Newbie - Slow but Sure F150 Build

[bdbecker]

Finally got around to installing a front reciever hitch this weekend. Long story short, my truck doesn't have any recovery points up front besides wrapping a strap around the frame. I'll get some pics posted soon...

More importantly, in exactly 71 days the gf and I are heading south for a long week of doing nothing on Padre Island. It was a good compromise for us. She likes the beach, I don't like crowds, so the PINS seems like the perfect solution. I've already found some great threads from others who have spent time on the island. This will be the first full blown, far away from home trip with the setup, I'm sure I'll run into a few issues, but all in all, I can't wait.

[jffilley]

PINS is a beautiful place that can be as uncrowded as you want it to be. The wife and I spent a couple days there a few months back when we bought my truck. I would advise against taking the dog tho as there is some kind of red tide thaT makes dogs very sick.

[bdbecker]

Thanks for the heads up... I was leaning against bringing her along because of the long drive, but that makes the decision easy. Besides, she'll have way more fun roaming around my folks' farm for a week.

[bdbecker]

Installed cruise control on the truck today. It was definately the time to do it with our PINS trip of 2400 miles only a few weeks away. I ended up going with a Rostra kit from M&R Electronics. While the kits seem to get good reviews (it seems to be well made unit), the directions and the rat's nest of wires I'm left with under my dash had me second guessing myself the whole day. The extra wires are to be expected, but I ran out of daylight and patience before I got around to trimming everything up. The install took about 6 hours, mainly because the directions were so universal they were pretty much worthless. There are critical elements in the setup of the control box that are simply not mentioned in the directions. Luckily I've done enough work with electronics to be able to make some educated guesses and have everything work out. All in all, I'm happy that I was able to save a couple hundred dollars over what the dealership had quoted me for a factory unit, and I wouldn't be scared to put another one in a different vehicle now that I've got this one under my belt. It was a weird feeling after 5 years and 50k miles when I pushed the set button and took my foot off the gas pedal.

[BigTex]

Sounds like your getting the rig ready to head to Padre Island. I don't know what route you're taking to get there, but if you are coming through the Dallas area, and you need anything, feel free to holler at me. Even if you just need a place to stop and air up your floaties for the beach.

You can PM me for my contact info if you're interested. Being a fellow F150 owner and ExPo member, I thought it'd be nice to know someone along the way, may provide a little piece of mind. Y'all enjoy your trip and Welcome to the Lone Star State.

[bdbecker]

Sorry for the delay folks, it has been a hectic summer. Not long after we got back, my girlfriend got an amazing job offer that we just couldn't turn down. The last month and a half has been spent applying for jobs, looking at houses, and getting our current house ready to be put on the market.

Anyway, here are a few pictures I've been promising.

First, here is the front reciever hitch I installed. In the short term, I finally have a front recovery point. Long term, I hope to get a winch and basket so I can get myself out of trouble if needed.





Next is the cruise control. It really has made a huge difference in fatigue while driving and paid for itself on the trip.





Finally a few pictures from the trip. We left on Saturday morning at 5am, headed to Iowa to drop off our dogs at my parents' place, and drove straight through to Corpus Christi, arriving at 8am Sunday morning. The trip down was completely uneventful with the exception of when in Oklahoma I let out a pretty good string of choice four letter words directed at the GPS. I was sleeping at the time, but my girlfriend woke me up asking for change for the tolls. Apparently, it had kept directing her to get on and off toll roads for no reason (I think its a conspiracy). We ended up having to run through an unmanned tollboth because we were out of change - they took our picture, but I never saw anything in the mail about it. Also the traffic around Dallas and Austin, even in the dead of night, had this hick from the sticks checking his underpants for accidents. But we made it in one piece, picked up some supplies for the week, and headed out to the sand.







We ended up leaving on Thursday morning so we could have some time to see some sights on the way home. Besides, I was out of Lone Star and had read the books I brought along.

[DoMiNiC1]

Sounds like fun!!! Great pics!

[kevint]

I would love to hear more about your trip to PINS. How far down the beach did you go?

[Mad_Texan]

Nice looking truck! Padre is ice since they let you drive on the beach...took my old blazer there several times as I grew up in Texas. Spent several spring breaks there...I think?!?!?