Originally Posted by FJones8668

Howdy, I have a 1959 ford F-250

F25J9R14398
118G F25J 03L A06
07400 126 4000

I would be very interested to know what all of those numbers and letters mean!

Thanks

Originally Posted by Stan Balafas

Hey guys, Here's my Fathers 1960 Welding truck, currently under resto-modifcations for Ford registry.

W. "Ted" Barrett (1980-1986).

Regards
StanleY-block

Originally Posted by Cyruscosmo

26 years ago in 1982 I first saw this old Ford trucks nose sticking out of a hedge of black berry vines. I should say I saw an old truck because I had never seen one of these before and did not know it was a Ford. I could make out the cab, windshield and the front of the driver door but the rest looked like a hill of vines. At the time I was into Mustangs and was actually going to a place down the road from where this truck was to pick up some parts for my 1967 Mustang. As I was headed home I stopped and asked the old guy who was out front tending his garden what kind of truck it was, because I was curious. Turns out it was/is a 1959 F100 4X4 and for sale. There was no sign in the window but John smiled and said someone who would give it a good home would wander buy sooner or later.

My little brother Michael was turning 16 this year and wanted a "Big Ford Truck". In his words "I want a truck that looks like a TRUCK not a snotty lil rice burner that can barely haul a skateboard". Oddly he wanted an older truck because he said the new ones all look like they are made of tin foil and have no personality. He said plastic and crome are for toys NOT Trucks

So I get home and grab my other brother James and we head out to look at the old truck and after talking to the guy who's name was John we decide that this might very well be the "Big Truck" that Michael would like. Next on the list was Mom, we brought her out there and found out John was from Iowa where Mom grew up and it took the better part of three hours for the conversation to get back around to the truck. So we decide this will be Michael's 16th birthday present. But when we tried to pay John for the truck he smiled and said giver her a good home. He said he bought the truck from the original owner in Iowa in 1962 about the time I was born just before he moved to Colorado where he worked until he retired and moved to Washington in 1970. The truck was his daily driver until he lost his license in 1978 he could no longer pass the driver tests but was happy playing in his garden. The truck still had it's Colorado plates because he had not driven it much since he retired.

My brother James and I came back the next weekend and cut the black berry vines away from the doors so we could get the cab open. We literally chased the field mice out of the glove box and had a wonderful time persuading the wasps to move to another home. I brought tools a battery 5 gallons of gas and wiring tools. I had no idea if this truck would move or not so I was ready for anything. After hooking up the new battery and filling the fuel bowl with fuel through the breather tube James turned the key and she fired up like the last time she was on the road was yesterday. I about got run over because she was in granny low and the clutch disk was rusted to the flywheel. James got her stopped a few yards out of the vines. I could not believe my ears the idle was spot on. We shut her off and pulled the clutch cover and worked the clutch loose and fired her up again. That’s when we discovered the fuel pump was toast and the line out of the tank under the cab was rusted through. We had a few more lil problems to solve before we got it road ready again but over all she was a beauty.

Michael was in tears he was so happy to see this Huge Truck that was a Ford and a 4X4. The next couple of months were spent getting everything working for the state patrol inspection. Here in Washington if the tabs are out of date longer than 10 years it all has to be run through the system again. In 83 she was back on the road as a daily driver to school for Michael. A few changes over the years saw her get a black mask that Michael and James painted on themselves. The original I6 got changed over to an odd looking V8 with the exhaust running up over the water pump, I thought someone had lost there mind on that one till I seen my first pictures of the Y blocks, go figure.

Michael drove that truck for years from camping trips to a road trip to Northern California. He brought his first child home from the hospital in it and had ALL of his first accidents in it. He would neither confirm nor deny with a huge smile that he and his first girlfriend christened that truck as well. After his second child and buying a new home he parked the old girl for a couple of years. With children to raise and work he needed something a little more practical for kids. In 1995 he decided to restore her to like new condition. He had a shop to keep her in and a lil time here and there to tinker on his 16th birthday present. We got her torn down and started collecting parts needed for the restore. I found a 60 out of California that had a bunch of good parts including an original I6. I traded some work for it and added it to the parts pile. I welded up some rust in the cab and we started putting her back together.

There were many weekends we would talk about old times and what he wanted to do with the truck. What he wanted her to look like which was pretty close to what she was when he first got her. He said he wanted to be 89 years old and driving this old girl just like John. In 1999 Michael died in a car accident. His rear tire blew out on a corner and he lost control of his 96 Dakota. She sat in his shop for another 5 years before I could bring myself to even look at her. Every part cleaned and primed reminded me of my little brother.

3 years ago his wife asked me if I would like to have Michael's old truck. I was not sure I was ready for that but I knew I could finish it for him. So for the last 3 years I have been undoing the damage done for sitting in an unheated shop for 5 years. It was mostly surface rust and mouse holes and the like but she is back on track now.

The frame has been totally blasted primed and painted black. The axles front and back are rebuilt painted black and mounted with new springs, shackles and U bolts. The engine, clutch and transmission are all rebuilt painted and remounted in the frame on new rubber mounts. The transfer case has been rebuilt painted and remounted. The cab is back from Alternative Blasters and in my shop at work waiting for what little rust it has to be fixed. I have the original wiring harness all working and had some wires I added to it and ready to be installed.

I have been taking pictures but have not sorted them as of yet. I am at work now and will post the tag info as soon as I can.

Scott

Originally Posted by Grubbworm

What ever happened to this truck? I, for one, would sure like to see what it ended up looking like. After all, that was a good story. Sorry about your brother though.