Oops! I did it again...

Since my '86 flare side has so far to go, I took the impatient route and bought another. My son found this on craigslist one weekend when he was visiting, and it was in my own back yard.

It's a 1981 F100 Ranger flare side, 302/AOD (like the '86), black with light fawn interior. It has 162k (claimed original) miles on it. The owner quit driving it about 3 years ago when a soft plug failed. It has a lower GVW rating, so it has the smaller brakes and 5 on 4-1/2" bolt pattern wheels, which I thought was a bit strange. But for the $400 price, I couldn't leave it there!

Upon stripping the interior to clean it up, I found perfect rust-free floors!

And the original build sheet was still under the carpet.

And an original locking hood handle, which I'm not sure that I like...

This is the only body damage, but I've already found a nice bumper and color matched fender. I just need to do a bit of metal work on the core support.

It should be an easy project. I plan to polish it up and keep the 37 year old patina for now, pull the engine to flush the cooling system sealer and replace all block plugs, and get rid of the EEC-III system in favor of a DuraSpark distributor anf a Holley 4 barrel. Wish me luck, guys! Sorry, I can't remember how to rotate pics...

LOL!  You have the BUG!  (They say "It takes one to know one", and I'm living proof of that being right.)  

For $400?????  I'd have been all over that like white on rice.  For sure.  And then asked forgiveness of my wife.  That's one of those no-brainers.

I think that is a Free Wheeling Package A, as outlined on Page 10 here: Literature/1981 Literature/1981 Pickup Brochure.  But at some point it has had the grille and headlight doors replaced as they should be black.  And that's fairly obvious as the grille is a 1982+ design, so isn't original to the truck.

COOL!  

EDIT: To rotate pics you just need to open them and then save them with some photo editing app.

That's a score!!!  My '82 has the 5 x 4 1/2 bolt pattern as well. Same Front brakes that were on my Bronco II and ranger.

Well done! I'm a big fan of the Flaresides, and for $400 I would have grabbed it on the spot myself. Please update us as you get it all fixed up.

Wow! What a score... and Gary called it... looks like a Freewheeler! You got very, very lucky my friend! 🙂

What do you not like about the locking hood release? I added one to mine and I like it. It is made well and can be left unlocked if you are not concerned about security.

Anyway, congratulations on your deal! 👍

I like it!  

How did I miss this?
That is a score, half what I paid for mine and 1000 time better shape!

I got to ask is the year you posted of 81 right?
The hood, grille (letters on hood & no oval on grille), AOD (don't think was an option?) and the EEC-III (DS-II) system are not 81 items.

But the F100 and 5x4.5 wheels (power brakes?) are 81 so why the question.

Still nice and I would be happy to have it.
Keep us posted on the work being done.
Dave ----