Hey guys, on my 1954, needing as much work as it does and having a tight budget (college makes it rough) is there anything I could find in the junkyard that would bolt up to my '54? There are several 1968-1978 F100s and F150s, as well as several 60's sedans. I found a 1966 Galaxie 500 with a 390 in it! As well as a few early 70s LTDs With 429's.

I mean easy bolt up drums, suspension, interior?
Would a bench seat from a 1968 F-100 bolt up to the '54?

Thanks guys!!!!

Ryan

 

There is very little late model parts that would bolt up to your truck. Some engine/tranny combos will bolt in as well as some rear axle assemblies. I'd suggest you call Mid Fifty Mid Fifty F-100 Parts - Home and ask them to send you one of their print catalogs. Looking through it will give you some idea what are the easiest parts swaps by what accessories they sell to mate them together. If you click on the "Articles/specs tab at the top of the page and drill down through the articles there is a lot of info as to what fits the easiest. Measure the width of your cab right behind the doors then measure whatever seats you might want to use. The late model truck bench seats are likely to be too wide. Look at the smaller pickups and SUV's as well as import sedans. I never measured one to see if it would fit, but the late 80s - mid 90s Taurus had a very comfortable split bench front seat and can be found in full power, with inflatable lumbar support pads and even heated seats. Taurus in that era had high rate of early engine failures so they are plentiful in the scrap yard.

 

Bed parts and rear fenders.

 

Ryan as AX mentioned there are several parts that will work however almost all will need a bracket, or brace to mate the parts. Probably one of the easiest things to do is replace the rear end as long as it's not to wide/narrow & has the bolt pattern you want. However, you will need new spring pads that will need to be welded on. When you decide on a engine Midfifty various motor mounts.

 

Hey Ryan,
On the seat - We went with an S-10 bench. It fits fine - our limits were
it had to be less than 52 inches wide. The S-10 is around 48 inches wide
- leaving you room for the seatbelt equipment or door arm rests if you want them.

The modern Ford 9 inch rear end is almost a bolt in - fit's fine - won't take more than a weekend to get it done. We went with an Explorer 8.8 inch rear axle - giving us a bolt pattern to match the mustang II front end. The downside is it's a little narrow & you have to use 2 inch spacers out back to get the wheels to look right in the fenders.

On engines - something in the 289/302/351W fits nicely. What I found when looking around in Austin salvage yards is that places were giving away 289's. They have plenty of after market support because of all the mustang owners so parts are available & it get's decent gas mileage.

Good luck over there.

Ben in Austin

 

As far as the engine goes, I'm keeping it Y block. Found a 292 on criagslist that runs for $250

I need to see what ratio my rear end is before I mod it. What was common in a 1954 with a 239? I've read they are geared very high

 

Have you found any Rancheros? I have been thinking about a Ranchero seat, but I don't know how wide they are. I think an early one would be about right and I believe they have a split back which would be nice.

 

Alot of the trucks ran about a 3.91 ratio some even lower (higher numerically). Not really a bad ratio if you keep tall tires. You running a manual trans? If not look at getting an adapter for putting a late model trans behind your Y block.

 

I had an 97 Ranger seat it fits good however there was about 8" on each side; I've since changed to the 2nd row seat of a 2006 Tahoe. I also have the Explorer 8.8 with 15x8 rims with 4 1/2 back space, the fit pretty good inside the fenders (stock)



I lowered the rear 4" and don't have any problems with tires hitting the fenders.

 

Hey Ryan,
Here are a few articles that might help in your junkyard searches...

Ben in Austin

Rear ends:
1948 through 1960 Ford F-1 and F-100 Rear Axle (differential) Swaps .: Articles

Everything you ever wanted to know about seats:
This is an article from the experts here sharing their knowledge on what seats will fit our trucks. I found it useful in picking one.

