shoveling a load of “black gold” (well-aged manure) in 2008
(first posted 9/8/2017. Updated 9/8/2023) I bought my ’66 F100 in the summer of 1987 for one main purpose: to haul stuff. Back then, it was mostly well-aged manure for the garden and tree trimmings from our woody one acre in Los Gatos, CA. Although the range of loads has greatly expanded in the subsequent decades, tree-trimmings and manure are still a regular staple. I only drive it if I have to haul something bigger than my car can handle, so it’s led a hard but productive life these past 36 years. It sits outside, rain or shine. It always starts instantly, after a pull on its manual choke. And my credo these 30 years has been: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
But it just keeps on agoin’. In fact, it’s needed less this past ten years than in previous decades. As in essentially nothing (he says, tempting fate). (Update: boy did I ever tempt fate by saying that)
Obviously, the aging process has made itself felt (and visible) on both of us. But we’re in it for the long haul, so hopefully I will be able to bring you an update in another 30 years.
My love of pickups started early, long before they were cool. That was undoubtedly due to my exposure to them at the Mennonite farm I used to spend several weeks each summer during my grade school years in Iowa. In addition to driving tractors (I took this photo of their son on the Farmall H), I rode in Mr. Yoder’s rather tired ’54 Studebaker pickup, just visible on the right side of the picture. I always hopped in the bed whenever he went anywhere with it, and stood right behind the cab, with my face in the wind as he barreled (so it seemed) down the gravel country roads. I almost fell out of it once in a fast curve, but that didn’t diminish my love for the genre the slightest.
In addition to inculcating a love for tractors, trucks and all sorts of mechanical devices there, there’s no doubt that my time spent with the Yoders left me with a deep streak of self-sufficiency. They did almost everything themselves: in addition to all the various kinds of farming that was not specialized back then, that included carpentry, blacksmithing, butchering, gardening, canning and freezing food, etc. Most of all, making home-made ice cream, which would on occasion be eaten as the main course for supper. The ability to do many things, to be a genuine jack-of-all-trades, is an increasingly rarer phenomena in this day of specialization and consumerism. It left me a hard-core DIY-er.
At the tv station in LA, I used to love driving one of the two International pickups up the long rough dirt road to the transmitter on Sunset Peak, overlooking all of LA, to haul up a bed full of 5 gallon jugs of distilled water for the transmitter, or whatnot. I climbed the tower right up near the top for a more dramatic view. Even after I became the general manager, I still made a point to get out like that whenever I felt too cooped up in my office and suit. Pickups were an escape vehicle from the urban jungle.
In LA, it never quite made sense to get a truck, but that changed shortly after we moved to Los Gatos in 1987, to a historic 1866 house on a one acre lot. I looked in the paper one Saturday and found a ’66 F100 for sale. It was only $500, but then it had a bad clutch, which turned out not to be just a bad clutch, but a bit of a lifelong affliction. No, my truck is not perfect.
I would have loved to get one of these old Advanced design Chevys, pretty much my favorite pickup ever. But we had two little kids, and I wanted a cab wide enough to fit them as well as Stephanie (I added two more sets of seat belts, for all four of us). And the Fords of the vintage I bought have a steel floor in the bed, which I preferred too. And the bed is just longer and wider too. I was being practical.
There was a lot of dreaming involved too. As in imagining life without a 9-5 job, suits, corporate politics, sales pitches, employees, budgets, and all the headaches that came with managing a start-up tv station. But I was very happy on the weekends hauling straw, manure and the other necessities of gentleman gardening.
I did have to attend to the clutch, which had been oil-fouled by a leaking rear main seal. Unfortunately, replacing the rear main seal was not a permanent fix; it started getting a bit grabby/jerky again before long. I just lived with it, but eventually years later, I found out that there was a nick in the crankshaft right at the rear seal which causes it to leak past the seal. How that got there, I don’t know, but I do know it’s almost certainly not the original engine.
The seller, a young guy, did say something about the engine, the 240 CID “Big Six”, being “rebuilt”. The truck showed 88,xxx on the odometer at the time, but it was showing quite a bit of wear, so my guess is that it had 188k miles on it. And the engine may most likely have been swapped in from a 4×4 truck or van, as it has the wrong oil pan. I couldn’t figure out why the oil drained right onto the cross member, until one of our more astute readers (Scoutdude) here pointed out that it has the wrong oil pan for this application.
The truck now has 34,665 miles now, so I’ve added some 46,000 miles in 30 years, or about 1500 miles per year. Except for the several trips I made up and down I5 the year we moved to Oregon, it’s all been very local driving, but those haven’t exactly been easy miles.
When we decided to move to Eugene in 1993, I found an old ATV trailer frame, put plywood on the floor and sides, and used it to haul our excessive amount of shit belongings, but it took several trips to do so. But the first one was the most memorable.
Needless to say, I had been just a wee bit concerned about some of the mountain passes we had to cross on the way to Oregon. The F100 has the same modest 11″ drum brakes as used on Ford passenger cars, and they fade all-too quickly. My plan was to use second gear down the biggest, the 4,310 ft Siskiyou Pass, which marks the dividing line between California and Oregon.
As we (my son was riding with me) crested the summit, I shifted into second. This was Ford’s all-syncro “top loader” three speed manual that shifted very nicely, and whose syncro first gear was a welcome relief compared to the majority of American three speeds. But within a hundred yards or heading down, the floor-mounted Hurst shifter (which had already been in the truck) popped out of second gear into neutral! This was literally straight out of a bad dream.
I don’t remember if I tried to jam it back in, but if so, it popped right out again. The truck and trailer combo was now gaining speed, maybe 35-40 mph. I knew that if I was going to get it to stop, it was right now or never. So I put my foot hard into the brake pedal, and turned into the wide shoulder. It slowed, but the closer it got to a full stop, the harder the pedal got. And the less braking there was. I kid you not, it was all I could do to get it to come to a full stop. At the end, it just kept creeping along, with the brakes emitting a nasty smell. I finally got it to stop, and grabbed something from the floor of the truck and popped it in front of a tire as a chock. I’m not a wussy about these kinds of things, but that was not a fun experience.
I was pretty rattled. Enough, that I can’t remember now whether I finally drove down the shoulder in first gear, or just kept it in second by leaning on the shift lever the whole way. Ironically, we probably would have been ok in third gear, as it’s really not all that steep. Maybe.
When I got to Eugene, I saw a little transmission shop in an old garage building just six blocks from our house (condos are there now). And when I saw that the proprietor drove a ’65 F100, I knew I’d gone to the right place. I told him that I wanted an overdrive transmission, and he knew where to find one.
