Kenny, great truck. I really like the old body style. I'm a Ford kind of guy. Shocking, huh? :laugh: I don't have any pictures of my first two Fords. My first vehicle ever was a 1964 Ford F-350 flatbed with a 300 straight six and a 4 speed. It was replaced by a 1978 Ford F-100 with a 302 and a C4. Then...the diesels.
There was a time in my life when I ate, slept, and breathed Ford diesel. It started with a two wheel drive 1994 F-250, one of the first PowerStroke trucks produced. It still had the Turbo Diesel badges on it, not the PSD badges. Ran that one to 315,000 miles, most of which was doing some heavy towing, then it became a playtoy. I decided that drag racing an extended cab stick shift was fun...and it was! :dance: Once I kind of lost interest in that, the truck was put back stock and is now serving as a second vehicle for a family member.
I picked up a 2002 F-350 4x4 Lariat once the F-250 became a toy. Great truck, loaded with all the options. Even had an automatic transmission. I got rid of that one after putting about 10,000 miles on it at 169,000. What could inspire someone to get rid of such a truck?
Something like this.
I sold my 2002 and bought a 1956 Ford F-350. It had a 272 V8 and a 4 speed. Top cruising speed was 55 MPH, manual everything. Steering, brakes, windows, the whole lot. Only power option was the dump kit installed on the Ford factory flatbed. I had maintenance records back to the 60's, which included a listing for the dump kit being installed around '64, I believe. Lowest mileage vehicle I've owned, with only 73,000 on it.
It was a great truck, and my only personal vehicle for about two years. If you saw me, it was in that. It was a blast. That truck did a lot of work, too. Hauling firewood, railroad timbers, you name it. I had 4,000 lbs on the bed once.
But, things were not perfect. As great as the truck was, it wasn't the most practical. Slow top speed, no A/C, and rather poor towing capability. The hunt was on again, and I wound up with the 2001.
I was specifically hunting for that truck. I wanted a 3/4/550, cab and chassis 4x4 with a manual transmission and transfer case. Found it, with 4.10 gears to boot! With 193,000 miles on the odometer, I bought it. It needed work; it had been rode hard and put up wet. It met all my criteria though, so it came home. Had some injector trouble with it, among other things. Had it for about two years now, and just crossed 200,000 miles a couple of months ago. Like all the trucks I've owned, it works.
It's not perfect, but it's real close. If I were to buy another truck, I would go after the exact truck I have. Same engine, transmission, transfer case, etc. The only changes would be to make it an extended cab or crew cab, and an F-550. :good2: I looked at a nice crew cab, air ride, 4x4 F-550 a few months ago but it sold before I got there. I know where another crew cab 550 is, but it looks like it's had a rough life. That's alright though, I like my red truck. :munch:
The closest thing I have to a family photo of them.