Register now to get rid of these ads!

Projects 1965 F100 father and sons project

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by WhitewallWill, Dec 23, 2021.

Tags:
  1. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    65f100abby5.jpg
    We bought the truck Oct 2020 and started the fab Apr 2021 so I am going to throw down the story and fill in with photos until I get to current.

    I had been trying to buy a model A pickup but, finding nothing in my price range I decided to go the builder route. Our example here is a 1965 short box F100 with a straight 6 on propane, farm 4 speed and a 3.70 rear gear. Photos looked good but, it was in pieces scattered across the floor, no mention of that in the ad. I told the owner, get it together and if I can start it and drive onto a trailer I'll take it. A few weeks later I got a text it was ready and running and just like that, it was on. I have two boys I really wanted to expose to this so, Clementine, as she is named, has opened the doors.

    Round 1. I thought I'm going to get it running/driving, insure it and drive it to work. We managed to do that fairly quickly - 5 weeks. We painted the doors and the kids helped me lay out some scallops, did the brakes and a bunch of gaskets and it was on. I wanted one colour so we committed to fixing what we have no matter how rusty. The day I got it running I was followed by a dude in a Ferrari who honked and thumbs upped twice over several blocks. That was enough to sell my kid on the concept.

    Early into this I figured we needed to do some lowering. We dug into the front end to find the coils had been cut. I planned to use as a truck so I settled on a DJM 4" drop in the rear. I considered the DJM 3" drop beam up front but, went with the Jaguar XJ6 after reading about a 1964 F100 posted by @Mattilac. The '65 frame is deeper than a '64 so it needed a small notch. Sold our front disk brake set up and I beam front end and netted out at $360 grand total for the OT front end. Front Chev steel wheels were $100.

    Round 2. Metal work. When the weather got crappy I yanked it off the road and cut it up.

    Round 3. Motor and trans. Just as we got going Power Nation started a 300 Ford build up - WHAT?. I will get the truck back on the road before getting into the motor and trans. The truck was converted to propane in the 80's and at the price of propane (CHEAP) I thought I would stick with that.

    Photos explained. No stripe truck was from the original C.L. posting. Striped truck with white wheels is where we got to in the first 5 week sprint before the start of the tear down.
    testdriven.jpg View attachment 5277815
     
    Last edited: Mar 29, 2023
  2. 41rodderz
    Joined: Sep 27, 2010
    Posts: 6,540

    41rodderz
    Member
    from Oregon

    That’s a sweet truck. Very :cool:
     
    WhitewallWill likes this.
  3. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    Thanks 41.
    My first shot at repairs on a fender are about to get the redo. I fully welded it but, our repairs are so much better now the first one bugs me. Right after that experiment we figured we needed to get the box off and go after this in proper sequence. Do the suspension then while waiting for parts we would tackle fabing the cab.
    20210103_164118_resized.jpg 20210402_185922_resized.jpg 20210403_134049_resized_1.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2022
  4. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    DJM rear drop and paint was next up. Kaboom - scatter scatter. This was going to get out of hand quickly. While waiting for parts I painted some checker board.
    20210404_112734_resized.jpg 20210411_153947_resized.jpg 20210418_114542_resized.jpg 20210420_183247_resized.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2022

  5. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    While we are ripping everything apart we addressed some wonky wiring. A previous owner had installed an aftermarket fuse box and harness but, did some patching in the rear that gave me signal lights on one side but, not the other. Then I traced signals in the front then no rear. We pulled the wiring out of the back and I bypassed a few circuits under the dash hooking the rear signals to the front to get it road worthy. Then I got a no charge alternator. Think it best to pull it all out and start from scratch so when I install some Moon gauges the thing won't go up in smoke. I will route the under hood wiring with a bit more aesthetics in mind, namely in the wheel wells as I am painting the inner fenders white. Looks like spaghetti soup up front right now. I need to get the pedals closer to the floor also. Down shifting and braking at the same time is a physical challenge. If anyone has suggestions on that please chime in.
    20210403_151645_resized.jpg 20200904_084336[11918].jpg 20210509_151101_resized.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2022
  6. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    Can we save 'er. I started the drivers side first and wasn't happy with access and sequence so I hopped to the passenger side to work it out. I had leveled the frame then leveled the cab. I'm dualling with how far to take repairs. Basically if it is a hole or structurally messed up it gets fixed. Surface rust we will leave. I'm guessing when the truck was done in the 80's it just got a layer of sheet metal over already bad original metal. Repairs were everywhere but, looked to have been done by a High School kid. Makes sense because when I was in high school I was learning too but, I was not doing metal work just mechanicals. I don't think whoever did the first round of work owned a grinder. We will take it to a different standard.
    20210509_142303_resized.jpg 20210516_125435_resized.jpg 20210529_184721_resized.jpg 20210530_163910_resized.jpg 20210620_184819_resized.jpg 20210627_154047_resized.jpg 20210627_155739_resized.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2022
  7. CME1
    Joined: Aug 10, 2010
    Posts: 299

