The abridged version of this classic Ford restoration shows the entire process in less than 15 minutes.
Abridged Version
There's simply nothing more satisfying than watching an old Ford truck go from some beaten up hunk of metal to a finely polished cruiser, to us, at least. And that makes this video from Austin Coulson incredibly cool to watch. In it, we get to see the abridged version of a 1979 Ford F-350 restoration, which has been neatly compacted down into less than 15 minutes of footage.
Good Candidate
When the F-350 rolled into Coulson's shop, it looked pretty solid but did have the typical rust issues you see on 1970s pickups. There were also a few dents in the body, and the truck wasn't running right. It was certainly a fantastic candidate for a restoration, and we've seen lots of projects that start out far worse than this.
>>Join the conversation about this restored 1979 F-350 right here in the forum.
Engine Swap
Upon closer inspection, it became evident that the original 400 V8 was in pretty bad shape and wasn't really worth rebuilding. Thus, Coulson opted to replace it with a 460 pulled from a 1996 F-350, which also needed a rebuilt but was in much better condition, to begin with.
>>Join the conversation about this restored 1979 F-350 right here in the forum.
Bodywork
Next, the bodywork started with fixing a pretty huge dent in the cab behind the passenger door. After quite a bit of massaging, that crater was gone, and the rest of the body and frame were subsequently stripped down and repainted.
>>Join the conversation about this restored 1979 F-350 right here in the forum.
New Threads
The old interior was in ragged condition, so it was completely removed and replaced with brand new upholstery. While Coulson was at it, he added extra sound deadening material to keep the cab nice and quiet, which is always a plus.
>>Join the conversation about this restored 1979 F-350 right here in the forum.
New Stuff
A few other mechanical components were upgraded during this process, including the brakes, which were replaced with four-wheel discs to help slow the big pickup down. Coulson also replaced the original wheels and tires with a nice new set of rolling stock featuring beefy all-terrain tires.
>>Join the conversation about this restored 1979 F-350 right here in the forum.
Back to Life
The transformation this truck went through is nothing short of stunning, and we appreciate the fact that the entire process was condensed into one easy-to-watch video. Coulson and his crew did a fantastic job bringing this old Ford back to life, and that's a cause we can always get behind.
>>Join the conversation about this restored 1979 F-350 right here in the forum.
For help with your maintenance and repair projects, please visit our how-to section of Ford-trucks.com.
