Hello everyone

I purchased an old 1973 (1967-1972 body) ford f 250 4x4 about 5+ years ago and now am keen to spend approximately 25,000 dollars over the next few years to restore it to be a great truck which i can pull a 26 foot slide out trailer which is about 8,600 gvw

The motor im told is a 352 ci
the tranny is 4 speed with divorced transfer case dayna 60 rear end with limited slip posi track and a dayna 44 closed knuckle front end (not sure if it is big ball or small ball)
I plan to replace the old drum brakes with disk brakes

question 1) should I replace the rear brakes or just go with the front brakes?(with disk brakes)

The motor seems strong and torque seems good the guy who sold it to me claims he just rebuilt the motor and from my test drive of about an 8-10 hr drive pulling the large trailer i have seemed to do alright but i found the motor started to over heat a bit and I am thinking i would like to add some power

question 2) Should I look and find a 4 bbl intake manifold and put a 4 bbl carb with exhaust header some people tell me the old 2 bbl carb is the best for these motors and changing to a 4 bbl is not going to help im kind of wondering what you guys think

Also I blew the rear u joint and damaged the ears on the yoke of the drive shaft and am wondering what to do as it seems almost impossible to find a replacement drive shaft and people who i talk to say they cant rebuild it

Any advice you guys have will hopefully help me make the right decision in keeping within my budget (I want the best bang for my buck as i plan to keep this truck until i die)

 

First thing is to post the info from the warranty plate on the driver's door or the warranty sticker on the door pillar if the door had been replaced to find out what year it actually is. Or if the body had been put on a 73-79 frame. You can check for the vin on the passenger side frame rail for the frame vin to find the the true date. The closed knuckle d-44's are almost impoosible to change to disc brakes, as I believe there is only one company that makes a kit, and it is spendy, I believe. You would be better off to find an 73-79 open knuckle 44 as it would be cheaper with stock parts. Only 67's had 352's. The rest were 360's or 390's, with the engine code for a 360 is Y. The blocks were all cast with 352 on the outside for 352/360/390's. The only way to find out what you have is to measure the stroke by pulling a sparkplug and measuring. You can go to a truck driveline shop and have a new shaft made very easily if you can't find one at the junkyard.

 

Hi Rich the guy who sold me the truck claimed it was one of the first of the 1973 fleet that is why the truck has the old body style. Unfortunately I changed the cab on the truck so i don't have the original cab to find the vin number I took the cab from a doner truck which was a 1971 ford 250 2 wd xlt which i found out later the cab mounts did not fit and needed to be modified. I also had a 1968 100 which i took the grill from and replaced the old 1972 grill.

I will look on the frame on the passenger side and see what numbers i can find
Thanks

 

I looked and could not find a vin number on the frame do you know a specific spot I should be looking?

 

Impossible. If it's the first of the 1973's...1973/79 is a different design than 1967/72. Since new vehicles are introduced in September of the previous year, production begins in August.

1968/76 F100/250 4WD: The only available V8 was the 360 2V. 352's were last used in 1967. 390's were not factory installed in 4WD's.

The 4th digit of the VIN is the engine code: 1968/76 F100/250 4WD: A = 240 I-6 (1968/74) / B = 300 I-6 / Y = 360 2V.

Vehicles are registered by their specific VIN's. What is the VIN on the title of this truck?

The stamped frame VIN can be difficult to find, and it could be in 4 (four) different locations:

1-3: On the top of the right (passenger) side frame rail adjacent to the alternator, or just in front of the cab, or partially under the cab.

4: On the top of the left (drivers) side frame rail adjacent to the steering gear box.

 

Ok so i guess the guy who sold it to me didnt know what he was talking about then so i guess it is a 1972 truck then I have had it registered as a 73 all these years oops

 

At one time, some states registered vehicles by the year they were first sold, not by the actual year of the vehicle.

Since vehicles are introduced in September of the previous year and production begins in August, it would be possible, for example, to have a 1973 registered as a 1972.

 

Ok that would make sence Was probably the sales man who led us all astray

As if that could happen

 

for 25 grand, you should be able to replace the whole truck.

but to answer your questions...
1. drum brakes in the back should be fine, just make sure they're functioning properly.
2. for real pulling power, you may want to jusr replace the whole engine. think 460. other than that...a 4bbl carb and headers would increase HP, but probably not do much for low-end torque.
3. any decent truck shop should be able to make a new driveshaft for you.

 

25 grand sounds like alot of money but when you consider 10-15 grand for body work and paint job 5 grand for parts accessories and another couple grand for brake conversion air bag suspension and a few other goodies Im sure i will have it all spent up. I plan to rewire, the truck with one of those kits from LCM.electric fan, power windows, door locks, and some custom mods to make the interior smashing I personally dont like the 460 as the cost of gas is soo high. so I would like to just work with the motor which i have currently gets about 8-10 miles to gallon pulling my 26 foot trailer which is descent im thinking but I just desire a bit more power and wondering from your experience if it makes alot more power % vs fuel usage or if im better off to keep it the same I was told it is a 352 ci but from the power it produces (comparing it to my old 351m from a 77 4x4 i used to have I feel it has a bit more) so I am suspecting it may indeed be a 390 but cant be sure)

 

true- good paint & body work is very expensive.

to answer the 353 vs 390 question...its time to verify which engine you have. the only way is to pull a spark plug and measure the stroke. hopefully its the 390.

as for other advice...since you mention electric fans, etc- go ahead and plan on doing the 3g alternator swap. it can be done on the cheap, and you're going to need the extra amps.

i'm hoping to do the power window upgrade one of these days, too-

 

Ohh yea i never even thought of the upgraded alternator ok so when i do pull the spark plug how do i go about measuring the stroke?

 

remove a spark plug- insert a wooden dowel, etc. anything that's not sharp, relatively sturdy, and will allow you to make a mark on it.

rotate the engine so that the dowel is as far down as it'll go. make a mark.
rotate the engine so that the dowel is as far up as it'll go- make another mark.

measure the distance between the two-
a 352 has a 3.5" stroke
a 390 has a 3.78" stroke

 

25k as build budget you should have one sweet truck , upgrade to a 390 might as well go with 4 wheel discs .