Well i finaly got around to doing this, for a while now i wanted to make a build thread here so i can get help and tips as i am doing work on my truck. well a little bit of background on the truck, it is a..
1978 F-150 ranger 2 wheel drive.
3 speed with over drive reverse is all the way left and up.(Can anyone tell me what type it is? there will be pictures here.
And the power plant is a 300Ci strait 6.
blown clutch power brakes that dont work, power steering that does.

Here is a picture when i first bought the truck from a nice farmer it was used as a farm truck to go back and forth to market.

By freakboy100101 at 2009-12-17
that one was taken early morning because i was so excited to get pictures. lol

Later that day when i put the battery charger on and started working on the engine!

By freakboy100101 at 2009-12-17
The engine a freind of mine cleaned it up since the picture was taken.

By freakboy100101 at 2009-12-17
When working on the engine i saw writing were i never seen writing before.. well turns out the previous owner killed the radiator some how and now there is a smaller one in there and its held on with a absolutly no smoking sign...

By freakboy100101 at 2009-12-17
I riped up the floor mat and padding and newspaper that was under there??? dont know why but there was and this is what i found
Driver side

By Freakboy100101 at 2009-12-17
passenger side
i got a 9.5 boot...

By freakboy100101 at 2009-12-17
and another shot

By freakboy100101 at 2009-12-17
interior shot before i riped the mat up.

By freakboy100101 at 2009-12-17

By freakboy100101 at 2009-12-17
transmission cover removed.
anyone tell me what tranny that is?


Thats all i have for pictures so far.
Work done since the pictures were taken...
Changed oil
Changed spark plugs
Compression test
Fuel filter change bolth filters
Oil filter change
Fuel pump change and she ran like the beast she is..
I got compression test numbers here.
Compression
Cyl 1. 138-140 Psi
Cyl 2. 125 Psi
Cyl 3. 120 Psi
Cyl 4. 130 Psi
Cyl 5. 50 Psi
Cyl 6. 140 Psi
Ill be dumping some oil down in cyl number 5 and see if the compression goes up if not its a valve problem which i would rather do then rings...

I also ordered floor pans from Lmc truck last saturday and they came in today... nothing special tiwanese stuff.

 

good write up so far. are you taking it off the frame for the resto?

 

Thanks,
Yes i am Total strip down and build up. so any tips on what im doing feel free to tell me.

Also i forgot to mention but since the photos were taken both fenders are off the grill and the outter grill are off.

 

I am in the middle of a resto as well but a 4x4. just wondering what condition your frame will be in with that much rot in the floorboard. Mine wasnt in great condition so there will be some welding

 

From what i could see under the truck its in good condition. Tomorrow if i remember and its not to cold outside ill crawl under the truck and take pictures of the frame and inspect it. Also were do you live because you might get stuff that rots more then it would in pa.

 

I thought that was a Pa inspection sticker I saw on it. How many miles are on the clock? Also what is that guage on the left side of the dash? One more, what part of Pa are you in?

Good luck with your journey, it will be a fun build, you will see!!

 

Yeah there pa inspection stickers the one on the doors are farm tags.
The gauge all the way to the left is acctualy a tach the previous owner put in. also there is a wire going through the cab to the roof for a cb.
and im from york by the susquhanna river.
And im guessing it has 175,000 cause right now it says 7500

 

I live in illinois

 

looks kina like the floor boards on my truck. Im restoring my 82 f150 4x4 and the previouse owner rivited aluminum over the holes and filled it with great stuf(looks like garbage). My frame isnt bad, just the body. Good luck with your rebuild and looking forward for more pics.

 

Does anyone know a good way to make trim look better? do i just have to polish it or is there some easyer way?

 

I polished the trim on my boat with mothers aluminum polish and a dremel

 

Alright cool thanks! also how do i remove the trim? do i just pull or pry with something i dont feel like buying new...

 

looks like a good project truck
my 87 f150s floor looks just like that but my pass side rocker panel is about to fall off

 

well that's how my truck was in the start back in Sept 2007, Fred Flintstone would be proud of these holes in the floor! lol lol yabba dabba do!

but now i got a new floor pan for the drivers side, luckily the passenger side was fine, i guess it was due to the fact previous owners must not have had passengers very often (dang wet winter boots drag water and salt into the cab and onto the floor!, more often than not the floor rusts from the inside out! under the carpet)

also replaced both front cab mounts on my truck, as both could have been left, but the rust was starting to make some holes on the bottom, as they will actually hold water! and salt!

anyways if you look at my signature, it will take you to my trucks video on Youtube,

also Freakboy it looks like you got some work ahead of you, but i am sure it will look really great once its done!

-Brent

 

I have been polishing chrome for two months now and the best method to restore faded chrome that I have discovered is the following.
Use 2000 grit sand paper first to remove the real nasty stuff.
Next, locate a chrome shop. Most big truck stops off interstates have them. You will need one bar of the green ($7.95) one bar of the white ($7.95) polish. You will also need a Red (14.95) Polishing wheel and a yellow (14.95) polishing wheel. They will fit a hand or bench grinder.
Use the green bar with the red wheel and the white bar with the yellow wheel.
Like SNSTER I also used a dremmel but only in the hard to reach places. Using the polishing wheels will go a LOT faster on the bigger strips.
The process is sand paper first, green bar next, white bar last. If you take you time it will shin like a mirror.