Hi there everyone,

I am considering the purchase of a 1993 Ford F-350 7.3L Diesel Dually Standard Cab with only 67,000 miles, but the truck currently has a type of flatbed apparatus rather than a standard pickup bed.

After doing a bit of research, it seems as if pickup beds from 1980 to 1997 are all physically compatible and will bolt up to the truck's frame. Would pickup beds from 1999 or newer trucks also fit a 1993 F-350?

I've tracked down a few standard long beds in rough condition, but no dually beds. In general, it seems as if long beds are difficult to come by. These are my options if I follow through with the purchase of the truck.

1. Convert dually (DRW) configuration to single (SRW) configuration, therefore allowing the installation of an SRW long bed.
2. Convert SRW long bed to DRW long bed. (Not sure if this is possible, but I'd assume the fenders can be swapped to allow this. Confirmation would be appreciated.)
3. Retain the installed flatbed.



Thank you in advance.

 

Welcome to FTE!!
One question/statement, what will be the intended use of truck

 

Thank you for the warm welcome, torq'ta 5 8.

I plan on using the truck as a daily driver. I could get away with using the flatbed that is installed, but I would prefer a pickup bed for aesthetics as well as practicality. For me, a flatbed serves me less of a use compared to a pickup.

The individual selling the truck measured the bed and reported a total length of 12' 6", so in that case, a standard pickup bed will not fit. It seems as if the frame on the truck was originally designed for use with either an extended cab with a long bed or crew cab with a short bed. Unless there is an option for a 12' pickup bed, I may need to opt for the existing flatbed or a utility box.

The seller is asking $4,500.

 

You're out of luck on the bed because it's a 12' bed. However, If you are willing to stretch a bed and reinforce it, that could work

If you choose to stretch a bed, only get one of the proper generation. Do not ever get a bull nose bed, the body lines are different. I'm unsure about bricknose beds when it comes to the body lines.

 

That was built as a cab/ chassis, a pick up bed will not fit it without a lot of work. You could cut the frame, and drive shaft, and redo the brake lines, and shorten it to whatever is needed to get the rear wheels where they need to be. Or use what is has on it now, and outfit it like this--

 

I like the idea of using the utility boxes as a makeshift bed.

I am looking into going the route of cutting the frame to shorten it to the proper length to accommodate a pickup bed. It would really depend on how much it would cost, as for a job like this, I don’t have much of an idea what the expense may be.

I’d need to find someone that does frame repairs. Does anyone have any ideas of what kind of person should do the job? I could also do it myself, but purchasing the correct tools would add up to quite a bit.

 

reading and companies like that make utility beds for the cc trucks even in that lenghts. you can get a cover and gate even on them so you can use it like a regular truck but also would have tool boxes for storage. other option is get a non cc truck frame and transfer all the parts you want off this truck over. thats a big job though.

 

that truck is a cab chassis, not a pickup. so a pickup bed will not "bolt on" without modification.
if that was my truck, i would strip the bolt ons off the bed to make it flat. then put side boxes on it, and some type of tailgate.
possibly a cover too.
the 12ft 6 inch length of the bed will be a plus when moving large items.

 

https://cdn02.carsforsale.com/3/2534...1038553279.jpg

one of those beds if i was going to change. has 4 feet between the boxes to use as a regular truck.

 

I would say continue looking until you find what you want and not something that you can turn into what you want.

 

I recently bought a 1997 Ford F-350 crew cab. She’s from Michigan and has a rust problem. Can anyone recommend a good frame off restoration shop near Riverside California, that has experience in dealing in rust repair and bringing back the truck back to factory specs?? Names Frank thank you for your time

 

X-whatever on it's a C&C truck, you're not bolting a pickup bed on that. C&C frame rails have a narrower spacing than pickup frames, and the rear axle is narrower...basically the overall width of a SRW pickup axle, so if you kept the rear duals, they wouldn't fit in the wheelwells of a pickup bed as the inner dual will be further in than the wheel well is cut for. However, on a pickup dually, the bed itself is more or less the same as a SRW pickup, with just the addition of the wider fenders, which are really just fiberglass extensions on a regular bed side. You'd also have to source the longer filler tube for the fuel tank, or both if you have dual tanks.

Also, keep in mind that's a LONG and wide truck for daily driver use, especially if you're looking at it from a practicality standpoint. There aren't many of us that consider something like this practical for a daily, lol (I'd drive my 2.5 ton medium duty with a 12 foot flatbed as a daily if it was running right now ). Hell, just look at all the short bed trucks being sold today, and even the super short..mini beds of sorts. The things were the rear wheels are damn near in the rear cab wall.

Sure, this one isn't much longer than a standard crew cab long bed truck, but even those are something that a lot of people won't consider practical for a daily (I still lament the ending of the 9 foot beds that used to be available on light duty trucks from the factory...). It's not going to fit in normal parking spaces, it will be a bear to get through a lot of drive throughs, not gonna fit in typical suburban garages, much wider turning radius, etc etc. The upshot is that you won't have the wider width of a pickup dually to contend with, but that's not doing a whole lot against the extra length.

Not saying you're poser, or buying a truck for the wrong reasons, or anything like that. Just mentioning some things to think about when looking at something like this.

Me, on the other hand, wishes I had a 16 foot bed behind my crew cab, and mine is a dually on a standard pickup frame, which is even wider than what you're looking at...I'm a rare one. I also will _never_ willingly go back to a pickup bed over a flatbed. I've spent the last year dealing with one, after having parked the Ford and began driving the Chevy..what a pain in the back side, lol. Stupid bed sides getting in the way of loading/unloading stuff, harder to tie things down, tailgate that occasionally sticks...finding the machine that you just drove 4 hours to pick up is an inch too wide to drop between the bed sides (thankfully, its a Chevy, with an already damaged box...told the guys to just go ahead and widen the box some )...

Also keep in mind that altering a frame like this is a big undertaking, if you're looking at it from the standpoint of doing it correctly to use the truck as a truck later...and not as a garage queen show truck only used to drive to the cruise in on the weekends. It's more than just slicing a few feet out of the frame rails and gluing back together with the welder. Alignment of the frame is highly important, along with proper welding techniques. It's not a place to learn how to weld. Altering sheetmetal, such as on a pickup box, is a bit of an art, and VERY easy to get wrong resulting in warped panels that look like you handed the welder to your 5 year old to play with. Neither of these things are something you're likely to accomplish correctly with the bargain priced Lincoln welder from Home Depot. Are there guys out there than CAN do this? Absolutely. Is it likely you're going to be able to pull it off as a 1st time project? Maybe...I have no idea what your skill set is. Most don't, and end up selling a half-arsed half a project as "I just don't have time for this anymore......my loss your gain!" that's a parts truck at best by then.

 

I would leave the truck the same way. I like him.