    CME1
    Member

    The 1965 F100 is a great looking old Ford pickup. It looks like a fun father and son project. Keep up the good work!
     
    WhitewallWill likes this.
  8. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    I should add we are fabbing everything with the intention before putting the bed back on we will flop the cab on it's back and weld everything from the bottom then prime and seam seal everything. Pin holes will be filled by either spot welding then sealing. I don't want to grind everything too clean for fear our metal work will get too thin in some of these tight corners. Some of the really shaped pieces I am using 20g metal.
     
  9. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    Thanks CMEI. My guys were a bit hit and miss at the beginning but, they are really getting into it now. They caught the car bug.
     
    catdad49 and Finn Jensen like this.
  10. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    Merry Christmas! Jumped ahead to today in the photojournalistic journey and sandblasted a ton of stuff at U-Blast. My oldest kid and I did 17 parts. 1 bumper Valence, 4 steel wheels, 2 x inner fenders + an inner fender brace, 2 x calipers, 2 exhaust manifolds, 3 x door hinges and 2 bumper braces. $515 later and I still have lot's of work to do. Would have been cheaper to just buy new wheels. Can't buy inner fenders for a '65 and still have a lot of repairs to bring these back.
    20211228_155337_resized.jpg 20211228_160150_resized.jpg 20211228_171628_resized.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2022
  11. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    This is probably obvious to most but, the quality of parts is certainly an issue when welding. We're going the rest of the way with 18 gauge flat sheet metal. I used 20g to form the lower cowl at the A pillar. Not bad. I went to do the rear cab corner with a purchased part. Even my truck with it's thin rust compromised metal at least held a spot weld. The new stuff just melts. I ended up doing quick trigger tacks on what is almost like 22g but, could be 20 but, the moment I let the spark dwell it melts away. I didn't have this issue with the thicker cab mounts - Grrrr. I let the tacks cool during the whole process and I got still got some distortion on the new metal. It feels like a ripple the whole way along the seam with no distortion at all on the original cab metal. This will be hidden by the box but, I considered buying some patch panels to repair fenders. NO WAY.
    20211218_103114_resized.jpg 20211218_105224_resized.jpg 20211219_145931_resized.jpg 20211229_074714_resized.jpg 20211219_172218_resized.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2022
  12. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    The tailgate - all 18g fix ups. Another patch to do still in the centre. I did the passenger side and my 17 yr old did the drivers side. He is building a skill set that guy. We are trying to not use any filler although there is plenty from before the previous paint job.
    20210815_100252_resized.jpg 20210821_123121_resized.jpg 20210822_125228_resized.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2022
  13. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    Got my 15 yr old in on this part of the deal. We dropped the twin I beam and he helped me laser the truck to square and marked out the floor. We got the original centre line and marked it on the hood although that was a tempy thing until we plumbed down to the floor. We centre punched the frame and new front end centre line then went from measurements off the cab mounts for placement just in case it had any front end kinks. I googled moving the front end an inch forward, marked it all out then found in some corner of the web where Ford corrected front axle placement for the 1965 year. Well, that was a good 2 hrs blown. We put it back to the original as built placement location. Next came the front end fab work. We made 3/16" saddles for the new install and cut off all the hanging bits from the truck and front end. We welded in Grade 8 studs and used factory mounting holes in the frame. Lots of gussets and the last through bolts will be done after we are aligned and caster/camber checked. 6 bolts per side should be plenty. And with the powers of photography and editing... We have to work out shock mounts and steering yet.
    20210809_172602_resized.jpg 20210829_184825_resized.jpg 20210808_145828_resized.jpg 20210808_161250_resized.jpg 20210808_143542_resized.jpg 20210903_163035_resized.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2022
  14. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    Drivers side floor. We need to do the frame cab mounts later but, will tackle that when the cab is on it's back. So with the frame and cab levelled we found the new cab mount on the drivers side was too short. We rebent the new mount and welded a flange on it to get it levelled with the frame. I finally got new cab bushings so any discrepancy we can make up with shims at final assembly - I hope. The drivers side went smoother having learned on the passenger side. I did the fab and the kids pecked away at the welding. They have conceded that the fab is where the time is spent. Will get them in on that process once the floor is in and we tackle the cab from the bottom. The floor bracing at the door sills is pretty roached so may leave that to them.
    20211024_114152_resized.jpg 20211024_115840_resized.jpg 20211024_131232_resized.jpg 20211212_122126_resized.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2022
  15. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    Inner fenders. Aaargh. This is an attitude post. Steer away if you need. Have not wanted to do this as the previous farm fixes are nasty. I put an ad on C.L. trying to find better versions and that was a bust. Get over it Nancy is my new attitude. This is really because my $80 metal break doesn't make sharp bends. I'm not trying to build a show car but, by vocation I have built a career building some pretty exotic digs so I am altering my attitude to accept Clementine will be good but, not perfect. She's a budget build where we will get the max from the min so to speak. This first inner fender is the nice side. Still feeling sorry for myself as I type. This was where I decided we would go sandblasting so I could work on something that didn't piss me off more than it needed to. And with these last few words we are now up to date. I have literally hundreds of photos and I managed to keep it to the basics. It's very cold here by Vancouver standards and the plans to push hard during the Christmas break are falling apart as I am becoming soft. Will have a glass of wine tonight and attitude correct then get on with it. Over and out.
    20211128_173045_resized.jpg 20211205_143807_resized.jpg 20211205_143814_resized.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2022
  16. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    So, while swimming in Lake Boo Hoo, I forgot I ordered a front rad support June 2 and it showed up late December. We have had floods locally that have severally interrupted supply of virtually everything. Couple that with everything else I remind myself it's all good in our camp. And, I don't have to fix the crappy rad support that came with the truck. Awesome.
     

