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I've been wanting to buy a 53-56 f100 for a few years now and recently, i came across a 56 that I'm tempted to buy but I have no idea if it's worth what the guy is asking. I was wondering if any of you guys could offer some advice on if it worth the purchase or not.
This is what the ad says:
"The truck is all original ford steel. The engine is a 30 over 350 SBC around 400hp. The transmission is a Borg Warner super t10 4 speed. The suspension is all brand new lowering suspension and disc brake conversion. The frame was sand blasted and painted. Brand new master cylinder and booster. The chassis is done including brake lines. Have many spare parts that can go with it. The price is $8000cad($6000usd) for everything or $5000cad($3700usd) with out the engine and transmission. I have the ownership for the truck"
This is not what I would call a "truck"...it is a collection of parts that have been tacked together to roughly resemble a truck. Flat floor in cab and telltale weld beads along insides of doors indicate that someone has been doing some extensive metal work on the cab. Since you asked the question I am assuming that you do not have enough experience with these trucks to spot the weak areas and to assess the level of $$$/effort that need to go into bringing one back from the dead. I would suggest that you keep looking, there are some fairly nice complete trucks still out there that do not require this level of commitment to make roadworthy. Good luck...
I have many years of my life gone without a trace under hoods and on creepers, late at night with headaches from bashing my head under the dash from a hot burn from a work light, emptying bank accounts, spending few but some glorious moments on the 1/4 mile... I'd say that looks like a fine project.
There are a lot of variables for either a yes or no answer. Some questions would be:
Is there a clean title?
How much of a hassle will it be to get it moved to where you'll be working on it?
Who's doing the work to finish it?
If it's you, what's your experience level?
Is this something you really enjoy doing, or do you prefer more the driving of the finished product?
What level ($ vs $$$$$$) of finish do you want to achieve, ie Rat rod or Show stopper?
Just scratching the surface...
The trucks looks to be in sound, very decent orig state, and it would seem the owner is transparent about the condition and work done. The new work "looks" professional in the photos, but they're pictures. Hard to check the tranny without tearing into it, but a compression check would be a place to start on the engine. And running beats not running, of course. And from my experience, what he's asking probably doesn't touch the time he/she has put into it. Overall value, both finished and the condition it is in now, is often determined also by local demand and scarcity of similar vehicles. It appears, IMO that it is in a reasonable state to finish out to what might be a very sweet ride. Good luck if becomes yours.
I have zero experience with these trucks but I do have experience with body work though so that could come in handy. As far as working on motors I'm completely lost which is why I'm thinking about the cheaper option without the engine. As far as plans for the car I really like the rustic patina rat rod look of these truck
so that's probably the route I would go. I might just offer him $3500CAD and go from there
Hey Robert P,
All good questions - what is this pile of truck parts worth?
- A good rust free cab in Canada $1,000.
- A complete bed with tailgate? $1500
- Frame $400
- Nice Chevy engine $2500
- Nice transmission $1500
- Hood, Fenders, etc... $1200
Total $7700.
o It would be nice to hear the engine turn over. Can he start it for you?
o My other concern would the front suspension. Is it welded in there right?
Will it drive straight? Having to re-do the front suspension would be a tough job.
If the engine & trans are good - it's not a bad deal but not a great deal. $5000 U.S for
the parts would be a better deal. I wouldn't buy it without the engine/trans.
There is a lot missing Dashboard, Gauges, exhaust, nice wheels, Trim, Glass, etc.
Getting that Hood to shut right, front grill valence doesn't appear to line up with body work.
If the engine runs I'd be happier about this. If the front suspension was done right I'd be happier...
Good luck up there in Canada. This could be a good winter project... there is still a lot to
be done. Paint could be $7K, Wheels/Tires - could be $1.2K, Glass, Dash, Seat, finish the Interior,
Gas Tank, Finish body work, etc..... Save some money for what's left to do.....
My vote is no. Not sure what they run for in your area.
Charlie put it well, it's a collection of parts that looks like a truck. It's a long ways from derivable.
The engine isn't installed, it's placed in the engine bay. Still need to setup the exhaust and gas pedal and radiator. Exhaust is easily $600 in parts btw.
Driveshaft probably still needs to be fitted.
Instrument cluster and probably complete wiring for the truck.
Steering.
Where's the gas tank? On a '56 they're in the cab.
Seat?
Glass?
Wood for the bed?
Having the brakes installed and having them trouble shoot'd are two different things. Sometimes everything works really well till you actually move it and find it had a small leak somewhere.
A red flag to me is the inside was painted but the control switches where not removed before painting. Takes like 3 minutes to disconnect one.
Personally I think you're buying a lot of someone elses problems. There is a reason he's not finishing it out.
My suggestion is to find one that you can drive. Fixing a truck you can drive is way more fun than a bucket of parts to work on. Something worth considering is that it's about $1000 US to ship a truck cross country. Could find one, fly out to check it out, pay to have it shipped and still be way ahead. Also suggest finding something that's as complete as possible and already something that drives (not just runs, but drives). But I get the urge, in the end it comes down to how much work and money you're looking to put into it. Parts add up quickly. And paying someone to do anything adds up extremely quickly. There is a reason most of us do 95-100% of the work on these trucks on our own, and spend years doing it.
Start with the closest to what you want in the end, it's actually a whole lot cheaper to pay more for a more finished truck than to buy a project and replace everything. Parts loose there "new price" value the second you install them.
I'd also like to say that 400 horsepower from an off the shelf Smallblock chevy with stock looking siamese port heads is pretty optimistic. It'd be doable with a good cam and a low to mid range head, but I'd be wondering what else he might be embellishing.
I seen that truck on Kijiji , he's asking way too much for the truck, remember even though you can purchase a lot of the parts up here in Canada all the parts start out in American dollars plus shipping these days can equal the amount for the parts
Seller claims 400hp. Ask for dyno sheet. Has the engine been run at all? I would want papers for the engine build. At least machine shop receipts and parts receipts. Going on 4 "truths" about engines...all y block are 312s on sale day, all FEs are 390s on sale day,, SBCs are Corvette motors in rods for sale, and lately it seems, hotrodded SBCs have 400hp. Seriously, ask about papers on engine.
It appears this truck had a lot of rust and the repairs were not done to any kind of professional standard. We are a huge group of enablers and generally encourage the spending of other people's money. There's a lot of great advice above in this thread. To have this large of a consensus saying to pass, that should speak volumes. Welcome to the forum, Robert.
I have done 4 of these trucks.....49-56....... although I'm a backyard tinkerer at best..I also agree that looks like a pile of parts for that kind of money..... keep looking....
