FTE Member’s 1971 F-250 Wows Hand Built Cars
Ford truck undergoes transformation from 2WD to 4WD.
Do you know what’s cool about your Ford truck, especially one you put your time, sweat, and cash into building? Recognition from your friends, family, and total strangers for a job well done. What’s even cooler is when we at Ford Truck Enthusiasts–editors and forum members alike–also recognize your amazing project.
And then, there’s YouTube. Hand Built Cars happened upon one of our member threads from back in 2015, presenting their work as the video above. While the video is nothing more than 14 minutes of music and photos from the thread, the thread itself has details on the months-long journey of a 1971 F-250.
Project: 1971 F-250 2wd Becomes 4wd
Built between February and October 2015, the F-250 was purchased a year prior by FTE forum member Zazoos. According to him, the truck was a two-wheel drive model with a 390 with a C6. However, he wanted four-wheel drive, so he decided to place the body on a 1973 F-250 four-wheel drive frame.
Alas, the 1973 cab’s floor was rusted out, as were the bottoms of the doors. With no takers who could have saved the cab, Zaz had no option but to scrap it while keeping the frame for the 4WD upgrade.
Some sandblasting and powder-coating later, the frame is back home with a new fuel tank from a Bronco II. The 390’s old rear oil screen pickup was fixed up, as no replacements were available at the time.
By May 2015, the cab and bed of the F-250 was ready to make the jump from its old frame to the 1973 frame. The old paint was stripped, the dash pad was scrapped in favor of keeping everything all-metal, and the fuel filler was moved to accommodate the newer frame.
By October 2015, the interior received a refreshed AC unit, new wiring for all of the important bits, aluminum valve covers from eBay for the 390 to fix a leaking issue, and overall fresh interior in black.
A month after completing the project, Zaz’s improved F-250 4×4 took home second place in the truck category at his local car show, as well as first for best engine. Alas, the engine hydrolocked 50 miles later. He had plans to take a 360 block and bore it out to a 390, but we’ll never know if he replaced the engine with it or with another unit, as the thread ended in early December 2015. Perhaps an update would help?
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