Just inherited my dad's '62 shortbed stepside (if that is the correct terminology). Haven't seen the truck in 8 years but have amazing memories of getting it stuck in the great dismal swamp of eastern NC. It has been garaged in western NC it's entire life and will be bringing it to the desert southwest this fall. Does anyone have an opinion on whether it is better to trailer it myself or hire a company to transport it?
What other noob mistakes should I avoid in taking over the tlc of such a great truck?

 

Its actually a style side anyway, is it a 4x4? Its really up to you, if you tow it yourself i'd certainly want to put it on a trailer and have a plenty capable truck to haul it across the country.

These trucks are pretty simple. For the most part, just put all new fluids in it and it will be relatively happy as long as a gasket or something isn't leaking.

Have fun with it.

 

OP says it's shortbed stepside, which is a Flareside in Ford terminology. So, it's not a Styleside.

Stepside: Chevy/GMC.

 

Thanks for the input. So it is a shortbed flareside. Without a tape measure and a plane ticket is there a resource for finding its actual size? Have to plan my garage space. I found the wheel base but nose to tail size and width?

 

I'm sure someone can measure their truck and give you the measurements.

 

azcan62 Welcome to FTE and the Slick forum.

Hey why don't you take a few days off and drive the old truck home unless it has been a while since it was driven.



John

 

Uh, you could measure your 1964 short bed Styleside. The length will be within 2 or 3 inches of a 1961/63 short bed Flareside.

The width of the front end/cab will be the same. The Styleside bed will be about the same width as a Flareside when you take into account the Flareside rear fenders.

My garage is 20' long. The oversized tub in my sig pic is 231 1/2" long. It fits into the garage with about 4" to spare between the rear bumper and wooden garage door.

I have a thick roll of carpet foam padding between the front bumper and the built in closet sliding door. Driving into the garage the day we moved in (10/2001), I bumped that door with my 1992 F150 Stupor Cab, cracked it.

"She, who must be obeyed" was p!ssed! So the next day, whizzed over to a local carpet store and bought the padding.

 

Uh, yeah I can. I wasn't anywhere near my 64 when I wrote that. I can take some measurements the next time I got to my shop which is across town from my house.

 

Would love to see the measurements, but only if convenient. My brother-in-law will measure it for me when he makes the hour drive to where it is garaged next time. Just impatient. Can't wait to get my hands on it. I would love to drive it but it has been sitting for about 5 years since my dad became ill. So just want to get it here as safely as possible. I have a couple of practical questions. I know not to mess with the actual workings of an old engine unless it must be done, but is there any usefulness in proactively pulling the oil pan, cleaning and regasketing it so whatever sludge has been sitting down there doesn't get pumped through the engine. It has amazingly low miles for its age as it has only been driven by two owners after they were already retirees --- no camping, hauling or working as far as I know. Anything else I should do before running it much just to keep the original engine as good as possible?

 

Here are some thoughts on the cross country trip thing. It certainly won't hurt to find out from a couple of shipping companies what they would charge. Don't know if the price goes up because your truck is (or was for the past 5 years) a non-runner. When I bought my '66, I took my own flatbed trailer, towed behind my own F250 Super Duty, and made the round trip Tucson to Fresno and back. I had a trailer spare tire and appropriate jack, and on the way home one of the trailer tires blew. I ended up buying 4 new trailer tires on the road, at much greater expense than if I had done it before I left. I also had the expense of a two way trip, paying for motels, food and diesel fuel at 13 mpg. Last month I made a one-way tow, driving a U-Haul truck, pulling a U-Haul car trailer, from Chicago to Tucson. U-Haul does not provide you with a spare wheel or jack for either the truck or trailer. You're supposed to use your cell phone and call for roadside assistance if you have a problem. Not very comforting when going thru parts of New Mexico where there's no cell service - or anything else. To it's credit, the GMC gas V8 in the U-Haul truck got 10 mpg and I was pushing it pretty hard. So now your expenses are a plane ticket to North Carolina, renting truck and trailer for the one way trip, gas, and food and motels. I was unimpressed with the U-Haul subcontractors from whom I rented the truck and trailer, but the equipment performed satisfactorily. The truck had bucket seats, not a bench, so there was no place to lie down in it when you got tired. Good luck with whatever you choose to do!