New member, first post
More Turbo
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 693
Likes: 18
From: Atascadero, CA
What ever you do, replace the brake master with a dual piston master!!! I Iost all of my brake fluid due to a bad wheel cylinder and ended up smashing into 2 cars. No fun at all! With a dual piston master, if a wheel cyl goes out, you'll at least have two working brakes, front or rear!!!
Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Feb 2019
Posts: 1,388
Likes: 92
From: California High Desert
Welcome to FTE! You have a great truck and a fun project. Bruman is providing good advice. A dual master cylinder will make your truck much safer, especially if you are running drum brakes on all 4 wheels. I am currently working on the installation of a dual piston master cylinder in my '57 F-100. Front disks are on the "to do" list.
Thread Starter
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Cross-Country
Joined: Nov 2019
Posts: 50
Likes: 17
Update to this 2 year old topic. We rented a trailer and brought the truck home. After reinstalling the rebuilt carb, the engine starts and runs better than ever. Brakes still need work.
First project after we got it home was adjust the hinges so the hood would stay up without a prop stick
Used the truck for its intended purpose after we put the carb back on.
Cargo Master
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 2,219
Likes: 648
Glad to see it running and nice to see a clean F 250 survivor on this forum. Keep an eye out for some correct tail light lenses
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Cross-Country
Joined: Nov 2019
Posts: 50
Likes: 17
Got the rear brakes reassembled correctly with the missing parking brake parts. The parking brake was almost functional until the cable snapped where it attaches to the handle. I figured out how to reattach it, but by the time I cut off the frayed part, I was lacking about an inch. A new cable has been ordered.
We tore apart the front brakes and found a leaky cylinder on the left side. Wheel bearings seem to be in good shape, but the king pins are shot. The bores in the axle are wallowed out so it looks like we're going to need oversize king pins. I recall seeing a kit with the oversize pins and a pilot bit to drill out the axle, but I can't find it now. Has anyone else dealt with this?
This truck was built in St Paul and spent its entire life in Minnesota, so of course the floorboards and cab mounts are rusted away. I haven't decided how I'm going to tackle this. A rust free donor cab is probably out of the question.
FTE Legend
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 32,061
Likes: 2,432
From: Upstate NY
I have seen trucks that look like that from the top side. HaHa! It will definitely be a lot of work and some frustration along the way but many here have repaired these same areas and lived to tell about it. It all depends on what you want to do with it. I mean, you could just put a piece of plywood under the floor mat and drive it or you could strip the truck down and pull the cab off and really go to town. Challenging work but gratifying. Glad you are getting the brakes sorted out. My front axel was very worn. The previous owner had driven 8p nails down along side of the king pins to try to tighten them up! Hilarious. I had to find another one.
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Cross-Country
Joined: Nov 2019
Posts: 50
Likes: 17
I'm still looking for the oversize king pin kit and front lower shock mounts. I spent an hour or so the other day vacuuming mouse nests out of the air vents. The heater core looks good, no sign of leaks, and the blower works. The control cable for the defrost/heater is a little balky. The left air vent works, but the right side cable is frozen. Radio works as it should and sounds as good as anything.
FTE Legend
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 32,061
Likes: 2,432
From: Upstate NY
If you can get those old cables off and let them soak in some oil after spraying them down with some penetrating oil, they will behave better. One place on the interior that holds odor and dirt is the bottom edge of the dash. There is about a one inch lip there and it really catches stuff over a 60 year span!
