2005 F150 Exploration Project Build ! HELP !

Hello, I am new to the site and absolutely love it here. I have read and read and read threads.. I am just soaking up all the information.

I am currently starting a build on my personal truck. I cannot afford another truck so please don't tell me to get something else as a starter. This is what I have and I only have money for one thing at a time.

My truck is a White 2005 F150 4X4 STX 4.6 Regular Cab

The truck has about 39000 miles on it and runs great. No power windows or locks but it has a rubber floor which was my favorite thing about it because of me always being outdoors. I love to camp so I am building this as my exploration vehicle. I camped while getting per diem from my company and after 10 months of sleeping in a tent while working away from home I saved enough money to pay cash for a pontiac solstice for my wife as a wedding present. :camping: She loved it.. I will post pics if anyone wants to see, but this site isnt about small little roadsters so I wont bore you with them unless someone asks.

Well a little about me, I am 30yrs old, I was in Afghanistan and Iraq, and deployed to other countries not to mention while in the army and attached to 5th Special Forces Group. That was alot of fun and I recieved a SF combat patch while being attached as an Infantry Soldier back in 2001. I like the outdoors and love the quietness of being alone in the wilderness.



I know my way around the woods and can find my direction really well, however I don't know alot about vehicles and that is what has brought me here for my build. I want to build a vehicle that is very reliable, does not have to be quick or agile, just be able to get from point a to point b and have no problems. I want a vehicle that is self sufficient other than gasoline used for traveling. So I am thinking solar powered 12 volt systems but hopefully some of you can help me out with this.

I would want to be able to stay in this vehicle for 6 months if needed and only have to stop by a gas station every so often to get some fuel and food. So a fridge, stove, sink, all the necessities will be a must.



I don't know alot about all this stuff but I am considering a FlipPac camper top to start off my vehicle with and build to that. What do you think?

Let me know your suggestions for my new project.

I work with a guy that's from West 'By God' Virginia, as he says it. Anyway, I've got basically the same truck, mine's an '08 and a short bed.
I will watch this build in earnest.

Welcome brother,

You're in the right place, I would start browsing around a bit to get some ideas of how you want to focus your build. Someone here as done pretty much anything you can think of, your limits really being your wallet and your imagaination.

With that much life supply equipment (stove, sink, fridge) in a regular cab, i think you're leaning in the right direction with the FlipPac, although some RTT's might fit the bill, you're going to need that bed area for your gear though.

Good Luck.

Do you know the Toth family in Morgantown?

I agree that the Flippac (your other thread) would be the best bet for you with the standard cab truck. Definitely browse around the site to get ideas. that's how I came about the design for my rack.

I've got an '05 SCrew shortbed and I don't have plans to live in my truck for months at a time, but this is what I've done with mine.

I built a rack to hold the RTT and plan to build a drawer system/bed organizer for a fridge, second battery, compressor, etc...






Good luck!

Okay, I am gonna start my slow but steady build thread off with some pics of my ride before anything is done to it, so later in the thread you can see where my build is headed.


The Above photo shows my truck from a bottom up look at the rear and you can see my combat infantry license plate and know I'm not just your average military poser. We have alot of those in my area of the world and I hate seeing and hearing the lies they have to offer to the general public. Not everyone has to be a combat pilot that flew a million missions and won the hearts and minds of the enemies and changed the planet..lol.. Be proud of what you did in the military even if it was flip hamburgers.. we all can't be the star of the show but we need all of us to win.
Enough about that, back to the build.


Here is a left rear pic of my truck above.


Here is a right rear pic of my truck above.


Here is a front right pic of my truck above


Here is a front left pic of my truck above


Here is a front pic of my truck


Pic of my truck and my house


Here is a pic of the interior, I got the truck like this cause I dont like the look of extended cabs as much as the basic cab on a pickup but I am tall and like leaning the seat back so this extended area is perfect for that since no seat is back there.


Interior shot, I love the rubber floor in this for outdoors man..


A dash shot, hopefully this will be updated with electronics, I love them.


Behind the seat room

I thought I would write a list here so you all know what current mods my truck has from stock before I start this build as well.

Rhino Liner installed last year.
New duel exhaust with flowmaster mufflers and stainless steel 14" tips


Thats all, so anything else you see in this thread will be from this build.
Hope you keep coming back to see what I have done.

