bit by bit... peice by peice...

[BigNick]

Tonight I have completed the following on my resurrection of the 1993 f250....

- Replace rear diferential cover and get some fresh fluid in there....
- get the four wheel drive functional
- install the blower motor...

three things off the list!!!

What was added....

- new exhaust.... straight pipe, I am tired of mufflers.
- new exhuast hangers, all the way back.
- need to change transfer case and front diff fluid, original fluid is in the front and transfer case.
- i have a misfire.... smokes like a ******* when WOT... really, really bad. Hoping it is just a set of injectors.
- right side dash mount is broken.


I am more than likely just going to buy a rebuild kit for my brother's spare block, rebuild the thing, and put it in my truck.... might get bored out 30 over at some time in process....


I got one major kick in the balls today though..... to have my truck fixed to the condition I would want it to be in.... only cosmetically...

$6300....

tough pill to swallow. I might send this truck down the road and pick up a not-a-rust-bucket gas job silverado..... someone please stop me.

 

[BrandonMag]

If you've been quoted $6300 to fix the rust your truck has, even if all traces of it are removed and it looks like new, eventually the rust will come back and you'll be where you're at now. Better to start with a rust-free truck from California.

If I were you, I'd sell the F250 and find a similar rig for sale on the left coast. Then I'd have someone from OB check it out. If it fits the bill, have a transporter (or maybe someone here who's not busy) move it to your side of the country.

 

[sassyrel]

orrrr, there are a lot of places--that get rust free cabs, and boxes out of texas and such---replace the two,and yer done, other than front end parts, which would be two fenders...and aftermarket are cheap new-------

 

[papastruck]

As a former westerner who is now a fellow MA citizen and who has done plenty of hand-wringing over this very topic, I'd say what BrandonMag has posted is worth a long thought. As an example: I have 2 trucks. I bought one for $500 from Virginia. Not Massachusetts, but definitely not the nice climate of out west, either. The other truck I paid $2600 for. A much bigger and newer truck (Bertha below), but it came from CO. Guess which one I have WAY more money into. And guess which one didn’t go down to a frame on 4 jackstands and is still running while I fix it up.

That’s not to say fixing yours up isn’t an option, but I’d dump the idea of paying $6500 for work of unknown quality and durability. I’d suggest the following questions to anyone who is unsure of whether to pursue or dump a project. They’re insultingly simple – and please don’t be insulted if you find them to be – but I’ve definitely changed answers for the better when revisiting them myself:

1. Does it need to be driven for work or as your primary vehicle? If yes, then dump the truck and spend the $6500 on one in better shape, because you won’t have the time for 2 and 3 below. Most frustrated SOSs here are from people who have not only broken down, but who need to be fixed to get to school or work.

2. Will you enjoy doing what has to be done, or at least find it worth the elbow grease, and do you have access to the facilities and tools required to do so? If yes, then still keep. If no, then read on before dumping.

3. Is there any middle ground – can you use someone’s shop, get paid assistance but not just slap down a year of college tuition for someone to do all the work. If yes, then keep it. This is what saved both my projects. New Hampshire Craigslist rules. It’s a whole different animal from MA craigslist. I scored a rust free ’78 cab from Montana for $500 on there from a guy who drove out to visit his family and dragged it back to help offset his fuel bill. You can get a cab for a lot less out there, but you can’t get one and haul it back for anywhere near that.

What part of MA are you in?

 

[BigNick]

western mass, 15 minutes from springfield. The thing is, I have no mechanical knowledge at all. My brother is a certified diesel mechanic, and at times, even I don't trust him. He just gets a ***** for diesels, and that is kind of what got me into this truck... he said buy it, granted.... for dirt cheap.

and the $6300 was to bring the truck to like-new condition, from a company who has been operating in my town for 75+ years, family owned. they recently moved one town over and about 5 miles away, but only due to space issues in their old place.

they same place said they could get me a inspection sticker for $1000ish, without using any bondo... but it wouldn't be very pretty.

 

[papastruck]

Without getting too professorial about it, I'd say run through those 3 questions and you'll have your answer. I'd only add that a disregard for the notion that you'll somehow recoup your expenses when you sell also helps