Hello,

I am new to classic trucks and to the forum. My monastery ( I am a monk ) has decided to restore a 1948 F5. A local farmer was selling his hay truck and it happened to be an all original F5 with 55,000 miles on it! He has had it for about 30 years and has kept it in his barn when not in use. Everything works on it and he only wanted $750 for it. It seemed like the right time to delve into the world of classic trucks.

I know my way around a machine shop and am pretty handy with tools. However, none of the monks knows anything about working on cars or trucks, but we plan to learn. Any advice would be greatly appreciated, specifically places to find parts. We live in the upper peninsula so availability is rather limited for just about anything.

Thank You,
Father Ephrem

 

I believe you mean Michigan Upper Peninsula.
wow thats gonna be a challenge for parts supply up there.

20 yr detroit area resident, camped at Tahquamenon Falls and most of the northern tip of the southern peninsula.

Sam

 

Yes the upper peninsula of Michigan. Sometimes I forget to specify.

 

Welcome - there's a few of us around here with mid-sized trucks.

What specific parts are you looking for? Joblot Automotive in NY is one of the best resources for big trucks and hard to find chassis parts. Many of the cab and engine parts are the same for F1-F6 so places offering half-ton parts can supply much of what you'll need.

Even your local automotive parts house can come up with a lot of what you'll need. NAPA, et al.

If you need flathead engine help check with the guys here:
Ford Flathead V8 .. 1932 thru 1953 • Index page

 

I am particularly interested in tires and wheels. The tires and wheels are original so they need replacing. I also need a good source for replacement door windows.

 

I'll add my welcome. Wheels and tires are one the main issues we face with these old big trucks. Rather than me ramble on with options, descriptions, etc, I'll link in a couple of old threads that have good info. I'll also link a Craigs List ad for a set of the 19.5" tubeless wheels. They are in Denver, but the asking price is fantastic. Shipping will be another matter. Stu

Edit - I should have included sources for your windows. Dennis Carpenter or Chuck's Trucks would be good sources. I'll also add a link for Job Lot, as mentioned above, for big truck parts. Since your windows are flat glass, a local auto glass shop could also make you one if you have the old one for a pattern. Stu

http://www.dennis-carpenter.com/pdf/48-56_2010.pdf
http://www.chuckstrucksllc.com/startframe.htm
http://www.joblotauto.com/

19.5 wheels, fit old trucks

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/7...xperience.html
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/9...for-my-f6.html

 

I have been looking at several options for wheels. One possibility is to remove the centers from the existing truck wheels and have new (safe) rims put on. What are anyone's thoughts on this option?
I am also having trouble with body panel names. The sections above the front wheel and the fenders that run from the grill to the tire both need replacing.
If someone knows where I can get a diagram of these parts or can tell me what they are called I would appreciate it.

Ephrem

 

Hello. I think you're describing the seam between the upper and lower fender sections on these trucks. It's the legendary place where they all rust. That seam retains dirt and mud, and over the years, they rust in that area. Northern classic trucks has a reproduction lower fender for the F1 trucks (www.northernclassictrucks.com). But I'm pretty sure it won't fit the bigger trucks which have a bigger wheel opening. I do wonder if you couldn't buy those pieces and very carefully modify them to fit the bigger trucks. As far as the upper (larger) part of the fender that goes back toward the running boards and the cab, nobody (and I mean NOBODY) reproduces those in metal nowadays. I don't even know if you could find the fenders for the larger trucks in fiberglass. Try "bebops" near Knoxville, TN (Hot Rod Components BeBops Glass Works). They make fiberglass fenders for the smaller trucks. But I'm not sure if they have them for the larger trucks. Your best bet is to either fabricate your own patch panels for what you have or search places like ebay or craigslist for some replacement fenders.

 

Pulling the centers from your old wheels to remount in new tubeless outer rims is possible, but is an expensive option. A company called American Wheel Specialist in Pasco, WA, does this work. I've visited them and bought a set of similar wheels (19.5s) for my trucks. The limiting factor with 22.5s, as explained to me, is the availability of narrow enough outer rims. The equivalent to your tube type 20s are tubeless 22.5s. Any custom wheel company would need to find outer rims that are 6.75" wide to make this work. Anything wider will rub.

Another option is used 22.5s. There have been sets for sale by one or two of our members, and there is a set on eBay right now. I'll link an old thread about a member's wheels, and the eBay posting. And also I'll do private messages to the members that I know have had them for sale asking them to check in here. The eBay wheels, and perhaps the members' wheels, are the 5.25" wide size.

Fenders for your truck will be a challenge to find in good condition. And will be expensive if found. I bought a set of NOS fenders for mine this past summer and paid $1500 for the pair. Good used would likely only be found out west, and if found would be fought over. If it is possible to fix yours you'll be money ahead. Stu

22.5 x 5.25 Bud 5 Lug One Piece Wheels - eBay (item 280640614972 end time Mar-13-11 21:08:46 PDT)

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...-and-info.html

 

I've got a whole set of the 22.5" wheels, here's the ad
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...ml#post9970461

I expect to be headed to South Bend Indiana in late May for a truck show, might could bring them along.

