I have an opportunity to buy a 1995 Ford F150, 4x4 with a 300 straight six and a 4 speed overdrive transmission.
I can get it pretty cheap but it has quite a bit of rust,  I know a body man and replacement parts are plentiful so that's no problem.

I don't want to dump a ton of money into it as it will just be a working truck, but I'd like it to look decent. I'll probably fix the body and paint it, any other recommendations?
Looks like this one but it's a darker blue.

I had a 94 straight 6 auto, it was even that color blue. I wish I had got the 4 speed, regardless it was a great truck.

It goes without saying mine didn't get any rust here.

I drove one with a straight six and 5 speed I believe. Absolute dog.

Excellent truck and drivetrain. Had a 95 with the 300 6 and auto. Only issue are the crappy ford auto hubs for the front axles [expensive too] but those are cheap to change out for some decent manual ones.

17-18 MPG day in, day out.

Only around 140 HP but good low end torque and will run all day loaded down without much of an effort as long as one is not stupid.

Looks nice but I don't see any rust.

In maryland the rear wheel arches would have already rusted away and several spots along the cab would be rotten too.

I'd say go for it. The 300 I-6 will last forever and is decent on gas.

I would avoid aftermarket replacement sheetmetal if possible. A customer supplied a foreign made fender for his early 90's F150 and the fit and finish of the fender was poor to say the least. Try and get salvage doors, fenders, whatever over the imported junk.

I wish I still had mine.

1990 F150 4WD regular cab 8 ft. bed.  250 straight six and a 5 speed.  White, red interior.  251,000 miles on it when I mistakenly traded it in on a new Ford Fusion for my wife in 2009 (brand new 2010 Fusion).

Ran like a top.  Got 17 to 18 mpg around town and on the road.  Two gas tanks.  Over the years I replaced both gas tanks (rusted out), the rear spring perches (rusted out), the radiator and the alternator.  Clutch, pressure plate, and everything else was original.  Oh, replaced the radio, too.  One lower ball joint, push rod cover gasket, brake lines and exhaust a couple times.

I should have traded my 1995 S10 Blazer in on the Fusion.  Two months after the truck was gone the fuel pump went out in the Blazer (what a job, getting the tank out of that thing and replacing the pump and getting the darn tank back up in there.

I got a 2005 Silverado 4WD with a regular cab and 5 speed and the 4.8 V8.  I feel good when I get 16 mpg in town.  On the high way it gets 15 mpg.  Brake lines rusted out at 80,000 miles, pinion seal leaks oil now and then, fuel pump and injectors replaced just past 100,000 miles (bad gas it looked like, tank had about 1.5" of red looking slime in it.  One O2 sensor.  Brake pads/shoes.

I've put way more money in parts on the Chevy with less than half as many miles on it.  My next truck will be another Ford.

the only thing better (and harder to find)  would be a late model Bronco with the 300 six.  my dream all around woods/camping rig would be a 96 Eddie Bauer with the 300 and a manual.

it's a wonder to me they sold any of these trucks with the 302 V8 at all. the 300 had a better torque curve,  got more MPG,  and lasts forever.

That's just an example, the truck in question will need new fenders and a new bed.

The 300 six is one of the best engines Ford ever made

The 302 had considerably more zip. The 300 6 just did it's job with understated drama. A big plus was that they were damn easy to work on also.

Fixed

I had a '94 F-250 4WD, and it spent its life in Maryland. Not much body rust (almost none, you could just see a bit of tan bleeding through the white paint), but when I sold it, one rear spring perch had rusted off the frame, and at least one more was looking scary.

The first thing to break was the automatic locking hubs. They suck. If yours has them, swap them out yesterday for a set of Warns. The hubs are cheap. But when the auto hubs go bad and grind away the axle splines, that costs money.

Every other problem is typical Ford. Front suspension bushings and alignments, that sort of thing. My brake lines rusted through in a couple of spots, but I was in the salt belt, and I'm sure that's what caused the spring mount issues too.

But mine ran great for 150K when I sold it, no engine or transmission work besides changing fluids and plugs.

I agree with your edit.

Had a 93 XLT  4x4 with the 6 and 5 speed and it was a gigantic POS. That truck had literally everything go wrong with it other than blowing the engine while I had it.

Fuel pump
Both gas tanks leaked
The oil pan rotted out from the inside , a known issue
Head gasket blew
Radiator went
Clutch
Power steering went out , or blew out while driving
AC comp went out.
Map sensor and a few other sensors went
Heater core went
The rust was on the verge of taking over the entire rear before I dumped it.

Never will I buy a Ford again.

Oops, missed that.

I'm guessing that the front fenders are rotted up at the bottom behind the front wheels?

Also, how rusty is the truck underneath?

I had a 95 f150 with a 300 and 5spd manual. Do not get the 5spd manual model and you should be ok.

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With that engine and transmission combo, buy it.

I had the same engine and tranny in a step side F100, best vehicle I've ever owned.

Perfect.

Yeah, the cab corners are gone too.

I haven't been under it yet, only got a quick look and heard it run. Ran great though.

I just sold my '93 last summer.

6 cylinder, 5 speed. Best vehicle I've ever owned. 200k+ miles and still ran like new.