Metallic blue or red would be a nice touch seeing as how most of these trucks had just a standard gloss enamel on them. Do you plan on putting the explorer graphics back on it?

 

Yes, I've got a NOS white Explorer stripe kit. I don't know if it will be any good by the time I'm ready to install it but if it isn't, I can send it to Phoenix Graphics and they can use it as a patern to make new ones.

 

Good job! Thanks for posting those.

 

I just want to update all of you on whats been going on with my project.
If you've been following this thread you know that I'm away from home for awhile. Right now I'm in North Carolina doing some work and probably won't be back home until close to Christmas. You also know I've been looking for a donor truck because the body and bed on the pumkin are just too far gone to be worth fixing.
Well, just because I'm not home doesn't mean I can't look for a donor truck. I found one on Ebay! A 1975 F100 Explorer. I know all the horror stories about buying something as expensive as a vehicle on Ebay and I may regret doing it but it looks good. Do I believe the mileage (33,200)? Not necessarily. Does it look good? Yes. And I hope it's as good in person as it is in the pictures.
It's located in New Mexico. Supposedly rust free (except surface rust on the roof) and damage free.
It had a reserve and I bid $2,651.99 and didnt hit the reserve (!). The auction ended with no sale. I was the high bidder.
The seller contacted me with a second chance offer. The reserve was $3,000.00 (!!). He offered it to me as a buy-it-now sale for $2,000.00. I accepted the offer and sent the money and have arranged for a transporter to pick it up and get it to Florida. That's another $1,200.00. So all together I'll have $3,200.00 in a sound body and bed.
Hope I don't regret this. I'll keep you guys posted.
And pickupmanx2, thankyou for the generous offer to locate a rust free body for me. Who knows? If I get this truck home and find out its not what it seems I might still need you to find me one.

 

The fender looks like it has some rot, hopefully you got a good deal.

 

Hello all,
Well I'm back home for 4-5 weeks and I want to update you on what has been going on with the "pumpkin".
As you may know I bought a donor vehicle on Ebay, a 1975 F100 Explorer Custom. Three months after I bought it I am finally able to get an up close look at what I bought.
Verdict: I got an "OK" deal. It's not as good as I had hoped but it is alot better than I was expecting.
The bed is solid and with the exception of minor dings here and there damage free. There are 17 holes that have been drilled in the bed that I will have to fill. The bed has a not too common option, one that I really don't want. It has the bed mounted spare tire, this is five of the 17 holes I have to fill. A previous owner apparently didn't like the location so it was moved from the front of the bed to the back, that's four more of the holes that I have to repair. The bed itself is scratched and has surface rust on the floor but overall is not beat up and in really good shape.
The cab corners are solid with no sign of cancer.
Now the "biggy". The floor pan. I've been reluctant to look at them because I know what can be found under the rubber mat.
From underneath the floor looks solid and rust free, but we all know floor pans don't go bad from the outside in. The carpet gets wet or the rubber floor mat may get hosed down and then the jute padding underneath gets wet and never dries. This is where the rust starts. Floor pans go bad from the inside out.
I pulled the top edge of the rubber mat away from the firewall and, as I feared, the jute pad was wet, not damp, wet! I knew what I would find.
I removed the threshold plates and pulled out the mat. It wasn't as bad as I feared. The floor pans are very rusty (scaly rust) in some areas, the majority of the pan is in decent shape. I see two pin holes on the right side. I will have to decide how I am going to treat this, repair the pin holes and encapsulate the rest or go ahead and replace the pans (I already have them). I have plenty of time to decide.
The rest of the cab is really solid and in very good shape.
My goal for this time at home is to finish tearing down the chassis, get the frame sandblasted. Then I am going to go "old school". I plan on painting the frame and suspension components with Rustoleum semi-gloss black instead of powder coating.
Once that is done I can start on the actual rebuild. I already have everything to do the entire chassis, stainless steel brake, fuel and emission lines, all the rubber bushings, steering components,front springs, fuel tank and sender, new tank straps, e-brake cables. I also have everything to completely rebuild the rear including ring & pinion, axle and spider gears, bearings, axles, wheel studs, etc.
Here are some pics of the donor truck.

 

here's some more pics.

 

The mileage on the truck was stated as 33,000 original miles. I didn't believe that then and now I'm confident that it's 133,000+ miles.
The catalytic converter has been removed, it now has dual glass pack exhaust. The thermactor (air pump) system has been removed, the a/c compressor is seized.
It starts up and runs fairly well and doesn't smoke too much.
The hood is so far out of adjustment I'm not even going to try to get it right. This is a donor vehicle and there's not much point when it's just going to come right off again.
I'll keep you posted on how the build is going and will post pics along the way.

 

A few more pictures

 

Do you have any plans for that spare tire mount?

 

I'm going to take it out and use the underframe mount like most. It'll probably collect dust on my workbench.

 

Here are a few more pictures, seems like I can't get away from the orange interior!

 

Great story and pictures! Thanks for sharing. My first truck was almost identicle to yours. 73 F100 Explorer, orange, 302, 3 speed. I always liked that truck. This summer I bought a 77 truck with the same options. Spent most of the summer getting lights working, running good and everything working. The body is clean and truck is in pretty decent shape, but sure is alot of little projects that had to be done. Wheels, tires, brakes, new wire harness, sending unit, fuel tank, heater core...and it goes on and on. Pretty neat to drive the "same" orange truck over 20 years later though. Needs paint and I plan to work on that this summer. Good luck with your project truck. I like the orange myself.

 

Yeah Orange screeemms 70's. Like the headliner. My Orange has a white one

 

hey i wouldnt mind having that spare hanger if you deside you dont want it.....it would work great for a mount for a spare boat trailer tire for my boat trailer...that way i wouldnt have to mount an after market braket on my trailer i could just mount the trailer spare in the bed of my truck