Finishing Touches

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This web page is about restoring/resto-rodding a 1950 Ford F-1 pickup, and is one of a series of articles documenting the project. I am providing this in the hope that it is helpful to fellow Ford truck owners, but beware that there are many ways to accomplish the same goals... I have only shown one way. Also, keep in mind, that my comments are specific to this year, make and model, and should not be generalized. Feel free to drop me a line if you see mistakes or need more information, but please understand if it takes me a while to respond. To go back to the main project page click here.

Our Plan

I suppose the "finishing touches" part goes on forever...

Tires & Wheels

Since this was more of a resto-mod than a hot rod, we decided to go with wide whitewall tires, "baby moons" and trim rings. The factory wheels are 15" but only 6" wide, which limits tire choices. We also wanted to use modern radials and wider tires (especially on the back), so new wheels were needed. We ordered Wheel Vintiques "Gennie" wheels, 15x7 for the front and 15x8 for the back, with the matching trim rings and Ford script center caps from Summit Racing. We then had El Paso Powder Coating (Texas Ave) powder coat the wheels in P009-RD02 (Cardinal red) which matches the Torch Red quite well.

As for tires, we ordered Diamond Back III radials, P235/70R15 up front and P255/70R15 for the rear. The fronts have 3" whitewalls and the rears are 3.25". The tires are actually BF Goodrich Radial T/A's, so they ride quite nicely.

Overhead Console

I did not hook up the factory Ammeter because I did not want to run the alternator output wire through the firewall to the gauge and then back through the firewall to the battery. There is really no room to mount additional gauges under the dash (due to the A/C unit), so I decided to make an overhead console for some additional gauges. Initially I made a simple console out of wood and covered it in vinyl, but a friend ended up making a better one out of vacuum formed plastic. The 4 gauges are:

Water Temperature: read at the driver side water pump, this is basically radiator exit temperature; its interesting, but not good indicator of engine temperature.
Oil Temperature: sending unit is in the remote oil filter assembly.
Oil Pressure: sending unit is in the remote oil filter assembly.
Voltage: measured at the fuse box feed.

Swapping the Ammeter for a 2nd Temperature Gauge

I already mentioned I eliminated the ammeter - what a terrible design to send the entire electrical load through the firewall to the dash just to measure current - and added a volt meter to the overhead console. Since the ammeter is no longer used, I decided to add another temperature gauge. The flathead V8 has two separate cooling passages in the block, so its possible for the left side to overheat but not the right, and visa-versa. I purchased a NOS temperature gauge and sender from eBay. Now I have 2 temperature gauges in the factory cluster - one for the left head and one for the right. (FYI - in the factory set up, the driver side head has a temperature switch with 2 terminals, one going to the gauge and the other to the passenger side head. The passenger side head has a single terminal sending unit. They way it worked was the gauge read the passenger side head temperature, the driver side was just a switch which was normally closed, completing the circuit to the passenger sending unit. If the driver side head gets hotter than 210F, the switch opens, which sends the temp gauge to full Hot. So, you knew the temperature of the passenger side head, but all you knew about the driver side was if it was below or above 210F (overheat). I replaced the driver side switch with a sending unit, like used on the passenger side head, ran another wire to the passenger side head and connected the second temperature gauge to it.)

You may be wondering: why so many temperature gauges? There are 3 in all (actually 4, if you count oil temperature). The factory cluster now has 2 water temps - one for the left head and one for the right head. These are used to monitor engine temperature, and now I know the temperature of both cooling circuits, whereas in the factory configuration, you know the passenger side temperature, but all that is known about the driver's side is if its overheated or not. There is also a gauge (in the overhead console) reading the driver's side water temp at the pump. This is the radiator exit temperature, which is not particularly useful to know, but I needed to a 4th gauge for my overhead console, and this seems as good as any. In case you are wondering, the temperature drop cross the radiator is about 30F during the summer ;-).

Finally, one last word about water temperature. In 1950, 210° F was considered an overheat condition because there was no "Prestone" as we know it today, and the radiator used a 4 lb. cap. In other words, at 210° F, you were about to boil over. Furthermore, motor oil of the day was not capable of running high temperatures, like modern oils can. Since my flathead is running 50/50 distilled water and Dexcool, a 13 lb. cap, and modern motor oil, 210° F is not really an overheat condition; thankfully, the flathead is running below that, so there's nothing to worry about. My only point is that applying 1950's temperature limits to flatheads is not as critical these days. This is not to say that you should run a Flathead over 210° F as a matter of choice, just that if you're running near 210 on a hot summer day, its probably no reason to panic, as it was in the past.

