My brother and I have picked up a 65 F250 4x4 project truck that has a bad frame.
We already have a 74 F250 HI-BOY chassis complete with drivetrain ready to go..

QUESTION:
is it a direct sway to put the 65 body on the 74 frame? are the body mounts compatable? I know the wheelbase will match up and I am pretty sure the steering should be taken care of easy enough.
Any thing else I should be looking for?

This is gonna be a daily driver and occasional off-road toy.

 

You need to check legality and insurance complications.
Will you title it as a '74? You will most likely be fine for insurance purposes, but likely not for the DMV and any inspections. The laws changed between '66 and '74 rewarding simple things like seatbelts and for more complicated things like emissions.
Titling it as a '66? The frame VIN is what insurance and government agencies use. Do you really want to have your insurance company deny you coverage in an accident because the frame VIN doesn't match what they insured?
If you ever sell it, you can be liable for serious issues as well, if you sell it as a '66 but with a '74 underbody - or vice versa.
And don't plan on moving or selling it out of state. You won't make it past any title inspection. It might even be confiscated at the inspection site on suspicion of having been stolen.
Don't even think about cutting and patching in the part of the frame with the VIN. That most definitely IS a sign of being stolen. The state agencies aren't THAT stupid to overlook for that kind of evidence.
If you keep it off-road only, you would most likely have fewer issues - but I would certainly check all of this first. AND GET YOUR ADVICE IN WRITING. The stupid DMV clerks have no authority, and you CANNOT fall back on "the DMV told me so."
There is a poster here who goes by the name of Garbz, or Garbz2 I think. If I remember correctly, he had a similar problem with a frame swap, and ended up with wasted time and work, and a useless truck. It was only good for parts. He might chime in here.

 

The reason Christine is sidelined and needs a new frame and title for her sheet metal.

Flunked a simple level one.

Garbz

 

The reason Christine is sidelined and needs a new frame and title for her sheet metal.

Flunked a simple level one.

Garbz

 

Thank god we dont have **** inspections like that here in WI!

In all reality they dont give a crap here. I think we can get away with the VIN # off the body here.

But like the other guys said, check twice, build once, get it in writing!

 

Being a **** has no reason or bearing, Any vehicle that comes in to Arizona from out of state must have a level one inspection to title it here and they can even up the level if they find a stolen vin or discrepancy. In state titled vehicles are so lackadaisical here its funny, As there are ZERO inspections other that emissions.

The best reason is why give your underwriter any reason to deny claim in the event of a mishap.

Garbz

 

I can agree with the worry of insurance issues, but generally if you are up front with your insurance company they wont give you any grief. You tell them what you did, they tell you what it will cost.

But leave it to the politicians to screw up something that really has no bearing in the long run....

 

I don't have any issues with all the leagal BS.( thanks for your input, but that wasn't the question) I have titles for both the body and the frame, so there will be no issue there....

now, MECHANICALLY:
What issues might I encounter when swaping a 65 F250 body onto a 74 F250 frame/chassis?

 

Im sure someone has better input on this than I do, but I would look at the 65 frame, and compare the mounting positions to the 74. I dont know for sure, but I can imagine you may need to move the mounts a little bit to make things work.

 

Maverick,

You may want to check with JoWilker on this. He a big proponent of switching to newer bases for these slicks. I know the floor boards are the same 65-79, and many parts interchange. I know you can take the whole front end and bolt it up to the 65-66 frame to gain disk brakes. The front ends never changed.

 

Hey Maverickman,
From what I understand the 65 4x4 cab is different than the 2wd cab and it probably won't be a direct swap to the later chassis. You can do a search for something like, "4x4 frame swap" and get several threads on the subject. Here's one to get you started https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...y-swap-qs.html
Hope that helps a little....

 

1965/66 F100/250 2WD/4WD long bed has a 129" wheelbase. 1973/79 F100/250 Regular Cab 2WD/4WD long bed wheelbase is 133" (1967/72 like trucks have a 131" wheelbase).

1973/77 F250 4WD's (Highboys) have the same distance between the rear frame rails (behind the cab) as 1965/72 F100/350's: 33 1/2"

Excepting some 1973/79 F350's that also have the 33 1/2" frame rails, all other 1973/79 F100/350's have 37 1/2" rear frame rails.

1965 F100/250 4WD, 1966 F250 4WD have cab steps (as do all 1961/64 F100/1100's, 1965/66 F350/1100's). 1965/66 F100/250 2WD's & 1966 F100 4WD's do not have cab steps.

1965/66 F100/250 4WD, 1966 F250 4WD (ditto all 1961/64's & all other 1965/66's) use a different engine/trans mounting system than '65/66 F100/250 2WD, '66 F100 4WD, 1967/79 F100/350.

An L shaped bracket bolts to the block around the timing cover. There is one upper donut shaped rubber insulator between the bracket and the crossmember. Below the crossmember is another rubber insulator. A thru bolt ties the whole tamale together.

The bellhousing has two ears, the R/L upper rubber insulators bolt to the ears then to the crossmember. Below the crossmember are two R/L lower insulators. Thru bolts tie the whole tamale together.