Information on Ford F100’s
F100central.com offers several books for Ford F100’s. One of the best sellers is the 1954-1955 Ford Truck Shop Manual. At under $30 at present time, it’s a great addition to your truck at a show or just to look in for reference. Order a copy from F100Central.com
F100 Central also offers several other Ford Truck books for many other years of Ford Trucks.
If you want to tuck some fatter tires behind your 53-56 Ford F100 truck (or newer) you can purchase rear fenders that are 3 inches wider. It lets you mount wider rims and tires in the back and avoid putting in wheel tubs inside the bed. These fiberglass back fenders are high quality and made in the US.
I had a pair of smoothie (smooth) running boards for 53, 54, 55 and 56 Ford F100 trucks in today from a new supplier. Smoothie or smooth running boards are just what the name implies. Smoothie running boards don’t have any of the ribs that run the length of the stock 53-56 F100 running boards. Sure the ribs add strength to the stock F100 running board. However, if you want a smooth, custom look, you have to buy the smoothie style running boards for your Ford F100. At around $440 a pair (at present time), they’re a great deal.
Construction of the Smoothe running boards was clean and made of heavy gauge steel. Smoothie running boards are hand formed in the U.S.A. and really show quality workmanship. You can get them at F100Central.com
I get calls from time to time from people who have, or are looking at project trucks to make hot rods out of or restore. Their question is usually this: Should I scrap the cab (or bed or whatever) and try to find another one, or try to repair what they have? It’s a hard question to answer. I try to find out how bad the project is going to be. In the case of 1953, 1954, 1955 and 1956 Ford F100 pickup truck cabs, they have their common rust areas and there are plenty of sheet metal body patch panels available for these trucks. I guess I tend to try to get people to fix the cabs as often as possible. The 1953, 1954 and 1955 cabs are not produced by the aftermarket yet, so the original supply that is available is it. On the other hand the 1956 cab is reproduced in fiberglass, so while I like steel, it’s still possible to get a new cab.
When it comes to F100 beds, more times than not I tell people to scrap the original and get a new one. By the time you straighten, weld and prep a beat up old bed, you could have bought a brand new straight F100 bed. So, you end up better off in cost and finished product. If you can do body work yourself, then maybe that doesn’t apply, but you know what I’m saying.
When to take on a project is up to you. Remember, if the cab looks bad when the truck is still together, it will be 5 times worse when you take it all apart and start blasting rust and paint off. While a ton of patch panels are available to rebuild an 1953, 1954, 1955 and 1956 Ford F100 pickup cab, you really don’t want to have to use them.
So you put a lot of money into the restoration of your 1953-1956 Ford F100 truck. It’s beautiful. Have you thought about your brakes. If they’re stock drums, you’re probably taking your life into your own hands. Take it from someone who has had their life flash before their eyes in his newly painted 53 F100. Yes I had mine sideways on dry streets going down a light grade. Why? uneven stock front brakes. It turned right now and skidded to a stop, luckily not hitting anything.
Funnier yet was I did it in front of 2 Ohio state troopers.
My point – oh yeah: Please replace your front brakes to discs before you crash up a really nice truck. Also, replace your master cylinder to a higher volume dual setup. F100 Central offers a great kit from ECI Brakes. When you consider what paint costs, it’s a cheap investment.
The kit has everything you need to convert your front brakes to disc brakes
You will need to purchase rubber or braided stainless lines to go from the calipers to the frame brake lines. The kit uses late model F150 rotors and GM calipers. They are common and easy to replace if you wear them out. And, you have options on bolt patterns to match your wheels.
A lot of people have asked me lately about the Toyota Power Steering Conversion for 1953-1956 Ford F100 pickup trucks. The truth is, I haven’t driven a truck with one installed, but a lot of people have. From what I can tell, it’s a great conversion. If you want to keep your straight axle, there really isn’t a better way to go to add power steering.
The swap is fairly simple. And, it costs under $700 for the kit at the time this article was written. You basically remove your stock steering box and column. Then add the bracket from the kit and bolt up the new Toyota steering box in the same location as your original steering box. Then add the supplied pitman arm to the Toyota box. The stock drag link mounts to the new pitman arm the same as the original. You’ll have to hook up power steering hoses to the box. One line will be pressure and one line will be a return line.
The steering column may be a bit of a challenge. You’ll need to modify the stock steering column or use an aftermarket column. Either way, you’ll attach the shaft of your steering column to the shaft on the Toyota box with a u-joint.
The shaft on the Toyota box should be a 11/16″ diameter – 36 spline. One end of the u-joint you will need will have that size coupler on one end.
You will choose the other end of the u-joint depending on the steering column that you use.
I had a customer order the No Limit Fat Bar 4 Link last week. I had heard that it was impressive and it is. It is a complete 4 Link kit for your 1953, 1954, 1955 or 1956 Ford F100 pickup truck. It includes everything that you need to install it on your truck. We ordered the coil-overs, but you can get the kit without rear springs/shocks or with. No Limit also has air bags as an option if you want air ride. No Limit uses a 12 inch 220 pound spring which helps the ride and allows more suspension travel. All of the components were heavy duty. The brackets were massive steel units that were well made. I was impressed. Check it out if you want a great 4 Link!
