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Long before urban cowboys began invading the highways with person use pickup trucks, farmer Peyton Estle – a man for whom working pickup trucks were built – bought a 6,800-pound gross vehicle weight 1949 Ford F3 pickup. It was outfitted, like most working men wanted, with nothing but an adjustable outside mirror. The Ford F3 carried a base price of $1,545. This was the second year of Ford’s F-series truck program.
The F3 pickup’s new owner is Bill Shields, an antique car enthusiast, who decided on a bona fide classic. After a brief shopping period in which he rejected many hot-rodded trucks, as well as handyman fixer-uppers, he ran across an advertisement for an original 1949 F3 pickup that sounded too good to be true. Working under the theory that the one truck you don’t check out is the one you should have, Shields called and made an appointment.
The truck was located 45 miles away in Stafford, Va. Since Shields had friends there, he could visit them after looking at the truck – which probably would be a waste of time anyway. When he first looked at the humble, but honest, Ford with only 16,150 miles on the odometer he was almost too amazed to say, “I’ll take it.”
The seller showed Shields the key holder that the original owner was given by the dealer who sold him the F3. It contained a compartment holding a 1949 nickel to use at a pay telephone if the truck broke down. That’s when Shields knew he was going to buy the truck.
Shields drove the 1949 pickup 45 miles home at 60 mph on the Interstate with no problems. The 226-cubic-inch, 95-horsepower, six-cylinder engine under the hood was built to work, but had not been abused. Shield reports with a single-barrel downdraft carburetor under the heavy-duty oil bath air cleaner feeding gas to the engine, fuel economy is 17 mpg. The gas tank has a 20-gallon capacity. “It’s incredibly easy to service,” he said.
Upon a thorough inspection, Shields found the 18-quart cooling system “filthy.” After a complete system flushing and the installation of a reconditioned radiator, the truck runs cooler. “It’s a really solid truck,” he said.
Although a chrome grille was optional, the original owner skipped that accessory. Therefore, the truck to this day has a five-bar gray grille, the bottom bar having a hole in the center to accommodate a crank handle. The Ford was in such excellent condition that Shields only needed to replace one oak cross-member under the seven-slat oak bed. The 8×4-foot bed is designed to carry a 2,600-pound load.
The Warner four-speed transmission is also geared to handle such cargo as long as the driver double clutches between shifts. A set of 8-ply, 7.50×17-inch tires supports the load with a spare hung horizontally under the bed.
Because this is a working truck, it came equipped with no rear shock absorbers.
– the idea being that a heavy load would hold down the back. Shields has located the optional brackets into which the optional shock absorbers fit.
Accessories that could have been ordered on the truck that Shields has added include: a right windshield wiper, a right taillight, a Lincoln radio, a heater, and foglamps. Besides the approved Ford accessories, Shields added turn signals, which required the optional taillight. He also installed seat belts strictly for safety. An aftermarket item that was popular in 1949 and is still viable today is the vacuum-powered fan. It keeps occupants cool in the summer and defrosts the windshield in the winter.
Keeping life simple, the truck features a black painted gas cap and a three-spoke steering wheel through which can be seen the original 100-mph speedometer.
Cranking the steering wheel to the extremes allows this vehicle to be turned in a 22-foot circle to the right or a 23-foot circle to the left. Altogether, Shields said his truck fits all of its roles to perfection. “Everything on it now works perfectly.”
– Vern Parker, Motor Matters
Copyright, Motor Matters, 2016
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