Meet Gossamer
 

Hello! I'm new to the site, and am posting only because I'm so excited about my new classic that I want to tell everyone about it. Unfortunately, when you tell a person you've got a 1962 Ford Econoline Pickup, they give this "what's an econline" look.... So here I am!

My name is Brandon, and I'm a 20 year old college freshmen on the east coast. Every summer I visit my Dad, my stepmom Page, Uncle, and Aunt in California (they live in the desert-GREAT climit for classics). My dad’s got a 1924 Ford T-Bucket Roadster (in bright orange) while my Uncle has a 1961 Ford Econoline Pickup. Page has a 72 Chevy Pickup and Aunt Geri has a 78 Ford Ranchero, while my younger brother has out there a 72 Ford Maverick. As you can tell, we're kind of a classic car family...

Anyways, when I first saw my uncle’s car I thought it was the weirdest things ever. I really thought it was kinda stupid looking.
But then he took me for a drive in it. I can’t explain the feeling; the power of a truck with a completely unobstructed view. As my dad says, “That car just trips my trigger!”

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My Uncle's Ford Econoline Pickup

So I started searching diligently for one of my own, one to fix up. Well, as I'm sure a some of you know, these cars can be pretty hard to find, especially on a college kid's budget. My findings found that an Econoline Pickup that doesn’t run, is wrought with rust and body rot, and has hole big enough to stick your fingers through costs around six to nine thousand dollars.

So, that wasn’t happening.

Taking my dad’s advice, I let that dream sit on the back burner for a while, figuring I could wait till I had enough money to buy one.
Then, a few months later (I was back at school at this point) at a car show a man walked up to Uncle. Pointing to my Uncles car the man asked “Do you know of anyone that might want to buy one of these?”. Remembering that I loved them, Uncle Steve brought the man to my dad and all three went to take a look at this man’s car for sale.
In the middle of the desert was this man’s property, and on that property was a 1962 Ford Econoline Pickup that hadn’t been moved in over 20 years. Anywhere other than the desert, and this would have been a bad thing, but as I said before, the desert is perfect for classic cars. The dry air keeps them from rusting or aging. It had very VERY little rust and the body was intact. It looked much better than any of the Econoline Pickups for sale at six/nine thousand dollars that I had come across. It needed some work, but was totally do-able.

Here's the kicker. The man wanted $500 for it. He was moving soon, didn’t know what he had sitting on his property and wanted it gone ASAP! He wanted it gone so badly that my dad finally bought it for $400 (he talked the guy down a hundred)!!!

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It might be a rare, gagging thing of beauty, but it’s mine!
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Congrats on finding one in great shape! I remember helping a couple of friends in the late '60's put a 289 in a 64-65 regular van.
Dave

that looks like its in GREAT shape. enjoy it!!! welcome to the site!

Great find and it is a 5 window to boot. They are harder to find than the one your uncle has.
My 5 window needs more work than the one you landed. Enjoy the time restoring the truck and keep us posted.

Thanks all! Thanks to school I haven't gotten to actually see him yet. Tomarrow after my cross country flight I'll be seeing Gossamer for the first time! :D

Hope it has a tailgate. Those are hensteeth to find. Most guys end up fixing the old ones or fabricating a endgate.

Very nice.Looks like a great project.Keep us updated.

Just a basic update. Gossamer is so awesome! It needs a LOT of work, but is in pretty good shape. The seats and steering wheel are dead, along with most all the wiring, but my uncle has a guy he goes to for parts (his guy has a backyard full of old econolines-mainly vans, but the parts are normally interchangable). Gossamer came with it's original licence plate and hubcaps (which I was really happy about), but no tailgate. I'm not gonna panic too much about that though, since once I find one, I'll probably spend more on it alone than I did on the car itself!

We went junkyarding and found some highback seats that are useable for now (we're keeping the stock seats in case I decide to try to re-appulster them later on in the project). Next step is to clean out the cab real good, get the track on the new seats modded till they fit, and then get something to cover the rear window till this crazy wet winter is over.

Thanks for the update.Sounds like you have been busy.

rear windows are not too bad. Most glass shops can cut one due to the flat glass.
Seats from vans interchange. The seat mountings can be different. Look the same, but the newer ones sit higher and the seat bolt holes If I recall were a inch further apart. This is from ones 65 and newer. I think they are higher because the doghouse is taller from 65 and up.
Got any new pictures?
Endgates are very hard to find. Lots of guys end up making them or putting those ugly cargo nets at back.

Orangedude Congrat's. I have a white 62 pickup that I bought 10 years ago. Runs and is restored. It was an Air Force truck for prob 25 years. I'm the 3rd owner. I imagine you have plenty of these in junk yards out there. I'm in Missouri and they are hard to find. If you find a steering wheel with the deluxe horn ring that you don't need, pls let me know. Mine has 65 Mustang seats that work great. Mine also has no bondo and no rust. Good luck gettin yours going. Mac's autoparts in New York has most all parts, and E-Bay has been helpful too. I recently totally replaced the brake system and all parts were available, many at O'Reilly's.

Sweet trucks! What engine? Gear ratio?

Very cool. I bought my first Econo about four months ago and am still as excited as the day I got it. Congrats!

orangedude
very cool, the 5 window is my favorite too. i have the long body 66 van
sorta similar deal a friend was moving and had been running car parts and junk in it but now was sending it to the junk yard. gave it to me "free to a loving home" I'll get some pics out soon. though pretty solid a few of my rust holes would allow you to pet the dog that's chasing it. mines is a window van (beggers can't be chosers) would love to find if your dads friend has any stock seats or frames. oh by the way the seat mounts can be separated and attached to other seats with a bit of noodling around.
good luck again on a great find.
scoobyvanjack