It seems like there are a lot of nice Ford Trucks and Broncos coming out of Montana lately, in fact, we’ve featured several here on Barn Finds. This 76 F-250 currently resides in Canyon Creek, Montana and it had the same owner for forty years! It can be found here on eBay with a current bid of $3,550. The truck itself has quite a few miles that were apparently mostly commuting between Montana and Washington state. The engine may surprise you in a good way. Take a closer look at this solid old truck!
The truck has well over 200,000 miles on the odometer, but the engine only has about 30K miles on it. As you can see from the air cleaner, this is a 428 cubic inch V8 that is out of a 1968 Mercury. The ad says the engine was rebuilt using a different block, but it does measure out to a 428. It is said to run well with no smoke, leaks or knocks. The truck came with a factory large radiator along with an NP435 four-speed transmission linked to an NP205 transfer case. There needs to be a little work done to the power steering and the rear lights aren’t working, so there are a few things for the new owner to address.
The interior looks fairly original except for the carpet that has been replaced. I think these trucks are required to have a saddle blanket seat cover! The door panels and headliner are weathered, but still usable. There are quite a few sources for aftermarket replacement parts if this truck eventually gets restored. The seller does say the windshield is cracked and needs to be replaced. There are a few other little things that need to be addressed, but nothing too serious.
According to the ad, the owner wrecked the truck while hunting in the 1980s and the cab and box were replaced along with a re-spray in factory colors. There is also a lot of original paperwork is included with the sale as well, which is a plus. Overall, not a bad truck that would make a good driver or project. What do you think about this one?
Cool no-nonsense truck in overall good shape which does need sorting out in some areas.
Credit to the seller, the ebay ad contains several paragraphs of info which should give bidders a very good idea what they will want or need to address. Also a good selection of pics. I would be willing to guess this extra hour or two of effort will end up bringing more bidders and ultimately a higher price.
This is a very different 1976 Ford compared to the one I drove as a work truck one summer. Mine was a two wheel drive F-150 302 3-speed stripper. It did have an AM radio, which made daily life in the truck a bit more pleasant.
These were commonplace out west. By the time these came out I’m sure that 4×4 clearly outnumbered 2wd. When I first saw this ad I thought that this had been kept in very good shape. In MT, with seasons that can run their entire length without the use of salt on the roads, it isn’t uncommon to see a truck weather the elements just fine and still wear its original livery. The worst body damage that these usually get is the side panels all caved in by cattle crowding up against them. I remember seeing trucks barely a couple of weeks old with both door panels caved in. plus a dent on the top of the cab and hood by falling bales of hay. Ranchers really know how to hurt a truck.
For this unit, I would say that the 428 is a bit of an overkill but it would definitely be a better performer than the 360 that originally powered it. But you can also tune a 360 to perform quite well. I’ve done up lots of them over the years and the customers were quite happy. Overall this truck should give some good service for years to come. Dad had a ’71 model that still sees daily use–on a ranch…
Excellent description by the seller – you can tell he’s an honest guy. I’d put the Benchworks kit as he recommends and ditch the awful ram-assist system that came on these trucks. And then drive it!
Price going up. This truck is nicely done,I own a ‘77F250 Highboy with the 400m and C6.Its not road worthy but is used for pulling Chevys off of the PA.mountains during winters! Plow and winches help too.