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'83 F150 Short Box


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Wow! Beautiful!!!! Is it everything you expected?

It's nothing like I expected. Some things better than expected, some things worse. I don't want to give the truck back, though. It's extremely original/untouched throughout the mechanicals. Every piece of wire and vacuum hose/fittings looks original still and is present. This means it was pretty much left alone and lots of deferred maintenance. However, it hasn't been screwed up by multiple owners yet. That is, except the fuel system. There is some sort of issue with getting fuel pumped into the tanks. Parts have been replaced but there is some sort of venting issue. Lot's to do to get it reliable and safe, but when I'm done it will be awesome. The expensive stuff doesn't need to be done (paint and body). Truck is extremely well preserved and in unheard of condition in this part of the country.

Going through all the suspension pieces (all rubber is dried out/crumbling), brakes and steering first. Will get all the fluids flushed throughout and service all the normal engine stuff (new plugs, wires, dist cap, carb, etc....). I'll keep it and drive it bone stock like this for a while and see if I can break anything bad enough to figure out what to do next. Depending on how the leaking remains and engine/trans performs I will likely look to replace the engine/trans rather than rebuilding the stock stuff. I'd like to keep the stock stuff as long as possible, but I don't want to flush too much money chasing a rather under powered factory 302 just to keep it "stock".

The interior will need quite a bit of work to get all the lights functional, seat repaired, flooring replaced, etc..It's useable as is, though.

 

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It's nothing like I expected. Some things better than expected, some things worse. I don't want to give the truck back, though. It's extremely original/untouched throughout the mechanicals. Every piece of wire and vacuum hose/fittings looks original still and is present. This means it was pretty much left alone and lots of deferred maintenance. However, it hasn't been screwed up by multiple owners yet. That is, except the fuel system. There is some sort of issue with getting fuel pumped into the tanks. Parts have been replaced but there is some sort of venting issue. Lot's to do to get it reliable and safe, but when I'm done it will be awesome. The expensive stuff doesn't need to be done (paint and body). Truck is extremely well preserved and in unheard of condition in this part of the country.

Going through all the suspension pieces (all rubber is dried out/crumbling), brakes and steering first. Will get all the fluids flushed throughout and service all the normal engine stuff (new plugs, wires, dist cap, carb, etc....). I'll keep it and drive it bone stock like this for a while and see if I can break anything bad enough to figure out what to do next. Depending on how the leaking remains and engine/trans performs I will likely look to replace the engine/trans rather than rebuilding the stock stuff. I'd like to keep the stock stuff as long as possible, but I don't want to flush too much money chasing a rather under powered factory 302 just to keep it "stock".

The interior will need quite a bit of work to get all the lights functional, seat repaired, flooring replaced, etc..It's useable as is, though.

Nice!

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It's nothing like I expected. Some things better than expected, some things worse. I don't want to give the truck back, though. It's extremely original/untouched throughout the mechanicals. Every piece of wire and vacuum hose/fittings looks original still and is present. This means it was pretty much left alone and lots of deferred maintenance. However, it hasn't been screwed up by multiple owners yet. That is, except the fuel system. There is some sort of issue with getting fuel pumped into the tanks. Parts have been replaced but there is some sort of venting issue. Lot's to do to get it reliable and safe, but when I'm done it will be awesome. The expensive stuff doesn't need to be done (paint and body). Truck is extremely well preserved and in unheard of condition in this part of the country.

Going through all the suspension pieces (all rubber is dried out/crumbling), brakes and steering first. Will get all the fluids flushed throughout and service all the normal engine stuff (new plugs, wires, dist cap, carb, etc....). I'll keep it and drive it bone stock like this for a while and see if I can break anything bad enough to figure out what to do next. Depending on how the leaking remains and engine/trans performs I will likely look to replace the engine/trans rather than rebuilding the stock stuff. I'd like to keep the stock stuff as long as possible, but I don't want to flush too much money chasing a rather under powered factory 302 just to keep it "stock".

The interior will need quite a bit of work to get all the lights functional, seat repaired, flooring replaced, etc..It's useable as is, though.

If it's "burping" gs while pumping gas in the tank, that's a common issue with those trucks. I had a 81 and a 85 that both had that issue but not on my 81 that i currently own. I kept a 4" block of wood in those trucks and that worked to minimize the problem. By the way, nice looking truck you have there.

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If it's "burping" gs while pumping gas in the tank, that's a common issue with those trucks. I had a 81 and a 85 that both had that issue but not on my 81 that i currently own. I kept a 4" block of wood in those trucks and that worked to minimize the problem. By the way, nice looking truck you have there.

So, where did you put that block of wood? I need to know as it takes forever to fill Big Blue.

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So, where did you put that block of wood? I need to know as it takes forever to fill Big Blue.

Under the tire to lift the side of the truck up?...Just guessing.:nabble_smiley_grin:

Near side? Off side? Front tire? Rear tire? Which tank does it work for, front or rear? :nabble_anim_confused:

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  • 1 month later...

Near side? Off side? Front tire? Rear tire? Which tank does it work for, front or rear? :nabble_anim_confused:

Been quite a bit of work done to get this old girl on the road in a safe and reliable manner. The entire front and rear suspension has been examined and all rubber/bushings have been replaced as well as shocks. New rear axle shaft and both sides complete new drums and everything inside of them.

Carb rebuilt, all new hoses, ignition wires, plugs, distributor cap, rotor, fluids. Rear diff drained and filled with new cover, trans drained, flushed, filled. Coolant drained, flushed filled.

Still need to solve the fuel filling issues, replace brake master and booster, and sort through more leaks and tune/sort the driving experience.

Cosmetics will have to addressed in the spring, but I did black out the grill and repaint the headlight buckets in an attempt to get the freewheeln' tribute look I'm going for.

 

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Been quite a bit of work done to get this old girl on the road in a safe and reliable manner. The entire front and rear suspension has been examined and all rubber/bushings have been replaced as well as shocks. New rear axle shaft and both sides complete new drums and everything inside of them.

Carb rebuilt, all new hoses, ignition wires, plugs, distributor cap, rotor, fluids. Rear diff drained and filled with new cover, trans drained, flushed, filled. Coolant drained, flushed filled.

Still need to solve the fuel filling issues, replace brake master and booster, and sort through more leaks and tune/sort the driving experience.

Cosmetics will have to addressed in the spring, but I did black out the grill and repaint the headlight buckets in an attempt to get the freewheeln' tribute look I'm going for.

Man that's a lot of work in a short time!

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