Grigg

 

Stu,

I noticed in a reply you made to another person's post, you said that the narrowest tires now available in the US are the 9R 22.5's. It is our plan to turn the F-5 into a working truck. It will be hauling everything from lumber and stone, to mulch and top soil. While it may never reach the GVWR, I suspect it will still have heavier loads than most F-5's these days. Is this going to be a problem with the 22.5 x 5.25 wheels? Is there an alternative?
If it helps, the original back tires are 7.50 x 20 and the front tires are 7 x 20.
Ephrem

 

So seldom anymore are weight ratings on these trucks and wheels an issue. But since yours will be a work truck you might want wheels that have weight ratings similar to the original equipment wheels on your truck. And second, if you opt for tubeless wheels you need ones that will, without question, stand up to radial tires.

An F-5 has a 14,000 lb. gross weight rating when equipped with 7.50" x 20" tires on 20" x 6" wheels. The 6" wide wheels, when fitted with 8.25" tires, on an F-6 would have a 16,000 lb. weight rating. The wheel manufacturer's weight rating of each 20" x 6" wheel was between 3,500 and 4,000 lbs, depending upon disc thickness and rim design. To achieve this weight rating in a tubeless wheel you would need to find the 22.5" x 6.75" wide tubeless wheels. The only wheels in this size that I've found record of are Budd #89810 and Firestone/Accuride #27759 that were both rated at 3550 lbs at 90 psi with 9" tires. None of the literature gives comparable ratings for the 5.25" and 6.00" wheels because they were spec'd for 7" and 8" tires respectively that are, as you said, no longer available in this country. The 7" and 8" wheel/tire combo's are shown to each have about 500 lbs. less capacity per size one to the other. Using the 9" tire on the narrower rims would compensate for some of this, but I have no way to know how much capacity would be regained.

The other piece of this is radial tires. On these early tubeless wheels the manufacturers specifically noted in their catalogs that they would void warranty coverage if the wheels were used with radial tires. I have SAE tech data that shows the Budd Company experienced rim failures on these early tubeless wheels when used with radials. As a result of these failures, the wheels were redesigned to add strength. Later catalogs of both Budd and Firestone/Accuride show that they added a letter "R" to their part numbers to show wheels were approved for radial tires.

The latest record I have of Budd producing these 22.5" wheels, in any width with 5 lug x 8" pattern, is 1979 but they were not radial approved. Only the 19.5" x 6", Budd #R89340, met the radial standard. They would be fitted with 8R19.5" tires. I believe these are the wheels in the Craig's List ad I posted above. These wheels have a 2,500 lb. weight rating each which would yield you a 15,000 lb capacity.

The 22.5" Accuride #27759 was radial approved and, as I said, rated at 3550 lbs. each. I've had a discussion about this wheel with an Accuride field representative and he confirmed my understanding that they were produced only through 1982. Finding a set of them would be very difficult. I've never seen any.

So this circles us back to your first mention of custom wheels. I'm confident that American Wheel Specialist would warrant their wheels for radials. I'm also confident that Stockton Wheel would do the same. Stockton, however, uses a different method to produce their custom wheels. They take standard modern Accuride wheels having some different bolt pattern and weld a new face plate to the wheel having your desired bolt pattern. They then machine out the old wheel center from the back side and fully weld the inner and outer seams. The appearance of their wheels is somewhat non-original, but structurally they do the job. American Wheel Specialist, on the other hand, takes old centers and mounts them in new tubeless outer rims. My custom wheels look just like originals.

The other option is to find "lock ring" style tube type multi-part original wheels. While the vast majority of Fords came with the "widow maker' style Firestone rims that split down the middle of the outer rim, other manufacturers used wheels with your bolt pattern having Goodyear outer rims that have a locking ring holding things together. These can still be serviced and would be much less expensive than custom tubeless wheels. You could mount radial or bias ply tires with tubes. Finding these might take some looking, but hopefully some of our Michigan members could give you some leads.

I'll repeat that those 19.5s in the Craig's List ad are a heck of a deal. They'd be my choice. Hope I covered it for you. Please say if anything needs clarification. Stu

 

Stu,

Thanks for all the help you have given me. I contacted the guy on craigslist and will find out if the wheels are still available. The 19.5's seem like a better option.

Ephrem

 

I purchased the set of 19.5" wheels on craigslist today. Thank You Stu for the recommendation. When I get them refinished I will send pictures with the truck.

 

Glad you were able to connect with CL seller. I still can't believe the $200 asking price on them. Seven wheels for $200!!! Did the seller actually honor that? Hope so.

Now we need to have somebody with lighter duty in mind grab up Grigg's and Kevin's wheels. Stu