Who's hating on you? I'm right with ya. Pay the mechanic to do the part you're not sure about on anything that you need to drive. Mine is a toy, so I just get to play with it when I'm in the mood...if I leave it disabled for two or three days, who cares?
You said that you need yours to get to work and such. You made the right call.

 

Nobody is frowning on you. If I'm "ify" on something it goes to my mechanic. I usually break more stuff than I fix!

 

If you don't feel comfortable doing the job, don't. It's more foolish to get over ambitious and tear up more stuff, then to know what you are capable of. Believe me, every time I do something to mine, it turns in to a bigger project than I thought it would. It stays in pieces longer than it should. I always hear that nagging voice in the back of my head-- bit off more than you could chew didn't you or I bet you pay someone to do it next time. No wait, that's my ole lady nagging. The voice in my head is going, If she doesn't shut... Good luck either way.
Mike

 

In the years I have had my trucks I have often started a project and then thought, what the hell am I doing ??!! (installing overloads on a 74 F350 SC comes to mind.. the plywood under the jack stands started sinking into the driveway in the heat...) I have learned that there are projects that I just cant' do and that's why there are professionals out there.. Don't sweat it, pay the man and enjoy your truck! Keep asking questions!
Dak

 

As a newer member here let me give you some advice... try not to overreact; and sometimes you gotta shrug off what others might think of you. Although generally most on here are more than willing to bend over backwards helping you out, some folks just have negative attitudes about evething and you dont want to encourage or envite them to comment. Anyways... I dont see anyone here who thinks the less of you for not wanting to attempt something yourself, alot of folks here in your shoes would have done the same thing. Good luck on the project, hopefully you'll get it fixed up without problem.

 

Originally Posted by rarferd
i realize that everybody hates me now.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now why would you think that

 

Never in a million years would i have imagined that a bunch of guys that get together to talk about pickup trucks would be so ...
... I am blown away by these letters of support for my situation. This is no joke here, because , somehow , my relationship to my car has always been a microcosm of my life , and in this particular moment in my life, things have been a little difficult - to say the least. The thing is this. I am an extremely emotional person and about two years ago i junked my '67 f 250. That truck was my heart and soul (and again, my main means of transportation), it killed me to let it go and seriously, i cannot go into the reasons why i did junk it for fear that anyone might tell me that the problem really wasn't that big and that i could have fixed it. So, here i am again with another old ford, my only way to get around, and once again i shall live with the prospect of needing to do extensive searches in order to find vital parts and i must learn to come to grips with what i can repair on my own and when i must relinquish the task to a professional. That is where the feedback of this forum has been indispensible.
I will be forever gratefull to all of you who have gone above and beyond the call of duty - when all that i expected to find here was some good technical advice.
Thank you tcbofade, thank you draglink, thank you hogworkzinc, thank you dakonthemountain, thank you 78bigbronco and thank you Mil1ion.

sincerely, rarferd

 

I'd also thank to thank everyone who gave me very helpful advice in the beginning of my shifter adventure, all of the feedback my me feel a whole lot less alone.
I am very thankfull and looking forward to being able to return the favor.

 

No sweat...come to the state wide meet in August and let us SEE!!! Mine is a um....work in progress as well.

 

So I'm guessing the shifter is installed now?

I have one in my '78 and I think it's too short. I've been trying to think of something cool to use for a shift lever extention...

 

It's installed now, and it sure is shifting great. Now it's time to diagnose some less urgent problems.
#1 : when the engine is cold, the truck starts right up, but after the engine warms up, the only way to get it running is to allow it to turn over for quite a long time and then press the accelerator to the floor.
#2 : can i get simple a new buckle for the seatbelt or do i have to purchase an entire seatbelt ? The locking mechanism inside the buckle will not retain the corresponding tongue ...

 

Glad you got shifter installed. Don't worry about having to take it to a mechanic. The shifter instructions are somehwat vague if you never did it before. Took me awhile to install my first shifter. Everyone is very helpful on this site and everyone has a vast amount of knowledge on these trucks. It's great how everyone has an answer for just about every question you can think of.

#1: You might want to check the timing on your truck. Do you have a repair manual? That will help you to be able to tackle alot of jobs yourself. Even if you are not working on the truck I've found it helpful to just read through the repair book and try to get an idea of how to replace the parts and all.