A ’65 That’s a Blast to Drive

“When it’s right, the miles just pile on,” says Royce Duke, owner and builder of this rusted relic of a crew cab Ford F-250. Royce runs Duke’s Fab and Customs, where he mainly focuses on auto body repair and upholstery, but he’s a certified automotive jack-of-all-trades—especially when he gets his hands on something truly unique. “Once a slick crew cab is in my possession, there is no other option than to build it up properly,” Royce adds. “Saying to myself that the truck is for my wife Tiffiny helps justify all plans to work on them.”

Royce has extensive knowledge and experience with Ford crew cabs in particular. When he picked up the ’65 seen here, it was still in decent original condition thanks to it being an ex-California native. The lower corner of the bed and bumper on the driver’s side required extensive repairs due to it being wrecked years ago. The quick fixes done by the truck’s previous owner did the trick for the moment, but Royce was able to iron far more wrinkles out. The bed isn’t perfect, but it really doesn’t need to be since there is no plan to paint over the immaculately weathered Ford Marlin Blue color. Any new metal or repair work always gets a quick rusting treatment to maintain the F-250’s patina-clad appearance that Royce fell in love with at first sight.

Once the Ford’s exterior was dialed in enough to suit Royce and Tiffiny’s desired taste, he moved onto the next phase of the project—addressing the existing suspension system. A front frame section from a 1978 F-250 was utilized to convert the truck over to 4WD, along with bringing power steering and front disc braking into the equation. Original 8-lug Innie wheels were utilized in all their rusted glory and were made better with the addition of fresh Falken Wildpeak M/T rubber.

Even though Royce’s Ford was technically ready to roll at this point, there were still a few more important tasks left to handle to get it moving with authority. The first hurdle was figuring out how to properly seat the 2014 5.0L Coyote engine that he picked up, which would be a tremendous upgrade in the form of raw power and everyday reliability. To solve the problem, Royce fabricated his own engine mounts and crossmember to secure the much newer power plant between the frame rails. A 6R80 6-speed automatic transmission of the same vintage was then mated to the Coyote, significantly beefing up the drivetrain. The 1978 F-250 proved to be a valuable donor vehicle, as it also provided an NP205 transfer case, which required a bit of trickery to adapt, as well as the front driveshaft that surprisingly bolted right into place.

Riding a wave of positive momentum, Royce moved into the cab to reupholster the front and rear bench seats, headliner, and all necessary panels and details. Cutting and sewing is well within his wheelhouse, but throwing a fuel pump into the in-cab tank wasn’t. After a bout of trial and error, Royce figured it out and finally reached a point where he was ready to put the tools down and take to the highway!

In just under 2 years, the Duke’s ’65 Ford F-259 crew cab was roadworthy once again, and, boy, did they rack up the miles fast! “We put over 16k miles on it the first year out,” he exclaims. “We drove it from Utah to the Tennessee Grand Nationals, Lake Havasu (twice), and the Snake River truck show (twice). Life is too short not to be driving a slick crew, so stop talking about it and do it!”

Truck specs

Owner

Royce and Tiffiny Duke

1965 Ford F-250
Crew Cab
Tremonton, UT

Engine & Drivetrain

2014 Ford 5.0L Coyote V-8
Custom engine mounts and crossmember
Custom 2.5-inch mandrel-bend dual exhaust
2014 Ford 6R80 6-speed auto transmission
Modified Atlas adapter for 1978 F-250 NP205 transfer case
1978 F-250 front driveshaft, one-piece aluminum rear driveshaft
Dana 44 front axle from 1978 F-250
Original limited slip Dana 60 rear
4.11 axle ratios front and rear

Chassis & Suspension

Modified original 1965 Ford frame by Royce Duke
1978 F-250 front frame section to convert to 4WD, power steering, and disc brakes
147-inch wheelbase

Wheels, Tires & Brakes

Original 8-lug Innie wheels
255/85/16 Falken Wildpeak M/T tires
Original in-cab fuel tank converted to electric fuel pump
Front disc brakes, rear drums
Aftermarket master cylinder

Body & Paint

Original painted grille, headlights, and bumpers
Significant repair work in bed
Flash rusted any new metal or repairs

Interior

Original seats, gauges, steering
Upholstery by Royce Duke
Bluetooth/AM/FM stereo