Hi all, I'm new here from the wet side of Washington state. Stumbled across the board in an internet search and liked it so much I stuck around.

I have a 84 F350 Crew Cab 4x4 with a 460 matched up to a rebuilt C6. Just finished a Dana 60 SAS up front and have been slowly fixing it up over time. Mechanically, its pretty sound now. Its been lifted about 6" up front (gained 2" with the SAS) and 4" in the rear and rides on 35 x 12.50's. The front half is the original 84 nose, but the bed has been replaced with a 87+ by the PO. Paint is decent and its the same dark green color all around so from 10' it looks fairly decent.

My question: I'm forced to keep this truck a long time (way too much invested now to sell it and get even half out of it) so I want to go all the way and restore it (well, I guess not a restoration since its been modified with the lift and tires, so lets call it a 'restomod').

Anyway, I don't like how the front fender well mis-matches with the rear fenderwell. Yes, I'm picky about weird things, but this really bugs me. The rest of the body lines match up good, and I like the smooth taillights from the newer bed, but the fenderwells between the new bed and the old nose are different shapes, and the 80-86 front fenderwell has that character line crease around the edge of it.

As I see my options:
1. Get a bed and tailgate from an 80-86, and paint it match (or just repaint the entire truck) and put on some Bushwacker Extend a Fender Flares to cover the tires sticking out.
Pros: Looks period correct and matches the front and rear.
Cons: Hard to find good beds that people think aren't worth their weight in gold; time required to swap the bed; must repaint the truck or at least the bed (which could be a Pro except for the added cost and time investment to do it right).

2. Get some Bushwacker Cut out Flares and put them on the front and rear fenders to make them match (putting the cut outs on the front will eliminate the character line crease around the wheel well).
Pros: Will make the front and back match for much less money and time spent
Cons: No rust on the existing fenders so I'm cutting out good sheetmetal which seems counterproductive since it could also cause it to rust more in the future; another con is that the cut out flares may actually make the wheel wells look too large since the truck is already lifted and has plenty of room to clear the 35's. Plus they may stick out too far with my 12.5" wide tires making the truck look kinda goofy.

Knowing that the owner will keep this truck for the next 6+ years at least (and is a picky SOB that can't leave this alone ), what would you do?

Folks with the cut out flares have any good advice? Like them or hate them?

BTW, sorry for making the short story way too long; heck of a way to say "hi".

 

Welcome aboard

Depending on your skill level, you can buy the bed in pieces any number of places, so you could just buy the outer sides of the bed, and cut/past the correct 80-86 portion around your wheel well, while leaving the rest of the bed (including those taillights) alone. Yes, this requires cuting of good sheetmetal, and painting, but it's a doable project for a ambitios owner.

Likewise, like wise, it might not be that hard to find a bed that while not perfect, may be repairable. Like I said, you can buy every piece of the bed. The one on my truck has the end opposite the tailgate (I call it the headboard) damaged, but I can buy that peice of sheetmetal for >$100 and it's a very simple piece to replace and paint...

I know how you feel, but when you have the time and effort invested in something like we do, it's the little things that bug you! It's better to be bugged by mis-matched fenders than by a slipping tranny or a thrown rod

 

like the previos poster said. You can put the older sides on the newer bed(they are the same inner bed anyway, just the tailgate hardware is a lil different) or just get an older bed

 

Could you post some pics of your truck? Or send me some. I'm in a similar boat where I might have to replace the bed but can't find any 80-86 but seems like there is a 87-97 around every corner. I'm not as picky so it might not bother me

Oh and from your write up it sounds like you need to find the period correct bed and just want someone to tell ya that. If you do the Cut outs that could cause other visual problems that you will just have to spend more money on. I personally think cut outs look awesome on a big truck but covering 35's it will probably look silly and you'll have to spend another $1500 on taller and wider tires, and probably new wheels.

 

35s are WAY too small for the cut out flares. I personally would go no smaller than a 37" w/ those. I would find a correct bed if i were you

 

The thought of cutting away good sheet metal would make me lose sleep although I really like the look of bushwackers. The raw exposed edge of the cutaway metal may also present a neat little petri dish for future rust issues. Since you've done so much to the drivetrain , I'd say go with finding the correct bed.
Welcome to the forum btw. Love the mid eighties HD fords and the 460 is a beast as long as you keep it well fed (tethered to an oil well). LOTS of great info here.