OK so a friends dad might be willing to sell his 1949 F-3 or F-4. The story on the truck is that it was restored in the 80's to original condition, and in the early 90's hit a moose/deer which messed up the front end (hood, grill, fenders) and the truck has been parked since, I am told that it has the original flathead V8 and it comes with another complete clip and rolling chassis for parts.

I am hoping to get out in the next few days to check it out and was wondering if there are any problem areas I should look at, I have read about the bottom of the door frame and where the fender and running board meet so I will check out those areas aswell as the floors and frame but what else should I look for? I will also try to get the vin plate info to decipher.

I have to say that the 48-50 body style is my absolute favorite and this truck could be had for what I believe to be an excellent price, which is why I need you guys to help keep me from buying a junker just because its my dream truck (A bit of an impulse buyer i must confess)

Thanks
Scott

 

The vin on the 48-early 51's don't tell you much. Pretty much truck size, engine and year. F-3's were mostly pickups with 17" tires. F-4 trucks were dual rear wheels and a platform or stake body, 20" tires. It's harder to find a tire shop who will mess with these early split rims. If you get a good front clip with the deal, that's great! These trucks rust up in front by the bumper notches in the lower fenders, where the upper and lower sections meet, where the runningboard bolts to the fender. Also check the bottoms of the doors and cab floor. THe cab corners also get small holes on the curved corners. Being a larger truck, they may be in good condition. Make sure the antifreeze is good and there. Check the oil to make sure it's not milky with coolant in it. Look over the wiring for general condition, The old stuff was cotton covered and fell apart easily. You can get repo harnesses now for them. JUst go over the truck to see what's wrong or needs attention, weigh it against the price and how much you can do to repair it. The more you can do, the cheaper it is. THey make alot of repo parts for these and there's plenty of used stuff out there. NAPA can get alot of the mechanical parts still. If the price is right, and you think it's what you want, go for it!

Barry

50 F-1

 

Hey Barry
Who makes the Repro wiring harness?

 

I know that Sacramento Vintage Ford that repro wiring harnesses for sale. Other vendors might have it as well. I have a Sacto Vintage Ford wiring harness in my '52 and it looks good.

Ilya

 

I think most dealers have them. Mac's, Dennis Carpenter, Concourse parts, Sacremento Vintage, Rhode Island wiring and others that escape me. Some of them have internet sites, so you can browse the catalogs on line.

Barry

50 F-1

 

Scott There is a lot of knowledge in this Forum that you can take advantage of should you decide to buy and restore that '49'. My experience has been that when you make an estimate of cost for restoring, multiply it by 10 to come up with what it will probably cost you.
Newt

 

Thanks for the help guys, gave me some things to think about. Going by what barry said i'm guessing its an F3 since it has a box on it.

1949fordf3 I know what you mean about restoration cost, the time it takes is usually 10 times longer than expected aswell. Ive been working on my t-bird for what seems like forever. I hope my zephyr (far right) will go smoother and quicker but you know how that goes then toss in a truck after that and a couple bikes in between and you start to understand why i'm always broke

 

C. Newton and Scott,

The 49 sounds like it would be an interesting project - especially since it sounds like some work has been done already.

As far as the cost goes, I think you are both pretty close with the factor of ten multiplier. I estimate time using a factor of three and the next larger unit. So if I say "Hmmm, this should take about an hour.", I multiply by three (three hours) and use the next larger unit (three days). Two days ends up being six weeks. Seems to work out pretty well for me, I'm embarrassed to say.