Hey guys, I’m Drew. Figured I’d join up and share a little about my new (to me) 1975 F350, and lean on you all as a resource to help keep this old girl on the road.This truck’s been in my family much longer than I have. My grandpa bought it brand new in 1975 to tow his Top Fuel dragster all over the country. It’s never left the family, which makes it pretty special to me. Being a 2WD, it’s never really been driven in the winter and hasn’t seen much of our lovely Midwest road salt either, so it’s survived pretty well.

I’ve been a car guy since I was big enough to hand my dad wrenches in the garage, but I’ll admit, I’m a little green when it comes to these old trucks. Most of my background is in vintage air-cooled VW's and (back in my 20s) turbo Japanese cars. I’ve got a 1968 Bug that my dad and I spent years restoring together, and that’s been my main toy. The plan is to eventually use this F350 to tow the Bug to shows. Just feels right.

The truck runs great overall, but I’ve got a little off-idle hesitation I’m hoping to sort out before spring. It currently lives at my dad’s shop since it’s too damn long for my garage, but we’ve been slowly poking around it together when we get time. It's got my daughter's two power-wheels cars sitting in the bed right now too

A few details:

• 83k original miles
• 460ci / C6 3-speed auto
• Custom interior done when it was only a few weeks old by one of my grandpa’s buddies
• The truck was pinstriped almost immediately after he bought it with his name on the side and "Top Fuel Dragster" which is just plain bad *** to me, and has always been one of my favorite parts of the truck!
• The 8-track works! I rewired the speakers last weekend and grabbed a Pink Floyd tape off eBay. Listening to Dark Side in this thing just hits different.
• Grandpa’s old CB is still mounted on the dash! (but not hooked up at the moment)

The truck’s got a lot of my grandpa’s personality in it, and I plan to keep most of that intact. That said, I’d like to slowly make it my own too. I’ve been kicking around the idea of some 20” Detroit Steel Wheel Co. wheels with factory caps and maybe dropping it a couple inches. We’ll see.

Anyway, that’s enough rambling. Here are a few pics:











Gotta throw in a pic of my Bug for good measure:


Glad to be here!

 

Great rig and introduction!

So is that the original black paint on that truck or has it been repainted and then pin-striped and named to match what it was like when you pap had it?

Looks like alot of depth for factory single-stage paint from 45 yrs ago.

Did you get a marti-report for it yet to see how it came equipped from the factory? I think that's a lariat seat but your truck has the exterior of a custom trim level.

If it were mine, and based on your VW vibe (which looks great btw)...Detroits but with enough sidewall to fill the wheel wells...i wouldn't lower the front...only level the back...but that's just me.

Welcome

 

That's a very nice looking truck! Looks good as is. Welcome to the forums. There is a wealth of info with lots of knowledgeable people here.

 

Thanks man! It is believe it not, the original paint. I also will say that the pics make it look way deeper than it is. The top of the bedsides are pretty rough because he had a topper on it for decades, and paint all over is swirled pretty badly, but it's original. He always kept it in a garage, and is the type of guy to always wipe the thing down after every drive. He's actually rubbed through the pinstripe in a few areas from all of his waxing over the years. I wasn't even allowed to sit in this thing with my shoes on as a kid...

As far as how it came equipped, I'm not 100% sure on all of the options. He always said that he bought it as stripped as he could, so he could add back the options he wanted. For example, he told me once that he added power steering to it after he bought it because it was cheaper than ordering it that way. There's a very good chance that seat was swapped out by the interior guy when grandpa dropped it off. I'll ask him. He's still living, but not doing too well, and wanted to see me enjoy the truck before he was gone.

 

Bice rides!

 

Wow original paint too...what a great rig. Harder to find original paint rigs that are rust free and even harder with tin that straight.

No one will appreciate that truck as much as you and your family...hope you never sell it.

I forgot you mentioned the interior was redone after he took ownership...that would explain why it's a lariat style seat in a custom trim level truck.

What does it have for rear seat? Jumpers, bench, or something custom?

Are you familiar with Kevin Marti and Marti Reports for these old trucks? Would be cool to have and your pap may like to see it as well...shows how he bought the truck when he took delivery from Ford in 1975.

Looking forward to seeing your transformation with your new heirloom/toy.

 

Nice truck, would love more pictures! Thanks for sharing!

Is the 460 still stock?

 

One way or the other, get an overdrive trans in it
That will make it yours a little bit
Keep some rubber, and don't run just wheel
Very nice starting point
Keep all the old parts
Consider installing the newer front twin I beam suspension with adjustable cams and ball joints (when you find your king pins loose)

 

Appreciate it!

The rear seats are two little jumpers at like 45º angles in the corners. Super odd, and only big enough for someone the size of my 4 year old to fit in haha. I was not familiar with those reports, but I'm going to look into that. I imagine it's sort of like the "birth certificate" I ordered from VW of my Bug.

Bone stock! Would love to get a little more out of it, but it seems pretty happy and lazy currently. At the very least, I'd like the thing to be a little louder.

All great advice! I will definitely hold onto anything I take off this old girl, but I'd love to make it my own just a bit. Overdrive would be very nice to have. I'd like to tow my Bug with it some, so that would be nice to have on the highway.

 

That is a nice truck and a true member of the family. Post more pics when you can.

 

Welcome. Nice truck and Bug. Love the stance on the Bug but don’t understand lowered trucks, but to each his own. I’m sure the truck is in good hands now.