My slow, F-350 build thread

super04duty

Observer
Well, Ive been a long time lurker on this forum, but I really haven't posted much, and I don't think Ive ever posted any pictures of my rig. So, I thought Id give you guys a proper introduction, and introduce my junk to you all. Im a recent transplant from the Central Valley of CA, to the SoCal area, specifically, Pasadena. The fiancé and I really don't know anyone here (though I have been talking to Sgttom lately about some adventures to take around here. My goal is to travel the entirety of the Mojave trail, by next year hopefully. Would definitely like to go with some more people however, as my off road experience prior to this has been mostly farm fields and dairies, and such via my old jobs. I also live in an apartment, so I have no storage/garage/very few tools, and no space to work on things. I need to travel 5 hours just to get my oil changed (I don't trust shops, as I used to be a mechanic myself years ago, and turning wrenches has been a life long hobby of mine, and dont know of any that I can begin to afford or trust in the SoCal area, and as I said, we have no friends/family in the area, to have the luxury of using their driveway/garage, lol)

Anyway, enough about me, onto my junk.
Its a 2004 F350 CCLB. I bought it in late 2005 with just under 100k on it. It is a 6.0l, and I had all of the POs service records, which showed no repairs done to common 6.0l problems. Lucky me. Ive now run into all of those issues. So Ive spent a LOT of money on the engine in this truck. Its got a new turbo, new CAC pipe couplers, bulletproof oil and EGR cooler, ARP head studs with black onyx head gaskets, new front hubs, DBA slotted rotors, EBC ceramic brake pads, ported and polished heads, with full radius valve job, new HPOP, new EGR valve, re-routed CCV (no more oil in my intercooler/turbo), fuel spring BB mod. opened header panel with stock intake/filter. 4" MBRP exhaust, turbo back system with cat delete and their "muffler". Its also got a 4" lift on it, which I bought the truck with. No idea on what brand it is, but its all springs, no blocks, other than the factory F350 rear blocks. basic Pro-comp shocks, and a small stereo. Its got a front Dana 60, and a rear Sterling, with 3.73 gears and a limited slip in the rear. Ive also got Air-lift rear air bags, and a firestone air compressor with in-cab, individual bag control switches (they aren't connected to each other, but I can adjust pressure in them individually via in cab switches. I recently got a craigslist Rebel, by SungTop camper shell for it, for $300, which has gotten the fiancé and I bitten bad by the off-road/camping bug. We just took our first trip this last weekend, to the Hungry Valley SVRA, which had no trails I could find that were friendly to a truck of my size, and being limited on money (Im currently not working, and set to go back to college this fall semester), and living in an apartment, we won't be having any dirt bikes or quads any time soon. But it was a good first camping trip for us, as we had never been camping together before... Now, onto some pictures.

First, this is basically how my truck looked when I bough it. Though this is after the addition of a tool box, and smoked lights, black billet grill paint, etc. It also had some 16x12 MT wheels and some Dunlop MT tires (which I also bought the truck with. I know the tires are too narrow for the wheels, but thats what was on them when I got it, and all that would fit without major trimming of the fender liners/fenders.






Here it is last week, when I got my camper shell installed. The truck is mostly the same as before, except I now have a set of OEM wheels, with 285/75/16 BFG Rugged Terrain T/A tires.


New, in bed tool box, since my bed rail mounted one simply wouldn't work anymore with the shell.


Some electrical upgrades, two switches don't do anything, (but I wanted to use all 4 color indicator lights, and hack holes in my interior only ones). One operates my Firestone air compressor, and one operates a relayed, high current 12v socket I mounted behind the rear seat. This plug powers my little amber light bar on top of the truck, or 12v "extension cord" that will run into the camper through the sliding windows in both the truck rear window and the camper shells front window. The black, round button is a momentary button, and operates a set of air horns mounted under the truck. The red air lines are for the rear air bag controls and pressure, gauge, next to that is my trailer brake controller. And just barely visible, is a little silver switch attached to a screw by the ALDL connector, that turns on my high idle.


Heres the truck parked at our apartment, next to my DD neon, for size comparison.


