any recommendations on a product to buff and polish this bad boy?

 

Great pic of the truck, I like the old colors however, I've been looking at ford's "Blazing Copper," Its soooo nice, it come on the f150 rancher. you can get a look at it on ford.com

 

If you cut that frame..... I will go find your grandpa and roust him from his grave, and the both of us are going to come over and boot ur butt!

Keep it stock, and spend your money to restore it. If you want speed and a racer, do it to something else. Soon enough you will grow out of your go fast phase, and be glad you have a completely stock beauty to enjoy forever. If grandpa wanted to see it cut up and raced out..... he'd a done it for ya.

Or sell it to me, and I will, and send you photos when it is done

 

I agree with bluedolphin. Keep it stock, do a concours resto, and save the memories that the truck has. Every modification made erases a special time or situtation surrounding the truck, and pretty soon, there will be too many mods to pinpoint a single memory. Family heirlooms just aren't worth changing no matter how badly you may want to. If you want a F-100 to customize and make a wild ride out of, I'll personally give you a few parts for it. I'm sure there's enough of us with extra parts lying around that we could each give you one or two, and you'll be able to build a hot rod with out ever changing a single thing on your grandpas truck. I've got a good '54 grille, and some frame parts that you can have if you want a hotrod. I can get you another cab, and I know where to get a pair of F-100 fenders I'll give you. DON'T RUIN THAT TRUCK!!!!!!!!!!!! I'll find enough parts to get you a hot rod candidate.

 

I agree with Bluedophin and Joe. Everytime I drive my truck which my grandfather bought new, I know I have my hands on the same steering wheel he had his hands on. I didn't even buy repo ***** for the wipers, lights, etc. I just painted then gloss black! (Maybe because I am a tight-wad, too) But I know I am using the same ***** Grandpa used. The only thing I added that would have been different when Grandpa bought it was a rear bumper and an interior dome light. It took a lot of thinking about those options! I still only have on sunvisor as original. My uncles and aunts and cousins really like the truck when I drive it to family reunions. I often wonder if they wish they had bought it.

My advice is to get it running. Wash it, compound it, shine it up. Drive it! see how you like it, take your time. Just this past winter I rebuilt my steering gear box. Last week I had the King Pins replaced and the front spring bushings replaced. The steering is unbelievable! Even with my radial tires it steers so easy!

abe

 

Yep.... you can make er good as new. I'll take the smell of a resto over the flashy leather interior of a rod any day. My son loves to drive with me tucked under my arm at night..... just driving.... driving anywhere..... just for the smell. He curls up into my arm and gently nods off to sleep (the reason I like the column shift). Nothing like making memories of our own.

Its getting harder and harder to find NICE, solid, original trucks that you can start off with. If that is a stocker as you say, it is irreplaceable, and you should think about it carefully before you cut into it. It looks like a VERY nice original truck. The kind I'd love to get a hold of, as would others to bring back to original condition.

 

Well guys i put about 20 hrs in on the old truck this weekend.

First i polished the old paint up and it actualy shines a bit, took the old cattle guard off the front bumper, cleaned out the interior, oiled up the door handles, adjusted the doors, (open and close like a dream), got the headlights working, got the dash guage lights working, and the air vent on the hood working, got the clutch working. pretty much a nice cleanup overall. I dont know if the data tag was mis stamped but that truck was never sea haze green.. seafoam maybe.. but not sea haze.. the paint in the glovebox and the ashtray are very close to new and its not sea haze. Ill need to look into how often they were mis stamped cause im 99% sure it was. Now for the bad news.. I think the motor is seized up. I put some marvel mystery oil in all the plug holes.. let it sit for 24 hrs.. first i tried the starter button.. it engages but does not turn... every time i hit the button the flywheel moves about 1/8th of an inch.. its more of a tick.. but it always returnes to the orginal position.. then i got a breakover bar.. and tried turning it.. NO go.. plus the harmonic balancer bolt head is only like 3/4" and i dont want to twist it off. So then i got the clutch working and proceded to try the pull start routine.. just to get it to budge.. and when i drop the cluch.. back tires just slide.. (this is being pulled by another vehicle so cant do much more) .. any ideas on how to free it up? .. maybe let it sit with that oil all week? i dunno? May just have to get an overhaul? .. Ill attach some recent photos this week. Ill get some photos taken as i forgot my digital camera at my office over the weekend.

-Tanner

 

oh and Dolphin.. that truck is absolutly beautiful!! ..

 

That's the cool thing, driving the truck in the same condition as when you're great grandfather bought it new. Kinda like getting his tools handed down to you, if your young, you probably don't appreciate it, but once you get to a point, you take very good care of them as he once held them in his hands to work on things. I never got anything from any of my 3 grandparents when they passed on, my only living grandmother was recently admitted to an old folks home and had to clean out her apartment at the assisted living center she lived in. Grandpa smoked Prince Albert so I got a couple empty cans, a pair of cuff links and some other odds and ends. Grandma gave me her sewing machine and table as well.

 

Try some atf in each cylinder and let it sit. Then take your breaker bar and try to turn a little each way. Keep working it back and forth without forcing it. Just keep working at it. You might want to pull the heads off and see what is in the as well.

 

let it sit for how long??

 

try about a week . then try and turn it with a big breaker bar or tow it to about 25 and drop the clutch in second gear. i sure hope it turns for you.

as to cleaning it up . what i did to mine was very lightly 600 wet sand it then again with 1200 to color sand it and then a light liquid micro polish with buffer then buffed in a good wax.
what i did was the same as stacy david did on the trucks one time. came out ok for a truck built in 1953.

I'm sorry to the man who asked about my 53 . i didn't respond fast as i was on a super great vacation in maui HI. my 1953 was built in edgewater nj and was the dark green. also i see alot of old ones around me with that dark green so i'm just guessing it was a popular color here.

at any rate don't cut or change any thing , esp when you all the documentation for it with it's true history. i join the other guys and come looking for you also.

 

Do whatever you want to the truck it's yours now. No matter what you do it will still remain a gift from your grandfather.

Chuck

 

maybe you didn't read it's a pure never touched 100% orig. with full history and paper work. you don't chop one like that you restore .

 

Chuck, on this thread I think were definitly in the minority. It seems to me that the only trucks we are allowed to build our own way are beaters. I wish I had a perfect truck to start with, and I would have done the same exact modifications, and in my opinion had a far superior truck than keeping it stock for grandpa.

I guess it is the old "darksiders vs restorers debate" I like restored trucks, I just don,t think One group has an inherent right to the cherry ones.

But Hey, what do I know? UFF DAH!