We’re talking about the legendary Warner T85 with the R11 Overdrive. This was the heavy-duty big brother to the T86/R10 combination, as used in so many Ramblers and Studebaker sixes. The T85 is a heavy-duty three speed that was used behind larger V8s, all the way to the very biggest ones ever made. And the R11 overdrive turns it into a six-speed, if it’s set up for manual operation as mine was, although realistically, five of the gears are used regularly, as 1OD is a bit too close to second (non-OD) to be of much use. My post on the B/W Overdrive is here.
All I was wanting then is an overdrive for more pleasant highway driving for my coming trips up and down I5, but what I got was much more. Second-OD is perfectly spaced between 2nd and 3rd, and makes an ideal gear in residential neighborhood driving, as well as for heavy loads climbing or descending steeper hills, like the passes on I5 when fully loaded.
Plus the overdrive means that shifting between gears no longer requires using the clutch, as the free-wheeling takes the power off one of the gear shafts, and is in essence the same as clutching. I made this video showing clutchless shifting, but most folks think I’m just timing the shifts. Nope. It’s just like shifting with the clutch pushed in.
The 6 ratios with all three main gears split are 2.98, 2.15, 1.75, 1.26, 1.00, and .72. At 60mph, the engine is purring along at 1900 rpm. And keeping track of the gears and splits is engaging in lieu of any on-board entertainment.
I’ve documented my repeated bouts of overloading this half-ton truck here several times, meaning that I regularly carry three or four times its rated capacity of some 1200lbs. During the years of my full-time work renovating moved houses (a post on that is coming shortly), I also used to regularly rent Bobcats and excavators, like the one shown here behind the husky Ram dump truck I rented the last time I needed both. The Bobcat and trailer weigh roughly 7500lbs; that’s about twice what my truck weighs. It has 129hp. And those little drum brakes. It was always more than a bit scary, especially making sure I didn’t end up on an uphill Stop. Without an extra-low first gear, I’d never have gotten going again, if it was steep enough.
But riding home with a load on the rubber axle stops is still a common occurrence, but I’ve sworn off trailering really heavy loads. I must be getting old.
A load of recycled foam insulation is more like it. But it could be anything.
Like using its tailgate for a ladder platform.
I towed the Caravan home from Portland once, on a dolly. Just today, I hauled a load of tree trimmings and sunflowers to the garden waste recycling facility, and then two dead appliances to the dump.
Yes, the dump. It’s what I first got it for, and it’s still one of its most favorite destinations. Hauling shit; it never seems to end.
So what’s it taken to keep it going for 30 years? Unfortunately, I never started a little notebook in the glovebox like I did with all my subsequent vehicles. But I have a bunch of receipts, and I think I’ve remembered most of its issues. That started with that clutch and rear seal job after I got it. In 1987, that cost a bit over $300.
It originally had aftermarket “spoker” wheels, and the tires were tired. I picked up a set of barely-used Michelins at a junkyard in San Jose for $50 (these are more recent tires, also bought used). Initially I bought some baby moon hubcaps, but they were cheap and started rusting out after a few years. But a hubcap shop in town had a set of these, and I’ve always liked this style. Three sets of tires (two used) has totaled some $600.
I had to replace the driver’s side sun visor, but I made it myself out of vintage 1/4″ plywood, which I had.
There’s been a couple of tune ups along the way, but we’re talking peanuts for a set of points and condenser. And a cap or two, and maybe a set of plugs or two. Timing is set by ear.
Oh, I did have a problem with the distributor some years back. There’s a little pin in the drive, that sheared off. It left me stranded on a parking lot. But Stephanie picked me up, I got another one, and put it back in. I keep a spare now.
I bought this radiator at a junk yard maybe a dozen years or more ago, for maybe $35 or so. It’s leaking a bit now, but it’s a small crack and I haven’t bothered with it yet. I’ve probably put three batteries into it. They last about 6-8 years. And of course I change the oil and lube it annually, despite the low mileage, although I missed one or two years. And the master cylinder needed replacing early on.
(not my picture)
I’ve had only one somewhat more significant mechanical repair. The cam drive gear on these is made from some fiber product, to make the gears quiet in passenger cars and light trucks. But they tend to break. Mine did too, at the dump, no less. Stephanie towed me home with the Forester and the tow line I keep in the cab for mostly other purposes.
I decided to replace mine with an all-steel set, as used in HD trucks. It won’t ever break again, but it does howl, just like a 1930 Blower Bentley. Oh well. It’s maybe not quite as bad as it was, but I probably don’t drive enough to get it settled in properly. Someone said it could take 20,000 miles. That’s be a while then.
I did the repair myself, which wasn’t too difficult.
The clutch got worse and worse form the oil fouling, so about a dozen years ago or so I had the same guy who put in my transmission redo it, this time putting on a sleeve which was supposed to fix the leaking out the big end seal. It was great, for maybe six months or so, but eventually it slowly got a bit fouled again. The leak is very minimal now, but just enough to foul the clutch disc somewhat. It’s much worse in reverse, for some reason. I’ve just learned to live with it.
About twenty years ago, I decided to take a look at the brakes. The linings were getting low, and when I took the drums in to my favorite local parts store, I was told they were too thin. I was a bit worried about what it would take to get new drums. “We’ll have them here from the warehouse in less than an hour”. And they were dirt cheap. There are many advantages to having a vintage vehicle for which parts are still very plentiful. And the new drums and linings did improve braking action, to some extent.
There’s a little crack in the exhaust manifold; it’s actually visible here, to the right of where they all join together, it’s a light color. But it hasn’t gotten any worse.
And then there’s the carburetor. One of the reasons I wanted a six and not a V8 was because I had many memories of hearing these Ford FEV8s (and others) being a bit finicky about starting at times, and then stumbling and dying and showing other signs of less than perfect running, unless they were in stellar tune. In my experience, straight sixes with their simple one barrel carbs seemed to have little trouble running right most of the time. My truck? I’ve never touched the carb in 30 years! And it always starts instantly, no matter how cold or hot. Of course the manual choke helps, but it just runs fine all the time.
And the plugs always have that ideal color (tan), so I know it’s not running rich or lean. I can’t tell you how many well-intentioned folks have told me to convert it to electronic ignition. Or tried to get me to swap in a modern engine with fuel injection. No way; maybe I’m lucky, but my truck runs just fine as is. Well, just like me, it prefers to get going on dry and warm mornings rather than really wet and cold mornings, but I can’t really blame it for that.
I have a dim memory of a new muffler. Oh yes; I know why. I blew mine wide open!
Back in Los Gatos in the early years, I used to take my two little kids along to the dump, which was way up in the hills. On the way down the winding road, I’d turn off the ignition for a moment, then turn it on again, which ignited the unburned gases in the exhaust with a lovely BOOM! It was a ritual to make going to the dump fun, along with leaning over exaggeratedly on each other in the hairpin curves. One time I waited too long, and the really loud KABOOM!!! ripped my muffler wide open. I felt a bit dumb. But it had been worth it; my kids still talk about it. this is how memories are made. And what’s a muffler for one of these cost? Peanuts.