Instrument Cluster with 2 temp gauges

Remote Door Locks

One nuisance older cars have is that the driver's side door does not lock/unlock from the outside. In the day, you locked the driver's door from the inside, slid over the bench seat, exited the vehicle out the passenger door, and then locked the passenger door using the key. Of course you can replace the latch mechanism for a newer style (or shave the doors, for that matter), but in my case, I kept the original door mechanisms and installed electric suicide door safety pins, which are operated using a Dakota Digital CMD-4000 remote system. The suicide safety pins are made by Carolina Customs and I got it plus the remotes from the Adult Toy Factory in Las Cruses, NM. (FYI- if you have an electronic speedo, you can use a SpeedLok kit which automatically locks the door pins at a pre-set speed.)

Suicide door safety pins are usually used on cars with suicide doors (duh) as a safety feature - to make sure the doors don't come open while the car is moving, and there are manual and electric versions available. In my case, these are used mainly as a security and convenience feature - basically electric door locks which are independent of the door latch mechanism, although they also serve the original safety function as well. Ideally, the safety pins should be located mid way up the door, but on the F-1, the window mechanism is in the way, so its down low, below the access panel in the door.

The first picture shows the safety pin in the passenger door (for purposes of this picture, its shown in the "locked" position with the pin extended... obviously the door will not close with it extended like this); the second shows the bushing in the door jamb, where the pin sticks through when its locked.

The Dakota Digital remote system has 7 functions (they also make 10 function remotes), but right now I'm only using 2 functions: lock and unlock (button 3 and 4, respectively). The safety pins work on solenoids, so you either have to use a polarity reverser circuit, or use two external relays (see this diagram), which are included in the kit (but without much in the way of instructions for this setup). There are also emergency release levers on the door in case you are in an accident and can't operate the electrics. Additionally, a manual release (cable release) is recommended in case you battery dies or the remotes malfunction. This manual relase should be well hidden.

Electric Fuel Pump

This doesn't belong in "Finishing Touches," but it didn't fit in with the other pages either, so here it goes. I decided to run an electric fuel pump, which also meant that during the engine rebuild, the fuel pump pushrod hole had to be "blocked", which is covered in the Flathead page.

On the engine stand, we used a NAPA diaphragm-style electric fuel pump, and it worked well, but they no longer carry this pump, and I didn't care for the replacement because it had to be mounted 45° from ground level so it always pumped "up hill". So when it came to building the truck, I opted for a Holley "red" pump, which is a vane-style pump and is internally regulated at 6-7 psi. No external pressure regulator is needed. The pump is mounted to an angle bracket attached to the frame rail near the gas tank (at the back of the cab). There is a small filter installed between the tank and the pump, only meant to catch large particles and protect the pump, then there is a larger cartridge filter after the pump (also made by Holley). From the pump to the engine bay, 3/8" tubing is used. My only complaint is that the Holley pump is noisy, which seems to be "normal".

Electricity is supplied to the pump via a 30A relay. This reduces load on the iginition switch.

I carry a spare fuel pump and relay with me... not that I mistrust them, but they're easily replaced and if either fails, it'll leave you stranded.

Cruise Control

I installed cruise control, made in USA by Rostra, from Summit Racing. I've had good experience with Rostra's universal cruise controls on other vehicles. They are easy to install, and work in modern (computerized) vehicles as well as antiques, and with automatic and manual transmissions. The only real requirement is 12V positive ground. This cruise control is a servo control module, so there is no vacuum hookup or need for a vacuum chamber.

The cruise module mounts in the engine bay. On the F-1, the inner fender on the passenger side is a good fit.

Rostra provides a variety of ways to connect the cable to the throttle. I used one of the bolt holes originally intended for the oil filter mount (mine was relocated to the firewall) to mount the cable holder.

The F-1 has a mechanical speedo, so a signal generator is needed, and there are two options: magnetic pickup for the drive shaft, or (the one I chose) one that hooks between speedo output and the speedo cable. The picture below shows the signal generator attached to the transmission (actually, its attached to the speedo reduction gear, which I needed to make the speedometer read correctly, 21% reduction).

Wiring is straight forward: power, ground, speed sensor (signal generator), brake light switch are always hooked up. For a manual transmission, you can hook up a clutch disengagement switch or a tach signal (or both). For an automatic transmission, either the neutral safety switch or the tach signal. In both cases these are used to prevent over-revving the engine in case the clutch is pushed in or the transmission is knocked out of gear. I hooked up both the tach and clutch disengagement switch. The picture below shows the clutch switch, which is bolted to the frame rail. The gold striker plate was included with the clutch disengagement switch kit, and it is attached to the clutch release arm. This switch is really designed for indoor use, but there is no way to put it in the cab with a frame mounted clutch linkage... we'll see how long the switch lasts. If it fails, it can always be bypassed, since I also hooked up the tach signal, which will disengage the cruise if it detects a rapid engine acceleration.

Rostra makes a variety of control switches, most are for use on the turn signal stalk, but I chose the flush mount control switch and mounted it to the steering column support.

Rostra part numbers: Cruise module 250-1223, switch 250-3592, signal generator 250-4160, clutch switch 250-4206.

Last Updated: Thursday September 29, 2011