Classic 1970 Ford F-250 with an original body

Project 15 Strikes Again

There’s just something about a classic Ford truck that makes you feel good. Maybe it’s the aesthetic, born in a time when aerodynamics weren’t as important as style. Maybe it’s the feel—the varied texture of faded paint and worn textiles over the firm springs of an old bench seat. Or maybe it just all comes down to the truck’s original intention: good, hard, honest work. It’s a sentiment that is often easily lost these days, in a world where what you appear to do seems to matter more than what you actually do. Whatever the reason, there always seems to be a smile that goes along with it.

When Bennett Lisenby first started noticing old Ford trucks at a young age, they seemed to grab an unexplainable hold on him. Ever since, he has accumulated an impressive collection of them, but his affinity for the F-250 is clearly evident, as he owns more of these than any other model. After picking up this ’70, he already knew exactly what he wanted to build out of it: a resto-mod that would combine the best of yesteryear with the driveability of a modern truck.

While the body remains completely original, the chassis underneath it is… also from a 1970 F-250? Well yes, but from a completely different F-250—a 4×4.

SAME, SAME—PLUS

Yup, the cab and bed were originally sitting on a 2WD chassis, but Bennett swapped it over at his shop, Project 15 4×4, and in the process lifted it 6 inches with Atlas Spring leaf springs over the ’76 Ford Highboy front axle and rear Dana 60. All four corners are damped by ADS 2 1/8-inch reservoir shocks, making for a much more capable ride than original. And you won’t run across too many stock wheels in this mag, but when they look as perfect as these steelies and are stuffed in 9.00-16 Power King Super Traction tires, we really can’t complain.

Now that the truck was a bit more massive, a brake upgrade was in order, so Bennett installed a slick new hydroboost kit from Far From Stock to bring things to a halt much more efficiently when stopping distance is critical.

When it came time to build up the engine, Bennett kept things in-house at Project 15 4×4, where a 427 FE was stripped down, bored .030 over, and reassembled with an Edelbrock Performer crankshaft, aluminum heads, roller rockers, and an Edelbrock Performer intake manifold/carb combo. The 4×4 donor already had a C6 in it, and so it was bolted back in between the FE and the NP-205 transfer case, ready to be put into action.

COOL AND CLASSIC

Bennett finished the project up by turning his attention to the interior, where the bench seat was upholstered using Moore & Giles leather by Cato’s Custom Upholstery. A custom power-window setup is operated from each crank, giving the illusion of manual windows for a more utilitarian touch. A Dakota Digital HDX gauge set overlaid with an Evod Industries x Project 15 billet gauge bezel offers the truck’s operating status at a quick glance while looking good doing it! And because no one wants to sit on sticky leather on a hot, humid Georgia day, a Vintage Air A/C unit was installed to keep things comfy no matter the weather.

“Montana” has already been to Holley Ford Fest, and we expect that it will make its way to even more events as long as Bennett can sneak away from the shop. The only thing left on the “to do” list for the truck is to convert it to crossover steering, but until then it’ll continue to see plenty miles regardless, which is exactly what Bennett had planned all along.