My 66 F100 Custom Cab has a dash that is unpadded, but has slots in it for a radio speaker. There is no evidence, however, of a separate speaker grille having ever been installed on the dash. There are 4 round enlargements in the slots where screws might have gone at one time to mount a speaker.

My questions are as follows: Were the dash slots alone ever used as the grille? I do recall I have seen some unpadded dashes with a separate grille, though.

Does anyone know, could the speaker have been mounted either way - with or without grille? Or do I need to find a grille in addition to finding a speaker?

Thanks

 

By the 66 model year run, all of the trucks had the dashed punched with the slots for the speaker as most trucks had a dashpad and either utilized the mesh stamped or if the truck was a radio delete truck, the dash pad wasnt cut and thus the slots never seen.
There are a couple of ways to see if your truck originally did have a radio or not...on the dash, if there are no holes whatsoever in the middle of it, thats a radio delete truck...if the RH cowling has no hole whatsoever in it aside from the Styleside type trim if equipped, thats also a radio delete truck...
If the truck originally had a radio, the antenna hole on the cowl would be an oval/oblong hole. On the dash itself, there would be several small holes...3 about 1/2-9/16" to accomodate the radios volume and tuning shafts and the center for the radio dial light. There would also be 2 small screw holes slightly outboard of the shaft **** holes where the screws that retain the faceplate of the radio screws into...

The original radio power feed plugged into one of the male blades on the fuse block vs being spliced elsewhere into the harness or routed some other way. There also would not be the 4 holes in the corners of the mesh pattern either on the dash itself for the radio speaker grille if there was no radio installed.

If there was no radio and you have no dashpad...there would be no dashpad trim retaining clip holes at the rear of the dash or in the body line above the ignition switch, ashtray and glovebox...no holes...no dashpad...I have seen a few trucks over the years that had no dashpad or radio..but had the stamped mesh pattern...odd...but if you ever need to work under the dash its a place to shine a droplight through...or use sunlight...




I hope this helps you out, cs65

 

COTZ18985A .. Instrument Panel Speaker Grille-Paint to Match / Use with or without 'crash pad' / Obsolete

Fits: 1960/66 F100/1100 / 1961/72 C Series Tilt Cab / 1963/69 N/NT500/1000 / 1967/69 F800/1000.

I have one a these NOS. Since you need it, I wanted to make sure it's OK, before passing it along...for free. I'll even throw in the shipping, can't beat that with a stick!

I removed it from the original package (padded manila envelope), laid it on the concrete patio, sprayed it with catnip, all five of my Basset Hounds then proceeded to pee on it.

Then...I jumped up and down on it several times (I weigh 305 lbs.), then picked it up with a pair a waterpump pliers, stuck in a vise and bent it double.

Now, it's already to go...just pass along your address to this "old coot."

 

CS65, Thanks for the info. I believe there was a radio since it a) has a radio in it currently, and b) has the hole in the RH cowl that looks like a factory job along with another antenna wire hole (under dash, upper RH side) into the cab that also looks punched. I haven't removed the radio faceplate, but I suspect I will find the dash as you describe.

NumberCoot, You're going to have to do better than that to discourage me, since the UPS guy that drives my route somehow manages to get them to look like that WITHOUT removing the parts from their packaging!!

Also, Thanks, make sure it's a red one, expect a PM.

 

the grilles were originally black or chrome...


- cs65

 

CS65, Thanks for keeping me from making a BIG mistake.

Bill ND Wilson, STOP!!!, don't paint it red!!!

 

LOL! who says you need television for ENTERTAINMENT!

 

You had me going for a minute Bill. I was believing the whole thing up until you said "Then...I jumped up and down on it several times (I weigh 305 lbs.), then picked it up with a pair a waterpump pliers, stuck in a vise and bent it double." You expect us to believe you bent it double without it breaking. Please.

 

It's stamped steel, not cast iron. Stamped steel can be bent, try and bend cast iron, it snaps in two, three, four, who knows how many pieces.