I might be out of my mind but I wonder about changing the door handles on my 76. As you know, they pull up, not out.

I'm 6'4" and they're awkward even for me to lift up. Of course, the linkage does have slack in it but if I'm going to make them work primo, maybe I can just get something from the junkyard and replace them.

I am painting the truck right now and I sure don't want to do any cutting and welding after I'm done. Now's the time.

How about it? Anyone refit later model door handles and get a better pull?

 

I have seen a 68-72 w superduty handels. But they dont go in my opinion

 

Because why? I can see you're serious about trucks...

I am not too worried about keeping the truck "original". I just put an 86 Dakota gas filler door on because it was such a pain to fill with the original filler. I really like the truck, and I don't want to make it weird, but I also want it to be nice to use.

 

The 80-86 handles should be doable.

Josh

 

Think about it. there is not one piece of plastic on the outside of the truck. And the superduty door handle is nothing but plastic.

I agree w built390 the 80-97 handles wouldn't look too bad

 

Oh yes,just saw this the other day,well worth the look! Not to jump fence here,but check out Old Ford Crew Cab Community, Pre 1980 Ford Crew Cab owners community and information source. check out the project forum and look at "build thread" belonging to bendog. I like them alot! The old push button handles!

 

Kinda what I was thinking. Instead of going newer, go older. I think the ones off my 68 F-100 would look good on a 76.

 

Original outside door handles are EZ to find because they are the same as many of the 1970's passenger cars.

D8BZ5422404A .. Right Door Handle

D8BZ5422405A .. Left Door Handle

Fits: 1973/79 F100/350 / 1978/79 Bronco.

Fits: 1973/78 LTD front/rear / 1973/76 Torino/Montego front/rear / 1975/80 Granada/Monarch/Lincoln Versailles front/rear.

Fits: 1974/78 Mustang II / 1977/79 LTD II/Cougar front/rear / 1977/79 T-Bird/Mark V / 1978/83 Fairmont/Zephyr front/rear.

 

An easy way is to get F600 doors. They are pushbutton, pull out from the factory. They're available for 73-79 trucks.

I'm thinking along the same lines. The motion to open the pull up door handles is awkward, and it's worse on lifted trucks.

 

They may look the same, but looks can be deceiving.

F600 (F500/880) doors are not the same as F100/350 doors.

D3TZ5020124A Right & D3TZ5020125A Left .. Front Door / Obsolete

Fits: 1973/79 F500/880.

D3TZ1020124A Right & D3TZ1020125A Left .. Front Door / Obsolete

Fits: 1973/79 F100/350 / 1978/79 Bronco.

 

Some people just don't get it do they?

Josh

 

lol, that's where the arguing starts. Some people like to be as close to factory as possible, some people want to change everything about a vehicle until it makes some of us puke.

I'm in the middle. I dont believe it's your truck if it's stock. I think of it as taking something beautiful the manufacture built and making it better by changing a few things without getting out of control.

All in all, if your door handles look like quality work, like they did on that crew cab, you should be happy with it. They turned out good, function, and easier on the shoulders. I like the look of the factory exterior handles, so i wont be changing mine, but i'm kicking around doing somthing different on the interior door handle's since i'm builing fiberglass panels anyways.

Modify it to make it your own, but keep it simple.

 

No. They dont. LOL

 

I'm currently installing push button door handles. I have a set from a '69 F100, and a set from a '65 Oldsmobile 88. After finally finding some good diagrams, for ease of installation I recommend handles from a '70s Ford car. I don't like the plastic button on the handle of the '80s Ford truck, but it should be an easy job to install it.

As far as keeping these trucks original, to each his own. I don't want to put on big honking running boards and a sun visor. I do want to change some of the blunders Ford made when they unleashed the '73-79. Pull up handles = Fail, if you can change for pushbuttons, do. Pretty much everything in the interior is lame. I'm changing everything in the interior, and I'm not just talking about leopard seat covers and placing a rose on the dashboard, everything but the wiring has came out. In goes bucket seats, a pretty dash (I don't know what Ford was thinking with the original), and flat non-plastic door panels that go all the way to the bottom of the door. The rods in the visors are plastic, they crumbled. Even the cab light is terrible. I'm looking for one from an '80s Bronco. Other than that, she's a beaut. Oh yeah, factory rims and dog dishes don't hold a candle to a Cragar in the looks department.

 

Didn't some of the vans have push button handles? Wouldn't that be easier to use since the had similar doors?