Trucks, Torinos, and a Mix of the Two...

So one night, I was down in the Menominee River Valley taking pictures of all sorts of awesome industrial stuff (as I am wont to do), and I stumbled across an old 2wd baby blue '67 F-250 reg cab long box.  The only thing definitive I know about it is that it hasn't moved in forever, it has 8-bolt steel wheels, a full-floating rear axle, and what appears to be a 4-speed.  It doesn't look too rusty, and I had this awesome thought about buying it for $300 and making it into a super-cheap rat truck.

Because all cars look better at night, and this is how I found it...

I assume it has something in the range of a 361 or a 390 V8 and a 4-speed, so I figured I'd just freshen those up, maybe add a 5-speed if the 4 is too bad.  I was going to chop 2-3 inches off the roof, build a roll cage that would go through where the back window used to live, and hide some short stacks among the box-section of the cage (I'd also have cutouts to normal muffled pipes that empty under the box for longer hauls).  I'd get a '71 grille and black it out and mesh out the main grille holes and put a bull bar on the front.  I'd also put on a Mach 1 style shelf hood scoop, and a visor on the cab.  I'd cut the box down the in incremental steps as I go back (maybe).  I'd also get custom steel wheels to look like the dually rims, and have a pair with drag radials and another with super singles off a semi with standard dually rims up front.

Sorry, I only have a tiny version of this one, but it looks so good!

The interior would be very racy feeling.  I'd build my own cluster for the dash with aftermarket gauges, a radio, and a bank of safety-covered toggle switches to run everything.  I would get rid of the key and run everything from the switches (power, fuel, electronically run power steering pump, exhaust cutouts, flamethrowers, etc).  I would put in 2 hidden keyed shut-off switches like you see on race cars so I could still park it in the city.  The rest of the interior would basically be seats and a big console for hiding stuff.

Also Badass, racy, and visceral, but not the style of truck I'm talking about.  RWD

This truck would be very visceral and give off a badass vibe.  This truck is loosely based on the trucks in the beginning of Fast and Furious (the 4th one).  I would use mine for having fun and also towing.  I'd be hauling, in all respects of the word...

Look deep into your soul, and tell me you don't think that's awesome.

Then i got to thinking.  Why do I need a rat rod muscle truck when I already want a rat rod '72 Torino?  (See previous blog post)  Sure I could score the truck for super-cheap and have something really cool, but in the end, it will just mean more garage space.  Then I found a way to solve all my problems - a '72 Ranchero!  I would do the full-on idea from the grille, interior, roll cage, exhaust, and tires from the truck, but I'd find a big block and a 5-6-speed stick to go behind it.  This thing would be a no holds barred pick-car that could haul gear, pull a trailer, smoke the tires, drag race, and get sideways in the Milwaukee streets.  It would be sweet!  If only I had a more fitting picture to go here...

Best picture I have of a '72 Ranchero

I almost think I should get the pickup, build it, sell it, and use the money to get the Ranchero...