Lighten Up!
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Senior User
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 350
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From: Friendswood TX
Lighten Up!
Just a thought - if you were to replace or eliminate parts of your truck to reduce the weight, what would you do and how much weight do you think you could loose? Be creative here! 
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Joined: Apr 2003
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From: Maine
Bolt,
I haven't got a complete weight yet, waiting on my grill surround and bumper to be installed. I removed the heating system, alot of un-needed under hood parts, used a fiberglass hood, removed winshield washer assembly, made aluminum dash and used ultra-lite gauges, manual brakes, aluminum pulleys, replaced the rear bumper with roll-pan, put in racing seats, used ultra torque starter, used aluminum radiator and got rid of a bunch of uneeded parts(and wiring). Unfortunately, I installed a 460 and C-6 and also 325/50-15 drag radials on back which has brought the weight back up but am looking forward to see the final drive weight. Pics in my gallery(I really need to update pics
)
James
I haven't got a complete weight yet, waiting on my grill surround and bumper to be installed. I removed the heating system, alot of un-needed under hood parts, used a fiberglass hood, removed winshield washer assembly, made aluminum dash and used ultra-lite gauges, manual brakes, aluminum pulleys, replaced the rear bumper with roll-pan, put in racing seats, used ultra torque starter, used aluminum radiator and got rid of a bunch of uneeded parts(and wiring). Unfortunately, I installed a 460 and C-6 and also 325/50-15 drag radials on back which has brought the weight back up but am looking forward to see the final drive weight. Pics in my gallery(I really need to update pics
)James
Last edited by mclaughlin31; Jun 16, 2005 at 07:50 PM.
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Joined: Jul 2002
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From: waco
Eric....Please stop the truck before you throw me out!
As far as that 460 adding too much weight. Build a 427 with a 428 crank. Use aluminum heads and intake. Should be just over the weight of a stock small block but it will displace 454 cubic inches. If I ever hit the lottery, that's what my 460's replacement will be. I think you could save about 250 to 300 pounds off of the weight of the 460, and I'd be willing to bet that the FE 454 would stomp a huge mud hole in the General's 454. 427 with a 428 crank may seem kind of out there...but you said be creative.
Doc
As far as that 460 adding too much weight. Build a 427 with a 428 crank. Use aluminum heads and intake. Should be just over the weight of a stock small block but it will displace 454 cubic inches. If I ever hit the lottery, that's what my 460's replacement will be. I think you could save about 250 to 300 pounds off of the weight of the 460, and I'd be willing to bet that the FE 454 would stomp a huge mud hole in the General's 454. 427 with a 428 crank may seem kind of out there...but you said be creative.
Doc
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Joined: Apr 2003
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From: Virginia Beach
Junk the frame and build a honey combed graphite-composite sub frame structure, or aluminum if your not feeling that rich. And dump the bed, and mid mount the engine to keep some weight over the rear wheels for traction. Dump the stock fuel tank and system and install an aluminum fuel cell. Go for forged aluminum rims. Lose all your glass, mirrors, door locks, hood latch. Install pins to keep everything closed. Remove your carpet, seat belts. Lose all your lights and wiring. Go with an all aluminum after-market block. Lose the passenger seat. Lose the sway bars if you have them. Fiberglass front end. strip the paint off, scrub the bird poop off. . . I think thats it 
EDIT: Remove the battery after you start it
EDIT: Remove the battery after you start it
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Joined: Feb 2004
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From: e-burg
well easier than all that u can get a fiberglass body from usbody i think it is. lot of work but it is doable. also drop the gas tank and put a aluminum cell inside ur box alluminum every thing else yeah that would do it
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Senior User
Joined: Sep 2001
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From: Friendswood TX
First one to loose 500 lbs., let us know what it does for swuftness and MPG! You guys crack me up! I have a 390, wish I had the Al heads and intake, tube headers, Al tube exhaust, SuperTrapp tip mufflers, fiberglass front bumper, lots less interior, Al wheels, etc. 11 MPG bites!
