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Hello,
I'm a Jeep enthusiast primarily, but Ford trucks have always been in my life. The first truck I personally owned (and didn't just borrow) was an '04 F250, purchased new, who earned the name Lurch. He towed many a hay bale, horse, and Jeep through the years, until throwing a rod a couple years back.
The original plan was to replace the engine and keep on truckin', but through one foul up or another I've now been two years without a pickup truck. I could no longer stand the humiliation or frustration of renting UHauls or having someone deliver hay or livestock, so when I found a '78 F150 with a swapped 351 on Craigslist I jumped on it. Living without a truck was a wake up call, to say the least. I don't know how people do it.
So, here I am with a new truck and honestly, only Jeep related mechanical skills. I work on my own Jeeps (collection ranges in age from '46-'95), but the 5.4 that lived under my 250's hood looked more like a cybernetic octopus than an engine to my eyes. I did my own oil and regular maintenance on it, but never anything in depth. I'm hoping (realistically, I think) that I'll have a better working relationship with the 351, but before something perplexing goes wrong with it, I thought I'd join a forum that would have the experience to share with me when I need it.
Loving this truck so far (the three days I've had it), though I feel like I'm cheating on my poor old Lurch. Pic
of the new guy attached.
So, hello, FTE forum!
Last edited by jnxinthewoods; Jun 3, 2019 at 10:53 AM.
Reason: typo
It sounds like you'll have an easier time adjusting to the older truck, but keep in mind that the newer ones aren't nuclear-powered mystery machines. Between your older and newer Fords, the timing chain got a friend and both got longer, the cam doubled and moved up high, the pushrods disappeared, a computer started impersonating the distributor (and doing a better and wear-free job of it), and the V belts turned into a much happier and well-adjusted serpentine. No turbines, flux capacitors, warp nacelles, giant batteries, or fusion reactors.
@jnxinthewoods Welcome to FTE. I am sure that you will find the people on this site helpful with any questions that you may have. If you are interested, there is a NY Chapter forum where some of us fellow NY'ers hangout.
