When Ford introduced the F-Series line of trucks in 1948, they were founding an institution that has shown no signs of letting up. Of course, the King Ranch you can buy off the lot today has little in common with this F-5 flatbed from 1948, but the fact that one basic nameplate stemmed from this truck has a certain “home team” appeal that is pretty much irresistible. Barn Finds reader Mike F. sent us this well-worn but solid old truck from here on craigslist in Lakewood, Colorado. The seller is asking $5,000, but the fact that it’s been posted for over three weeks might help a potential owner in their negotiations.
If one needed any proof that the internet shows you what it thinks you want to see, I’ve been seeing a lot of “medium-duty” trucks from the 1940s through the 1980s on my Marketplace feed lately. There are a lot of them for sale, but this is one of the heavy hitters—just about everybody likes a Ford truck from the flathead era. Ford’s sales materials called it the “Rouge 239 Truck V-8” for 1948, and the seller includes a picture of the cylinder head; this truck has the new 8BA version of the flathead, which was the last iteration of that long-running engine. It produced 100 horsepower for 1948, and Ford gave the 239 some internal improvements to the cooling system, among other things, over previous generations.
It was enough to propel the F-5 to a top speed of 58 miles per hour with a full load and a 6.67:1 axle ratio, which meant a road speed of “46 m.p.h. loaded on level surface highways—over 51 m.p.h. light.” That’s not fast enough for today’s superhighways, but it would be a fun rural cruiser.
The interior of this example will certainly need some work, but the best thing about interior work on a working truck from the 1940s is the fact that it includes a seat cover and little more, maybe a little foam. The transmission is a four-speed manual with sliding gears, so you’ll get to practice your double-clutching should you decide to pick up this rugged rig.
The seller includes that word that some Barn Finders despise—patina—but that’s not a bad thing, and the implication is that the faded red paint is original. The good news is that the flathead runs; the bad news is that the truck has split rims. If you can find some workable replacements and do a little woodwork in the bed, however, you could have a fun truck in which to putter around the two-lanes. Then, your Marketplace feed will be nothing but medium-duty trucks…and there are worse things.
Nice fan shroud, – idling remark.
First 3 on the tree i ever drove was a 50 Ford flatbed like this. A friend of my dad bought it near my SC coast home and was too drunk to drive it back to Alabama.
I was 13 almost and was a gamer. Had to stand up most of the night fighting a dead spot in the steering about half a turn worth. Made it to his place by morning and was exhausted.
A few years later according to the coroner report he forgot to set the parking brake before locking his fence and that Ford rolled back pinning him till he suffocated.