1949 Ford rat truck build

[Bruce's]

Last summer I sold my Meyers Manx dune buggy because obtaining insurance for it was becoming difficult .I wanted a toy I can use and enjoy ,and decided I wanted a rat rod shop truck . I purchased a mud bogger 1949 Ford f1 for $1000.00 .The fellow I bought it from had been trying to open a track at his farm ,but after 20 years of fighting with the city he finally gave up and didn't want to play anymore .I have no interest in a mud bogger ,but the body of the truck is very solid for my area ,there is some cheese under the paint ,but there is pretty much no place on the truck that if you threw a hammer at the metal ,that it wouldn't bounce back at you .The truck was mounted on a 1976 Chevy full size one ton frame ,454 , ,with a big super lift suspension ,and 48" tires on it .There was a legal roll cage inside the cab that I had to cut off to remove the body ,and some pretend drain pipe crap in the box that has also been removed .I took the body off the frame ,and sold the parts I do not want so the body now cost only $400.00 ,pretty good for my area .
I started searching for a new frame for the body ,and found a 2007 GMC Canyon z71 4x4 for $300.00 with a blown engine .The canyons track width is within an inch of the stock Ford ,and the wheelbase of the canyon is about a foot too long ,so I will be cutting a foot out of the centre of the frame .The z71 package was available in both two and four wheel drive on the canyon ,the two wheel drive ones ran the same torsion bar suspension in the front as the 4x4 ones ,so after I ditch the front axle shafts and differential ,I can just bolt the two wheel drive front hubs on and go .I have stripped and sold most of the unwanted z71 parts and currently have only $25.00 in what's left ,but there is easily another few hundred worth of parts I have left to sell .
Last week I bought myself a better pick up truck for my daily hauler ,so I am now going to rob the very good 4.3 auto out of my old truck for the old Ford .Originally the Ford had 120 hp ,but my 4.3 is one of the newer ones and it has 230 hp or so ,lots of power for a 3200 lb truck .I am hoping to strip it and use the complete wiring ,heat/ac systems ,and everything else I feel like for the old truck .I can even use the abs brakes if I feel like ,because my frame is also modern with the appropriate sensors in place .
Other than stripping the two trucks ,I have not done anything more this winter with them ,and will likely just take my time and fool with it here and there ,it's just a toy to mess with .
My plan is to pretty much leave the body how it is ,leave the logos on it and everything ,but I might also make it like a truck my dad used to have at a mine he worked at as a 18 year old kid in 1949 ,his truck was an international ,but they also had fords .I have the original door skin off of his old mine truck ,and I know he would love to go for a ride ,as long as we don't overload the bridge like he did back in the day .
I don't think I have ever done a build thread for any of my projects ,so I will try to add to this thread when things start to get rolling
Here are a few pictures of what I am working with .

[Bruce's]

A few more pics ,my cab sitting in the snow ,my dad and his truck when He broke the bridge and landed in the river,and the door skin off of his truck we retrieved 2 years ago ,and a random picture of how I would like it to turn out ,but with a little more ground clearance for our crappy roads .

[BlackBike]

Ambitious

[cheesy]

Following.

I had a 52 F2 for years. Fun truck. I moved my kids back and forth to college many times with it.

[Weldangrind]

It's gonna take a lot of bondo to fix the holes in that mine truck door.


I'm totally following this thread; I can't wait to see how this turns out.


I want a dune buggy in the worst way.

[Bruce's]

You should of bought my buggy Weld ,it was the real deal ,one of the first 100 or so made ,within hours of putting it up for sale I had people from Florida,South Carolina ,and California trying to arrange shipping for it .It went to a young guy 3 hours from here ,about 5 minutes from one of my cottages so I can see it if I feel the need .

[Bruce's]

That mine truck door has been sitting in the bush since 1950 when the mine closed .The international was a 1948 so it was virtually new ,but they had to haul that nickel ore through 50 miles of poor logging road ,on one of the very first trips they snagged the brake lines on some bushes so the truck didn't have any brakes .They would back up the mountains just in case they spun out ,then at least they could see where they were going if they started down .My father had the time of his life working there .In case you do not know ,that ore is heavy ,real heavy .I am a big fellow ,but I cannot lift a 5 gallon plastic bucket full of that ore ,I might get one side up ,but no way I could lift the whole thing off the ground .Now ,there is a pretty good highway that is closer than a mile to the old mine ,I bring my father there every once in a while ,so I think he would appreciate going in the old truck ,especially if I could get the mine logos on it .

[wheelbender6]

That's a beauty!

[Bruce's]

Originally Posted by wheelbender6

That's a beauty!

Thank you !