    Attached Files:

    Last edited: Jan 2, 2022
  17. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    One last note for the day is to show the heart of the matter. The 240/300 cu. Motor, we will figure out which one we have on the tear down, will be Gold along with the wheels. Inner fenders and brake booster are going Recreation White (Tremclad/Rustoleum), closest we can get to Wimbledon White out of a rattle can. The fuel system looks industrial so I will either paint said air intake gold, white or scrub down the shine to a brushed finish. Nothing chrome or polished under the hood. Thinking we will get into the motor next winter as it purrs pretty good. The whole thing has to be finished by June '22 for my 17 year olds High School graduation parade. For anyone who is super sharp eyed, the original owner had a 64 grill and upper valence. He then traded for a 65 grill but, kept the no signal light valence. I picked up headlights with the signal light built in so no visible signal lights up front. We may go the Econoline headlight door route if I can find a junk grill to cut up. Ours is too nice to cut. It will give us an option to simply do a grill replacement to change the look.
    65f100abby5.jpg 65f100abby9.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 26, 2022
  18. patterg2003
    Joined: Sep 21, 2014
    Posts: 864

    patterg2003

    Your truck is in amazing shape. Congrats on a perfect find.
     
    Last edited: Dec 29, 2021
    WhitewallWill likes this.
  19. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    Thanks patterg2003. Having a lot of fun with this one. Good to feel like you are learning something and this one is definitely schooling us.
     