And, here are a few pics from our trip last weekend.

Clean going in;

Dirty coming out;

Here is our camping set up. A "full" size air mattress fits perfectly between the tool box at the front of the bed, and the tail gate. I can however see a DAC truck tent in our future, so we can leave the tailgate and rear hatch open at camp, to use to the tail gate for boot/shoe storage without tracking as much dirt into our sleeping bag area. As well as a bed rug, and insulated blackout curtains for the windows.

And, to finish it off, a close up of my new tires. So far, Ive been pretty impressed with them. Quieter than the mud tires I replaced, (I live in SoCal, now, don't need mud tires. And these have improved my mileage greatly, as well as general handling, to get around in town and parking lots. Sure, they aren't the hummer wheels and 37"s I want, but these will due for the light off roading/dirt roads we see in our immediate future.


Thanks for reading. I will probably turn this thread into more of a build log than anything else, but mods will come slowly as money is tight. At least until I finish school. Im not sure what mods will come next, I would like to upgrade my on board air system to a better compressor/tank (already have a big rig air brake tank I plan to use), so I don't have to run the compressor for 5-10minutes to air up each tire after airing down for sand. I would also like some Buckstop bumpers and winches, as because we are planning solo runs, since we have no camping buddies/friends, I would feel better having some beefy means of self recovery, considering the overall size of my truck.
 
Last edited:

MT6bt

Rock hound
Very nice truck indeed. Those crew cab long boxes are such boats! Makes my QCLB feel like a Subaru when it comes to parking in a normal space.

My friend let me use his 6.0 powerstroke just like yours for a work rig while I was supervising his company. They are indeed far superior in comfort and ride compared to my dodge. But then I ended up blowing up the engine when towing an empty load coming back from a landfill. Oops!
Good ole' 6.0s! I felt terrible and still do. But he understands. That's what they're known for, unfortunately. Too bad because aside from that engine, it's a beauty of a truck.
 

super04duty

Observer
Thanks guys,
I agree about the engine. Its got so much potential, but takes a lot of (very expensive) work to take advantage of it. I actually blew a head gasket, while empty, climbing a small grade to get to my first wedding. (Should have been a sign, that lasted less than a year). Since all thats been done however, Ive had almost 100k of trouble free miles, aside from its annual Amsoil oil change (after oil analysis, depending on how much it gets driven and such, i can go about a year between changes. It costs almost $200, plus I do the work myself, but its cheaper then the long run, even with analysis fees, which I have done at every change).

What I don't want, is a new diesel. I figure, if I ever run into problems again with this one, ill swap in a 24v, but I like not having to fill it up with DEF, or worry about a cat AND DPF, and all the other lovely emissions crap they bolt onto newer ones. And, this one is paid for. It will always be cheaper to mod/build/repair this one, than to buy a new truck at $70k.

I worked at a Ford dealer when I was in high school, and right after graduation (my mechanic days), I always said I would own one, so I started saving, and almost paid cash for this one, and paid it off in 2 years, as a present to myself, a few weeks after I was sworn in as a deputy. over 100k miles later, (its not traveled much yet, mostly commutes with old jobs, after I left the SO), I still smile when I fire it up.

It is huge though. Bigger than I had originally wanted, but it was otherwise perfect (I Originally only wanted an extra cab, but after having this, I would never give up my 4 doors), and the price was right. Even after all the repair work added in, it still wouldn't have been a terrible price for a similar truck at the time, and less than a new one. Parking is a skill you acquire with it. I got used to it, and then when I left the SO, I became a short haul truck driver, so driving large things doesn't bother me anymore. Just sometimes means I get my daily exercise walking through parking lots. lol
 

Coscienceguy

Observer
Nice!

Great looking truck, check out my build thread, same color and body, just a little different, and a 7.3.

It's nice to see all these super duty trucks popping up on here:)
 

super04duty

Observer
Great looking truck, check out my build thread, same color and body, just a little different, and a 7.3.

