I got my first Ford truck about twenty years ago. It was a 1973 1/2 ton with a 390 out of a '71. To this day I still consider it one of the best running and riding trucks I have ever owned.

I didn't set out to get a Ford, but it just worked out that way. I've always been as much of a van man as a truck man. In fact, I've been driving vans longer than trucks. I'll leave the story of my first Ford van for another thread though. This thread is about my Ford truck.

Trust me when I tell you that this truck was nothing to look at. Maybe that's what attracted me to it in the first place. It was three different colors--red, white, and blue. I used to tell everyone that it was the most patriotic truck in the county and threatened to enter it into the local parades as it was. Of course, I never did it, but it sure would have been fun.

I had an old Dodge church van that had a 360 in it that ran like a raped ape! A fella that I knew had this old Ford truck that he never could seem to get running right. He wasn't very bright in the mechanical department, but at least he tried. I don't know what it is that prompted me to offer to trade him my hot rod church van for his tri-color Ford that barely ran, but I did and he accepted.

At first I thought I had made the biggest mistake of my life. I got in this thing, got it started after cranking it several times, and headed for home. The durn thing wouldn't even shift out of first gear!! I had to stop and work on it on the way home. I opened the hood and saw what the problem was immediately. The transmission kick down did not have a spring on it. I disconnected the rod and figured out a way to tie the thing off and crossed my fingers. Ahhhhhh, success. My new truck was shifting like it should.

I wish I could say that this was the only thing this fella had screwed up. I had a vacuum gauge, dwell meter, and timing light, so I got a new set of points, plugs, plug wires, cap and rotor, found out what the specs were, and proceeded to give my Ford a much needed tune up.

I cannot even begin to explain how it is that this truck was still running. Everything, I mean everything, was way out of adjustment. After a couple of frustrating hours, however, I had that old 390 purrin like a kitten! Well, except for the leaky exhaust manifold gaskets I never got around to replacing. Still, that truck idled so smoothly. It didn't shake a bit!

Over the course of about a month I managed to replace some other things the truck needed. Of course, I got as much as I could from the local junk yard. It needed a carrier bearing for the driveshaft. It needed one of the back axles replaced. The cab had dropped, thanks to rusted out cab mounts those old Fords are known for, so I managed to pound a 2x4 (yes, a 2x4) between the cab and frame. Much to my surprise, it worked. It wasn't perfect, but my 2x4 remedy worked enough that I no longer saw that ever widening gap between the fenders and the doors (y'all know the gap I am talking about). I also got a cap for it for $15. After a trip to the local used tire dealer, my new Ford was road worthy! Well, at least it was road worthy enough for me.

I cannot tell you how much fun I had with that truck. I drove it hard. I pulled things I shouldn't have pulled with such an old pieced together rattletrap truck. I took it off road to places I wouldn't dream of going now without a four wheel drive. I used it to haul loads that squatted it so much I thought for sure the leaf springs would snap. I slept in it. My oh my, the number of times I took my young son with me in it to go fishing! Me and my wife even did the wild thing in it .

I loved that truck. I didn't care that it was three different colors. I didn't care that the back part of the bed sides would flop a little if I didn't have the tailgate up. Hell, I didn't ever care that the crazy thing only got 80 miles to a quart of oil (no, 80 isn't a typo). That old 73 Ford was like an old faithful mutt that you miss for the rest of your life when it dies.

Like an idiot, I let a friend of mine talk me into trading him for two cars he had and $25. My family was growing. It was pretty tough to get me, my wife, our two young children, and my superfat mother in law into that truck. I warned him and warned him about the 80 miles to a quart of oil thing, but I guess he thought he knew better. Sure enough, less than two weeks after I made the trade with him he ran it out of oil and locked it up. He was out of town visiting some family members when it happened, so him and his cousins pulled it to the junk yard. I guess he just didn't care about the truck I had rescued as much as I did.

So, that's the story of my first Ford truck. I'll never forget how I felt riding down the road in it. There was just something that was so right and so special about that truck, in spite of everything that was wrong with it. I'd get in it and I just felt at peace. In fact, I've judged every truck I've had since against how I felt behind the wheel of that old Ford. Having that truck taught me what a good truck should feel like when you turn the key. Y'all know what I'm talking about--the way they fire immediately and roar to life.

