Good old beater truck?

[mizzou]

Thats why i have the 65 no emission bs the 79 is ok but the 400 is too smogged of course with some Aussie heads it has potential. I have around 50k miles on the rebuilt 400 with no issues but it don't hold a candle to the 390 in my 65! I decided if the 400 lays down I will go diesel next

Forgot about the 390. My first truck was a 1/2 ton 67 with a 390. Great engine.

 

[zogger]

Looking for suggestions on buying a used, good old beater truck to haul firewood.
Obviously needs to be a 4x4 to get in and out of some dirt trails.
But if you were looking for a "less than $2000" pickup truck to haul firewood/logs/rounds
what make/year/engine would you be MOST likely to be interested in?
What old beater 4x4, long bed, pickup did you sell that you wish you had back?

Chuck

any 70s or 80s 3/4 ton or one ton chevy or ford. Because there are still zillions out there or spare parts and so many made the aftermarket new parts availability is good, and the knowledge base online for repairs is completely total. The half tons can work, just you wont have all the heavy duty suspension and axles, etc. Still good enough though.

Nothing against dodges, just not as many out there and prices seem to be higher all the time, from what I have seen. Crapshoot what you might want and what you can find.

90s and up, meh, man, parts are high and little electric gizmos can getcha. Only if you get a wicked deal from someone who used it as a suburban commuter, meaning little loaded work miles on it, and they cant work on them themselves, and it only needs a part or two. Plenty of medium rich guys who just sell off cheap and dont care, they will just go get another new one.

The japanese trucks are nice, but not as heavy built, although they can be pretty strong.

 

[04titanse]

I've got a Ford f350 with 460 gasser 5 speed manual, manual 4x4 transfer case and a 5 ton dump body. Paid $2300 w/ 46k miles. Put about $1000 into it to get it totally road worthy. Its a rock solid wood hauler with solid front and rear axles. It also has a 9 foot plow on the front. Only gets 10-11mpg but thats really the only down side. The zf-5 trannys like to eat up syncros so I just double clutch it.

 

[deerlakejens]

Look for a '90-96 Mitsubishi Mighty Max 4x4, also rebadged as a Dodge D50. They have FI 3.0 V6 with an oversized clutch and a one ton suspension. I've hauled 2500# of stone in mine quite often and it handles it with ease, no headlights at the sky like my Toy did with 1000#. You do have to plan your braking on the downhills, though. I average 17mpg around town, up to 24 on the highway. Easy to work on trucks with a lot of parts common to Monteros. The only downside is a smaller bed but with side rails and/or a trailer, that hasn't been a problem for me. They are often found in the $1200 to $1500 range.

 

[midwest_170]

Pretty hard to beat a mid 80's chevy. I have a 1 ton with a 6.2 deisel in it. It's not a drag racing truck, but with 4.56 gears it's got plenty of power. Here's a picture with a pallet of seed (3000lbs) in the back. The trailer I have that goes with the truck will hold a cord of wood if you stack it. I've had a cord of hedge in the trailer before with no troubles. The truck has a detroit locker in the rear and a limited slip in the front. The drive train on this truck is almost unbreakable.

 

[ropensaddle]

Forgot about the 390. My first truck was a 1/2 ton 67 with a 390. Great engine.

yes FE blocks rule essentially same block as 352,428cj 428 scj 427 with some heads and some nice machine work the fe ford will smoke a chevy and cough up a dodge :hmm3grin2orange:

 

[Patrick62]

bench racing

yes FE blocks rule essentially same block as 352,428cj 428 scj 427 with some heads and some nice machine work the fe ford will smoke a chevy and cough up a dodge :hmm3grin2orange:

FE blocks are stout. I got a FT in a 2 ton here that I will get doing something someday.

The Dodge ain't skeered. Do the same machine work to a mopar, it will keep up with the phord.

This was about a cheap reliable beater wood hauler. Excellent suggestions in this thread.

 

[ropensaddle]

FE blocks are stout. I got a FT in a 2 ton here that I will get doing something someday.

The Dodge ain't skeered. Do the same machine work to a mopar, it will keep up with the phord.

This was about a cheap reliable beater wood hauler. Excellent suggestions in this thread.

Lol yup sorry muh hot rod days reared they ugly head

 

[MofoG23]

Trust me...you can't beat a late 70's or early 80's Chevy/GMC for wood hauling. Built like a tank and very simple to work on.

Here is my 1976 K20. 350 with a SM465/NP205 drivetrain that is indestructible. I have 4:10 gears and get 11/12 mpg loaded down or unloaded - does not seem to matter much.

View attachment 272023

 

[ropensaddle]

Trust me...you can't beat a late 70's or early 80's Chevy/GMC for wood hauling. Built like a tank and very simple to work on.

Here is my 1976 K20. 350 with a SM465/NP205 drivetrain that is indestructible. I have 4:10 gears and get 11/12 mpg loaded down or unloaded - does not seem to matter much.

View attachment 272023

oKoK I'be nice :hmm3grin2orange:
I had one like yours but I can beat it !

 

[Patrick62]

oKoK I'be nice :hmm3grin2orange:
I had one like yours but I can beat it !

