Hey guys, I'm a seventeen yearold and I just bought a 1954 Ford F100. I am planning on fixing this truck up with the help of my father. I would like some opinions of how or what I should do to this. I'm young and would like many ideas. Thanks alot!  

My first question is what kind of shape is it in now? Is it a basket case or can you drive it while you are working on it?

Is it completely stock or have some things been done to it?

The very first thing to do is to set the stance. This means lowering it to where you think it looks best.

Before we go too far, what kind of budget do you have to work with? You can build a real nice truck with low bucks, but it sure makes it a lot easier if you have some dough to spend.

Hope this helps, get back with some answers and I'm sure someone will fire back some ideas for you.

good luck,

John  

The truck is drivable. And the body is not in bad shape at all. I have a pretty good amount of money to work with.  

If it were me, I would buy a complete rolling replacement  chassis (There's several choices advertised in CCT) then switch over your '54 cab, bed, and fenders on to it. In one big move you will have power disc brakes, rack & pinion steering, plus a host of other modern features that will make your truck a lot safer to be driving in traffic with newer vehicles.

It might sound a little radical at first, but trust me you will save yourself a lot of time in the long run.

If you really want your truck to handle I would contact Air Ride Technologies and set your '54 up like their '56 F-100. Just call them, they'll be glad to help.

You didn't mention which engine you had. '54 was the first year for a Ford OHV. If you want to upgrade your stock engine, I would use a 302, 351 or even a 460-inch Ford engine in your truck. They are real easy to come by and very dependable... did I mention fast?

Talk to you later, I'm leaving for SEMA.

—John  

What kind of chassis should I look to get?  

Sorry it took a while to get back to you. I had 60 emails when I got back from SEMA.

There's quite a few good rolling chassis to choose from for your '54. Here's some you can look into. No Limit Engineering, Total Cost Involved, Bob's F-100 Parts.

Explain to any one of them what you are trying to do and they will be able to help you. They will need to know stuff like which engine and transmission you are going to run etc.

... John  

hey guys..just a few questions about the rollin replacment chassis...where can i get one and how much, im 16 and just bought a 1954 ford f100.

thnks

adrian  

Another option that is really fun, is to ensure all original frame and rolling equipment is in good order. Nothing wrong with it when it is in good order.  Then simply install 4 reverse eye main springs, (lowers it almost 2") and install 4 rims and tires to suite what you want. This is what I did and it looks great, runs great, steers great, ( and I have 66 year old arms!!!)

My thoughts anyway.  Also I have a 54 mercury (Canadian)_ flat head bored and stroked to 193 ci along with three Stromberg 97's. We still had flat heads in 54.  Ford only started the Y blocks in Canada in 55.  Good luck and work hard, they make a beautifull truck.

Stan Walker.  

Hey Stan,

I wonder if it had anything to do with Ford's 50th in Canada being in '54?

Ah, just a theory.  

This is interesting on the springs, you can not just flip the ones it already has?  I might do this on my 1950 F100.  

I am currently restoring and customizing my 52 Ford F100. I saw a recomendation in another post about replacing the entire chassis, new entire chassises are very expensive--upwards of $7500. This all depends on how you want it outfitted. I have boxed the original frame of my truck and smoothed the frame. I put a custom crossmember in the front, changed both suspensions--IFS in front, 4 link in back. Do a great deal of research, think about what you want and go from there. Good luck.  

I got a 54 F-100 for Christmas.    It was used as a delivery truck at a service station for several years and then parked in a garage since 1980.  It is in excellent shape.  There is very little body work that needs to be done to it.  I read on here about getting a chassis for it.  Called Bob's auto and even talked to Bob himself.  Although expensive,  in the long run, I think it will be the better way to go.  Do you guys know anybody in Texas that builds chassis?  This would save me a lot of shipping expense.  

Weren't you just sub-consciously thinking to yourself that you were due for a roadtrip? What better excuse for a roadtrip, than to just drive over to Ole BOB'S and pick up your chassis yourself, and enjoy the scenery on the trip. Besides, ya never know what else you might find that you can use for your project.