Yarden's 2010 Ford Super Duty King Ranch FX4 Build

[yarden]

I have been over on the Toyota side of the forums but have a new rig and wanted to get a build thread started. Prior to the 4Runner I have built several Rovers.

I spent alot of time in the build of my 2014 4Runner but at the end of the day it just wasn't a big enough vehicle to suit our large family of five (three boys). To get all our gear in for travel the third row was useless on the 4Runner. Now I can comfortably fit 5 full grown adult males if I need too and still have a full truck bed for gear and the rack as well for lighter items and even tow a heavy trailer. I have been wanting a super duty diesel for long time and I found a great deal so a trade was in order.

The truck is my daily driver/work truck 75% of the time. The other percentage it is our travel vehicle so I am going to focus on a balanced approach which won't limit my towing ability for when I need that.

LEER Topper
I thought about how I wanted to securely protect the contents of the bed for quite a long time. I wasn't sold on getting a topper right away and was looking hard at either the Bakflip or the Bak Industries Roll-X covers. The problem is that our portable cooler is an 85L and it is taller than the bed rails of the truck. I had thought of selling it and getting the smaller ARB Fridge (45L), but I am a drummer and my kick drum was also taller than the bed rails. I got some quotes on new toppers but it was a staggering $2K - $3K for the styles I was looking at with the Thule rack options... money I wanted to put elsewhere in this build.

I started scouring craigslist but was having a hard time because I have a step tailgate. Finally I found the perfect one posted and it matched my truck. The dealer wanted $900 for it and it had come off an older 6.0 Super duty that was in trade. The fit was perfect and I can always take it off when I need to use a gooseneck trailer.

I have ordered a Ranch Hand Winch Bumper for protection and it is at powdercoat right now to match the King Ranch colors. To put in the winch bumper, I purchased a Superwinch Talon 12.5K.

Once installed I will post some more pics and specs/details for those interested.

 

[smlobx]

Nice truck!
I've got a 2006 F-350 SRW diesel that I'm thinking of making more expo ready so I'll be following your build.

I just came across these drawers that Might be something you'd want to consider...

http://shop.decked.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=DS2
Good luck!

 

[Maxcustody]

Very nice! We have a '14 F250 and love the truck. looking forward to seeing future mods.............

 

[yarden]

Just got the bumper and winch installed...

Ranch Hand Winch Bumper
I have always used ARB on my Rovers and on my Toyota, I went with Shrockworks for the first time. For this build I looked at ARB, but the 2008 - 2010 model is only a safari version with the single bar over the center and no headlight protection. I had two criteria... it had to offer extreme protection from animal strikes... and it had to be winch ready. After an enormous amount of research I decided to go with Ranch Hand's winch ready bumper. The guys at the Irving, TX store were awesome to deal with and have great customer service (from sales to the techs). I had them powdercoat the bumper to match my king ranch. Total install with bumper and winch was only two hours.

Superwinch Talon 12.5K
I have always used WARN in the past (M8000's), but am not a fan of the VR line and needed something that was at least 12K capacity. I don't use a winch often and there was no way I was going to shell out $2K on an M12000 or M15000 and went to work researching my options. I came across Superwinches new Tiger Shark line and was really impressed, especially with what you get for the price. Then, by chance, I came across Superwinches pro model top performer line the Talon at a great deal so purchased the 12.5K version. In my opinion, from the specs to the warranty, Superwinch has the best value ratio out there. The quality and attention to detail on the Superwinch Talon is better than any WARN I have had in the last fifteen years (from the winch itself to the controller). I am very impressed.

 

[Seabass]

Sweet ride. I have your trucks granddaddy! Same color and even has a topper- just nearly 20 years older. Why don't you go out and try to winch that truck up a tree. Just kidding. My truck had a warn 8,000 on it when I got it. It's not nearly big enough. Like you I've got a problem shelling out that much money for the big Warn that I want. Like you I don't live and die by my winch- but it should work when I need it. If yours does all that you believe it will I may go buy one as well. I saw the winch you purchased and considered it. I just haven't known what to buy. I really like what you have going there.

 

[Buliwyf]

Since we generally don't get truely stuck. Just sunk a few inches down in hard packed frozen goo. I hardly need any winch at all.

The Warn XD9000i is the staple of winches, for most field tech work in my area. Undersized for sure, but it's all we need. We're not wheeling hard and aren't buried, we just ran out of traction and need pulled a couple feet. It's cheap, reliable, and weighs less than the large frames.

You can add a preload spacer to your front springs to make up for the front sagging under the weight of the winch and bumper.

 

[ExploringNH]

That Superwinch is a great winch. FAST. They make a wireless controller for it that is really nice to have (you can operate the winch from almost the other end of the cable). The ARB modular bumper is nice looking but I think the Ranch Hand is a little more functional, and as you stated, ARB doesn't offer the headlight protection for that model.

Great looking truck. Definitely following along.

 

[yarden]

Sweet ride. I have your trucks granddaddy! Same color and even has a topper- just nearly 20 years older. Why don't you go out and try to winch that truck up a tree. Just kidding. My truck had a warn 8,000 on it when I got it. It's not nearly big enough. Like you I've got a problem shelling out that much money for the big Warn that I want. Like you I don't live and die by my winch- but it should work when I need it. If yours does all that you believe it will I may go buy one as well. I saw the winch you purchased and considered it. I just haven't known what to buy. I really like what you have going there.

Thanks, I like your truck as well! My father had a red 97 F250 Powerstroke 4x4 with a mild Rancho lift when I was in high school and I loved that truck (except for the matching red interior). I had an 87 4Runner at the time, and loved that as well... but enjoyed driving the Ford when I could. That memory is another one of the many reasons I went with my Super Duty! I will post back when I use the winch and let you know... right now I have only done the initial install with it. I went with the talon because I found a good price at superwinch experts... a few hours before the purchase I had the Tigershark sitting in my amazon shopping cart and was ready to purchase that one. I think either would be a great winch.

