ohio needs a role model

[the milk man]

hey fellas,
im new.. from ohio..and shopping for 76-79 ford truck grew up with fords all around i love those trucks so now im gonna have one ..or two haha im gonna ahve stupid questions but bear with me so on the question side when im lookin these trucks over is there anything you look for thats a kiss of death that i should avoid... thanks for your help -eric

 

[LEB Ben]

Welcome Eric...we have a quite knowledgable 73-79 truck base here. As for kiss of death, depends on what your strengths and weaknesses are when working on these things, personally, I'll saty away from electrical work with a 10ft pole. That said, just have a general checklist to look the truck over with. Make sure the engine runs in a way you deem acceptable. Same with the transmission. Check for any major leaks and/or smoking. If a 4x4 rig, check the transfer case out, lock the hubs. Check out the axles for any leaking or 'clunking'. Check out the floor boards for rust. Check above the rear wheel wells for rust, could be bondo'd over too, so tap a solid piece of sheet metal with your knuckle and tap above the wheel well, and you should notice an audible difference. Also check the drip rails for rust. That should be good to get you started and give a pretty thorough check.

 

[slmann]

Welcome to the site.

 

[03_7.3_SD]

Welcome!!!

 

[smokey]

Welcome to FTF

 

[taxreliever]

Welcome....if you find a rig, take pictures, post the ad and the pics here and I guarantee, the fellas on here won't pull any punc.hes

 

[the milk man]

ok well here goes i found a 1978 ford crew cab its setting on a 1977 frame that has been cut and extended soild rust free body 351m auto 4x4 4in supension lift 3in body lift sittin on 35s all new int he guy wans 14500 he has it listed on ford crew cab com the cut frame thing makes me nervous ???
i also fouund a 1977 ford 351m 4 spd 4x4 reg cab f250 custom frame of paint job rust free bed no bondo that i could find but its stock height little low for my taste bout half the price of the 78 ill put pics up of both if you kno neone with a rust free truck im intrested but i wanna buy soon i got the 4x4 fever haha

 

[LEB Ben]

The pic looks good, damn good actually. I think a thorough inspection of the frame should either expose any issues or calm any fears. A lwb dentside 4x4 cc was never produced by Ford, but IMO is a killer rig, so any 4x4 lwb CC's will either have a frame stretch or a 2wd truck with an SAS done.

As for which truck you should go with, depends on the amount of coin you have to spend, and whether or not you want CC or a regular cab. If I had the money, I think I'd spring for the CC. Also keep in mind, the reg cab is half the money, you can buy alot of lift and tires (and the accessories necessary to compensate for said lift) for 7k.

 

[BuzzGun79]

i goota agree with Ben, Eric the truck looks awesome & appears to be well put together. do the inspection on the frame & the rest of the truck to remove any dought in your mind.also ask yourself this. do i want this kind of a truck? or i can spend half the dough on the other truck & build it myself. do my time & resources allow me to undertake such a project? plan carefully before you plunge into it.

 

[the milk man]

The frame was a 77 highboy frame that was stretched 77 bed 78 cab the frame cutting is what makes me nervious today I am leaning toward the 77 for 7k I would like to lift it right away the body on this truck is one of the nicest I've seen in ohio its a 351 4 spd makes me wonder if its a 400 unless anyones knows where I could find a 95% rust free truck thanks for the input

 

[LEB Ben]

makes me wonder if its a 400

Measure the stroke

unless anyones knows where I could find a 95% rust free truck thanks for the input

Have one shipped in from the SE or SW. Shipping would probably be less than $1500. For reference, the CC you posted would typically be a 7-8k truck around these parts. So shipping in a truck might be worth it. Get the same truck for half the price...doesn't sound to bad to me. FWIW...a buddy of mine is selling the nicest 78 2wd cc I've ever seen for 4g's. You could take that truck and SAS it..can be done for less than $2500 if you're handy and want a D60 or sub-5k to have a shop do it. Just saying this to let you know, you do have options.

 

[the milk man]

Thanks the cc was soething I stumblled across looked cool but isn't my favorite I like reg cabs I have pics of a dark red one on facebook but can't get the stupid pics to load on my phone to put on here...ut I noticed u r a strong suporter of the 400 over 460 id like to build another engine top to bottom to drop in whatever I find over winter bang for buck is it a beter idea to go down the 460 road I need power relabillty and freeway speed as well I know gears n tires will make difference I just don't want a lifted big tire turd im kinda a horse power nut last car was a 04 cobra kennybell blower so advice from the truck world is helpful

 

[LEB Ben]

Thanks the cc was soething I stumblled across looked cool but isn't my favorite I like reg cabs I have pics of a dark red one on facebook but can't get the stupid pics to load on my phone to put on here...ut I noticed u r a strong suporter of the 400 over 460 id like to build another engine top to bottom to drop in whatever I find over winter bang for buck is it a beter idea to go down the 460 road I need power relabillty and freeway speed as well I know gears n tires will make difference I just don't want a lifted big tire turd im kinda a horse power nut last car was a 04 cobra kennybell blower so advice from the truck world is helpful

I am an advocate of the 400 to an extent...and that extent is about 350hp/450tq. It's my opinion that building either a 400 or 460 to that point, price is negligible (assuming you have to purchase the 460). Personally, I like having the square bore (4") and stroke (4") of the 400...and the 400 produces it's torque a couple hundred rpm lower than most comparable 460's. That being said, to get to those numbers, you're pretty much looking at the standard bolt ons/ins and maybe a little head work. And I feel the 400 is a good engine to this point and require minimum upkeep/work/maintenance. However, after this point, the aftermarket kinda drops off for the 400...and you have to decide whether you're going all in and stroking the 400, or going to a 460. Note, I've read a couple online stroker projects for the 400, and they all easily hit the $10k mark...and that's for roughly 550hp and 550/tq. The 460 on the other hand, has a good bit more aftermarket support...and doesn't take much to get it to hit the 500 mark.

So to summarize, if you want a rig with sub-350hp, there's no reason to swap in a 460...unless you want a little more weight up front. However, if you want more than 350hp, it's a no brainer...gotta go 460.



Also note...there is a common argument that the 460 smashed the 400 in power numbers...which is semi-true. You have to remember, in that era, power ratings changed from gross to net...and the 460 aren't quite as lop sided if you compare a smogged up 460 to a smogged up 400.

 

[the milk man]

Thanks for the input if im being honest with myself im gonna have to go 460 then I don't thini findin a 460 in this area will be hard but finding the right 460 for y truck might be a different story im gonna post pics of the other 77 when I get home anyone in the sw u could point me towards to buy a truck from while ur at it

 

[SuperCab]

I love to remind Ben how gawd awful the 400s are since I have a 390, but they really are a good powerplant...

~400CI IMHO, whether it be the 400, 390 or even [gasp] my 400 Small Block Chevy, is a good size for the average truck. Excessive towing/hauling calls for a 460 or diesel, but 400 is good for a truck everyday...

Beats a 351 any day of the weak... pun intended...


EDIT: Just re-read that and realized ow lame it was... Oh well... 350 really isn't enough to have fun in the average truck though in my opinion...

 

[kiwi f150]

If you are going to look at shipping why dont you look at ftf member dakonthemountains truck called burt - he has had to unfortunately put him up for sale and is a real nice looking truck.

 

[kiwi f150]

Ooops didn't read your other post where you said you wanted 4x4