The only effort at upgrading it, other than the overdrive transmission, was the Sun tach I put in very early on. Not that it’s really necessary, as it lets me know when it’s done revving under a load or maximum acceleration, which is about 3500-3600 rpm. Speaking of, I came across some old tests that showed these trucks with a 0-60 time in the 16-17 second range, and a 20 second quarter mile. Tested mileage was in the mid teens to about 20, based on speed and such.
I long ago gave up keeping track of mileage, especially since it’s almost all city driving, but I did eke out a solid 19mpg once on a tank. And it will roll right along; I still take ‘er up to 75 or so sometimes, which is pretty effortless actually. I hit 90 once back in the day. It actually is pretty stable at speed; not scary. Well, it probably would be for you if you were along.
But that’s without a load. With a really heavy load, I keep my speed down; the slightest twitch of the wheel sets up a yaw.
It may seem crude to talk about money regarding my automotive soul mate, but then it is also a tool of my trade. So what’s it cost me all these decades? A rough calculation is about $2000 for purchase cost and repairs and maintenance. Of course, those aren’t all 2017 dollars. Comes to about 4.3 cents per mile. Peanuts. And of course the truck is worth more than that now (the T85-R11 transmission itself is a hot commodity), so the capital cost/depreciation is actually negative.
But then there’s operating costs: registration, insurance and gas. Registration has averaged about $40/year, so $1200. Insurance about $200/yr, so $6,000. And we’ll assume about 14mpg for those 46,000 miles for 3,285 gallons, and assume $2.00/gal. for $6,570. So operating costs have been about $13,800, which means total costs have been about 30 cents per mile. That’s a bit higher compared to my Subaru Forester, which cost us 24 cents/mile over its 15 years.
But that’s a rather uneven comparison, because the truck gets so fwe miles per year on it. The more meaningful way to look at it is that for 30 cents per mile, I’ve had a very useful piece of machinery at my disposal.
Obviously, most folks with 50 year old cars don’t focus on the their cost per mile, because if they did, it would probably be astronomical. But this is my work truck, and it’s well below the 54 cents the IRS allows for mileage deductions. It’s making me money on my taxes too!
This has gone on way too long (the article), so it’s time to pull over and give it a rest. As to the future, there’s undoubtedly more of the same, as long as we’re both able. Now that I don’t really need to be so cheap anymore (it’s hard habit to break), I have given some thought of fixing the clutch, permanently. And the best way to do that would be by slipping in a 300 six, which is in every way identical to the 240, except for the longer stroke and the internal parts to make that happen. Maybe I can even find the crank, con rods and pistons from a 300, and just keep the current block and head.
I do love me some good low-end grunt, and although the 240 has never let me down that way, a 300 with a low-restriction muffler might be fun. The more the better. And with the fiber cam gear, please, so I can hear it purr instead of howl.
One thing is for certain: as long as load heights keep going up on new trucks, I’m not going to be buying one. As I said at the beginning, I bought my truck to haul, and I’ll be damned if I can’t load or unload it with a shovel while standing back there, or have to climb up steps to get into the bed. I’ve loaded and unloaded a slew of large appliances myself this past summer, and there’s no way I could do that with a modern truck.
So we’re stuck with each other; works for me.
Update, 9/8/2023: There have been a few issues that I chose to address or was forced to since this was written in 2017.
In the fall of 2020, I decided to finally address a number of issues that had been ignored for too long: replaced the heater core, replaced the radiator, fixed the brake lights and turn signals, replaced the front suspension bushings and all four shocks, fixed the instrument lights, and had a shop weld in new floor panels, as the old ones were badly rusted out, as well as do a bit of rust repair on the roof. And some new door seals and window channel guides. The full write up on all of that is here:
F100 Chronicles: If It’s Been Broken In Many Places For Years Maybe It’s Finally Time To Fix Them
In 2021, the transmission failed. I found one at legendary Turner Auto Wreckers in Fresno (full tour here), and installed it after hauling it home. Unfortunately, it was very noisy, but I found a guy in town who has lots of experience rebuilding these. He did a great job for a very reasonable price.
And…just a few weeks ago, I decided to take a look at the truck’s brakes, which I had last attended to some 25 years ago. The first one I took off had a leaking wheel cylinder. Time to do a full rebuild, but I’ve been very busy with Port Orford, hiking, rafting and other projects, so I called the mobile mechanic who had replaced the a/c compressor in the Tracker. He replaced and rebuilt everything, master cylinder, rubber lines, wheel cylinders, shoes, springs, etc., and the result is great. I’d forgotten how properly working brakes are! He wanted $200 for his labor! I insisted he take twice that, and I still feel I underpaid him.
Here’s some of the previous posts of my truck:
Curbside Comparison: 1966 F100 vs 2016 F150 – How Much Has Changed?
Overloaded? By How Much? About 2200lbs.
My Truck Gets a Wash, a $10 Tuneup, and a Set of Used Tires
Instead of Writing a CC, My Truck Gets a Wash, Inspection and Upgrade
Accelerating Through Five Gears Without Using the Clutch (with Videos)
Lovely piece. Affectionate and informative, slightly oddball, very much Curbside Classics, very much my cup of tea.
And I raise that cuppa tea to you, Mr Niedemeyer, and say “Cheers, and here’s to that next thirty years.”
Ford’s very best vehicles have always inspired genuine love and we see some of that today.
It occurs to me that I also bought a 1966 vehicle in 1987, a Fury III sedan. I also drove it a bit over 40k miles, though in a big lump of daily driving over 4 years. It cost more, but about $500 of that purchase price was the 63 F-100 six that was swapped to the seller. This is positively cosmic stuff – the CC effect may have always existed.
Speaking of the CC effect, just last night I saw a classic IH Farmall for sale on the side of a 2 lane state highway. I am no expert in red tractors but it looked very much like the one in your old photo.
Very enjoyable article – superb overview of the joys of old truck ownership…
You’re last paragraph: Welcome to why I (almost) loathe modern pickups.
And if you don’t like shoveling manure out of a pickup bed that’s 6-12″ too high off the ground, just try loading and unloading a 500 pound (or larger) motorcycle in one.
I have absolutely no intention of owning another pickup unless I can find one with a bed height like my ’91 Dakota or ’96 S-10. Both of them two wheel drive, of course.
A ’68 el Camino is the perfect truck for hauling a Honda XR-80 to the boonies for some off-road exploring. And hauling all my junk home from school every semester break. And the occasional VW long block or load of dirt.
I didn’t need a damn stepladder to get into the bed either. Modern trucks suck.