What's not to like about a Orange Crusher? 350 is very simple to work on, parts are cheap. Quadrajet will happily run at crazy angles. 465/205 combo is bomb proof. 14 bolt rear axle is fine, but gotta be kind to the D44 front end. You can put 3000 in it and it will walk out without a whimper. I have a 1973 1/2 ton version of the same truck. I need the 4.10 gears but it has hauled crazy loads up stupid trails plenty of times (you're getting there when the 4bbl is opening up in compound low :msp_scared

 

[ropensaddle]

What's not to like about a Orange Crusher? 350 is very simple to work on, parts are cheap. Quadrajet will happily run at crazy angles. 465/205 combo is bomb proof. 14 bolt rear axle is fine, but gotta be kind to the D44 front end. You can put 3000 in it and it will walk out without a whimper. I have a 1973 1/2 ton version of the same truck. I need the 4.10 gears but it has hauled crazy loads up stupid trails plenty of times (you're getting there when the 4bbl is opening up in compound low :msp_scared

Well 390 t18 4 on the floor np 205 dana 60 rear dana 44hd front! I have had both and yes the 3/4 old chevy's were ok but My 65 would pull them spinning backwards imo.



Warning poster has been known to be a tad biased

 

[04titanse]

Posted Earlier about this truck. 1989 F350 cab and chassis DRW 460 gas zf-5 manual tranny 5-ton dump body. 53,xxx original miles.

 

[ropensaddle]

Posted Earlier about this truck. 1989 F350 cab and chassis DRW 460 gas zf-5 manual tranny 5-ton dump body. 53,xxx original miles.

I like that bed does the tailgate get into the ground when u dump ?

 

[brian660]

in that price range...73-87 chevy, with a 350, 4 speed and if your lucky enough 60/14 axles, even the half ton stuff will last forever if its just firewood duty though.

 

[04titanse]

I like that bed does the tailgate get into the ground when u dump ?

Doesn't look like it from the picture but the tailgate is at least 24" from the ground when the dump is all the way up. So there is no issues dumping firewood and stuff.

 

[MofoG23]

What's not to like about a Orange Crusher? 350 is very simple to work on, parts are cheap. Quadrajet will happily run at crazy angles. 465/205 combo is bomb proof. 14 bolt rear axle is fine, but gotta be kind to the D44 front end. You can put 3000 in it and it will walk out without a whimper. I have a 1973 1/2 ton version of the same truck. I need the 4.10 gears but it has hauled crazy loads up stupid trails plenty of times (you're getting there when the 4bbl is opening up in compound low :msp_scared

Yep, when its locked in 4 low using the creeper gear, its a tractor...I've crawled out of some gnarly stuff while hauling out firewood.

 

[MofoG23]

Well 390 t18 4 on the floor np 205 dana 60 rear dana 44hd front! I have had both and yes the 3/4 old chevy's were ok but My 65 would pull them spinning backwards imo.



Warning poster has been known to be a tad biased

Ford, Chevy, Dodge of that era...not much of a difference IMO as they all share quite a few drive train parts (NP205's, Dana 44HD's, full floating rears...etc). Pick anyone of 'em and enjoy the truck...

The only thing I want to do to my K20 is find a cheap set of lockers for the front and rear...never had an issue yet, but would be a piece of mind when I'm going back some old logging roads in the dead of winter.

 

[ropensaddle]

Ford, Chevy, Dodge of that era...not much of a difference IMO as they all share quite a few drive train parts (NP205's, Dana 44HD's, full floating rears...etc). Pick anyone of 'em and enjoy the truck...

The only thing I want to do to my K20 is find a cheap set of lockers for the front and rear...never had an issue yet, but would be a piece of mind when I'm going back some old logging roads in the dead of winter.

If only my 65 had power steering oh well adds bicep :hmm3grin2orange:

 

[nstueve]

i like the f350/250 the 300 motor with c-6 trans is good, just a thing to remember in '87 the gasoline engines had weird emissions equipment with air pumps and hoses running everywhere

I'm another ford guy like many others before me on this thread.

I have a 88 F250 4x4, ZF 5spd, 300 inline six. Best truck i have ever owned. The 300's are known to last for 300K+ miles and the ZF 5spd trannys have a granny low and an OD for highway driving. 87-91 is the box nose style that people don't seem to like so they are usually cheap. I found my 3/4 ton for $400 and refurbed the tranny and clutch for $500. Best $900 I've ever spent. Like said above the 87-91's had air pumps and stuff but it only took me 30mins to pull mine apart, grease it and reinsall after it locked up. I have 3.55 gears on mine which are more highway but I have still pulled a car trailer with logs on it at 55mph in 4th gear no problem. The 300 engines are really the best way to go for light firewood use due to reliability but the 80-86 era had a terrible intake and exhaust that really choaked the power out of the engine... easy enough fix to find a dual plane intake and some 87-96 EFI manifolds to solve that problem!!! IF you get a ford stay away from E40D 4spd auto trannys, M50D 5spd trannys, 460 gas guzzlers, and while I love diesels... the 6.9-7.3 IDI diesels are underpowered and require to much maintence for trucks of this vintage. IF you don't find a 300 I6 my second choice would be a 351w. 302's are high RPM engines and not well suited for trucks. They are underpowered too... Also some might complain about the TTB/ IFS front suspention on the F250's but you'll get a way better ride on road and off...

Here is a f250 4x4 I6 5spd for $1000! $100 in break lines and maybe $200 for a clutch and you'll have a supurb wood hauler with room in the budget to spare!

ford 4x4


80's chevy 350 is a good way to go to... never owned one but hear good things.