FROADER said:

Do you know the Toth family in Morgantown?

Click to expand...

Nope, I don't know many people here. Haven't lived here very long, I even only know 2 of my neighbors, 1 in front of me and 1 to my left.. people are not to friendly in my neighborhood.

Since you are starting from scratch .... I would consider pulling the stock truck bed off the truck, selling it, and putting a flatbed of sorts on it. Then put a slide in pop-up truck camper on that with storage areas to fill in the sides. Use aluminum for everything. Get a light weight pop-up. The slide in camper can be gotten first and used while you engineer the flat bed.

Considering cost, where the truck is now, and what you want to do with it, I would have to consider that. Weight is a consideration.

Since you are starting from scratch .... I would consider pulling the stock truck bed off the truck, selling it, and putting a flatbed of sorts on it.

Click to expand...

Do you have an idea for cost to have a custom built bed? I know with aluminum its not going to be cheap which is what might prevent me from headed this way.

Are there any sites you know of that might offer these?

Here is a really horrible photoshop of the vision I have in mind.

i would go with a camper top with roof rack, for a stove i've been toying with the idea of a propane grill mounted to a piece of 2" square for the receiver hitch, they have several 12 volt fridges on the market, maybe a power inverter for other stuff, i have a 400 watt in my truck, you would need some way to store water, a pup up shower tent and water heater or solar water bag, possibly a winch and some more aggressive tires, off road lights along with aux. lighting in the rear and maybe the sides, air pump for tires and maybe air mattresses, just some of my thoughts

Looking at the cost of a new Flip-pac, plus what you could sell the stock truck bed for, you might be looking at 5 grand. That's what I figured you had to play with. Even finding a used Flip, one that would fit your truck (problematic), might be at least a couple grand, just for the Flip. So a couple grand, plus selling the truck bed, maybe you've got 3 grand to play with?

If you get under your truck and look at the truck bed where it bolts to the truck, it is just some cross members with the sheet metal on top. You might be able to have the cross members made in a shop, sort of in the shape of a "u" with some stepped sides, vertical tubes welded on the ends. You might be able to assemble the rest with bolts. The front and rear of the bed is where you maintain the structural integrity, keep the "U" from splaying open under weight you need the sides tied together somehow. "Flatbed" is a bit of a misnomer. You can run it flat across the tops of the wheel wells like a typical flatbed, but it would raise your camper that distance. Some people do it that way, I wouldn't. Things can be done on a budget.

Going to a shop might be more spendy than you would like. So you would have to figure out how to keep your costs down. These are things you would have to look into, but it is worth looking into, given that you want to spend so much time in it.

You can find an older decent pop-up truck camper for a couple grand even keeping the stock truck bed. And it's ready to go, eating, sleeping, water, heat, out of the weather. Storage is a problem with the pop-ups. Keep it under a thousand pounds though, you would probably want some airbags even then. Be patient, look at all your options and costs, you'll get it nailed down.

Ok, we have the exact same truck. I've been toying around with the idea of a camper shell for a long time. I can't afford any of the fiberglass models, and certainly can't afford a flippac, at or otherwise. Callen campers type of shell is about my only answer. That's the direction I'm headed. As far as a stove goes, Coleman has been making great compact stoves for years. I'm still trying to figure out the fridge. Good luck with your build!

My favorite bodystyle of the F150. Is this the same wheelbase as the 4 door?

One possibility looking at your photos-
if you don't need that center shoulder belt, you could remove it (and the plastic cover).
Fabricate a rack of sorts, anchored to those seatbelt mounting points.

You could mount fire extinguisher, electronics like 2 meter radio, fuse blocks, etc -- things you like in easy reach but need held down properly.

around my area, I mostly see GM/Chevy or Dodge Rams offroad. I can't remember seeing a F150 offroad... maybe this isn't "Ford country"
I like the F150 and keep flip-flopping w/ the Ram on my "future purchase".

Going back to cooking.. anyone on here use this type, or something similiar for cooking? I know it would probably get pretty dirty but do you think it would work or you could make some type of cover for it? Odds are dust gets in no matter what huh?



The one pictured above is 525.00 as shown.








Here is a charcoal version with table for 149.99



Above is a margaritaville grill for 399.99



here is one for 299.99 above