An excellent article by ferguson777 I`m reposting here, it`s also part of the above link https://www.ford-trucks.com/article/i...rd_Trucks.html
__________________________________________________ ___
Here are some measurements that you might want to consider when looking for a new seat.
· Inside cab width from door panel to door panel (where the seat bottom is the widest)
o 1948-1952 F-1 = 53.5 inches
o 1953-1956 F-100 = 58 inches
· Distance between the door handle tips
o 1949 F-1 = 51.5 inches
· Distance between the fat part of the door handles
o 1949 F-1 = 45-5/8 inches
· Distance across the cab at the rear door post
o 1949 F-1 = 57 inches
· Distance from door panel to door panel
o 1957-1960 F-100 = 62 inches
· Distance from door handle to door handle
o 1957-1960 F-100 = 56 inches
· Stock bench seat width
o 1960 F-100 = 59 inches
There seems to be an issue (particularly found by older members of the forum) with the space between the steering wheel and the seat shrinking over time, resulting in limited intestinal accommodation. Fortunately the newer seats use a different type of spring so they tend to be thinner in the back. This provides more room in that area. This is something to think about before you buy a big, fat seat out of a Cadillac or Lincoln or some other land yacht. With a newer seat, you will usually pick up storage space under the seat bottom as well.
The following suggestions are based upon input from this forum. There is also an article in the August 2004 issue of Classic Truck that deals with this subject and contains many pictures of the suggested alternative seats. Note that we are not spending time discussing bucket seats. Once you ditch the console, you can pretty much fit any bucket into any truck, although generally you’ll end up with a built in headrest sticking up in your back window.
1948-1952 Trucks – Seat Width No More Than 52 Inches
· 2000 Ford Escort buckets
· Mid/late 1980s to 1996 Ford Ranger or Broncos
o 60/40 bench or buckets
o Perfect fit
o Used by many
o Bench is 51” wide at it’s widest point
o Back folds forward
o No headrests to poke up in the back window
o 2-door donors fold, 4-door donors don’t
o Very popular with members of the forum
· 1989 through mid 1990s Ford Explorer
o Buckets or 60/40 bench
· Middle or rear seats out of a 1996 Dodge Caravan
· 1996 and newer Chevy Astro Van
· 1996 and newer full sized GM van middle or rear seats
· 1995 and newer Toyota Tacoma
· 1994 and newer Chevy S-10/Sonoma
1953-1960 Trucks – Seat Width No More Than 58 Inches
· 2001 F-150
NOTE: There are several different styles of bench seats used in the late 1980s through late 1990s GM trucks – quasi-buckets, 60/40s and full benches. They all tend to have thin backs which helps to increase leg space where needed. Some have built in arms rests and a level of seat bottom sculpturing to them, some don’t. These seats are also well liked by a number of the members of this forum.
· 1988-1998 GM truck seats
o Excellent looking brackets
o Easy to adapt
o Headrests tend to be removable
· 1988-1994 Chevy Silverado bench
o No headrest
o Fold down arm rest
o Very stylish
· 1997 and newer F-150 bench
o Has a built in headrest
o Brackets are a bit of a challenge
· Late 1990s Chevy Suburban
· 1987 Chevy pickup bench
· The 2000 and newer Suburban
o 60/40 bench
o Removable headrests
o Not the most stylish thing
o Brackets are clunky looking
The 1999 and newer GM Silverado 40/20/40 “bench” is an interesting possibility. It’s 60 inches wide, but it’s really more like two buckets with a “jump seat” between. You could easily omit the middle section and put in a narrower console or nothing. They do have built shoulder belts, saving you the issue of mounting the shoulder restraint to the wall between the rear window and the doors. You might fit this whole set up into a 1953-1960 F-100. The 1994 through 2001 Dodge truck also has a similar set up, though less stylish than the GM version. It will have the same pluses and minuses.
Another issue to consider is that you need to build some sort of bracket to mount your new seat(s) to your truck. If you’re using the 1988-1998 GM seats, it’s pretty straightforward. Just look at the stock GM mounting brackets and it’s a no brainer. However, if you’re using Ford seats or buckets, this can get a little tricky. For a few good pictures of the brackets one member made to install a later model seat check out this thread. https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=114729 The work was done by KAI - our German buddy. He was putting a 1980 F-350 seat in a 1954 F-100. His brackets deal quite nicely with the weird bend/angle in the front of the stock Ford brackets. They are wonderful in their simplicity and could easily be modified to compensate for a shorter driver.
For an excellent example of brackets fabricated to hold the 1996-2000 Ranger 60/40 bench/bucket, check out those made by Scott123 (Scott Jones). He has provided pictures and plans, so you could make a copy of the “Scott123 Super-Duper seat frame 2000” if you wish.
Check out their galleries for the pictures/plans referred.
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