It's nice to see all these super duty trucks popping up on here:)

I have seen your truck. I actually stared at a picture of it in a parking lot, to get a feel for how my truck will look, while I was waiting to go up and get my camper shell. Ive also showed the fiancé some of your pics, as your painters pole/tarp idea is high on our list of things to do next time. especially since I already have the tarps. lol
 

Raul B

Explorer
great looking build. im glad to see another fullsize truck on here. Let me know if you have any questions. i have been in the ford diesel performance market for 8 years now. plus your pretty local to me so i like to hook local guys up

-Raul
 

super04duty

Observer
great looking build. im glad to see another fullsize truck on here. Let me know if you have any questions. i have been in the ford diesel performance market for 8 years now. plus your pretty local to me so i like to hook local guys up

-Raul

Funny, I must have been writing my PM to you at the same time you were writing this post. And definitely, just need to work on my cash flow before the fiancé will let me buy more toys. lol
 

super04duty

Observer
Also, not much of an update, but I have gotten a battery charger I plan on permanently installing in my truck. I plan to use this whenever shore power may be available. I realize this is not the "power supply" model, but it was a gift/trade from my father, in exchange for my old bedrail mounted tool box. I feel that it should be plenty for the factory dual batteries in my truck and our normal, off-grid power consumption habits while camping.
 

super04duty

Observer
Not much of an update, but this is all I have really done with my truck.

First up is a Ram-Mount laptop stand. Its brand new, never been installed before. I picked it up locally for $80 (the up side to living in SoCal, stuff like this never came up for sale in the Central Valley). Its really nice and sturdy, doesnt rattle around. It'll hold a computer good for me in the drivers seat. It will also position it just right for a passenger to use. The downside however, is that even in the lowest setting, the dash mounted cup holder will no longer pull out far enough to be useable. Id also be concerned with it being used while driving with a passenger, for fear of the air-bag interference. This is temporary however, as I don't plan to really use a laptop with it. I plan on getting an iPad mount for it, so I can use that for GPS, as well as music (iPad with cellular). I feel this is much better than a fancy double DIN stereo with GPS, as the iPad will provide a larger screen, and is useful outside the truck for tasks other than GPS. I just plan on also getting an apple bluetooth keyboard to keep in the truck along with it. to make typing on the go more ergonomic.



I also plasit-dipped my billet grill insert. It isn't much, but I thought I would try out this plasti-dip stuff on something small and easy to do, before I pull off my wheels and paint my OEM wheels with it.



And lastly, the smallest update. I got these plastic, folding produce crates from some people when we moved out of Downtown LA. I forgot I had them until recently. Its a perfect fit for my 5gal. diesel fuel can, a set of reflective safety triangles, about 10 15min road flares, some tie downs, jumper cables, and air hose and fittings (for my on-board air compressor). It isn't much, but its a lot nicer than the milk crates I was using. Since I got the camper shell, I like to have these items living by the tailgate, so they are always quick/easy to get to, and I don't have to crawl around in the back to get to them.

 

super04duty

Observer
looks good.

Thanks again for grabbing that mount for me... definitely need to get one in your truck now. Even Nicole is surprisingly for this... said now she can get on the pinterest on our drives up north on a bigger screen than her phone. lol
 

super04duty

Observer
Again, not much going on with the truck. Have a few things in the works though. Next few weeks will be crazy, but by the end of the year, I hope to get something done a little more post worthy. Raul B. and I got our Ram Mount products in last week. Got my laptop mount removed from the base, and installed the iPad mount. It works great.

Only other mod was a couple of stickers....

Between starting a new job next week, buying another truck this weekend, registering for college classes in 2hrs as of this post (my first time back to college in 10 years, Ive got enough life experience, time to get some brain experience, and get a career going), and of course my wedding in Sept.... things have been hectic, and will continue to be so, until Oct, ,when everything but school is done and/or settled into.
 

super04duty

Observer
Not so much an update on the F-350, but I did go and buy its mini-me today. Got a killer deal on it. This will now be my daily driver/work truck, while the F-350 is allowed to just be our long trip/ off-road/ camping rig.

*Some of you may recognize this truck, and you would be correct about its previous owner.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
185,538
Messages
2,875,659
Members
224,922
Latest member
Randy Towles
Top