I completely agree with the El Camino solution, but prefer the 5th generation due to the lower entry costs-
I just picked up this ’87 (with 60,000 miles on the clock) for $3,100. The engine bay is untouched and it cruised through the California Emissions test. Over time, I expect it to either maintain it’s currently value, or see some slight appreciation.
The overall dimensions are very close to the third generation model, and my truck has the 4.3 V-6 (with TBI), and the (optional) 4 speed automatic. In short, it’s perfect for my needs.
Very nice!
Nice ute! I’ve seen a few in Australia, they are a little different from our utes – I think I mentioned how in my big ute post, but will have to look at it in more detail when I get the opportunity.
“I made it myself out of vintage 1/4″ plywood”
I almost lost my coffee there. The “vintage” thing has really grown wild hasn’t it?
Cheers to you and that perfect old Ford!
Well, this stuff I have really happens to be 1947 vintage 1/4″ plywood, that came out of one of my houses. And it’s a whole lot better than the more recent stuff, having been made from old-growth logs.
Yeah vintage wood is much different from the stuff we get today. So much of the lumber we get today is from small diameter trees that are very young and it is just not the same.
I had to replace some cedar siding, circa 1978 on one of my houses and there is a definite difference between the new stuff from a young skinny tree and the old stuff that likely came from a very large and old tree. One of the reasons I bought that house was its era, new enough to be reasonably well insulated and have modern wiring. But old enough to have been built with lots and lots of clear old growth cedar, inside and out, most of which has escaped the paint brush, at least on the inside.
One of the problems with modern dimensional lumber sourced from young small diameter trees is the way it is cut. In the old days the logs went straight though the saw and they kept slicing and tossing until they pretty much had a perfect square or rectangle, before they started slicing off the lumber for market.
Now thanks to computers the log is guided through the blade along the curves of the tree. Now in theory the resulting board is stronger as follows the line of the tree, but it does not come out of the blades straight. They rely on clamping it straight for the kiln drying process. So when you see those 2×4’s that have a massive curve it is because that was the way the board was cut and it decided to return to that state after it was released from its binds.
Now of course there is such a thing as too old of lumber as I’ve found some stuff gets very hard to cut when it is over 100 years old.
“Now of course there is such a thing as too old of lumber as I’ve found some stuff gets very hard to cut when it is over 100 years old.”
My midwestern house was built in 1958. I was in my attic some years back to shore up the mounting of a ceiling electrical box in order to mount a ceiling fan in a bedroom.
Gott im Himmel, were those ceiling joists hard! I was using some fairly stout nails to secure some braces for the box and I bent at least as many as I got in straight.
It gets hot up there, and that wood is as dry as a bone, undoubtedly. But yes, it doesn’t take 100 years for to get hard. One of the downsides of working on old houses, as I know too well. Fresh lumber is like butter in comparison.
Oh and for jobs like that (and quite a few others) I use self-tapping square-head screws and my little Makita impact driver. Hammer and nails can be a pain in many situations, especially in close quarters, attics, etc. I sometimes do little framing jobs with screws. It’s either that or a nail gun, as I have gotten out of the habit of hand nailing very much, which my shoulder appreciates.
I screw everthing. A habit I developed long before I realized that my poor depth perception is why I can’t drive a nail to save my life.
I love your truck, bud. A well-used tool, as a truck should be.
Canada congratulates you on recognizing the innate superiority of the Robertson Screw. None better anywhere.
I have a house built in 55 and its wood isn’t too bad compared to the pre 1900 era parts of one of my other house.
I too rarely use nails in a situation like that. The compact cordless impact drivers are the greatest power tool in a long time. A friend had one man years ago and at first I thought that looks too wimpy. I tried it and boy was I wrong, Drove a couple 3″ screws, I was sold and picked one up shortly there after.
I’ve made the same discovery with the window casings/trim in my 1946 cape. Shortly after we moved in two years ago, the wife decided she wanted curtain holdbacks on several of the downstairs windows, which screw into the window casings through the inner portion of the trim.. And even getting the pilot holes drilled was a battle, in every frame I dealt with.
Years ago I visited a town in Finland that had a mix of old and new buildings in its centre, probably 100 years old. You could easily tell the difference even though they were all timber buildings built in the same style, with vertical board cladding, because the original buildings did not have a single knot in the timber.
On hardness, 40 years ago a friend of my father built a house using red gum for the frame and they had to drill every nail hole. Red gum is incredibly durable, it is used for a lot of fences in the same town because there used to be a timber industry, and lasts 40+ years before the rails rot.
Awesome morning read Paul! I am you finally shared the story of your old truck. I look forward to hearing more exploits. A 300 swap would be a nice upgrade too.
That’s what I was about to say. And the mileage might even get better because of…less load and…science. When the time comes for the next clutch renewal…swap the 240 out too.
At 1500 mi per year, the cost of a used 300 would kill the cost per mile. The 240 if that is what it really is seems to have done everything that Paul has asked of it, so as long as it keeps going I see no reason not to let it keep getting the job done.
I like the idea he mentioned of sourcing 300 crank, rods, and pistons, and rebuilding the current block with them. Yes, you have the labor involved, but you end up with a 300 for lower entry cost, and you fix the clutch issue once and for all with the new crankshaft.
The Holden V8 is a good comparison, with 253 and 308 capacity. In a lot of cases the 308 gets better mileage, but light loading is one where the 253 is better.
A close friend only drives Mopars, but he loved the looks of the unibody ’62 Ford pickup, also his favorite color is red. I couldn’t believe it when I saw the Ford in his driveway, until I heard him start it. The loud Raw, Raw, Raw of the starter told me what he did. A stock Mopar 340 V8, and TorqueFlite. which pulls his 25 foot cabin cruiser CrisCraft and large Airstream. The Ford was changed to disc brakes, and at last sighting the red is still lustrous and he has 180000 miles on it.
Wonderful insight into the official CC-mobile. Old Ford pickups are truly a special thing.
Much of what you’ve done with your pickup is quite relatable, having done similar with the ’87 Dodge 3/4 ton I bought for $400. Used tires and other parts for a pittance were what I did, it being a challenge to see how little I could spend on it. Sadly the tin worm interfered, so I’m happy to see you are able to have an extended play version!
If I were to buy a 21-year-old Ford truck today, it would be a very different beast.
I’d still do it.
A 21 year old Ford pickup today is very significant, though, as it would be a 1996. Last of the “classics” in my opinion!
Great read!
It’s great to read about someone who actually uses a pickup as a pickup instead of a overgrown Hot Wheels.
Oh, now, lots of people work their pickups. My crew cab 4×4 is worked quite frequently. And it still drives wonderfully with a trailer, something that’s not always been the case with pickups.
