"Parting out a '56 Ford pickup." It reads quite softly, yet commands attention like a sledgehammer hammered over a piece of concrete next to your head after a hard night of overindulgence. To a Blue Oval enthusiast, bells start ringing and alarms sound when they read an ad like that. Quick, I must call right now! Those words rang true to Steve Card, owner of this '56 Ford, when he read that exact line in a publication of trucks for sale.
When Steve arrived to see the truck in person, he found most of the parts were already sold or just flat out gone. The parts that remained still caught Steve's attention, so he made an offer to purchase what was left of the stripped carcass. The owner approved the $350 deal, so Steve loaded up his trailer and took home his newly acquired project. After standing back and taking an assessment of the situation, he still had a good deal of useable parts, but he also had a greater amount of items needing replacement. What remained were a solid rust-free cab, doors with the glass intact, bedsides, and a bed floor. That means the entire front clip, motor, rear fenders, running boards, and tailgate were on the where'd they go? list. Even though it would take some major work to bring it back, it was a very good place to start a project like this. Rust-free straight cabs, doors, and bedsides don't exactly grow on trees these days. While standing in his yard, Steve examined his situation. He had another '56 4x4 that was once featured right here in the pages of an '83 issue of Truckin' that was sitting around, as well as some stored pieces, and he was holding a clean title for his new project.
The '56 Ford emerged from the yard six months later with a mostly stock suspension and 302ci V-8 motor pushing power through a C4 transmission. Steve drove the truck in this configuration for the better part of three years as a work truck before parking the Effie in the garage, where it sat unused and dormant for five years. But as most things that are lost, some are found again, and this '56 had a new lease on life coming its way.
For the next five years the truck went through a complete stripped-to-the-bone restoration. Steve handled all the welding, wiring, and assembly, while the motor assembly, transmission rebuild, and interior stitching were being handled by outside shops. Changes to the way the doors, hood, and tailgate opened and closed, as well as major changes to the inner supports, inner panels, and cooling system, meant the truck had to go through assembly and disassembly many times before it made the final assembly.
Starting with the original framerails, Steve completely boxed the weak Ford from front to back before welding up new crossmembers for the new suspension, engine, trans, and rearend. Keeping the bumps from jarring this old hauler is a Total Cost Involved (TCI) frontend, featuring tubular upper and lower control arms with coilover shocks steered by a Mustang-style rack-and-pinion. In the rear is a TCI four-link with a matching set of coilovers bolted to a 9-inch 4.11 posi-equipped rearend. Both ends are halted by a TCI four-wheel disk brake system. Center Line wheels encased in BFGoodrich rubber gives this '56 a sporty rake and a nostalgic hot-rod feel. Remember the 302ci originally fit into this truck to make it driveable? Well, Steve decided to replace the tired small-block with a new powerplant. Small-block or big-block? The rivalry ensues. How about a 351W block fit with a stroker kit pushing the small-block to 408ci, creating the power of a big-block? It sounded like a good combination.