Hi there everybody! My name says I'm buyin an F-150 but that's not set in stone yet.. In my city, there's a solid 1950 F1 for sale. I kinda want to restore it. The truck comes with a solid cab and a solid frame. It does not come with a box what so ever.. I've checked websites like LMC Truck and they mostly cater to people with 53-56 F1s, not 48-50 F1s... How would you guys suggest buying a whole new box? Also, where should I get fenders, lights, tail gates, grilles, hoods, etc... Stuff like that.. Is there a website that makes reproductions of that kinda stuff? If all you guy suggest is to buy a parts truck, I'm going to hold off from buying the truck because around here, there aren't really any parts trucks or many salvage yards.
Thanks!

 

Welcome to the board.

Where are you located? There might be other members near by who either have the parts you're looking for or know where to find them.

The box and tailgate isn't a problem because they're both reproduces. Northern Classic Trucks makes a nice product from what I have read. There are others. Fender are another story, no one make them in steel, only fiberglass.

Since you're new here you can't use the search feature but you can do just as good using Google. Just type in "new box" in the search area and "www.ford-trucks.com" in the URL window and you'll find many posts on the subject.

I am also sure others will be posting soon as well with their insight on buying a new box.

 

Which companies make the reproduction fiberglass rear fenders?

 

Welcome.

Where is around here? Parts availability, prices, distance to a helpful member vary greatly. It can help us help you if you add your general location.

What kind of truck do you want to end up with? Stock or modified?

Do you have a steady amount of money you can dedicate to fixing a truck?

The truck you describe sounds like a parts truck. If you are to build it you would probably need a parts truck for it. New beds are built by two manufacturers and are a great alternative to patching up a beat up bed. Rear fenders are only available new in fiberglass. Some of the members here have parts stashed and sell to other members, but it can be a very time consuming and expensive way to build a truck.

 

I live in Central Oregon... I know this truck seems like a patrs truck but it comes with a running engine and transmission and I cant find a 48-50 F1 thats not rusted to bits semi-near me!

 

I'm not aware of any company reproducing an exact 48-50 box. However, there may be someone out there that does. Most boxes reproduced are for the 51-52 F1 and later 53-56 F100 styles that have the flat bedsides and square stake pockets. 48-50 beds had embossed bedsides and rounded stake pockets. The tailgates are also different in the latches. 48-50 latches were inside the top roll, while 51-52 had them below the top roll. Dan Carpenter does make a bed for 48-50 with rounded stake pockets, but without the embossed sides. Mar-K only makes 51 and later beds.

There are reproduction hoods, grilles, running boards, fenders, and lower gravel panels being reproduced, but in fiberglass. There are metal repro grilles, running boards and lower fenders available, but are pricey. Metal floor patch panels, cab corners and lower fender patches are also available.

If the truck you're thinking of buying needs a lot of work, perhaps you should find one in better shape, as complete as possible, and use this truck as a parts truck. The more you spend on complete and decent truck up front, the more money, work and time you'll save in the long run. Perhaps you should expand your search territory into California or Washington. Most trucks this age will have rust issues. Some more/less than others.

 

Ilya,

Northern sells both boxes, the pre-mid '50 with the raised sides and the post -mid '50 with the flat sides.



The pictures of the later model aren't showing up. But they have the flat sides.

I should have posted the link to their site earlier:

http://northernclassictrucks.com/

 

See, I knew someone would correct me! I didn't think that Northern Classic had any box parts since they seem to concentrate on cab and fender patch panels.

 

EMS doesn't carry much for our truck other than a few cab panels. They're the only vendor I've seen that has has a piece floor panel, only from the front of the seat to the toe board though. Northern has the most extensive assortment of parts for our truck. They have the entire front cab replacement parts. You can buy a complete box, minus rear fenders, all in steel, including the different tailgates for the different year F-1s. They also make the lower fenders and grill for the '48-50 but as you said, they're pricey but that pretty Monkey face is worth fixing up.

 

Mack Hils is another outlet for reproduction beds for the early trucks. Here's a link to them. http://mackhils.com/products/


If you could 'put up with' a 51-52 instead of the 48-50, I could help you with a real nice project. And I'm not too far from you. Come to think of it, I've also got an original early bed if you decide to go that route. Contact me off forum by email or PM if I can help.

 

Shipping costs are a bargain if you can buy a complete, running truck and save a year or more of scrounging parts. There are lots of small bits that just aren't available, especially in the front clip and interior.

 

Where would you suggest buying a good, running 51-52 F100 the cheapest possible to get shipped to me.. What city/state craigslist should I check? If not, what websites would you recommend?

 

I bought my new bed from northern classic. I happened to be in Michigan on a business trip so I stopped in to their facility. They do a lot of really nice work there & they are honest people. The bed is probably around $1500 and another $500 for shipping. That is a complete bed with new cross members, wood, stainless bed strips, and the tailgate and chain hardware is included. It also includes all of the bolts for assembly and installation. You can shave $100 off that price if you use steel bed strips instead of stainless.


It'd look like this:


As Ilya points out, the late 50 to 52 has flat bed and the fenders bolt up to the flat side. The 48 to early 50 has a step stamped into the side and the fenders have a corresponding step to match up to it.

Look up BeeBops fiberglass to see if they have the 40-50 fenders (I think they do).

If you were to get the truck, you can sometimes find a complete bed and fenders... people made trailers out of these things, but they tend to be pretty beat up.

The only down side to the new parts is that the bed parts are bare steel so they put some preservative oil on the metal. It takes a lot of effort to get that off...& I mean a lot of scrubbing with solvent before you can even think of shooting it with primer.

You can load up Crazedlist to get a tool that allows you to search Craigslist nationwide if you want to look for a complete truck. There should be a lot in Oregon.

Oh...and welcome to the forum.

Dan

 

Here's guy with a box and other parts.

1950 Ford Pick up

 

The box is to the '51.. Am I wrong? Also, Crazedlist is down right now.. I want an F1 that runs and drives but it'll be a project truck..