Half and Half – A 1969 Ford F100 Patina Barn Find

What does half and half have to do with Joel Felzien’s 1969 Ford F100 patina barn find? Everything really. Joel’s aim was to build a lowered, reliable, fast and fun patina truck that wouldn’t break the bank. Luckily for him, he had a neighbor with a ‘69 Ford F100 which had been sitting next to a barn for over 25 years. Hence, the full patina on the one side and the OEM blue on the other which rested against the barn free from the sun – half and half!

Once home and finally inside of a barn this time around, it was time to blow the 1969 Ford F100 apart and start its evolution. The stock 360c.i. V8 was pulled to allow better access to swapping out the front suspension. But here’s a way cool (and maybe helpful to you other Ford truck guys) twist. Unlike many before him, Joel didn’t want to go the Crown Vic front suspension route.

Instead, he opted for a 1985 Jaguar XJ6 front clip to swap underneath. Much like the Crown Vic they are easily removed with 4 bolts, they have disc brakes, rack and pinion, are the correct track width and have a Chevy bolt pattern which makes your choice of wheels go from limited to basically unlimited.

Engine options remained open until Joel’s buddy at a local GMC dealer offered a freshly crashed 2007 GMC 2500 with a 6.0L LS engine and 4L80e for a mere $1,500 as a donor truck. Let this be a lesson guys. There are literally thousands of LS motors and tranny’s in pickups littered across America’s scrap yards. If a crate swap is unobtainable, the junk yard giveth and giveth.

An LSA/CTSV blower was added to give it some burnout power. Joel was able to use the motor, tranny, harnesses, computers, radiator and hydroboost master cylinder from the GMC. Everything else leftover was either sold off or scrapped which ended up being profitable for Joel. Win/win!

The next move would be to turn that long bed into an aesthetically pleasing short bed. Joel chopped off the front of the bed to his liking then welded it all back up. You really could never tell he shorted the bed unless you got out the magnifying glass! Underneath the shortened bed resides an Explorer 8.8 Posi/Disc with 4:11 gears that Joel picked up at the local salvage yard for $115. He then fabricated custom wheel tubs front and rear to allow clearance for the 20×8 Ridler wheels on 245/50r20’s Falken’s in front with 20×10’s and 305/50r20’s in the rear. Once Joel had everything mocked up, he began the tedious task of final assembly and welding before the frame was sandblasted and coated with epoxy and paint.

Before the body was ready to be placed on the freshly painted frame, he made sure to weld up any unneeded holes in the firewall. He also gave the inside of the cab and firewall a much-needed splash of fresh paint. Joel then sprayed satin clear over the truck’s exterior locking in that glorious finish Mother Nature had provided over two and half decades.

Things were kept simple on the inside of the cab. The original gauge cluster was modified to fit the digital Intellitronix gauges. A VintageAir GenII mini system was added to keep things cool in the summer as well as cruise control that he borrowed from the wrecked GMC donor. A new Pioneer stereo with Kicker speakers help with driving tunes. A wood grain Mustang steering wheel helps finish off the look.

After the hundreds of hours of remaking this truck and at times wondering whether he even finish it, Joel ecstatic with how the project finished up. We are too!

A patina truck with modern suspension, four-wheel discs, EFI, a nice interior w/ Bluetooth, A/C, cruise and a bunch of custom touches all wrapped in a reliable, fast and fun patina paneled 1969 Ford F100. Half and half never tasted (or looked) so good.