New Member/"New" Truck

[mfirth]

Keep on truck'n you guys, I love them all. I'd leave the brace too.....

[Don W/Norfolk]

About the gear grinding.
These old Fords, only had a synchro between 2nd and 3rd. Works going up (1 to 2 to 3) or going down (3 to 2). Downshifting to 1st without a grind requires a COMPLETE stop. 1st and Reverse are on the same shaft so no synchro into Reverse either, BTW.
Put gas in the tank, correct any potential electrical fires and drive the wheels off it. Fix or change the rest incrementally so as to not be off the road long.
Have fun
dw

[Als48]

There is a way to use the second gear synchronizer to shift into low while rolling. Just shift briefly into second as you slow which will allow you to engage low without grinding. I'm not sure how this helps, but it does.

Al Hook