Your creampuff of a van with the 5.4 may have towed it even better! 🙂
It does tow well. Tow ratings are just loose recommendations anyway.
My favorite Curbside Classic article ever!
My favorite CC subjects are Paul’s truck and Jason’s 63 Galaxie, it’s a tossup.
Too bad we’ll probably never see them both in the same place.
That’s a bit of a dream of mine, to get these two together. I used to think about taking it on a really long trip, and I would still consider it, although it would undoubtedly be a solo trip. 🙂 Maybe the dog would be willing to come along.
The halfway point is apparently Wamsutter Wyoming. About 15 hours of driving for each of you.
No way I’d drive the VW there from my house (24 hours at highway speed). Maybe I can hitch a ride with Jason
Wamsutter? Hmm. Population 451. From the looks of it, it we’d have to have our meeting in the truck stop. Not much else there. Not exactly a very compelling destination. 🙂
You two have got me Googling and brainstorming stuff here. While it isn’t exactly midway between Jefferson City and Eugene, there are two car museums I found in central to western Nebraska. One is the Chevyland Museum in Elm Creek and the other is in Kearny next door to the Cabela’s headquarters.
Doug, drive your VW to JC and we can pull you from there. That Ford can easily run 65 mph while pulling your Bug.
And Kearny, NE happens to be the exact midpoint of I-80 between the coasts (or so their literature reads). So it’s a fair destination for every one of our continental US readers.
I’d make the trek. A nice morning’s drive for a change. It would be good seeing the Galaxie and F100 together. Although, Jason, in those parts your red F150 would fit in mighty well too.
I love old Ford trucks. I grew up with them. I should do a write up on my Dad’s ’70. It’s been with us since he bought it from his grandmother’s neighbor in 1993 and here it is last weekend, hauling my dad’s boat after Labor Day weekend. My dad affectionately says “Ol’ yeller, best doggone truck in the South?
That ’70 is eerily similar to the ’70 my father purchased new. That was the first vehicle I ever drove.
You had me at the, uh, eloquent title! Which turned out to be literally true. Finally the definitive review of the vehicle that IS CurbsideClassic, thanks. I’ve been reading about it in dribs and drabs over the years but it’s great to see it all together in one place.
The bill of sale indicates you bought it on my wife’s 13th birthday, and about a month after I started my first quarter of college (summer). Time sure has flown since then.
As little as you use it, I think you still got your money’s worth. Looked at a different way, the Home Depot rents their truck for about $20 for the first 75 minutes and has done so for as long as I can recall. Figuring it that way, you’ve spent the equivalent of 690 rentals, which is 23 per year. I’m guessing you use it more than twice a month (or more than an hour-odd each time) so you are way ahead…A wise buy.
I hope you have many more happy years together!
In the summer, it gets used a lot. Sometimes daily, although as you know, I have used the van some for work too.
Yeah but that HD rental truck calculation excludes the fact that with a truck in your driveway you can often be done with the job before you would have the HD truck. That is priceless and why I keep a pickup around that sometimes sits for months before being pressed into duty, and like Paul’s can then get used daily.
Plus there is the convenience of being able to leave the load in the truck until you need it.
Much easier with the cost of keeping a vehicle on the road – $240/yr from Paul’s figures. It is $800 here (less if you are outside the metro area, closer to $700 I think). There is a club permit scheme for historic vehicles though, that can be $80. Just a few more years and my ute will be eligible.
In my state you can get historic vehicle plates after 25 years but it can no longer be legally used to “carry a load”, nor for use as a daily driver, so you must have another vehicle.
My old Hillman is on regular plates can be used daily anywhere anytime $48.00 per year but here the cost is the biannual safety Warrant of fitness check @ $50 a throw it generally costs nothing for repairs as my carport is loaded with parts harvested from wrecks and it uses the same rims and tyres as my Citroen so those are easy to source from my backyard stock pile. I like that old Ford of Pauls tough old utes reliable as the sun and easy to fix at home.
I always enjoy articles about Paul’s truck, and this inspired me to take a look at the ’66 Ford truck brochure at oldcarbrochures.com. The cabs on these could be dressed up quite a bit in the Custom Cab and Ranger trims.
I wonder why power steering wasn’t available until November 1, 1965? Was this the first year for that option in the trucks?
Really. That’s odd. I just assumed it was available on the 65’s, which was the first year for the new chassis and Twin Beam front end.
Probably an unexpected delay in the production of some critical part. Lead time’s a fickle bitch sometimes. Although a nearly year-long delay suggests a last-minute redesign rather than a manifacturing glitch.
Your F100 looks great after 51 years, Paul. I hope you continue to get many more years of faithful service from it!
Personally, I’m hoping my 99 Sierra makes it to 21 years, which will be 10 years of my ownership. Rust really takes its toll here in Michigan, and I’ve already had to have the frame welded. Still runs and drives nicely though, and only has 140k miles.
While I certainly understand the usefulness of a low bed height, the snow we get here along with the occasional need to drive back into the woods for firewood on poor trails makes it advantageous to have a taller ride height. I have a 4×8 trailer for when I need to haul mowers or similar things where a low loading height is beneficial.
Very Interesting CC.Thank You Paul.Your Truck Looks Very Rust Free For Being Half Century Old.We Don’t Pay Tax Down Here But What You Said About Truck Saving You Money On Your Taxes Was New To Me.Trucks Are Awesome.
There’s the post I’ve been waiting for, thanks for coming through on that Paul. Just like the truck, which has always come through.
It’s nice to have an occasional use vehicle that doesn’t require a lot of work, I admit I haven’t done a thing to my VW since the last minute thrash to get to the CC Detroit Meetup, nice to just drive it and keep a mental list of the things I could do but don’t have to.
When doing my recent motorcycle post I was reminded that with my wife riding so few km her insurance cost alone has been $1/km some years.
Thank the horrible smoky air that sat in our valley for days, and was really atrocious over Labor Day Weekend, for this post and the one coming very soon about my moved houses.
I wore a dust mask at work in East Portland on Tuesday and Wednesday, I hear Eugene was even worse.
Great story, and proof that pretty much ANY machine will serve you well for many years if you simply give it the necessary attention. This thing seems to have an angel in the glovebox though. It’s been incredibly dependable and resistant to draining your wallet from everything I’ve read since joining CC. Hope it lasts another 30 years!
Thanks Paul, really nice read. I love old pickup trucks too. I’m fond of bench seats for three across and floor manual shifters too. Happy motoring!
Great read, Thank you
The overdrive conversion makes it!
As I was reading along I thought to myself how “busy” driver’s side of the transmission must be, floor-shift, short-tail, overdrive, x-member and all.
And then a picture! I hadn’t thought of over-the-top shift rods, I was expecting ’em to “U” below the solenoid. Still plenty busy. I was surprised to see that the shop went the extra mile and added the lock-out cable. There are times when overdrive lock-out really is needed.
