Should Have Painted It Red: A Killer ’71 F-100 Build

Should Have Painted it Red

They say that if you want to sell your truck, paint it red. Butch Szmodis of Hellertown, Pennsylvania, has either never heard that saying, or subconsciously decided to ignore it while building this ’71 F-100, because this truck was supposed to be a flip from day one.

As the restoration team leader for a private car collection, Butch surrounds himself with top-tier rides every day and has learned a thing or two about what makes or breaks a custom build. When he decided to tackle a side project to eventually resell, he knew how to make it appeal to the masses who would appreciate his style and quality of work. A mild drop, some killer wheels, some power under the hood, and a wicked paintjob would make any potential buyer drool, wouldn’t you say?

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Although Butch has built just about every make of classic truck there is, he’s always loved Fords, so scooping up a local ’71 F-100 longbed that he saw was an easy choice to modify. A Crown Victoria front clip with Fatman Fab control arms made quick work of lowering the front end as well as greatly enhancing the handling, while a rear axle flip for the Explorer 8.8-inch rear end and C-notch brought the rear down and helped lower the center of gravity. Butch plus-sized the wheels and tires but kept them old school cool with 18- and 20-inch B/G Rod Works five-spokes with 45- and 50-series Yokohama rubber.

After two full years of late nights, Butch was glad to finally be finished with the truck so that he could focus on sending it off to its new life, whether that be down the street or across the country.

Next up would be the rad two-tone paintjob. Being the pro painter that he is, Butch custom-mixed some blue and silver PPG paint for the cab and bed, along with some Paint Huffer metalflake for the hood and tailgate. The paint scheme also features flames and some lace details for an early ’70s vibe.

It’d be a shame if a truck with flames couldn’t pull off a sweet burnout every once in a while, so Butch then built up a stroked 347 Ford engine with DSS 10.8:1 pistons, 190cc Trick Flow Twisted Wedge heads, a Comp Cams Thumpr cam, and a Holley HP 750cfm carb sitting atop an Edelbrock Victor Jr. Intake manifold. The completed engine was then matched to a Tremec TR3550 5-speed manual tranny, making those burnouts even easier!

Now his daily driver, Butch plans to improve the F-100 even further with the addition of a 4-link, but says that the only other plan is to keep driving it until someone wants it more than he does!

The truck was really shaping up and turning into something that Butch himself would proudly own, so he knew he was on the right track to attract some buyers. The only thing the truck really needed now was an interior with mass appeal. Fresh carpet was laid down as a foundation, and Silami racing seats bolted up with custom brackets for a snug yet comfortable fit. A full set of Equus gauges were installed to keep the new owner informed of the truck’s vitals, with a Forever Sharp Muscle steering wheel offering a sporty grip to keep things under control and complete the build.

After two full years of late nights, Butch was glad to finally be finished with the truck so that he could focus on sending it off to its new life, whether that be down the street or across the country. But then he took a few steps back, had a good look at what he had created, and decided that he couldn’t go through with selling it. Besides looking killer and being a blast to drive, he knew that it would make the perfect parts chaser and shop truck. As it turns out, he may have built it a bit too much like he would have built his own ride, so it just made sense that he would want to keep it!

Now his daily driver, Butch plans to improve the F-100 even further with the addition of a 4-link, but says that the only other plan is to keep driving it until someone wants it more than he does!

TRUCK Specs

Butch Szmodis

Hellertown, PA
1971 Ford F-100
BATS Car Club of Allentown

Suspension & Chassis

2004 Ford Crown Victoria front subframe swap
Rack-and-pinion steering
Fatman Fab control arms
1996 Ford Explorer 8.8-inch rear end housing
Rear axle flip kit
Bilstein rear shocks
C-notched frame
1996 Ford Explorer master cylinder
Brake bias valve and line lock
Custom engine mounts
1968 Ford Mustang fuel tank

Wheels & Tires

18×8 and 20×8.5 B/G Rod Works Old School wheels
275/45R18 and 275/50R20 Yokohama Advan Sport tires

Engine & Drivetrain

1990 Ford 302 stroked to 347 cubic inches
3.4-inch stroke crankshaft
DSS 10.8:1 pistons
DSS connecting rods
Comp Cams Thumpr 227/241 camshaft
Trick Flow Twisted Wedge 190cc aluminum cylinder heads
Edelbrock Victor Jr. Intake manifold
Holley HP 750cfm carburetor
MSD Pro-Billet distributor
MSD 6AL ignition control
CVF Racing front belt drive system
Custom radiator shroud with SPAL electric fan
Hedman headers
Flowmaster 2.5-inch exhaust
Tremec TR3550 built by Hanlon Motorsports
Pro 5.0 shifter
Lakewood bellhousing
Ram HDX hydraulic clutch
4.11 locker third member