Howdy all,
I just acquired a '50 F1 that has been in my family for about 30 years. My uncle is the last owner and he had a 302 installed along with a bunch of other restoration and upgrades done. I'm hoping to take possession of the truck this coming week, but in the meantime my brain is getting the best of me and I've already started thinking about what I would like to do to it.

The first thing I'm thinking is swapping in a manual transmission. The current auto-box is unknown -- i'll know what it is once I get the truck, but I was wondering what type of measurements I should take to make sure that whatever trans I find fits. So far I've located a T170FT and an M5R2 locally. I would prefer to keep it in the ford family and would love to hear any advice on manual transmission possibilities. Does anyone have an early fat-fender with a 302 and manual? Any clearance issues I should be thinking about?

The second thing I'm considering is a disc brake upgrade for the front. Its currently got drums all the way around. I was looking at one of the kits on summit and they seem reasonable... any experience?

I'm very excited about the truck and really looking forward to driving it (upgrades or not). This is also my first real foray into american vehicles -- i've spent a bunch of time wrenching on mazdas, bmws, and brit cars so i know there will a learning curve.

As an aside, has anyone ever swapped a 7.3 Powerstroke into one of these trucks?

Thanks, and apologies for the rambling!
Steve

 

If she runs, Why fix sumthing that isnt broke ??.. Just fix what needs to be done, enjoy it, drive the hell out of it n welcome to FTE, We love photos by the way, so make sure you post some..

 

I hear you... it's my tinkering nature, unfortunately. The good news is, i'm gonna drive the crap out of it before I do anything to it... hasn't seen the light of day for probably 5 years, so i'll let her stretch her legs a bit.

I'll post pix as soon as i've got it unburied and out of the garage...

 

As far as the disc upgrade goes, there are several available.

I just bought one from Speedway last week when they had $7 flat rate shipping (saved $80). The kit was $279, which seems like about the most reasonably priced around. Haven't even opened the boxes yet, but will this weekend. Not ready to install for a while, but parts in the shop is always a good thing.

One thing to think about is that you can get them with different bolt patterns. If you are upgrading the rear to a different pattern, it would be a good time to get the front rotors to match. I intend on keeping a Ford 9", so I stuck with the stock 5x5 1/2 pattern.

Enjoy the project.

 

WOW... that speedway kit is $200 cheaper than Summit. Looks like a great deal, I'll have to put it on my list! Thanks!

 

I am not the guy with the details, but a Mustang T-5 with an S-10 T-5 tailshaft housing, seems to be the ticket with the 302 in these trucks.
Welcome to the forum!
The S-10 housing moves the shifter forward to where it should be.

 

Here are some pictures of an F1 front axle with a disc brake conversion kit. Although I don't know where it was purchased (bought axle that way at a swap meet), it looks to be like the one from Speedway. The rotors are 5x4.5, which I want to replace with 5x5.5 to match the rear 9" that I plan to install.

 

Well, I didn't know whether to resurrect this thread or post a new on, but the truck is FINALLY out of the dark and running again... so lets just say its an Ape Face Christmas!

I picked it up from the shop on Friday afternoon -- had to have the carb rebuilt and the gas tank replaced, all the filters and fuel pump as well. I have confirmed that its got a cam'd out 302 that (if I could keep it in a straight line) would scream... steering box is the next project.

So should I rebuild the steering box, or is it less of a headache of to go with a swap out of something else?

I'm completely stoked (and glad to finally be a full member of this community)!
Here she is:



Merry Christmas to all!
Steve
Tampa, FL

 

That is a good looking truck. The T5 is a good fit as others have mentioned. A Jag front end works well also and gives good brakes. See Jeff and Nicole build and others on here that have done a great job documenting the change. Welcome and have fun. Dave S

 

I think I would have to drive it a few weeks then after making a list decide your priorities. The body looks great.

 

I picked up a Toyota PS box and just made the mounting bracket that AX came up with last night. Still have to weld the end tabs on it, but looks like it will work just fine. Only took about 3-4 hours (I am slow) to mock the system up and make the mount.

I have the Classic Haulers pitman arm on backorder, but siince I am down to a rolling chassis right now, I don't think that will keep me from driving it anytime soon.

Here is a discussion on the Toyota conversions if you haven't seen it yet:

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...ing-mount.html