 

[yarden]

You can add a preload spacer to your front springs to make up for the front sagging under the weight of the winch and bumper.

Thanks for the info! I actually have the Readylift 3.5 SST going on tomorrow with Rancho 9000XL's all around, a BD Diesel Adjustable Trac Bar, and 37x12.5R20 Mickey Thompson Deegan 38 A/T's... Hopefully will post pictures in the next few days after install. Never thought I would put Mickey Thompsons on a truck but the reviews were really good on this particular tire and trying to find an aggressive All Terrain like the DuraTrac but in 37" was just about impossible. Both Toyo and Coopers were backordered with over 1000 units behind! The reviews said this tire I picked was quieter and had better road manners so we will see.

 

[yarden]

ReadyLift SST 3.5 w/ 5" Blocks in Rear
This is the tried and true lift on these trucks and I have heard nothing but good things about it. I wanted something more than F350 Blocks and the 2" that alot of guys are doing, but I didn't want something that limited funcitonality and ruined the truck. This 3.5" lift was the perfect fit and allowed me to fit 37's as well which was another plus. Install was straightforward.

BD Diesel Heavy Duty Adjustable Trac Bar
I did not want to use the dropdown relocation bracket for the factory trac bar and I didn't want to deal with "death wobble" in the future. My truck is low miles, but you could still tell 5 years on the rubber bushings had paid a toll. I went with the BD Diesel Trac Bar after hearing nothing but great reviews. Another plus is it is adjustable without having to take it off the truck, like some of the other manufacturers require.

Rancho 9000XL's
I toyed with the idea of going ICON as I did on my 4Runner and on that truck it was a great suspension. That said, I read great things about the 9000XL's from Rancho in Overland Journal and heard similarly good things about them from other Super Duty owners. I wanted some adjustability and these Shocks from Rancho fit the bill perfectly. These things are BEEFY and the adjustability works great. I am running 7 on road but adjust down to a 3 or 4 offroad and it really buffers rough dirt roads nicely.

37x12.5R20 Mickey Thompson Deegan 38 A/T's
I spent two days trying to track down a 37x12.5 or a 37x13.5 aggressive A/T. Toyos and Coopers were backordered by over 1000 units in this size range. I then went to the internet to do some more research. I will be honest... I never thought I would put Mickey Thompson's on my truck but with the promising things I read I wanted to give it a try... and am glad I did. These tires are quiet, grip well, and are solid. I am extremely impressed with what Mickey Thompson developed in this tire.

Overall Impression
The truck drives and handles hundred times better than from the factory. The wince factor when going over railroad tracks, etc. is 100% gone and feels as great as my ICON coilovers on the 4Runner and at a 1/4 of the cost. The truck feels extremely stable even at 80mph and remains quiet and as comfortable as I want my King Ranch to be on the highway. From the little bit I have taken it offroad today, it has performed great. I could not ask more from it. I have some trips planned so I will keep everyone updated.

 

[Seabass]

You got it lookin mighty fine!

 

[yarden]

We have had a ton of rain so wanted to give my updated impression of the Deegan 38's on road. They have maintained great traction and stability... even through deeper sections of water (6"+ inches of roadway flooding over) at 30 mph. There was no feel of them wanting to get squirrely regardless if one side of the truck hit deep water while the other was on dry ground, etc. Granted, I understand the truck is 9K pounds and they are 37's so it does help. So far, I am really impressed with this tire. The noise has stayed low and after 1000 high speed highway miles they are wearing nicely (e.g. no sign of wear yet).

 

[yarden]

Took the truck down to the hill country in (central) Texas for some exploration this last weekend. The wildflowers are in bloom and it is gorgeous this time of year. We were around Llano and Fredricksburg and in this area there is alot of interesting things geologically.

We had "heard" that if you want to get to Enchanted Rock State Natural Area early to avoid the park closing due to reaching capacity... we had never actually experienced that when visiting. We did some exploring before we stopped by the park this time and sure enough... this is what we found. Needless to say as cool and fun as it always is, we skipped it this time around and continued exploring elsewhere!

 

[Seabass]

Awesome pics!

 

[yarden]

Got my ArkPak and the Exide AGM XMC31 configured and installed last night. Still trying to figure out the best way to mount this so it won't become a projectile. At the same time I don't want to drill the floor of my bed. The mounts they sent are super strong... just can't get myself to do drill them. Maybe I will have to give in, but I prefer not.

ArkPak and MXC31 Battery
In my 4Runner I had 12v sockets in the back to run our fridge and other electrics. My F250 already has dual batteries, but I wanted to have something dedicated in the bed of the truck that is removable to the campsite and can go where the fridge goes or our other gadgetry. I have been reading about Arkpak for a while and it looked like the perfect solution. I did not want a closed battery system like the Goal Zero and the features were more limited.

For a battery I went with the Exide AGM XMC31 which I think I got for a steal on Amazon ($229). It is a 120 Amp Hour battery. The diehard platinum (AGM) PM1 I had in my 4Runner had risen in price to over $300 and I couldn't justify that expense. I was concerned about where to do warranty work with Exide, but at the same time... who knows if Sears will be around in physical locations in 5 years anyway (everytime I go into the local ones here they are pretty desolate). At the end of the day the reviews are good and more than likely this battery won't require any warranty replacement anyway.

Battery installation is really straightforward... just drop in, strap in, and connect the positive and negative cables coming out of the ArkPak. Then close the lid, turn on, and follow the on-screen questions. Very simple.

I will post some more pictures once I figure out the best mounting solution.