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From: UTI student
Ummm.....I removed the utility bed with lumber rack and have just the frame. I have all alum. upper half on the motor. I stripped everything that wasn't deemed required out of the truck's engine compartment. I have an 76 F250 4x4 with the 390/c6. I bounce toooo much to take advantage of the weight loss. Absolutly NO traction when the truck finally takes off. I also run 38x15.50x16.5 tires with steel wheels. Don't really know how much weight I lost but I would guess about 400 pounds after adding the weight of the larger tires back on.
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Joined: Mar 2003
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From: Rancho Cucamonga, CA
The weight reduction starts with the stomach Lay off the burgers
for absolute serious weight reduction and money was not a concern, you could use the US bodies fiberglass front clip and cab and replace the windows with lexan. That alone would probably take off 500 pounds. use dynatrack pro-rock 60's front and rear, disc brakes, fiberglass bedsides, aluminum wheels with custom cut SS boggers around 36" tall, carbon fiber racing seats, aluminum dash, Dyna Batt battery. How about using a Mazda Rotary engine (weighs only about 172 pounds) coupled to an Atlas II transfercase with aluminum driveshafts, aluminum radiator, aluminum fuel cell, Replace the frame with 1.5 tubing with an integrated rollcage. Three link suspension front and rear supported by fox airshox. It'll probably be light enough so that three people could pick up one end of the truck, and light enough where that mazda engine would give the same performance as a 390 on a regular truck. Though once you've gone this far, the shape of the front clip and cab will have too much aerodymanic drag, so you'll ditch that too, and basicaly you'll have something that wont resemble a ford truck anymore.
probably looking at $40-60,000 for a project like that.
Amazing how much more you pay for less
Lay off the burgersfor absolute serious weight reduction and money was not a concern, you could use the US bodies fiberglass front clip and cab and replace the windows with lexan. That alone would probably take off 500 pounds. use dynatrack pro-rock 60's front and rear, disc brakes, fiberglass bedsides, aluminum wheels with custom cut SS boggers around 36" tall, carbon fiber racing seats, aluminum dash, Dyna Batt battery. How about using a Mazda Rotary engine (weighs only about 172 pounds) coupled to an Atlas II transfercase with aluminum driveshafts, aluminum radiator, aluminum fuel cell, Replace the frame with 1.5 tubing with an integrated rollcage. Three link suspension front and rear supported by fox airshox. It'll probably be light enough so that three people could pick up one end of the truck, and light enough where that mazda engine would give the same performance as a 390 on a regular truck. Though once you've gone this far, the shape of the front clip and cab will have too much aerodymanic drag, so you'll ditch that too, and basicaly you'll have something that wont resemble a ford truck anymore.
probably looking at $40-60,000 for a project like that.
Amazing how much more you pay for less
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Joined: Aug 2004
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Originally Posted by DailyDriver
Put a camper shell on the back, seal it off completly, and fill with helium. 
People always comment on the numerous rust holes on my truck, i call it cheap weight reduction. If I need to lose a few extra pounds, I smack the bed with my hand and a few layers of rust falls off and BAM, there is the weight i needed.
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Joined: Jan 2008
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I've tried the helium under the topper.
Unfortunately constantly opening the rear door to throw more weight in seems to happen a lot.
I decided to just go with more HP & Torque
Besides, the Munchkin sound gets annoying after a while
Unfortunately constantly opening the rear door to throw more weight in seems to happen a lot.
I decided to just go with more HP & Torque
Besides, the Munchkin sound gets annoying after a while
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From: Louisville,Ky.
Aluminum engine parts such as intake, pullies, water pump etc. Headers instead of manifolds, fiberglass hood, alumium wheels, and possibly a coil over type front suspension will shed quite a few pounds. I believe that am 8.8 rearend from a late 80's-up is also lighter than a 9".
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