So Paul, by now you must have figured out that with automatic controls bypassed overdrive make a handy hill-holder, to prevent roll-back on uphill starts? And too, bypassed controls make for terrible engine braking?
And I’m guessing that thanks to being one smooth operator you haven’t figured out that a revving engine catching up to an overrunning freewheeling overdrive unit, on hook-up, can blow the sprag clutch to pieces?
And another random thought. While hunting the underhood picture for an overdrive lock-out cable I noticed the cable-actuated carburetor…
I guess I hadn’t thought of it before but this is probably one of the first applications that gave a toe hold to what ultimately became the ubiquitous universally used throttle cable?
The OD lockout is a re-purposed choke cable (and knob) that is on the floor, slightly behind where the shifter comes through the floor.
Yes, the installer was a bit challenged to make the existing Hurst work well. I had to go back once shortly after the installation for some more fine tuning, as it hung up on me. It would occasionally hang up on me, requiring me to slide under the truck, but it hasn’t in a long time now. It seems to have settled in quite well.
Yes, the OD has it’s peculiarities, pro and con. Don’t back up while in OD! That will wake you up quickly! One really does need to keep alert with it.
“Don’t back up while in OD! That will wake you up quickly! ”
Why? What happens?
There’s a roller-clutch, or sprag clutch, within the OD unit. Sprag allows rotation in one direction only, if turned backwards one fraction of a turn it locks with an instant solid connection.
Thus, reversing when OD is not locked-out quickly locks the driveshaft solidly to the transmission case and any further movement attempts to rip the engine from its mounts.
Normally the reversing precaution is handled by built-in controls and linkage. With wear and modifications the OE lock-out system can become lost.
Yup. But it takes a couple of feet before that happens. I keep thinking I just hit a car behind me when it happens.
Notice that the shift levers coming of the transmission are pointing down in the transmission alone picture and in the picture of the transmission in the truck they are pointing up. I wish I would have been smart and figured out the cure for my ’63 Ford Fairlane station wagon’s reversed floor shift pattern that I had in ’73-’75.
FWIW, that’s not actually my transmission. But you had a different transmission altogether.
As others have stated, the definitive Curbside Classic! You make me miss mine, just a little bit. I can still conjure up the smell of the cab, too (which you didn’t mention, but I would presume is similar).
Great old truck, and may it run for many years yet!
On the accelerator cable side note…
Does anyone recall an earlier use of flexible cable instead of linkage rods between accelerator/throttle/foot-feed/gas pedal, (whatever y’all call it in your parts) and carburetor?
From memory, I believe ’67 Ford truck was back to a “mouse trap” linkage, at least for V-8 applications.
I hadn’t really thought about that this is an early use of a flex throttle cable. I suspect it was likely just for the new six that appeared in 1965, and that the V8s kept their old linkage for a while longer.
Great article indeed so thank you very much. Do you still have the truck’s California Plates lying around somewhere as a souvenir of your time there?
There are several F-Series of this generation in the Portland Area which is cool and there is a near twin of your truck in Lake Oswego. The owner uses it for yard work and it sure has patina.
No. They weren’t the nice old black plates though, for some reason. Maybe it wasn’t originally from CA?
Nice ’65 there. I actually prefer the grille of the ’65 to the ’66. If I ever came across one, I might just swap them out.
That one has the older style wheels and hubcaps. Most of the ’66s seem to have the newer style hubcaps, but I’ve seen a few ad shots (and original ’66 trucks) to suggest that that transition started after the ’66 MY began.
The 65 had innie rims which explains those slightly smaller hub cap. The 66 and up had outie rims and consequently use the hub cap you currently have. My 65, when I got it, had outie rims with caps from the 70’s. Took several years to find some nice hub caps like yours which would have been correct for a 66 Custom Cab. The innies are so much harder to locate in good condition whether rim or cap.
I don’t know where you heard the V8 engines were hard to start. They would have had the very reliable Autolite 2100 carb like I do. Of course when I got my truck it had a 360 engine as the PO blew up the 352. It had a barely running 2150 carb along with two wheels missing crucial brake components when I drove it home after buying it. Naturally I lost the brakes one week later 1 mile from home and managed to skillfully coast to the driveway.
The truck has since had the 360 rebuilt into a 390 and starts immediately with a pull on the choke and turn of the ignition. Carb rebuilt by the late owner of Pony Carbs may have something to do with it. I have stripped and repainted it in the original colors but did nothing to eliminate the factory waves in panels. The bed and three sides have not been done at this time so I can still carry stuff hidden under the tonneau cover.
I will say one thing when driving the five old cars. Of the entire bunch it is the 65 F100 that always gets the compliments and not the cars. Trucks seem to have this pull on people for some reason from back in those days.
Thanks for the more detailed explanation. At the time, I just bought the wheels at a junkyard because they fit, but then realized the old style hap wouldn’t work, and I assumed that was the right style for my ’66. But later I realized they had changed it for ’66.
Thank you for the info Paul about your truck. Maybe your F-100 is not originally from California, maybe the previous owner(s) wanted to or had to replace the Black California Plates.
The 1986 Camry I bought last year had 512 JBR Oregon plates which were brand new even though the previous owner had purchased the car over 5 years ago. When I bought my 1993 Camry it had the original TKA 956 Oregon plates from September, 1993.
Paul, you might look into finding high friction coefficient brake shoes for your F-100. I saw an episode of Wheeler Dealers where Edd swapped in some extra grabby shoes instead of converting the car to disc brakes, and they worked really well. The downside is higher shoe and presumably drum wear, but considering how few miles you do, it might be a good swap.
https://www.performanceonline.com/1948-66-ford-f-1-f-100-high-performance-rear-brake-shoes/
Look for ‘high friction’ or ‘extra friction’.
Such a great read and account, Paul. I was hesitant to start reading only because I didn’t want to read in there somewhere that you had decided to part with it (like the Chinook), but was relieved to find out that’s not the case. The Siskiyou Pass incident does, indeed, sound like something out of a nightmare.
Reminds me of a time when I lost half my brakes on an off-ramp. I had my feet to the floor and was downshifting and working the e-brake lever too. But I stopped at the stop sign. I have to thank the safety regs which require dual circuit master cylinders for saving me.
Ive been on the Siskiyou Pass a few times…as recently as this weekend on a NorCal roadtrip with my car club, in fact. Its a fun road in a car with a good gearbox and cornering ability, steep and windy as it is. I did it on my first move to Oregon some years back in a rented Isuzu NPR box truck, trailering my Jeep behind it. Id had plenty of time to familiarize myself with the jake brake, and by the time I got to the pass, it was a godsend.
