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Here's Betty as I found her. Built in California, I think, then wound up in Austin, Texas. I drove her back to NW Arkansas overnight in a constant rainstorm and almost no brakes - and my follow vehicle insisted on leading the parade at a steady 80+ mph.
She's a 1978 F150 Lariat Supercab LWB 460/C6 Trailer Special 2WD. Original Color was the two tone Brown/Cream. PO painted her black, hence the name, Betty (my wife actually named the truck )
Here's Betty as I found her. Built in California, I think, then wound up in Austin, Texas. I drove her back to NW Arkansas overnight in a constant rainstorm and almost no brakes - and my follow vehicle insisted on leading the parade at a steady 80+ mph.
She's a 1978 F150 Lariat Supercab LWB 460/C6 Trailer Special 2WD. Original Color was the two tone Brown/Cream. PO painted her black, hence the name, Betty (my wife actually named the truck )
My long term goal is 4x4 frame swap, detroit lockers, 4-corner disc brakes, a streetable engine build, and some form of overdrive transmission. Betty is going camping, hauling, and cruising.
She's already got Hedman headers, 4-barrel alum spacer, and some un-specified cam. The PO said the engine got a clean-up hone w/ new bearings and rings about 3,000 miles ago. I probably need to check compression, but she is producing good vac, so I'm not especially worried right now.
I also plan on doing some custom interior work, but that will likely come last along with a full repaint.
For the immediate future I'm just tackling the basics:
Rust repair & prevention
New wiring
Fuel system overhaul
Brakes
I've already replaced the drum brakes on the rear. The front discs need attention.
I rebuilt a a Holley Truck Avenger to replace the worn out 4160 (1850 list). I'll be rebuilding the old carb soon for resale. You can see the new carburetor rebuild at the following link:
I'm also in the middle of a wheel arch repair. The PO had found cancer there and simply smeared bondo there. It bubbled roughly 3 weeks after my purchase.
[Photos forthcoming]
I also need to patch up the drip rail area on the driver side, it's starting to bubble there, too. But hey, I bought this project to learn bodywork and that's exactly what I've got.
I meant to say it first sold in California. I read somewhere that supercabs from that year only got the 460 in California. But that may just be hearsay.
Here's short vid from the first time we pulled the bed off. We restored an old homemade lift that had been hanging in the shop for who knows how long. The gear block on the left read Boston Gear and Tool.
Here's some frame inspection photos. Had to grind the philips head off the passenger side bed bolt just behind the cab. That clip thingy was not letting go. We actually busted an impact driver bit trying to get it out, PB blaster and all.
I was also pretty stocked with the condition of the rear of the cab and corners.
The rubber fuel filler hoses were dry-rotted so we replaced those immediately. It's not fun watching gas hit the ground when you're at the station.
A PO had also by-passed the stock fuel filter fitting and put an inline filter up near the carb. Not sure if it's safe to have it sitting right under the coil like that.
The diff had so much crud on it I thought the ID tag was gone. A good power wash revealed it was just buried though.
I did make a template to build some new inner door panels from scratch. That and new bushings/u-joints are probably top of my list right now. I may replace all the vacuum lines soon. Just maintenance items.
I really need to get into a house with a shop before I can procure and start preparing the new chassis that want swap her onto. Renting sucks.
Rezvani's Latest Post-Apocalytic Monster Is a Ford F-150 Raptor Underneath
Slideshow: Called the Fortress, the 850-horsepower pickup combines Raptor underpinnings with military-inspired features, survival equipment, and a starting price of $285,000.
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It bubbled roughly 3 weeks after my purchase. 
