First off thank you to 84ordF150 for inviting me over to this forum from the other. Looks like a lot of great info on here!

Thought I would start a little thread to showcase the work I have been doing on my Grandfathers 1985 F150 and give a little background history on it. My grandpa purchased the truck brand new in 1986 with my dad (I was not born at this time yet haha). My grandpa served in the army when he was 18 and then returned to Canada to farm for the rest of his life. The truck didnt leave the farm very often and according to him the biggest load it ever hauled was some pigs once and while. He kept it in pretty good shape other then a very cheap paint job that was put on in the early 2000s. He handed the truck over to me in early 2015 when he moved into a care home at 89 years old. The truck only had 126,000 kms on it but it had sat outside every day of its life and it took a toll on things. So this is what it looked like when I got it.








I first began with just mechanical issues to at least make it safe to drive which included new tires and new brakes all around. The old 302 wasn't running to hot and was stalling all the time. I took it to a local mechanic that I know and he tuned it up and got it running great again. I am still in the process of learning how to adjust carbs and what not since I have never owned a carbed vehicle before. I then decided that I wanted to get the body work out of the way. I purchased new front fenders, and a cowl hood that I thought would sport it up a bit. After consulting with my paint guy we decided I either needed to buy new box sides or find a new box. Luckily I came across a box from an 84. It had taken a hit on the one side but it had no rust and would be much easier to fix then mine. So off came my box and I picked up my new box.






I painted the frame at this point, just dont have pictures of that.

 

New Box



Damage on new box

And then the body work began! Here are some pictures of the work as it progressed.





Straightening out the new box.









Hi build primer going on box.







The cab was surprisingly rust free other then this one spot. Surface rust on the insides of the doors were sand blasted off.

 

Fresh white paint going on







waiting on the rest of the blue!

 

And then the blue started to go on and things came together beautifully!




Here is the finished product plus a new rear bumper and explorer emblems.











Close up shot because it is hard to see the grey stripe in pictures.

 

And this is where I am at now. Winter is around the corner so I will be putting it away and brain storming ideas for next summer. On the to do list so far is different rims and tires, mud flaps, billet grill, front leveling springs, tinting the windows, dual exhaust and then further down the road will be some engine work (either swap in a high performance 302 or pull this one and beef it up).

Unfortunately my grandpa passed away this year at 90 years old, about 2 months before I was finished the paint job. But I know that he will always be riding right beside me and he would have loved it. This truck is filled with so many memories from not only my grandpa but also my grandma and my parents. Many more mods to come so stay tuned!

 

Your grandfather would have been happy. I know I'd be happy if one of my grandkids did that to my truck.

As for the engine, go with a 351W, not a 302. It won't cost any more to build than a 302 and will have a lot more torque due to the longer stroke.

 

Welcome to FTE.

It looks like you kept the Explorer emblems and the original wheel covers, that's cool. And I like the pinstripe transition from blue to white, that looks nice.

It's too bad your Explorer didn't have a hood ornament but such a thing would look really out of place on that hood you added.

I also think you'll be happier with a 351W.

 

Thank you! and I will keep in mind the 351W when I get to that stage. The factory hood didnt have a hood ornament either, do most 80s F150s have one?

 

Welcome to the forum.
Great looking truck, grandpa would be proud how it turned out.


On the stripe is that painted on or tape and if tape where did you get it?
I am doing a factory two tone paint job on my project and looking for options on what to do. I first wanted to paint it but thinking too much like work the way I want it so pin stripe is how I am leaning.


Thanks
Dave ----

 

Looks great!

 

No, they didn't, I've only seen it on certain Explorer packages and you don't see many of them.

 

Another vote for the 351w, those extra cubes make a difference. Nice looking truck by the way, until I was 8 my dad had an 85 with the same wheel covers.

 

Thanks! and the stripe is painted on. Having it painted is a lot of extra work and I think that pin striping would look just as good in my opinion.

 

Thanks for the reply.
I am thinking a stripe like that but where you have the gray I would have the white and in the white paint the blue - in my case white & red.


Because of the way I want the striping and being a flare side I would also have corners to go around so still looking into options.
Dave ----

 

The flare side would make it tricky for sure. But I am looking forward to seeing pictures when it is done! The red and white should be nice. Picking colors was stressful I must admit.