First candidate: '93 F150, extended cab, 6' bed, 300/automatic. Beautiful body. everything seems to work but A/C.

Second candidate: '72 F100, "custom" trim, 6' bed, 302/3-speed. Pretty unmolested except hubcaps are missing and it's been converted to a crappy floor shift. It's also a bit of a rustbucket. The box is great but the cab floor has been repaired and the underhood (inner fenders, etc.) sheetmetal and hood need to be replaced, as well as the lower door skins. Seems to have zippy mechanical issues other than brakes however, and I have a drum brake rebuild down to a science (I've been helping a friend of mine resurrect "barn cars" for years.)

Both trucks have current VA inspections and drive reasonably well; the '72 actually felt a little tighter than the '93, but both show signs of use. The '72 also has manual drum brakes and no P/S although it's not a HUGE issue for me, I know that the brakes were not working correctly when I test drove it so comments on their effectiveness when working well would be appreciated. The only vehicles with 4-wheel drums that I have real experience driving are Studebaker cars, and those are apparently some of the best from what I've heard, so I don't know how the Ford truck brakes stack up.

I am really undecided... while this would be a no-brainer for most people, I am drawn to that cute little '72. My rationale is that it's old enough to be a "classic" so repro parts are readily available and cheap, as are maintenance parts like water pumps, fuel pumps, etc. plus it's dead nuts simple and also is easy to upgrade with things like maybe a modern 5-speed and some European headlights (I like seeing at night.) Plus the darn thing just has more CHARACTER than a generic '93 blahmobile. The smaller size is a plus for me as I have limited driveway space.

Am I nuts for even considering the '72? Questions, comments, concerns?

nate

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