After reading everybody's comments in the "1st gen #'s" thread about where these trucks can be found, one thing stands out in my mind. These trucks were bought because there was, and still is, work to do with them. Back when these trucks were new, it wasn't cool to have a pickup but the people that bought them didn't care, they bought them to work. You didn't see guys driving to office jobs in them and then parking them in the driveway. That is until the wife needs a bag of mulch from the store. Then they change their clothes and drive to the store like they're king of the road in their big bad truck. This simple fact is probably the reason why the manufacturers watered down their trucks. The manufacturers knew the real world duty cycles of their products and saw an opportunity to save money while at the same time not reducing prices so as to increase profit. Gone are the fixed spindles with serviceable bearings in the front. Gone are the manual hubs (except superduty). Gone is the 205 TC that is all gear with no chain. You also can't buy a pickup with king pins in the front. Now you can't blame the manufacturer totally. They have to appeal to the largest customer base in terms of what's important. However, when did comfort become more important than longevity? Probably about the same time the trucks stopped being worked for a living. Now, don't get me wrong, if a guy wants to ride around in a truck he doesn't need that's his business, but when the farmer buys a truck that gets worked hard and is plagued with increased maintenance cycles and cost we all know who he can thank. Now, people are going to say "it's not the customer's fault that manufacturers toned everything down, they made their own decisions to do that". That may be true but who ultimately influences their decisions? The people that buy their product. If manufacturers knew that the removal of certain equipment would cause product failure and thus warranty concerns than they wouldn't do it.

 

I have to agree with you a little. I use mine for work, towing, camping, and anything else I want. It does make me (chuckle) when I see a guy in a suit going to work with a lifted, shiney Duramax, that will never see a hard day of work or a speck of dirt. Plush interiors and smooth ride is not why I bought my truck, though sometimes it would be nice. I also feel for the farmer who's maintenance cost are rising due to supply and demand. However, you can still but work trucks that don't have to be fancy. Where I come from the farmers are not lacking funds either. It's not like times of past where farmers are lowley field workers who depend on crops to feed their wife and kids from day to day. Farming is a very technical science, and buisness. The farmers of past who couldn't make it (unfortunately) have been "weeded" out. The ones that have survived have become part of a very profitable industry. I build houses for a living, but some members of my close family are farmers and ranchers in beef, dairy, and nut harvesting, and trust me they will be able to eat after they take their pick up to the dealer to have work done.

 

You make good points. I used to live and work on a very successful farm and they didn't lack funds. However, please don't think I was insinuating that farmers couldn't afford to fix trucks all the time just that they shouldn't have to. And as for the plush comfort, that would be super but I also want superior drivetrain and ease of maintenance and one shouldn't have to choose between the two. Thanks for the comments. I figured people would have an opinion on this!

 

I guess I qualify as one of the unmanly non-farmer guys . I drive my '01 to my office job every day, and my '93 and '96 have never seen so much as a bag of mulch in the bed, much less a trailer behind 'em .

Chris

 

I think it happens with most everything. An item starts out for a purpose with a particular design and then its popularity defeats itself. Once you start diluting anything for the masses you start promoting form over function.

Look at my '51 Power Wagon. Compared to my '92 CTD it makes the CTD seem pretty plush, fancy and light duty.

 

I always intended mine to be a daily driver, based simply on the fuel economy. It will effortlessly do just about anything I want with it. It only sees towing and heavy hauling a few times a year. Anytime I need to stop by Home Depot on the way home from work and pick up a few hundred pounds of whatever, no problem. I couldn't care less if it rides rough. I does everything I need it to do dependably, with exceptionally good fuel economy. No other vehicle available today will do that anywhere near as well.

Oh, I almost forgot - it's really cool and all my friends are jealous!

 

Roger that 'bout the only reason mine doesn't go to the crusher some days...

 

Mine is a work truck pure and simple. I bought it when the auto trans died in my M880 government surplus fire truck. That thing was getting 8-9 mpg, and I decided it was time to switch to diesel. That was just before the war started and fuel prices shortly shot up sky high. It saved me a bundle of cash and grief to be driving a diesel then.

I tow all kinds of things, boats, flatbed car hauler, portable sawmill etc. I also have hauled a lot of hay and lumber with it. Mine would get kicked right out of most office parking lots!

 

I think the corporations try their best to anticipate what will sell. Nothing else makes business sense. Grease-able joints,bearings,etc have all but disappeared because a majority don't want to fool with it, and too many didn't in the past. Piling on luxury "packages" is a corporate method of increasing profits. We have grown accustomed to life with A/C, power windows, etc. I remember my dad buying a new '61 Dodge half-ton. Back then, base model meant exactly that. He brought it home and ordered an add-on heater kit from JC Whitney. And, power brakes, or steering?, on a truck?!, I don't think so..
The reality is, we have changed. Now, if the A/C fails, they close the school. My school didn't have A/C, so it wasn't an issue.
I really like the simplicity of the 1st gen. But it's all relative. My dad wasn't especially impressed when trucks quit using straight-axles.

 

I think it depends. I think 1st genners are a unique bunch of people that take a lot of pride in working on our trucks and coming up with different ways to make them better (not to say others don't ) I enjoy the looks of the truck, the simplicity of it, the fact that they are a REALLY tough truck. Most of the newer trucks, in my opinion, are under-built. I look at a lot of friends new trucks that are designed to be these heavy haulers, but just aren't built like it. I had a load of 1000lbs in my bed the other day, and she hardly even squatted. We put the same load in my buddies brand new F150 (I know 1/2 ton vs. 3/4 ton), but it is rated to carry more and tow more, and I thought the springs were going to snap. Simply put, these trucks were built to work first, and coddle second. I think nowadays the demand for that has changed.

 

i grew up with chevs and internationals , now the chev of the sixties was a way nicer ride than any IH ever built . as stated no power brakes , drum brakes , no power steering , no factory radio, did have a heater but no ac. it pulled 5-6 ton on a gooseneck trailer alot for dad. i 100k miles never worked on it other than brakes. clutch was never a problem. sold it to a fellow we knew and he sold it to a farmer we knew just kept on going. i bought my dodge cause it pulls better than our 6.2s and i like the five speed od stick. our 80s chev diesels have less rattles and no leaks. and all have 150k to 200k on them . but nothing like throwing that cummins in gear and having it hunker down and pull a load over the hill. and the mileage is great.

 

This reminds me of the development of the Ford Bronco. The first ones were marketed to get the "cowboy" off the horse when riding fences. They were short, handy and as rugged as you could get. The 289 had a lot of get up and go. Then came the weekend camping/hunting trips, the run to the store, etc. and the little Bronco got urbanized or domesticated as it were, to what it was when the last one rolled off the assy. line in 1996. Funny, the Jeep is still out there riding fences. The Old Dodges are hard to beat. Yet I would love to get my hands on an old Power Wagon and fix it up with a Cummins.

 

yep! my '77 M880 was a much more solidly built body than my 92 is..