i'm starting a restoration on a 79 f 150, but i don't know how to remove the large trim that runs the length of the truck. Do i need a special tool?

 

the trim mounts on plastic tabs w/slide groves that are held onto the truck by little nubs. Sometimes sliding the trim to move the plastic slot will work, other times pull/pry gently..

 

You can only push it one way for it to come off, and I've seen it both ways. The only way I've got them off was pulling, but you might brake the plastic peices.

Oh and the trim is the same on all 73-79 trucks just to say.

 

On some pieces there is at least one screw + the little nubs. You can usually access the bolts somewhere from the backside. I.E. on my '73 the front upper moulding has a nut on the front and rear, and the remaining are the slide type. Same thing for the door. The rear moulding on my 8' bed, I think has one nut above the wheel well and the the others are all the little nubs, with the exceptions of the visible exterior screws.

 

You can see the exact locations and types of all the clips from Dennis Carpenter's 73-79 Ford catalog. You can order or download pdf from there website.