New member saying hello
 

I would like to introduce myself! My name is Chris and I recently purchased a 1956 Ford F100. I look forward to learning a lot from this forum and can't wait to get started, as I already have some issues with the truck...but who doesn't?

Can't wait to talk to the knoweldgeable group of people here.

Chris

Welcome Chris, you are currently in the hands of the best and brightest in Ford trucks. And the rest of us will try and help also! :-D Jag

I thought I would post a picture to give you an idea of what I am working with.


https://i143.photobucket.com/albums/...19000001_1.jpg

Answers? You want answers?? No problem we can give you some answers. It will be up to you to figure out which ones are the right ones.....

Just kidding. Welcome to the board. this is a great group of people who are truly very knowledgeable and helpful.

After you get settled in try and get a gallery set up so we can see some pics of your truck. We love pics

Again, welcome
Bobby

Looks like a nice truck. Are you going for a restored original or a tricked out hot rod (we call those Darkside)? This site has people doing both and every degree in between. Set up your gallery to post your progress. Lots of pix will be greatly appreciated. Ask your questions. With >10,000 members, somebody will know the answer. Jag

Seeing your truck Chris I would think your only issue would be having enough time to drive it. Nice ride!

the knowledgable group stops by every now and then... but till they get here, we're here for you. :cool:



Let us know what your plan is.... you got to have a plan first.... stock or custom... low buck or high dollar.... driver or trailer queen... remain married or will except divorce for the right end product. lots of decisions...

once you know where you're going, this group can do two things... lead you on the rightous path or run you off in the bushes.... either way, we're here to help... :rolleyes:

get your questions together and ask away... and when you can start a gallery and post some pics.... we like pictures... engines, interior, bed and such.... shiney things make us giddy...

welcome to FTE and all it's insanity... this is one place where the keeper lets the inmates run the asylum... mostly... as long as we stay generally in site of the guidelines. Have fun and join in

later
John :-X06

Welcome, also put your location in for us to see how close you are to other FTE members. You may even get help like I am today. Jim Hackney is on his way down to help me adjust my hood. FTE is a great place with lots of helpful people. I would still be staring at mine without their help! Now mine drives down the road. Painter called he is putting the first coat of black on as I post!

Chris,
Welcome to FTE!! #1 for all your Ford truck info and random facts.

You got a great looking truck can't wait to see what your plan is

Once again...WELCOME!!!


Alec

Well, it is great to see that there are some extremely nice people here! A little background:

About me:
I love in Orange County, CA and am 23 years old. I am always in the garage, as I have a lifted 1999 Dodge Dakota, a 2006 Honda RC51 (race prepped) and the latest addition, the 56 F100.

The truck:
As far as I can tell, it is a California truck. There isn't a spot of rust on the body...anywhere. The cab is as original as you could hope for. No rust anywhere inside, all of the original gauges and knobs are there. The gauges don't work, however the lights do work inside of them. There are no inside door handles, and no passenger side window. I do have the brand new glass and all of the mounts and linkage. It was originally a long bed that had been converted into a short bed. This caused a 3 1/2" gap between the bed and the cab. The brakes are in great shape, as is the original bench seat (It actually is amazing how good the condition of the seat is). It has the original straight six, with a Holley carb. The water pump leaks, as does the fuel pump. This brings me to my problem. When driving, the truck will drive fine, as long as you are at an extremely low throttle position. When you give the truck gas, for example climbing a hill, it will run fine for 30 seconds, then fall on it's face. It seems as if the carb's bowl is emptying faster than it is filling. The fuel pump is running very well, and after breaking the carb down completely, there seems to be no problems internally. However, to confirm or eliminate the carb as a problem, I am purchasing one as we speak. Also, does anyone have any ideas on taking the slack out of the steering column? It seems that I can rotate the steering wheel 1/3 turn before it wants to engage.

Sorry for spilling out all of this information, and if you didn't read it all, no sweat. I am a moderator on several other forums, and am eager to join the family here. I will try to get some pics together this week if I can, however, my week already seems pretty jammed up with trying to get her running right.

Any and all ideas are very much appreciated.

Chris

Also, my plan is to try to keep her as original as possible. I am steering (forgive the pun) towards more of a rat rod look. When I purchased the truck, she had a brand new paint job on here. White isn't really my favorite color, and the body work done by the previous owner is rather lacking. I plan on lowering her, slightly, then finishing the bodywork prep myself for a matte black paint job. If I can get the original straight 6 running right, I would prefer to keep it. However, if it turns out to be more of a problem than it is worth, I would like to get my hands on a 351 cleveland powertrain. First things first...I would just like to get her running dependably and all of the electrical rat's nests smoothed out.

Chris,

The fuel filter might be plugging up or the fuel line in the tank may be sucking up some crud. Either that or the fule pump itself might not be up to par. Is it the style fuel pump that has the large spin on canister and a large paper element? If so its easy enough to check the filter.

The steering can be tightend up a bit, but you got to keep in mind you're driving a truck. Not what passes for a truck today, but a TRUCK.....lol
If you look opposite the pitman arm on the steering box there will be an adjuster bolt with a lock nut. Loosen the lock nut, tighten the bolt slightly and see how it feels. Don't overtighten it.

Bobby

Chris - Welcome to FTE. You and I are practically neighbors. I live in Riverside and moved here from OC a few years ago. Where in OC are you?

BTW, If you go to your personal profile, scroll way down on the page where it asks where you live. Whatever you put in there shows up in your thread post header.

Run a magnet over the cab and doors, especially along the hood front edge and door bottoms as well as the rear cab corners. I thought my California truck was rust free too. 50 years is a long time not to rust...even in California.

Get a Shop Manual. It is invaluable, especially when you start messing around with electrical and inside the doors. The manuals are available on eBay all the time and from our sponsor, MotorHaven. Here is a website (Earl's World) with an excellent parts vendors list: http://www.clubfte.com/users/earl/Pa...dor_Links.html

Is the bed on it a short bed or a shortened long bed?

If the fuel pump is leaking enough, your carb bowl is probably just running out of gas. I would replace the fuel pump for sure.

Please feel free to babble. The rest of us do. :-D

I look forward to meeting you and comparing notes on our 56's. I'd love to look over a stock one. BTW, I run a warmed over 351C in mine. I suggest keeping the six and at least running it that way for a while. I believe that if you get to driving it ASAP and just drive it for awhile, the truck will tell you what it wants to be when it grows up.

Again, welcome! :-X25

P.S.: MAKE SURE YOU ATTEND THE F100 WESTERN NATIONALS. It's right down the road from you. https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/6...6-23-07-a.html

I am in Mission Viejo.

Great idea! I would have never even though of it!

I agree, as I only bought the truck last week, this will be on my top priority list.

It is a short bed.

The fuel pump isn't leaking very much at all. Barely enough to coat the pump itself, and maybe a drop every few minutes at high throttle (without load). The pump itself is supplying more than enough fuel to the bowl. Either the jet is too small, or there is a problem with the float. However, the float seemed to operate perfectly fine when I broke the carb apart. It is a mystery on whay is actually causing the problem. My future father in law (carb brainiac) was even stumped after 2 days of continual tweaking. We did get the timing and points sorted out so she runs dead smooth at idle though.

Done and done. :-X22

It would be great to be able to meet up! Sounds like you have a nice project going yourself!

Chris - Sounds like you may want to shorten the frame to set that bed on there right. It's not too tough a job, actually. By the sound of your past projects, I'll bet it is well within your skills also.

Welcome Chris
Good to have another "young" guy balance out us "old" guys.