Paul took this with the odds definitely against him. An old truck at max or over load, towing a trailer and sketchy brakes…the Neidermeyer guardian angel deserves a fat raise after that.
I’ve seen more bad things happen on Ashland Grade than Siskiyou Pass. In ’98 going up Ashland grade (south) on our way back from a show, a huge motorhome going down in the opposite lanes was trying to stop, but his brakes were already on fire (as well as parts of the motorhome). At about 20-25 mph a man and woman bailed out. The motorhome was fully enveloped, and doing about 70 when it dove off the cliff at the bottom.. Several years later a vastly overloaded 50’s GMC pickup/trailer loaded with pipe, had failed to make it up the grade and had started backwards down the grade. When we came on it the truck had just overturned (still sliding). The driver had bailed when the backwards trek started. My main thing against Ashland Grade was a very rapid trip down the hill in a near new looking .59 Pontiac Starchief Vista sedan. I’d had it a few weeks, and had gone through the brakes. They still had an erratic pull to either side, but not all the time. About halfway down the grade, I downshifted, but was already at 85-90 mph and it wouldn’t downshift. I got hard on the brakes, it swerved into the left lane then back. I got off the brakes, we had slowed slightly, not enough. I was used to high speed driving and had raced cars, I figured a 98% chance of making it through the curve at the bottom of the hill at…say…120mph., or, I hoped it would work,I’d done it before when I lost the brakes in my ’57 Lincoln, but at much lower speeds. I told my nephew, “When I stand on the parking brake, pull the shift lever into low.” He nodded. I hoped it could lock the rears. I stood on the parking brake, he yanked the lever into low. As he was doing this I was trying to control the massive fishtail going on. I could hear the rears were squaling and then the scream of the engine as low gear took hold, slowing us from around 75-80 mph to much slower. I popped the brake release, I was busy spinning the steering wheel back and forth as it fishtailed. Then the engine rpm was dropping and it was coming under control. It was dropping under 30 mph, then I stood on the service brake and got stopped.. Things had not worked quite as planned, but we were alive. The rear brakes had not locked when I hit them, but it slowed the rotation enough to let the transmission hit low, which slowed the car enough to get stopped. I wasn’t sure if the trans would work or if I damaged the engine, but everything worked. We proceeded at lower speeds to the car show. I sold the ’59 after having the brakes checked again and told they were fine. From my teens, friends who know things that have happened in my life have repeated. “Somebody up there is crazy about you.” As I’ve gotten older, I’ve tried to not need a guardian angel so mush, but my son looks at me when I tell him I don’t take chances , just says, “Oh really”
I still have the Chinook. In fact I just drove it 20 minutes ago. I’ll post an update.
I don’t think I’ll be letting go of it too soon. I’m pretty attached, and it comes in handy as a spare guest suite.
“On the way down the winding road, I’d turn off the ignition for a moment, then turn it on again, which ignited the unburned gases in the exhaust with a lovely BOOM!”
I called my Suzuki S40 ‘The Dragon’ because I could get tailgaters to back off this way. It’s even more impressive at night when the flame is really bright. It sounds awesome when going thru a tunnel too. Just flick that red kill switch on and off for a second.
Yeah points aren’t the problem everyone makes them out to be, particularly on a vehicle that doesn’t rack up that many miles, provided you use quality parts. I think some of the reputation comes from people using cheapo parts with soft rubbing blocks and crappy quality control on the condensers.
I personally gave up on my old truck last year, that wasn’t nearly as old as yours being born in ’82. Though putting that down in writing makes me realize that it is closer to your truck in age than the 2006 I replaced it with. Though in one way the new truck is more like yours in that it has 6 forward speeds and 3 pedals, rather than the automatic in my 82. The old truck was in need of a couple of bigger items like tires and a radiator, some other niggling things and I finally decided that while I certainly could keep it going for many more years, it would be nice to have a nicer newer truck since I now owned a few properties 100 miles away. I spent more than I should for how much it gets used but when I saw that it had what I had longed for in a truck transmission for so long, a close ratio 4sp with OD and Low I knew I had to have it.
Points created the only refuse to start event my old car has had in recent years, I replaced the entire distributor a couple of years ago with a later model unit from a car I was wrecking and last summer actually put that entire engine in but had never actually cleaned and gapped the points, one flat battery trying to start it later I gave them a once over and now the car is fine starts easily with a little choke and runs well,
Been waiting for your truck story! My 30 years with the ’70 C10 had so many similar experiences. Paul, I sent you an email in the contact section if your interested in a write up.
The answer is Yes!
Bu you need to register with CC before I can make you a contributor.
You can reach me directly at curbsideclassic(at)gmail.com
Thanks, Paul. I did register with CC (a couple of hours ago) but haven’t received an email confirmation, not sure how long this takes. Did email a submission to you. Hope you like it.
Your website is truly great Paul. But it is the man of high integrity behind it, with your excellent contributors, that makes it truly special.
Paul, your TOAL story would have drawn me in immediately if today was my first-ever visit to CC. Having hung around here for a couple years, and also been fortunate to met you and others at the last meet-up, it’s all the more appealing and enjoyable as a read. Thanks for putting this together when I know you’ve always got demands on your time.
The talked-about meet-up with Jason Shafer and his ’63 Ford (however unlikely) gave me a big grin and a strong inclination to appear there, even if in the open spaces of the west, sort of a “Promontory Point” kind of thing.
Thanks again, Paul. After sampling car-enthusiast sites online for years, CC is the one I visit daily rather than, oh, monthly (if that).
For me, it’s Paul’s balanced views on many topics that makes his website so credible. He has a strong, well informed world view on many subjects automotive and non-automotive related. And he’s not afraid to call people out. He expects informed, intelligent comments. There’s a strong stereotype that Americans are inward thinking. Paul refreshingly bursts that bubble.
And, yet another CC story gives me the itch to push the “Buy It Now” button, fly to Oregon, and drive this one home for $3400:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1966-Ford-F-100-Base-/162658004684?hash=item25df2c2ecc:g:yfkAAOSwPxtZcqFC&vxp=mtr
Has he done worthy mods on this one, Paul?
Yes. It’s got a pretty seriously “built” 300 with all the typical mods/parts that are considered the right way to make one of these run like a pretty strong V8. I don’t really need that kind of power.
I assumed it was a V8 from the hood emblem.
It sounds like a solid body. I suppose it’s a good deal, if one were thinking of making these kind of changes anyway.
Very nice if you’re interested in a long bed I’d say grab it .
-Nate
Great to finally hear about your truck in detail! I’d say you’ve definitely gotten your money’s worth out of it. Great that you’re still holding onto it (and the Chinook, too).
With the manual transmission (and its quirks) and the manual choke (how well I remember those in our Falcons, Fairlanes, and my 60 VW bug), I’m betting that truck would be theft-proof around SoCal.
