So I always wanted a stepside, and one just popped up on craigslist for a good price. Problem is, will this fit on my frame that was made for an 8' stlyeside? or do the stepside trucks have a shorter frame?
Most flaresides (the Ford term) were short beds. They made an eight foot flareside bed, but those are rare. If you had the good fortune to actually find an eight footer, it should fit your frame fine with maybe drilling some new mounting holes. The standard flareside will be shorter, though.
The frames are the same and no drilling is required. As long as the length is the same (6 or 8 foot) it will just bolt on. I just recently swapped flare side/style side beds between 2 78's.