53 advertised Salem Ak. Seems to have a frame swap and is running and driving. One of the many frame swaps that do not end up trashed or not finished as so many on here seem to believe. Looks pretty good for a 4x4.

1953 ford truck with 2004 ls 5.3 chevy drive train

 

Its har to tell in the picture, but it looks like they went with the flatbed so they didnt have to change the wheel base. Probably looks stupid from the side.

 

The truck looks ok - appears that swap was done by someone with the skill set and budget too often lacking. For me, personally, the 'wrong' logo on the steering wheel grinds my beans enough that I couldn't consider such an arrangement. The stuff under the hood / sheetmetal is less concerning. To each their own.

 

It looks like they did a good job with the swap. I would want to see the underneath though.
Yeah, the steering wheel would have to go. Yeah, it's an all chevy driveline, but they want it to look Ford, so put a Ford steering wheel on it.

 

I think the guy did a very nice job. Width of axles is key to me. I hate the ones where they use too wide of a chassis and the wheels stick out like a hot wheels toy. For me, I'd have a vinyl bench seat and more original looking interior, but that's just the old guy in me. For the most part, I applaud this guys choices and work completed.

 

Wheelbase is never a issue. That is easy to make longer or shorter. Width is much harder to make right. I hadn't seen anyone using the trial blazer chassis before.

 

Looks to me like the guy got his bucks worth out of that blazer. Good ole american ingenuity there. The trail blazer wheel base is 113" so he could possibly make a bed work with a little of his skills

 

113" is really close. While the F100 had a wheel base of 110", the front wheels set 1.25" back from the center of the front wheel well. That's 111.25" center to center of the wheel wells. If you split the difference (1.75") between the front and rear, most people would never see the .875" offset. Heck, that's closer than the 1.25" the Ford engineers missed by.

As for the steering wheel: The Chevy wheel doesn't bother me as much as the instruments just stuck behind the dash. It kind of makes me question the quality of the rest of the build. An after-market wheel would be nice, but after-market gauges would be a must.

Other than that it looks like a respectable build. Nobody said it couldn't be done, just that it's easier said than done.

It's a good thing they have the 2004 Trailblazer title, because that's what it is. Titling it as a '53 Ford is Title Fraud. It's what Boyd Coddington and a few other car builders almost went to jail over a few years ago. (I hate to bust on Boyd Coddington, RIP, but he was the most public figure to get caught up in the investigation)

 

Toyota landcruiser and scout axles are narrow and really close to the old ford width. I have a '79 landcruiser wagon with ps, pb and front discs, of course 4wd. It's rusty as hell, so could be a good donor. The scout I have would not as good as a donor. Lots of dents, but no rust and a factory nissan sd33t turbo diesel. But..... Scout axles have the 5 on 5.5 bolt pattern, so stock wheels and caps would be a posibility. I like to think outside the box. No S10 or Ranger chassis in my immediate future.

 

"The only good Scout . . . is a dead Scout". - Mark Smith 1984

(Sorry GB - I couldn't resist. )


Rubicon Trail somewhere near the "Little Sluice".

 

It's not dead. It's just taking a rest. Rub it's belly and it'll be up and running.

 

Usually not Effie. Many times if they break something serious they just leave it as the Scout isn't worth the cost of recovery and repair. Then the Rubicon Rock Rollers have to come in and cut them up and haul them out of the Rubicon Valley. I saw one in a water hole at the bottom of the Big Sluice that was there for two seasons. The guys broke the steering gear and then the front axle. They were nice guys but they thought that if they just put big tires with no other modifications on the Scout that it would help. They said that they were going to come back with parts to fix it but it was still there the next year.