'51 Fresh air duct /tube system vs '52 system .The not yet restored rusty parts are from a '51 along with the longer air intake duct .The short air intake duct and the media blasted , epoxy primed ,gloss black tubes are from a '52 . Parts are not interchangeable . Curiosity https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/p...971675&thumb=1got the best of me .

 

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/p...971604&thumb=1

 

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/p...971604&thumb=1

 

Looking good! When will they be ready for sale and how much?

However, you posted a link to the thumbnail picture. Try opening the thumbnail, then right click and select Properties. In the Properties pop-up box highlight the URL address and then hit CTRL+C to copy. After you've done that, go into the message and click the yellow icon with (what look to be) mountains. That'll pop open another window. In that window box hit CTRL+V to paste the URL address of your picture and hit OK. Your picture should then appear in the body of the message post.







'51 intermidiate on bottom = '52 on top .


'51 kick panel tube on top = '52 on bottom


'51 intake duct on left = '52 on right


I just wonder why FORD made them different between the two years...??? Wouldn't be cost effective to modify the stamping equipment and to maintain support for two different sets of parts.

 

Yes it's true the parts are not interchangeable between a 51 and 52 duct, however a 51 duct should be mountable in a 52 and vice versa as the fender mounting points, fenders, colwl mounting points and colw are the same between the two models. The only part that has been changed is the front opening, the center tube is shorter to support that. I wonder if it has anything to do with the inner fender, radiator support, or equipment on that side of the 52 with the OHV 6 engine adaptation?

Much the same as a 51 hood can be mounted on a 52. They are different from model year in detail but as a whole, they will mount and fit - yes/no?

 

Yes, the 51 and 52 hoods are interchangable. I have a 51 hood on my 52. However, if a 52 hood is used on a 51, with the 51 front trim, there won't be an open slot in the center. The 51 hood has three "nostrils" as I call them, while 52 has only two. Thus, a 51 hood can be used without any problems on a 52, because the 52 hood nose trim will cover up the center "nostril".

As for the difference in the air tubes and ducts, your theory could be plausable. However, I don't see a difference in the engine bays on a 52 vs 51. I had a flathead V8 in my 52 and now I have the OHV 6. There's really no difference. Beside the inner fender panels mounting to the cab, versus the frame on a 51, there aren't any differences. I'm just wondering whether 52 was a precursor to the 53 product line...???

 

Oh yeah I understand the hood thing. I was just using it as an example to show how details may be different, but overall the parts are interchangealbe.

And I'm not experienced enough with flathead engine installations or the OHV to know if one needed adjustment or not.

It could be - 52 being a transition to the 53. Or some other weird thing - one is Canadian or something, maybe the 51 hummed funny or was too restricted. But what I was thinking was what happened when transitioning from 329 to 215 (as opposed to the 226) and doing things like moving the radiator support fender supports and hood wind screens (etc) to support the longer 6 cylinder. Or maybe it was a change to ease installation or maintenance. Who knows.

The catalogue listings show the 51-52 front pieces were the same, center ducts and rear ducts were different if I read this right. It looks like one front piece youhave is 48-50 and the other 51/52.

Here's the picture of the 48-50 and 51 with the applications page for 48-52:







Take a look and Have fun!

 

I know, right?!? They did the same stupid thing with the heater core. Same core, but the water tubes are a different distance apart. You'd have thought they would have know that the whole truck was getting completely redesigned for the next model year and would have just held the parts over one more year. Probably just some engineer trying to justify having his job.

 

Flathead 6 is about the same length as the OHV 6. So, no difference in moving the radiator support and hood air deflector in 48-51 vs 52 6 cylinders.

 

Ford had the tendancy to use the left over car parts and that tooling for truck parts in later years when the car parts were outdated. Or maybe there were some simple problems with the original design they haven't told us about that needed fixing?

 

Ilya , thanks for the pic posting info .Will try it .Will be at my buddies this week to see the progress on his monster truck ( 1085 H.P. ) and torque to match .Will get his opinion /ideas along with mine on the correct way to approach the fresh air tube repro . Am also going to finish up the surface of a one off custom carbon fiber trans cover for the 1ST-RIDE . It is pretty trick .Will post a pic . Later ,Denny

 

Sent the pics to Tim from whom I received the intake duct and tubes . The air intake duct that goes over the right front fender is from a '48-'50 . That much is clear . However Tim stated that the system was installed on a '51 with a Magic Air heater . Am still puzzeled on the different length intermediate tube and kick panel tube . The kick panel tube is correct for the '51 &'52 model the only difference being a round flange on the inside for the '51 .Will inspect the pieces again tomorrow . Thanks for all the info ,Denny

 

I'm a little skeptical about it being 48-50 as the back piece in the 51/52 was the "hooked" piece you pictured.

And as you mentioned, the flange opening onthe 51 and 52 (where your boot connects) was different/square/round.

The 48-50 duct had the blower box at the back of the duct OUTSIDE the truck up under the fender. From what Iam reading in the list Iposted, the front and intermediate pieces were the same from 48-mid 1950 (bed change time) and after that the newer front piece and shorted intermediate piece were used.

I'll still bet ya ($50) any of the ducts (and thus your repro) will install as a complete assemble in any the trucks. Maybe a test is in order!

Here are a few pics of the 48-50 duct. Note the blower box:

 

I still have a complete air duct tube underneath the fender in the 51. Although it's partially rusted out, it's still there. I could check tomorrow to see what length it is.

 

Take Pictures! Especially of the front piece!