Shane’s 1976 F-150: Learning the Wiring, Making the Drive

Shared by @Shane. The timeline and plans reflect the owner’s original account.

Shane had been sending Craigslist ads to his dad for more than a year while in college. Most prompted warnings about rust or hard-to-find parts. An ad for a 1976 F-150 had three photos and one line of description. This time, his dad said it would not be bad, and Shane committed.

The truck was near Spokane, Washington, while he studied in Colorado. He agreed to buy it during a FaceTime walk-around while at the gym, and a family friend trailered it home. He bought it in February 2022, then spent the next summer replacing wiring and having a Montana shop build a new 390 FE.

The work and the years behind it

He had no wiring or classic-truck experience. After a month on the harness, hearing the engine start and seeing every light work was deeply rewarding. Later, the Ford completed a 34-hour drive to South Texas when he moved for pilot training. Interior work and an OEM-plus restoration remained ahead, with the hope of passing it to his kids.

Read the owner’s original account and build details

Truck year:

1976

Ownership when this account was shared:

Feb 2022

How the truck came home

I was looking for a Dentside Ford, they have been hero trucks to me for years ever since the World’s Toughest Truck episode of American Top Gear.

The memories behind the truck

The most rewarding experience I had with my truck was after spending a month replacing the wiring harness, having no experience with wiring or working on classic trucks, turning the key and hearing the engine fire to life and seeing all of the lights working.

Build details, in the owner’s words

So far I’ve replaced the power steering pump, had a local shop in Montana build a new 390 FE, replaced the entire wiring harness, made a seat covers from some blankets I bought in college, added the original hubcaps that were missing when I bought it, and upgraded the radio and speakers to a Custom Autosound unit that looks nearly factory but has Bluetooth.

Plans at the time of the story

I plan to reupholster the interior, and restore the whole project to an OEM+ standard.

More from the owner

I had been looking at buying a classic car for over a year, while I was still in college. I would send Craigslist ads to my dad and every time he would say something about rust, particular models being nightmares to find replacement parts for etc. But when I found an ad for this 76 F-150 with three pictures and a one line description I was hooked. I sent it to my dad and he said, “that one wouldn’t be bad” and I knew that I needed to commit and get the truck. I called the guy and set up a FaceTime Call as the truck was near Spokane WA and I was going to school in Colorado. The seller called me earlier than I had anticipated, and I got the walk around over FaceTime and agreed to buy it while I was in the gym. A family friend took it home on his trailer and then I spend the next summer replacing the wiring and having a new engine put in. I’ve since moved to Texas for pilot training and it ran like a top the whole 34 hour drive to South Texas. I love the truck and the experiences I’ve had with it, and I hope to pass it on to my kids some day.