 F-150 4×4, bought a few years back to avoid having payments connected to a truck that sat most of the time. It needed about 6 months worth of work, but hey, all I needed was a 1/2 and 9/16 wrench, a screwdriver, some pliers, and the necessary hammer.

It is a far cry from the trucks I pass on the road but somehow I always have a grin when I’m in it. It’s just an honest truck, doesn’t claim to be anything else. Funny thing is that I always have someone coming up to ask if I would like to sell it.

My answer is always no.

By: GS650G

GS650G — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 13:13:32 +0000

The 300 six is the best engine Ford no longer makes. The body will rust out around that engine before it dies. I got rid of my last F-150 with 255K on it. The best thing about battered old trucks is you don’t have to worry about loading stone or anything else into them and damaging the paint.

By: Dave M.

Dave M. — Sun, 22 Jul 2007 06:22:16 +0000

I love the white trim and the rust trails running down the bed! What character….

By: mikecarson

mikecarson — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 21:38:48 +0000

Old F100s are the best! I have 3 curently, and got my eyes on a couple more

Check out Slick 60s

By: David Holzman

David Holzman — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 21:10:33 +0000

Many years ago, I was looking for a used Integra. I wouild call sellers, and ask them why they were selling. One woman said she was selling her (‘86 I think) integra for a 1963 truck, so that she could work on the thing herself. For some reason I wasn’t interested in her car, but I later regretted not asking her for a date.

By: Steven Lang

Steven Lang — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 21:08:13 +0000

“the bittersweet memories of old good days… as long as they stay there, in your memories. and no name like taurus, or whatever candy chrome burbling v8 archaic hippo you have up your snoozing sleeve, no name or design mascara on you shoddy rebadge ford will bring back sobber clients, unless they are sunken in their delusions of a neverdying ford. henry ford should roll over in grave like chicken on a grill and blush more than red lights at Indy500. ford today fakes more products than hollywood forfeits limo blasts and ketchup bruises.”

This reminds me of the weird spam I get in my hotmail account.

By: ddavidv

ddavidv — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 19:39:35 +0000

Paul, my brother.
My 1965 F100 has the theft-prevention column shift 3 speed also, but is sans the rare and desirable overdrive. I am blessed with the V8, but have great respect for those sixes. It’s got fancy wheels and dual exhaust now, but otherwise is the same as it left the factory, just a little more beat up and corroded. Kind of like the owner, who is the same age as the truck, so don’t call either of us old.
I also have your solution to the brakes: do the disc swap, but don’t go the power brake route. It provides the same feel as you have now with brakes that will still work when the road is wet or the hill is longer than four car lengths. The steering keeps my upper arms fit. A good 8 footer, my truck gets more attention than any fancy little red sports car I’ve ever owned. My wife won’t let me paint it, because she likes the character the scratches and dents give it. I feel bad when I paint any parts to prevent them from rusting, because it removes some of the patina. Modern trucks are just cars with open trunks. These were tools for men. Long live the old trucks.

By: Paul Niedermeyer

Paul Niedermeyer — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 17:35:57 +0000

Steven, I could have easily gotten into old Benzes too, but I left that to my brother, who has spent the last 15 years picking up old ones for peanuts, fixing them and reselling.

Sajeev, you well intentioned tinkerers just can’t resist, can you? A FI engine and all its electronics sullying up my almost bare engine compartment with its couple of wires. Thanks, but no thanks.

It’s become my quest to do as little to the Ford as possible, to prove that a vehicle can have a fifty year (or more) useful life with as little intervention as possible. For whatever reason, that’s my thing.

By: jurisb

jurisb — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 15:28:30 +0000

the bittersweet memories of old good days… as long as they stay there, in your memories. and no name like taurus, or whatever candy chrome burbling v8 archaic hippo you have up your snoozing sleeve, no name or design mascara on you shoddy rebadge ford will bring back sobber clients, unless they are sunken in their delusions of a neverdying ford. henry ford should roll over in grave like chicken on a grill and blush more than red lights at Indy500. ford today fakes more products than hollywood forfeits limo blasts and ketchup bruises.

By: Steven Lang

Steven Lang — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 15:06:55 +0000

You’re kidding Paul. You build rock walls… enjoy driving old metal… believe in never putting money into depreciable assets… and in the past year owned an old Ford pickup, a Chrysler minivan, and a Subaru Forester.

I swear to God you are my western altar ego.

This weekend I found something that is essentially the find of a lifetime. A 1978 350SE parts that that complements my perfect running 1977 350SE which I bought for $250 a month back. The parts car is all the way in Hilton Head and, HEY!~ I think it’s road trip time.

If you’re ever in Atlanta please look me up, and Frank, and Megan. Thanks for another gem.

By: Larry P2

Larry P2 — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 14:59:33 +0000

I hear you. I hear you.

I have a 1984 F-150 4×4 that is not particularly a Great Leap Forward from yours. Mine is battered almost beyond recognition. Not one body panel is exempt from savage dents and deep scars. It has the storied 300 straight six. I traded a cord of firewood and a used snowblower for it. The previous owner was a known drug dealer who did not change the oil for 4 years. When I drove it home, max speed was 45 mph. When I got home, the original factory-installed spark plugs had rust siezed in the block and I had to soak them in penetrating oil to remove them.

It turns out the carb was held on with one finger tight bolt and the dizzie had more than an inch of verticle play. Upon fixing those three problems, the thing runs like a bat out of hell. Honest, simple and effective as a hoe, insanely reliable, tough as a hammer, uglier than a windrow of ape sphincters.

I like what you said about these modern, DOHC luxury trucks.

By: Sajeev Mehta

Sajeev Mehta — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 14:18:03 +0000

What a great story about pickups and why we love them so much!

That said, I’m gonna be another well-meaning person who thinks you should get a 1986+ F150 for parts, drop in its EFI 4.9L six and…umm…decent brakes into yours. That’s how you update without losing the spirit of the original. :)

By: sykerocker

sykerocker — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 11:45:24 +0000

As a result of this article, when I go to work this morning I’ll be riding my 1969 Triumph Bonneville cafe racer, instead of my 1995 Triumph Trident.

Thanks for the reminder, and the incentive – and I’m looking forward to the jaws dropping on the squid’s faces at quitting time as I go through the Bonnie’s starting drill.