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Dec 7, 2004 | 11:04 AM

SaroDude

Thread Starter

New User

Joined: Dec 2004

Posts: 5

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Newbie seeking General Reference

I'm on the verge of picking up a 56 F100 in need of a good home. :-) Instead of innundating everyone with silly questions, I was wondering if there's a good source where I can easily look up things like parts interchangeability and changes throughout the years. I just need to get a RAPID clue.

-Saro

Dec 7, 2004 | 12:06 PM

himmelberg

Posting Guru

Joined: Jan 2002

Posts: 1,002

Likes: 2

From: Midland, Texas

Saro... We like silly quesions. We deal with them best. We are dealing with trucks that are around a half century old or older. Wide variations occur due to changes and updates based on who and how many previous owners the truck has had. For general information you might browse this entire site... look at pictures, do a search or two with some of your questions. Not much new happens here, almost everything has been discussed to some extent. The beauty of adding new members to the mix is to get more and different takes on any given subject.

John Mummert's site has a bunch of info on parts interchangeability and other tech, but, I still get all my info right here from these guys. They wrote the book.

Welcome, himmelberg

Dec 7, 2004 | 12:46 PM

55Bubba

Senior User

Joined: Oct 2003

Posts: 317

Likes: 1

From: Lancaster SC ,

Himmelberg is correct about this being the best source of ideas. First..Buy a shop manual. It will show you the way Henry first built it. Second... buy a parts interchange book. Third..secure several vendors manuals. You'll get an idea of parts cost and sometimes there are exploded picures showing how things fit together. Post here often. Listen to the masters. Post pictures. Refer to tech articles. Go to Earl and 56 Bigwin's pages. Ask questions.

Welcome to our electronic watercooler

Bubba

Dec 7, 2004 | 04:20 PM

jvmcc

Laughing Gas

Joined: Jun 2004

Posts: 823

Likes: 4

From: Calais, Vermont

Welcome to this corner of FTE.

With a '56, you'll probably be visiting here alot. Make sure that you check out some of the other sub-forums. Paint and Bodywork as well as Inline Six have been very helpful to me during the course of my '53 F-100 project. As far as reference resources, you should check out Kevin's (AKA Fat Fendered Ford) '53 F-100 restoration website. He's done alot of research into these old trucks, and his site includes links to various vendors.

Dec 7, 2004 | 07:35 PM

56 Effie Aurea

Senior User

Joined: Oct 2004

Posts: 221

Likes: 0

From: Michigan

Welcome Saro

...good bunch here...they know their trucks. As a 56 owner myself I can tell you there is more stuff available for that year than darn near any vehicle ever made. It is now possible to build a 56 F-100 from scratch with 100% aftermarket items! You're in for some fun, son.
Norb

Dec 8, 2004 | 09:11 AM

bradoemba

Senior User

Joined: Nov 2004

Posts: 115

Likes: 0

There's a great book on modifying 55-57 Chevy trucks with all the usual mods - PS, brakes, IFS, gas tanks, etc, etc. A lot of this applies to Fords, but I too am looking for something like this to help with my 54. Any specific books/manuals you guys recommend?

Dec 8, 2004 | 09:51 AM

SaroDude

Thread Starter

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Joined: Dec 2004

Posts: 5

Likes: 0

Hey,

Thanks everyone for the WAY warm welcome! This has to be one of the friendliest forums I've come across.

I've been scouring about for the relevant info since before I made my initial post. Found some online parts sources and such. Took a gander at some of the FTE member sites. Looked up the vehicle value in a price guide.

I'm probably gonna make an offer on this truck by week's end. What should I look for as typical trouble spots? Where do these guys typically rust? Are there common problems like deteriorated shock mounts, worn steering, or ??? Where should I check for what matching #s?

We're still debating what direction to go with this thing.....

-Saro

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Dec 8, 2004 | 01:31 PM

jvmcc

Laughing Gas

Joined: Jun 2004

Posts: 823

Likes: 4

From: Calais, Vermont

Quote:

Originally Posted by SaroDude

What should I look for as typical trouble spots? Where do these guys typically rust? -Saro

Rust: look at any place where there's a metal to metal bolted connection, esp. runningboards to fenders, inner fenders to outer fenders close to the cab . Also at pockets that might collect dirt and moisture such as lower front cowl sections and lower rear cab corners, and at the bottom of the doors. Check out floor sections esp. where the firewall joins the floor and the rocker panels. On the earlier F-100s many trucks rusted where the roof skin meets the cab sheet metal at the top of the windshield. This can be one of the bigger problems in as much as off-the-shelf patch panels for this fix don't seem to exist. Lastly, check for rust at the frontmost sheet metal on the underside of the hood and a similar spot on the front fenders (where metal to metal joins at acute angles.) Most of the product catalogs for parts for these old trucks sell patch panels to repair the most common rust areas. I've learned that frame cracks are usually only made obvious after a thorough sandblasting. I don't know if you'd be able to detect any just by crawling underneath and looking. Enjoy.