Thread: Starting it early, 41 ford PU

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Most of what's been said is reasonably accurate for where you are in the process, I'll just refine some of the info from personal experience since I just recently parted with my '41 flathead powered truck.

First, save yourself some embarrassment on (albeit minor) nomenclature. The F100 designation didn't apply to Ford pickups until it's first usage in 1953. In some arenas you'd get pummeled mercilessly for that faux pas.

As you refine your criteria it will get easier to give you more specific answers, pros/cons, vendors or options. Looks like you're starting to narrow down from your opening post which would take hours to answer all the possible permutations.

A couple months ago I had 7 flatheads in my garage, three in vehicles and 4 on the floor, so I'm into the flathead vibe. That being said, if you want 70 mph cruising, and light towing capability, I'd say the flathead isn't your most economical route. As noted above, these are not a cheap engine to make hp with. 250 hp is optimistic though achievable, and given you'd have a long stroke motor to do that torque would be good, but that $10k number (all dressed out) is realistic if not light. If you go to sell the existing engine make sure the heads are off, any serious/knowledgeable flathead buyer will want to look for cracks.........it's a 75% probability of being cracked in my experience.

If you're serious about 2k rpm at 70ish and cost is high on your list of limiting factors an auto is going to cost a lot less than a stick if you want something that will stand up to using the truck as a truck on occasion (especially the towing part).

The 302 would be a fine engine, but you'll have some extra expense with that versus the SBC. Parts are readily available to "fix" a SBF for fit, just adds to the build cost. Depending on what front suspension you settle on you'll likely have to convert to rear sump pan/pump. The leg room in these starts getting real tight if you're 6 ft. tall or more. In fact at 6 foot it's not too comfortable on longer hauls than putting around town.............although at 24 you're more flexible so could put up with more compromise. The SBF is longer than a SBC so might need to require some setback and firewall mod. Not a difficult procedure, but does eat precious interior foot room.

Most of what I do on this vintage of Ford is variations on stock design suspension, which can be made to function quite well and has a lot of flexibility for ride height. But, given what you've indicated as priorities so far, the MII front, and later rear seem more appropriate. I'm not a Fat Man fan, due more to appearance than quality, but to each his own. Depending on where you go with your choices I'll add another vendor to the mix, Chassis Engineering Inc. (that Inc. is an important appendage if you want to research the correct company) They also make a couple choices of MII front kit, and offer a very easy to install parallel rear spring setup. The one draw back of their rear suspension is they almost always require lowering blocks to get the rear end down if you're into appealing appearing ride height. Posies has a rear parallel kit that's friendlier and good quality also. I'm not a fan of coilovers if you're really planning to use it as a utility vehicle on occasion.

The missing grille isn't much of an issue, Bob Drake makes an excellent reproduction.......about $700. If you're a good shopper and patient you can occasionally find someone who is selling one they bought but never got around to installing (lots of folks bite off a project they eventually learn they can't chew) for less. Now comes the detail stuff. On a hood............you're in for an adventure unless Lady Luck is your partner. No, it's not the same as the standard model passenger car, they appear similar, but the trucks are different. And, the '41 is different from the '40. The '41 has more holes for the different trim that it uses from the '40, AND the stock hood latches are in different places so have different brackets underneath. If you end up going with a stock config latch then you'll also need the corresponding backing bracket for the grille to mount the lower latch opening. Then there's the center trim on a '41. Unlike the '40, it's not reproduced (some vendors show a new replacement in their catalog, but trust me, they haven't actually had them for a few years now). Worse, the hood ornament is two pieces, the big water fall looking piece, and a small lift handle for the hood latch release. That handle is unique to the '41 and VERY hard to find in unbroken condition. On mine I preferred the cleaner look of the '40 trim so located a '40 hood and went that way (pic below). So, you've got down the road choices there, but should keep an eye out from the get go as these parts are not easy to find (except the repro hood trim pieces from Drake for the '40). Also, almost every hood you might find will likely need repair at the back in the vicinity of the internal hinge brackets. I've never found one that wasn't cracked in a few.....and more often, many.......places.