The story of a vehicle that perfectly meets a set of needs for such a long period of time is a real pleasure to read.
I love these trucks; really any vintage truck regardless of make. They are a rare thing to see here in the east though. Our concept of an old beater pickup these days is 2010 F-150 with a lot of miles and rust holes in it.
Thanks for the writeup Paul! It made me smile. Sorry that I haven’t contributed in a while; BTW. Life got in the way for a while there. I plan to get back to it soon though.
One repair shop in my home town put an advertising on radio many years ago saying : “Be good to your car, she is the accomplice of most of your adventures ”
That faithful truck is your accomplice for a life time.
Congratulations
One of the group mentioned Paul was casting lustful eyes at the King Ranches lined up at the Rouge plant. I see reason has returned.
The video makes driving the OD look pretty simple. I would never have tried driving my Aunt’s old Colt with the twin stick trans like that. I was quite happy leaving it in low range around town and stuffing it in high range once it was in 4th on the highway.
I don’t get the thing so many have for sitting up high, in their vehicle and elsewhere. Go into a recently remodeled Arby’s or McDonald’s and I see a fair portion of the dining room seating is now high chairs, sitting at least a foot higher than normal dining chairs. Makes no sense to me.
“Go into a recently remodeled Arby’s or McDonald’s and I see a fair portion of the dining room seating is now high chairs, sitting at least a foot higher than normal dining chairs. Makes no sense to me.”
You are probably young enough not to be “blessed” with knee and/or hip issues. For those of us so equipped the higher chairs can be much easier to sit down on, and, more importantly, get up from. I know that the day will come (hopefully not soon) when I will have to give up my Mustang, because I will no longer be able to get into or out of the driver’s seat.
You are probably young enough not to be “blessed” with knee and/or hip issues. For those of us so equipped the higher chairs can be much easier to sit down on, and, more importantly, get up from.
I will turn 64 in a couple weeks. While 6′ tall, I have short legs, 30″ inseam. I have trouble stepping up into an SUV or high chair, especially when I’m tired. At the Detroit auto show last winter, I tried to get in an Audi hybrid SUV, which had an extra high floor. After two or three attempts, I gave up.
I can flop into my Jetta wagon with no problem, and boost myself out of it, even though my left knee is the funkier one.
Man, I’m turning 40 this year, and I’m already finding sitting down into the Mini to be sometimes difficult, especially with the single-degree temps around here plus whatever I’ve been doing to my knees during the week (I typically only drive on weekends.)
Bravo!
The left sun visor looks like a period correct factory item. Or at least dealer installed.
Wonderful account of 30 years of ownership of your truck! I was thinking of you when I spotted this yellow F100 (appears to be a 1962 “uniside” model from oldcarbrochures.com) in Cooke City, Montana, just outside Yellowstone Park, a couple of weeks ago on a trip to Wyoming to see the solar eclipse.
I recently purchased a 1993 Ford Econoline E350 with 470,000 miles for $450.00. It has the 7.3 diesel that runs like a top. I had no idea that an American made vehicle could rack up that kind of high mileage and still be road worthy, and with its original engine and transmission yet! I thought that was only a feat that Honda’s and Toyota’s could accomplish.
Google Million Mile Van, that guy fell just short of the 1.3 million miles on the original engine. His was a gasser though.
Great article, great truck! I just bought this ’66 stepside recently, and I can’t wait to get it home and get it roadworthy.
Great to hear the full story of the ’66 that has been mentioned so many times in your other tales. It’s the perfect tool–reliable, simple, and there when you need it. Here’s to another 30 years together!
Paul it’s great you have the know how to keep the old truck going My dependable
93 Ranger is going to be probably close to given away because I have no mechanical
ability it needs thousands of dollars in repairs to pass state inspection
Owned it 14 years it’s been about as trustworthy as yours
I really enjoyed reading this. I’m unclear where the exact point is, but our vehicles make a transition from being just a tool to becoming part of the family. They carry not only our trash, but also so many memories.
You story of this truck is quite a contrast with your early life tales of 1971 Fords and other 70s cars being thrashed. Excellent truck, cared for all these years.
I always enjoy updates on your F-100 Paul, and that it is still as useful as ever.
I guess my 2002 F150 is the no good grandchild what with sybaritic leather leather seats, decadent power windows, an automatic transmission and a spark plug launching 5.4 V8. On the positive, Long Truck because over 20′ bumper to bumper Long Truck is long, does do an excellent job hauling and towing stuff. I bought it in 2020 for $3000, with an extra set of wheels and tires so cheap work trucks hadn’t become that much more expensive. Then I ended up spending $1000 and every weekend in July replacing the cylinder heads with reman ones after a trip to Corvallis turned the engine into a V7. This has a established a mechanical bond, and made the truck run better, as well as keeping the new plug firmly screwed in. Since then I have done semi-annual dump runs, pulled rented campers, hauled an excavator and lots of lumber and occasionally kayaks and mountain bikes, Like Paul’s this a mostly local use truck, IN 3 1/2 years I’ve never left Oregon and been out of the county only 4 times. I expect to accumulate more stories although not as many as Paul’s 66
This is what the true truck enthusiast does S.J.C. ~ it matters not if old or newer, you bought it and are using it whilst taking proper care of it, long may it last .
I use one of our old Dodges like that. 1962 D200. 318 with a cast iron Torqueflite. It gets a lot of attention at the scrap yard or hardware store. The other day it got loaded with 3300 lbs of #73 stone for the driveway. It wasn’t on the stops yet.
Thank you for the update. Glad to see you and the truck are doing well.
Every time I read about this truck, I remember my time in the 1963 version I had back in the 80s. Mine had the older 6 (a 223, IIRC) and it always started and ran like a champ, and never gave me a bit of trouble. But the combination of worn steering, the I beam front end and extra leaves in the springs didn’t make it the most enjoyable driver. I always looked forward to driving it as the weekend approached. Then I always looked forward to parking it after about a half-hour behind the wheel. 🙂
This is just a great write up! It reminds me of a job I had at 19. I was working for a farm and garden center and the primary vehicle for deliveries was a 1971 F350, 4 speed with a 300/6! It was converted to a dump bed with high sides and a swing out tailgate.
We delivered bulk cypress mulch in Fort Myers Florida and the owner who knew nothing mechanical told the supervisor that he wanted it to haul the largest amount a mulch possible. That turned out to be 14 cubic yards!!
Even with all that weight, that old truck never ever failed!
And by the time I got there, it was already 12 years old on it’s second engine!
Yes, we delivered menure too, but bagged!!
Thanks for the look back
Great essay. I would had ___ in my pants, too on that downhill ride with the transmission popping out of gear. It’s such a good friend. Do you take it for a beer once in a while?