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Mountaindoc · 04-11-2011, 11:42 AM

Yep, as we both know, 48 was the first year of the "monkey faces". I've got a 49 and a 50. But like we said, you'd be hard pressed to find the original colors on those grills nowadays. The VIN number is the only sure-fire giveaway between a 49 and 50 (unless it's a very late 50 with the above changes).

According to Standard Catalog of Light-duty Ford Trucks 1905-2002, by John Gunnell:

1948

Prototype trucks, seen in many factory photos, had body color grill/headlight mounting panel, while early production trucks originally had Tucson Tan finish there, Argent silver later replaced Tucson Tan and the later trucks also had Argent Silver finished grill bars with red stripes. All 1948 models had wheels done in black.

1949

Body color-coordinated wheels and elimination of the red strip on the Argent Silver grill bare the two most noticeable styling changes for 1949. The headlight and grill mounting panel continued to be finished in Argent Silver, like the late 1948.

1950

This year's trucks were almost carbon copies of the previous year models, although minor modifications were made. The grill recess was finished in an Ivory color.

04-11-2011, 11:42 AM	#4
Mountaindoc Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: East KY Posts: 42	Re: !949/1950 F1 differences Yep, as we both know, 48 was the first year of the "monkey faces". I've got a 49 and a 50. But like we said, you'd be hard pressed to find the original colors on those grills nowadays. The VIN number is the only sure-fire giveaway between a 49 and 50 (unless it's a very late 50 with the above changes). According to Standard Catalog of Light-duty Ford Trucks 1905-2002, by John Gunnell: 1948 Prototype trucks, seen in many factory photos, had body color grill/headlight mounting panel, while early production trucks originally had Tucson Tan finish there, Argent silver later replaced Tucson Tan and the later trucks also had Argent Silver finished grill bars with red stripes. All 1948 models had wheels done in black. 1949 Body color-coordinated wheels and elimination of the red strip on the Argent Silver grill bare the two most noticeable styling changes for 1949. The headlight and grill mounting panel continued to be finished in Argent Silver, like the late 1948. 1950 This year's trucks were almost carbon copies of the previous year models, although minor modifications were made. The grill recess was finished in an Ivory color.