that sounds like the road im gonna take, im gonna start by stripping the truck, saving any useable interior pieces and replaceable things I.E. doors, glass, lights, etc. then im gonna take off the cab, remove the motor, tranny,tcase, and sand blast the crap outta it, then coat my frame with bedliner and buy a polyeurothane bushing kit, and go to town!!!rebuild the motor(not that it needs it) and replace the Tcase with a 205 and replace my reg cab with a supercab, build a custom flatbed designed for offroading and hauling dirtbikes, im even thinkin of running 4link front and rear and useing airbags off a diesel rig, provided i hook up a compressor of some sort.i think those bags would give me about 12"s of lift and a smoother ride + alot more articlation......if it dont work out ill just brake down and get the 4" skyjackers all around........im also gonna put a receiver hitch on the back AND on the front and get the kind of winch that has the connection to slide in the receiver, that way i only have to buy one winch, and i can use it on front or back.....sounds good anyways.........

SwOkcOffRoader

1976 F-150 460 780cfm 4bbl holley- Hot Röd
1978 F-250 Snow Fighter 1 ton 4X4 35 inch tires
351m 500cfm 2bbl holley- Big Daddy
1978 Ford B-700 Bus 389 4bbl holley 10 speed

 

Ivan could you check for me. I'm curious as to why my truck has this high a GVW. i've noticed most are 8100. Did my truck get ordered with a certain option that lets it have a higher GVW? i'm curious now. My brains starvin now. lol. >
-Aaron

 

GVWR wise his is 8100 because it's a "normal" truck, yours is 8400 since you have a camper special, and Ivan's is 8600 since it's a supercab.

Some things ford did we may never understand, like how my '85 F-150 has a higher GVWR than an F250 of the same year. Base f-250's were around 6400 (don't remember the exact number) but my 150 had one 100 lbs higher.

Justin

 

Mine is actually 8500. Don't know where I came up with 8100 or 8600. It's a camper special as well.

Off topic slightly, is there a way to have your trucks GVW legally changed? If I could find a way to have it rated 10001 pounds I could go higher and do other stupid stuff with it.

 

You cannot get your GVRW legally changed, but you can get your GCVRW (trailer+vehicle) changed. Just depends on how much you wanna spend on license plates. I have 6,000 lb GCVRW plates on my truck so -technically- if i load my truck to payload i'm breaking the law. My neighbor has a 1ton GM that he has 18,000 lb plates on so he can legally tow just about anything he wants, but the plates cost about 4x as much per year (in Missouri).

Justin

 

I wonder if it's listed on the registration or just on the door tag. Mwahahaha! I have never seen anything in Washington's books regarding trailer weight, not that I've looked hard.

 

it's probably on your registration, should list something along the lines of 3 ton, here in Iowa all regular pickups are lic 3 ton, funny thing is my F250 weighs 7000 empty so I am legally overwieght to start with before I even get into the cab. but I did have a 81 1ton lic for 13 ton but instead of costing $35 for plates it cost $600, but I also used that truck in a haul for hire business.

 

Here's my "probably won't work" theory. I don't believe it says my GVW or GVWR anywhere on my registration. I looked all over and couldn't find it, just a tow rating (I'm drunk though so maybe I just missed it). IF this is the case then the only think on the truck that lists the GVW is the tag on the door. If I could get a tag from a 78 F350 that shows a GVW of over 10,000 then how would a stater argue with that? The tag does not show a vehicle model, just the year, warranty code, and GVW. If this all works out it could be the legal loophole I've been looking for. Anything over 10K is no longer considered a "special vehicle" and is not held to all the goofy laws. I'm still required to have flaps and flares but I don't believe there's any height requirements for bumpers which has always been the major issue. I'll have to double check that with the staters tomorrow though. Hmm . . . what to do what to do.

 

Issue is your VIN is on that door tag and on your registration. Now if you got a 10K+ door tag w/matching title you'd be in business. Any '70's dumps use the same doors as your truck?

What about a 350 dually, is one of those 10K?

You'd be running some legal tight ropes, but once you got it registered all would be good.

Also remember that the national headlight limit for ANY road going vehicle is 54". Doesn't mean you can't hang a set below your bumper, but keep it in mind.

Justin

 

I don't believe the VIN is on that tag, unless it's the same as the warranty number but I think they're completely different codes. I'll have to check tomorrow when there's some light. For trucks less than 10 years old there's some kind of easy way to look up the GVW but with these old beasts I don't think that's the case. IF it's not tied into the VIN somehow and Trooper Bob looks at my tag and sees it rated at 11,000 pounds what can he do? I'm pretty sure there's got to be a way to make it happen. I just need to double check that a GVW over 10K is going to give me the freedom I think it will. Otherwise it wouldn't be worth the hassle.

 

until the early '80s (82?) 17 digit VIN's as we know them didn't exist. Your warranty number is your registration number and you'd need teh title to match.

Justin

 

I don't think i have a Camper Special. I think it was Denis that told me i have a Trailer Special. How would i know which one i have? my neighbor is the son of the original owner and he's the only one that knows anything about it as his father is dead. My build sheet says this:
F26- F250 Ranger Explorer
H- 351" 2V 8 Cylinder Engine
R- San Jose Assembly Plant
CA7240 Consecutive Unit Number
133" Wheelbase
White Exterior Paint
Styleside Pickup Bed
Broad Cloth and Vinyl Bench Seat Red in color(i don't have Vinyl on it though)
Ammeter and Oil Gauge
Exterior Sound Package
Automatic Transmission
4.10 Limited Slip Rear Axle
4500# Front Axle
9.50 x 16.5/D B/S/W Tires
AM Radio
All Around Tinted Glass
70 Amp Alternator
Extra Cool Radiator
Heavy Duty 68 Amp Battery

Hopefully you can figure this out from the build sheet. The son of the Original owner, Myron, told me it was either a trailer special or a camper special. he couldn't remember. It's a 4wd Explorer. i was told not as many 4wd's were made as 2wd's. See signature for description of drivetrain.
-Aaron

 

You said it was a trailer special, so i figured you meant camper special. That added to the increased GVRW over a normal F250 and the explorer package all add up to you having a Camper Special. Most (all?) explorers are camper specials, it's just a set of packages that basically go hand and hand.

Justin

 

Allright, details. The camper special got you the 70 amp battery, oil pressure gauge, ammeter, dual horn, big sideview mirrors, a bigger radiator, and some other detail stuff.

Can't remember what exactly explorer got you, but it was another comfort package.

Justin

 

Justin, off topic but I'll be in St Louis the beginning of February. You gonna be around? I'd like to check out your truck. And, of course, I plan to visit Bigfoot.