Cool truck! 2 speed axle with the big "M" six and the syncro-silent 4-speed should be a ball to drive!
Mark

 

Since the 24th of March this year so that's 7 months now but I'm still in school and sometimes I work so I have little time for the truck. Now I need to start searching more for a 254 flat 6 exhaust manifold. So if you have that type of stuff or know someone who does then maybe we can work something out, not really too sure how to go about a transaction if your very far away. I'm in Manchester, NJ near Jackson in the middle of the state. Thanks, Dan

 

I still can't make sense of how to switch from low to high in the rear. The plate said press accelerator pedal down, pull **** out and shift as quickly as possible. Does that make any sense to you? It sounds like you'll break something doing that.

 

Yeah it was on craigslist for like 20 some days and then I got it a month after it was taken off. We were still getting snow and ice in the middle of March and his barn doors were freezing then. I thought the spare bolted up in the back or the rim clipped to the hooks, there was another hook thing that broke off the back their in the picture where it was all wavy and wrecked. Not sure if I would be interested in the mount but having a spare is always a good thing. Thanks Dan

 

Here is an instruction plate riveted on a sunvisor. It came from a 53-56 truck.It sounds like it is more specific than the plate on your truck.


Keep us posted with your progress and show us lots of pictures.

 

As for a battery cable, one can get the 00 cable from a welding supply shop, and some solder-type clamps from a big truck supply house, solder, propane torch, and shrink tubing (do it right and stay away from those chinese bolt-on type) and do it yourself.

 

Do you guys recommend I put in a whole new clutch system since I have the truck all disassembled now and it would be easy to get at to replace? Is the clutch original with 73'000 miles? Would I have to adjust anything if I got a new: flywheel, clutch, and pressure plate?

 

Welcome to FTE. Great first post! That truck is in really great shape for being from the Northeast. Regarding your brakes, you won't find drums or shoes available anywhere, except used. But you can have the shoes relined by many brake and or clutch shops. For the U Bolts, check with large truck suspension shops. Regarding the 2 speed rear, you will most likely want to get this thing in high range and NEVER change it again. Top speed in low range 4th gear is probably about 30MPH. with the engine screaming.
You obviously already know about the widowmakers, so I am assuming that you will be looking for 19.5 or 22.5 tubeless wheels. Unless you are considering using this for a heavy 'working' truck, in your search for wheels, you might want to search junkyards for an 80's Dodge M400 chassis motorhome for both the wheels and the Dana rearend to replace the 2 speed. The next best option is a single speed F4 or F5 with Ford (Timken 51524)rear with the 5.14 gear and pinion. The misconception about 2 speed rears of this era is that they were NOT an added higher gear, but rather an added granny gear. Single speed rears for these trucks came in three gears 5.14, 5.83 or 6.66, the 2 speeds had two options 5.83/8.11 or 6.33/8.81

 

Examine the clutch disk and pressure plate closely. Post pictures here. An inexperienced driver can wear a clutch out in 10K miles and a good driver will run a clutch for a couple-three hundred K miles. Type of service the truck was subjected to is a big factor in how long a clutch lasts, too. Adjustment is very simple.

 

Awesome, you guys have been so helpful and informational I am so glad I took the time to make this post! So basically the number 1 reason I posted was to get help finding an exhaust manifold for my 1950 ford F-6 254 cubic inch flat 6 and from what I have been told is very similar to the 226 flat 6 in 1948 and 1949 trucks also most of the cars with the 226 flat 6 except the Mercury cars as they had different manifolds. Should I make a separate post titled "Wanted 1950 Ford exhaust manifold 254 flat 6" to get the message out to more people on the forms so that I can find someone who has one since it is critical for my truck to run.

 

Be prepared to spend several hundred dollars for a good one. I've seen them listed on ebay at $400. There are members on here who have them FS and some just have extra. I would look long and hard at building a manifold, given the rarity and fragility of them. A wanted thread may get results. Luck, my friend.

 

Hey Dan great post with the pics,I just wanted to reach out and give you my buddies phone number...his name is Bob Selzman he's in Jackson nj 732-928-9421 he has a lot of parts for that truck

 

Awesome I will get in touch with him tomorrow since it is getting late now and thank you for reaching out, glad you liked the pictures!

 

Woke up this morning to 27 degrees but it really feels like 13 i'm glad to have the wood burning stove going. Last Friday we got a bit of wet snow just a reminder that winters coming and progress must continue because winter don't care it's going to get cold and fast.







So after some thought (and a phone call to a friend) I got to dissembling the back axle and all it's fun leaf springs that did not want to come apart. Definitely replacing U-bolts as mentioned earlier and also the shackles I believe they are called that keep groups of leafs aligned. The bolts that went through the centers of the leaf springs were in bad shape and the side that was out of alignment well as one could imagine it's center bolt was sheared clean. Very glad to be finding out and addressing all of these issues now and not when i'm doing 40 mph down the road.





How do I get the bolts out that ran through the center leaf springs. Do they thread in because I tried to turn then out.


This one is flush with the axle guess i'll drill it out. Not sure but it seems thicker or their is some type of lip around where the bolt meets the axle. Something's going on and it's odd.








My dad and I recently ran a 240 volt line to the garage and I'm glad that we did, also Lowes had a sale on 6 gauge wire 33 cents a foot and when you need 75 feet it can get pricey at $1.30-1.60 a foot!


This made taking apart some things a lot easier and being able to crank it up from 23 amps (any more and the circuit would blow) now to 37-40 amps let's me cut through thick metal (example: U-bolts). For $300 you can't beat it!

 

That bolt sticking out of the spring pad just fits in there as a spring locating device. Dissolve the rust and it will fall out. The bolt is quite hard. An air hammer may break the rust loose.
You're in an enclosed garage so I would not recommend acid. Perhaps sand blasting would get rid of enough rust to allow the broken bolt to be removed.