$900 1980 Ford F250 - Budget Build - The best overlander is the one you have

[stark-in-the-wild]

Time and time again I see amazing builds of brand new Tacomas or dodge trucks built with a pretty decent budget. I love them! However, seeing these so often makes it a little intimidating to get into the hobby. This is what I hope to be a very open thread about the slow build of my classic truck. I have never heard anyone say "wow a 1980 F250...taht'd make a great overlander" so I have no standard to live up to and no rule book to follow.

I bought this because it was running, had working 4x4, 4-low and was $900. I purchased this in Seattle and immediately (despite the sellers hesitancy) drove it back to the bay area. It has no power, but enough torque to move the planet. Not to mention it had a terrible exhaust leak. Also it is HUGE.

I do have limited mechanical experience. I built (another never ending project) a 1967 Mustang with my dad...engine, transmission, suspension, brakes, etc.

If you are interested in this build I hope you enjoy! Expect slow updates though. And feel free to participate I'd love guidance, pointers, and just any crazy ideas that you think could be cool on this blank slate!

Now for the juicy part...some glamour shots of where it all started:

 

[stark-in-the-wild]

Update 1 - Got the truck home and immediately replaced the exhaust / intake gasket to fix the deafening exhaust leak. I also painted the bumpers, added some D-shackles, and of course a much needed bottle opener on the bumper!

 

[stark-in-the-wild]

Update 2

Lights are cool...this is a well known fact amongst overlanders. So I got some cheap fog lights and ditch lights from Amazon (Light bar hopefully coming soon). They surprisingly work better than expected for the price I paid. That being said one of them does get condensation in it but I'm not going to drop a couple hundred on lights for my budget build.

I drilled a hole for one of the ditch lights and just re-purposed the antenna hole for the other.

I also got some good Alpine Speakers ($60) because music is important.

 

[stark-in-the-wild]

Ah and I forgot...to wire up the lights I needed some switches. There are a lot of switch panels options out there but to save some money I made one myself out of aluminum and got some jet fighter style switches off amazon. Plus this is all about learning so I'm going to try to fab as much as I can throughout this process. I am 'meh' at welding but can only get better which I'm sure will come in handy if/when I attempt custom bumpers.

1 switch for the ditch lights
1 switch for the fog lights
2 switches for growth

 

[stark-in-the-wild]

Update - TRIP TO PISMO - TROUBLE IN PARADISE

After getting it running...goodish my buddies and I planned a trip to Pismo which is only about a 3 hour drive. Also the day before I left for Pismo I welded up a crappy rack and bought a Roof Top Tent! After work i left for Pismo and I got there at 10pm and as soon as i hit the sand got stuck. Rookie Mistake. Then with the rising tide the truck refused to start again. Got some help from a friendly passer byer and I got the beast jumped then made my way to camp. The next morning the truck refused to start again but I still managed to get it out on the dunes. The next day we woke up and heard there was a shooting on the beach 100 feet from our camp site and again the truck wouldnt start. Immediately I knew the alternator had gone bad. Drove 12 miles then my buddy jumped me. We did this for 100 miles and I stopped at an Autozone and told them to leave me. Swapped the alternator and made it home. Once home i bought a 240 amp alternator and threw that on so that the new lights didnt kill the truck either.

 

[stark-in-the-wild]

Also as this is a Budget Build I want to be transparent about costs. Before I share that though my goal for this truck. I will keep the drivetrain original. No engine swaps or new transmission or differential. I will be doing this with a drivetrain that can be purchased for $900. That being said outside of that I will do whatever I want but I will keep costs in two columns.
1) necessary - anything I have to do to keep it going and keep it working on and off road
2) unnecessary - anything to make it comfier or more enjoyable that doesn't necessarily help me on or off road

 

[Motoboss]

I love it! Keep at it, you've made a good start. Might want to consider a battery upgrade too.
Best thing about budget builds is you don't know what you "need" until you need it. Do the maintenance and replace as you go.

 

[stark-in-the-wild]

I love it! Keep at, you've made a good start. Might want to consider a battery upgrade too.

Thanks! Really appreciate it!

 

[stark-in-the-wild]

Also I found this truck that is the inspiration for my build. Hoping to get a truck bed similar to this one at some point and shorten the total length of the truck (not the wheel base though). The only thing I don't want is my truck to be raised this much and probably not painted.

 

[TexasGMG]

I used own a 1980 F250. It was 351, 4 spd, with dual tanks. Your's should serve you well. This will be fun watching. Keep us up to date.

 

[J.W.]

Great build! Can‘t wait to see where all you visit with it.

 

[PonoAdventures]

Awesome build! Looking forward to seeing more.

 

[stark-in-the-wild]

Thanks for all the support! Im looking forward to see what comes of this myself. Also I forgot to mention this is bad boy has 6 cylinder 300 cubic inch engine....apparently $900 doesnt get you a V8 haha However apparently this engine is one of those indestructible and easy to work on engines which is good for my purposes. Attached to it is a 4 speed tranny.

After swapping the alternator my roommate and I decided to take the beast to Colorado and back again. Photos to come! And then we will be up to date with where I am currently at.

 

[TexasGMG]

The 300 6 cyl is a great engine. There used to be a lot of easy upgrades available to make more HP and torque. It was never a fast engine but it was tough.

 

[Billiebob]

Gorgeous truck, I agree completely with where you are going. Keep the wee bit of chrome it has. No need to waste money on paint that'll just get scratched next trip.

Keep it light, if the mod reduced weight do it. If it adds weight, don't. It looks fabulous with the stock satance.

 

[Sparksalot]

Run what you brung works for me. Especially with a cool rig like yours.

 

[stark-in-the-wild]

Thanks again for the love guys! Owning something like this isnt always easy but the love it gets on the way makes it worth it...which is how I feel about old cars in general.

So far I've got more driving hours in with the rig than I do garage hours haha Here are some photos from my trip to Colorado. We drove from the Bay area to CO in one night then on the way back passed through Monument Valley and the Grand Canyon. I really lacked in photos of the truck on this one though.






And not of the truck but this is why we drove out to CO in the first place:

 

[stark-in-the-wild]

The weekend after I got back from Colorado my girlfriend and I decided to visit the Sierra Mountain. We went to sleep surrounded by green and woke up to nothing but white. I must say the Tepui has been one of my best outdoorsman purchases.

 

[stark-in-the-wild]

And then 2 or 3 weekends ago my dad and I decided to head out to Yosemite for the weekend. The morning was freezing and it took the truck 30 minutes of effort to get it going again but after irritating everyone at camp the beast fired and never had an issue again...i admit there was some user error involved.




And thats where the glamour shots end for now. On this trip the power steering went out. We replaced a pressure hose that was leaking but then it started leaking out of the steering box. So now we have to replace the lower gasket on that which means pulling the pitman arm...which is always a pain. On top of that I purchased new shocks all around to replace the old useless ones as well as some new leaf spring bushings. All of that to come soonish with detailed photos.

 

[Motoboss]

Nice. I had a 300/6 manual in my 72 Highboy and was by far the best, most dependable, easiest motor to work on than anything else I've owned. You've got a great truck that'll work for you for years.
Keep it up!