Don't over look the 95+ Explorers. I've seen them used on a couple 48-52 Ford truck frame swaps. The have 4 wheel disc brakes and the 5.0L V8 was an option on some of them.

 

But then the WB problem as the longest explorer has 111.6" WB about 10" too short. The sad part is that the s-10 extra cab sb at 122.9" is the closest, but then it's 1" too long. I suppose you could leave an extra 1" gap between the cab and the bed.
Curious as to why this truck was available without the frame? Could if be the previous owner decided that it was too big of project without a frame.

 

If it's a rat rod you mount the cab and front clip/dog house and then just cut down the box to fit the chassis. We're not talking about a restoration here.

 

For anybody that is interested the 83 to 97 Ranger long bed has a wheel base of , 113.9".

The 48 t0 52 f-1 has a wheelbase of , 114"

I put a 51 f-1 on one of the 83 frames , it fit okay but not what i was after.
They drop a lot in the center under the cab , which would be okay for a rat rod . But then you loose a lot of the box area when you lower the cab down ,again okay for a rat rod.

I later mounted the cab on a 92 4x4 super cab ranger frame . It was better but the frame needed cut or a flatbed put on . I ended up selling it along with a couple of other projects due to having to relocate where i live.

 

Thanks guys, real good info!

 

I found some pictures of an explorer chassis swap that I saved. It's not my truck but it gives you an idea about what it would look like.

 

Here are the measurements for the original frame to give you a idea. I have helped friends with frame swaps before. Mock up several times before you cut anything. Any pictures of the condition of the cab. Is the original floor intact? If you get a frame that isn't off by much you can spread that out between the gap between the cab and bed, and slightly off center the wheel wells. You could hide a couple of inches that way.

If you floor is intact look up a some pictures of how the cab is originally mounted and try to duplicate that type of mount. If you use only the (S-10 for example) frame mounts the floor in that location would have to be braced up and may not look right. It usually works out better cutting those mounts off the frame and trying to duplicate the original style mounts.