New Member with a '67 F250

[dcrawford]

Howdy Folks,
First off, thanks to you all for supporting this great forum. I'm a WW 2 jeep guy, but have been looking for a 4-speed bumpside for many years. I finally found this 1967 F250 last month and have been slowly getting her back on the road. She's a Camper Special, Custom Cab with factory power brakes, power steering and A/C. The VIN tag says she should have a 352, but the P.O. claims she has a 390. His evidence was the 390 sticker on the air cleaner. The tag also says she has a NP transmission, but the shift pattern has reverse to the upper right, so she must have had a change.

It's been fun working on her as she's the newest vehicle I've worked on for many years. She came with some problems - leaking exhaust and freeze plugs as well as brake and carb issues. I pulled the engine out to replace the freeze plugs - amazing how much gunk was behind them. Also replaced the clutch, brake booster, master cylinder, brakes lines, header gaskets, ...

Anyway, here she is. I'm sure I'll have a ton of questions as I move forward, getting her ready for her first drive.
Cheers,
Dave

[lennyp]

from Massachusetts. Nice truck.

[1970FordTK]

Welcome from North Carolina.

[MadJoe]

The air cleaner tag means absolutely nothing. The easiest way to tell a 352 from a 390 is by measuring the stroke; but even that won't tell you absolutely what you have. The way I verified my 360 was to pull the sparkplugs from cylinders 1 and 4, hand-crank the engine until 1 was at TDC (which I verified by sticking a wooden dowel in the sparkplug hole and cranking it up to it's highest point) - Then I marked the dowel and placed it in Cyl 4 (without moving the crank) and mark it again referencing the same spot both times. The 352 and 360 both have 3.5" stroke, so if you get that you most likely still have the original 352. If you get closer to 3.75" (3.784" to be exact) you have a 390. I'll be honest, a small part of me hopes it's still the original 352 because I prefer things to match, but I'm also sure I'd be upset if I paid for what I was told was a 390 and found out it was only a 352.

Best of luck! Oh, and from MA!

-Joe

[dcrawford]

Thanks, gents, for the welcome.
Joe, thanks for your thoughts on the motor. This truck worked on a ranch in the Salinas Valley for many years, then sat for the last ten. I'll just be happy if I have a strong running motor without a lot of odd noises. I agree, it would be great if it had the original motor. I like originality. On the other hand, it's fine with me if it has a newer 390 in it, then perhaps the motor will have more life. Given that the tranny has been swapped, it wouldn't surprise me if the motor had been, too.
Hopefully today's the day for her first start up and drive.
Dave

[colnago]

First, welcome to the family! Always happy when a new bump owner joins the group!

Second, I might be biased, but I think '67 was the best year for these old girls! I love all the bumps, but I love '67 bumps best.

Third, it's somewhat ironic that you've played with WWII jeeps in the past. I love my truck, but I keep hoping to find an old military jeep to bring back to its former glory. Mama says only one project at a time, but I think if I found the right jeep, I may just have to make it mine ...

Again, from Southern California!

Joseph

[dcrawford]

Thanks, Joseph. Agreed, I like the '67 the best, but some of their one-year-only features have been challenging. Ridgecrest - gateway to good times in the Sierras and Whites. Spent many a week there at China Lake in the 80's. I'm in full restoration mode of my '45 GPW. Take a look at my signature for my restoration blog.

I got the Beast running and driving today. Exhaust leaks, clutch, brakes, and carb vacuum issues are fixed. I have one of the six new freeze plugs leaking - dang. Not happy about that. And the new brake light switch keeps the brake lights on at all times. Hmm. But it's been a good day.

Cheers,
Dave

[Mancar1]

Welcome aboard from Northern Ca.

[67mann]

from NY

[calipilot227]

Looks real nice!

[dcrawford]

Thanks for the welcome, guys.
I put new wheels and tires on the Beast yesterday. I found a set of five Accuride 16x7's for free a few hours drive from me, put a lick of paint on them, then put on 265 75 R16's. I like the look, and she drives so much better.

Cheers,
Dave

[1972hiboy]

Dont know how I missed this. but welcome! good to see another guy from Santa Cruz!