Sad to say I don't own a Ford truck at the present time. My son has my last Ford truck. It's an 85 with a sweet sounding 351 H.O. that makes all his friends drool with envy. In the year or so that he's had that truck he has beat it to death. It's been tipped on its side, put in a ditch, and outrun many a Chevy around these parts.

I'm stuck with an '88 Chevy 4x4 because I thought it would be nice to try something different. It runs ok, but it's just not a Ford. Every time I log into this site I think about my history with Ford trucks. I've had several after that first one caused me to fall in love with the blue oval. I think I am going to go ahead and get that diesel I've been posting about in another thread. It's time for this fat boy to come home to Ford where he belongs. Thank you for reading my rambling post.

 

Awesome story!

 

I have a couple of similar stories. My first was a 1970 F100 shortbed about 30 years ago. I had so much fun in that truck it still hurts me that I ever sold it.

I have another '68 that has a story where I sold it, then I knew where it was for a long time but eventually I lost track of it, and then a couple of years it got abandoned on the interstate and I was able to get it back just before it went to the crusher. It's my son's truck now, we did a TON of rust repair and now it's in primer waiting for him to finish college.

I have another '70 now, I'm building it the way I want it to be but it's mine and I don't plan on ever letting it go. These trucks have so much character that it's unbelieveable. So basic in so many respects but also just work so good.

 

WELCOME HOME!!!

 

I know how you feel about Ford trucks. I'm a die hard Chevy guy. All the hotrods I've ever owned, with the exception of a few, were Chevys. I currently own a big block 4-speed Nova, a big block '67 Impala, and a '90 Corvette.

NOW, before everyone lays into me about the Chevys, let me also say I've owned more than my share of trucks. Ford, Chevy AND Dodge. I never cared for Ford cars, but the trucks. The trucks are a different story. From '73 on, Chevy and Dodge just can't compete with a Ford. These are some of the toughest trucks out there. I love the styling, I love the way the interiors are simple, yet functional. They're easy to maintain. They're just a far superior truck in my honest opinion. I had a '93 1 ton diesel standard cab long box I just gave to my nephew. I loved this truck, but it was starting to aggravate me with fuel system problems. The cab was rotted more than a little as well. I should've kept it. I gave it to him because he always liked the truck and would find excuses to drive it from time to time. Now he wants to sell it or part it out. It needs help, but it's not that bad.

Anyway, back to the story. I have a '79 now to replace it. I don't picture this one going anywhere anytime soon.The 300 six (my favorite Ford engine of all time) and the NV4500 behind it should last for the rest of my life.

 

My first was a 79 F-150 351m, np435, stock height with 33's stuffed under it. my buddy had it, and i fell in love with it. My car broke down, and was down for a couple months due to lack of funds, so he let me borrow the old ford. I loved that truck, and ended up buying it from him a year later. I had a serious cash flow issue, so i never transferred the title, just threw an old plate on it and avoided the cops like the plague. I blew the rear end in it, so a buddy put a new one in it, but it leaked bad from the seal, so it sat for awhile till he could fix it. My friend and i got into a huge fight, he found out that i never transferred the title, so he took it back. it was worth losing the truck to get rid of that parasitic relationship(he started drinking heavily and got deep into some bad stuff), but I really miss that old ford. the one i got now is better, but it will never be the same as the first one.

 

My first truck was a 1978 f250 4x4 with 35s and classic 2 rims. God I loved that truck but at the time I was running low on funds and I was about to get my license. I didn't have the money to get new tires transmission cooler lines and rebuild the carb and give it a exhaust system. I should have just toughed it out for a couple months. I really wish I would have never sold it.


she would shake a house down.
YouTube - My new truck with stock exhaust and pov lights

 

My first Ford truck is the one I have now a 74 F250 crew. Always like the 70's style Ford trucks as well as other but everybody I talk to say are the best out there. I am doing this one my way chrome an rollbar bullguard the works. I don't plan to ever get rid of this truck unless there is nothing left to rebuild.

 

It's only metal. It can always be put back together. My wife rolled 2 1/2 times on the way to work one day........



Here it is after the rebuild.......