    catdad49 likes this.
  20. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    I was not that committed to a project yesterday. I have to turn the truck around because our mig torch is not long enough to reach the passenger rear cab corner. I can't get the front wheels on the ground because of parts supply issues. OK - Fenders. Both have gaping holes at the top of the fender but, the passenger side fender is worse on this truck. The truck was originally Wimbledon White but, a red truck had given up a significant amount of parts in the past to a previous restoration. The most recent owner had been searching for a new cab when Covid first hit and then decided to sell to us. I got one fender from him for future collision damage reasons but, that was it. The truck came with front cab mounts, floor patch panels, lower A pillar hinge pocket patches, extra steering box and small bits. Anyone in the rust belt who has to do what we are doing as a normal routine on a classic has my respect. The outer skin rust repair I botched so I am not going to show it. It has an inner curve as it comes up to the top lip and I missed the alignment at the edge. My benchtop brake strikes again as I couldn't get the edge sharp enough. Instead of stopping I figured I could hammer massage it once it was on. Didn't work. I'll have to cut it off and have another run at it. If I get it looking good I'll post the first gaff effort with the redo. Ran out of energy and daylight on this one.
    20210815_171206_resized.jpg 20210815_180027_resized.jpg 20210815_180135_resized.jpg 20211230_094400_resized.jpg 20211230_094331_resized.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2022
  21. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    Jumped on the inner fender today. Couldn't bring myself to cut apart and redo a task. It's all new tasks for the foreseeable future. I'm ok with this inner fender after spending a fortune blasting the other day. The mounting bracket cleaned up after a partial bead blast. Hit the remainder hard with the knotted wire wheel on a grinder and we should be able to spot weld it together after priming the backside. Showed one of the kids how to hammer and dolly all the ripples out and it looks quite presentable. Looks to be about 20 holes in each inner fender. Should I weld them up or leave them? Still need to finish the front corner where the rad support bolts up.
    20211128_123329_resized.jpg 20211230_152529_resized.jpg 20211230_153308_resized.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2022
  22. Man, you are making some good progress!
     
    WhitewallWill likes this.
  23. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    Thanks Guthriesmith. If I didn't have to work, eat, sleep and generally be a part of society in a broad sense I'd have this thing done by now. Just had my 17 year old looking over my shoulder at your guys Edsel. What a journey you are into. Looks like a good read.
     
    chryslerfan55 and guthriesmith like this.
  24. Yea, having two 17 year old boys and a 17 year old daughter all at the same time right now, I can relate. Both my boys are getting motivated to get back to work on their pickup projects. One has a 63 C10 and the other has a 51 Chevy pu. Wish you weren’t so far away! My boys have a time finding other teenagers into this stuff. Enjoying watching this build of the F100.
     
  25. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    Indeed. Talking with one of my guys confirmed the same, if he talks cars with friends they glaze over. At least they have us, something we hoped for at the start.
     
  26. Just found your thread. Great job getting the kids involved! Looks like a great project as well.
     
  27. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    Thanks for following along brEad. So this whole kids and cars thing has gone down better than I expected. You know the chat we all have, you know the one, it's when you tell your wife you are a better parent then her and she tells you you're an Ass. I just point to the truck shrug my shoulders and say they also carry the groceries from the truck.
     
  28. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    Inner fenders today. Drivers side mostly done except for 2 mounting holes and finish grinding on the underside. I might have pooched the drop on the outer fender firewall bracket so I think before I push this one any further I'll bolt it on the truck and try mounting a fender to confirm then make it all smooth. My before photos missed an angle so I could confirm and I cut up the original too early. Onto the passenger side next. The mounting bracket has a big hole in it so I need to fix that. I'm going to cut the whole corner off the inner fender mounting area like I did the driver's side but, I'm going to build the new parts before I cut up the old - part of the learning process. Easier to manage then weld it all back together once it is rust free and structurally sound again.
    20211231_125046_resized.jpg 20211231_151633_resized.jpg 20211231_152427_resized.jpg 20211231_152700_resized.jpg 20211231_150737_resized.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2022
  29. WhitewallWill
    Joined: Mar 5, 2014
    Posts: 645

    WhitewallWill
    Member
    from N. Van, BC

    Another inner fender day. Ran out of sheet metal. Changed methods to avoid minute alignment issues. Look up Fitzee's Fabrications to explain the rationale.
    20211231_152856_resized_1.jpg 20220101_124455_resized.jpg 20220101_131150_resized.jpg 20220101_132716_resized.jpg 20220101_144812_resized.jpg 20220101_155413_resized.jpg 20220101_162946_resized.jpg 20220101_172852_resized.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2022
  30. Mike Lawless
    Joined: Sep 20, 2021
    Posts: 513

    Mike Lawless

    I saw you commented on my project post about having inner fender envy. Yeah, I see what you mean. I reckon I got lucky in that regard. Mine just had minor surface rust and mostly still paint.
    I'd imagine that it seems it is a never ending process. But you're looking good!
    I can say, that sometimes, it's just better to start over than to keep fighting with something that didn't turn out good. It'll make a difference down the road.
    Keep after it!
     

Share This Page

Register now to get rid of these ads!

Archive

Copyright © 1995-2021 The Jalopy Journal: Steal our stuff, we'll kick your teeth in. Terms of Service. Privacy Policy.

Atomic Industry
Forum software by XenForo™ ©2010-2014 XenForo Ltd.