Hi all.

Just purchased a 51 F1. She's rough, real rough. Gauges, Flathead, 3 speed, 3.92 rear, all original and all intact. Functional is another guess....

I'm going the rod direction, including a 3 inch or so chop, MII IFS with 03, 04 Cobra / MArk VIII IRS, 351W, T-5, etc....so if you need flathead / interior / driveline parts, drop me a line. Most if not all will be for sale at some point.

I'm may need some fenders, as a few of them are pretty far gone. I'm also looking for a sandblasting shop near me (Philly PA) to handle the chore of blasting the frame, bed, cab, grill, etc. Any ideas?

My fiance was in shock when I pushed it off the trailer. "You bought What!?!?", "You know we have a wedding to pay for???"

My cousin had a 48 back when I was a kid, and since then I've been in love with those years. When the oportunity presented itself, who was I to deny fate???



Project Silver Bullet has begun.

 

Welcome to the forum Noob! We're a real close bunch here. In fact we exchange Christmas gifts. You better hurry because there isn't much time. But shopping will be easy because we all like truck gifts!

Post PICs of the creampuff when you have a chance.

 

Welcome to The FTE Forum!

I like your style. Your project sounds like a lot of fun and a great start. I'm a rodder too. The members here refer to rodding as "The dark side". There are some real experts here with a lot of invaluable experience and advice. Some of them are hard core restorationists.

No doubt the fiance will come around in time - either to full support - or full coexistence with the Silver Bullet. My wife was the craziest just before our wedding. She explained to me that a woman spends her entire life dreaming about the wedding she will have. It's a girl thing, I guess. I just did a lot of "yes, dear" and hugs. She got thru it just fine.

When I negotiated the purchase of the truck, I explained to her that a guy spends his whole life dreaming about the hot rod he will have. It's a guy thing.
Many years later, she's glad I go to the garage so often. And she gets a big kick out of driving around in the truck.

Good Luck. Please keep your gallery updated with photos of your progress. We all like to share those.

 

Just remember. "Yes Dear" All you really need to know or want to know about the wedding is when and where. Let the women run with it. Just go out and work on hte new truck. Much safer and smoother than trying to be a part of wedding plans!!

 

Didn't you explain to your fiance how you can pay for the truck by selling the parts you don't need?

I just got back to WI from a big job out in Philly. I've got a lot of things scheduled out there next year too. I don't mind making a stop or two along the way to deliver a truck part to a fellow enthusiast. Might be something there I can use. I'll send you an Email when I'm headed back that way.

 

Noob,

Welcome the the dark side! I don't know why they call it that. To me rodding is the "enlightened" side...

Vern

 

Welcome to the coocoo's nest. My thought...You can always find another fiance, hell, there are millions of eligible women out there but there are only so many 51's. If you will advise her of that fact, I'm sure that by the time you wake up and the knot goes down on your head, the wedding will probably just about be here ! PS the dark oversized sunglasses the senior citizens use will just about cover those black eyes .


Come back often but beware the pull of the darkside Luke. May the farce be with you.

Bubba

 

Welcome to the fourm, I also am on the darkside, and love it !!!
As for the fiance: No worry ! My wife of 24 yrs, asked which I liked better her or my truck? So I explained to that that really wasn’t a fair question since I’ve only had the truck 2yrs, and really haven’t had the time to get to know the truck as well.
I belive she understands now.
Mike

 

Thanks to all!

Great advice for the home front.

When she asked why I bought it, I said "because I always wanted one, and we aren't married yet".

It's all good. She's cool with it. She is NOT, however, a student of the Darkside, like me. She want's it to look more like an original truck. There in lies the potential problem....

 

welcome and right on with the rod style, my motto is why having it stock when you can have orignal and cool? im working a 52 f2 semi rat style with a 4'' chop and so on.. i'll on the look out for some photos of yours!

 

Always best to ask for forgiveness rather than permission. How else would we ever get our trucks built? Good luck with your little project!

 

Do a resto rod! Chop the top but replace the emblems add a chrome bumper leave on the running boards. Comprimise is the first lesson of mariage! Let her pick out the paint or interior color. If she picks something hideous suggest using it as a trim color instead, or just give her a bunch of chips of colors you can live with to pick from. Get her involved by taking her to some shows for "research", find some couples to talk to, when she gets to meet some women enthusiasts and sees how much fun they are having you just might find her out in the garage with you. Explain to her that it's MUCH better for your relationship that you are spending money on the truck and spending your "guy" time in the garage instead of being out at a club sticking dollars in garters.
I've been a jeweler for 30 years and I can tell you that women start going freak-out the closer it gets to the wedding, the mood swings are much worse than PMS X 10, so be tollerent and find a safe place to hide! The wedding is for her, the honeymoon is for you!

 

"Compromise is the first lesson of marriage!"

Them are words O wisdom. I found that years 2 through 20 were the tough years. Get through them you got it whipped. If you haven't done it already, right about now is probably a good time to find out if you two are good at conflict resolution.

I remember telling the pastor right before "showtime" that if I could just get through this ceremony, I would have it made. He probably recognized it as the most absurd statement he had heard that day, and I believe that may have been what prompted the "compromise" portion of my wedding ceremony.

As AX suggests, including her in the truck project in someway is good strategy. Picking colors is nice. Get her to lay her own hands on the truck and she's in trouble. I talked my wife into learning how to do sculptured upholstery. She's about sick of my truck right now. But everytime someone asks what interior shop did those cool doorpanels, she knows the compliment is for her. It does help. And did I mention we upgraded her diamond the same week I brought the project home? AX has just got this happy woman stuff covered from every angle don't he.

 

Just to clear my reputation a bit, this wife stuff has turned to the serious side; my previous post was with lighthearted intent.
Family is # 1 and my beautiful wife tops the list, as I said we’ve been married 23 years, been together since she was 15yrs and I was 16 all thur High school.
My true feeling are without her not much would be wroth doing, so without her support and understanding the old truck just wouldn’t Be.
Just didn’t want you guys to think that I was a jerk to my wife.
Merry Christmas
Mike

 

I too like to see these effie trucks looking mostly stock. My 54, or I should say, "the wife's 54" is mostly stock in appearance until you raise the hood. Then you can see the massive 289 with c-4, Hot Rod Air, power brakes, power steering, and SS inner fender wells.

I also like seeing all the Ford emblems proudly displayed. Welcome aboard and I look forward to lots of progress pictures in your gallery. We're all just a bunch of voyeurs, so make sure that your shots don't show anything embarrassing in the background! Merry Christmas, John