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Well it's been a while, but I'm finally starting phase 1 of this project. This consists roughly of the following projects: -front winch bumper -Install modern electrical in current camper -flatbed -Refresh suspension The truck was actually stolen and recovered, so I thought I'd treat it to a...

It's an '03 4 door long bed f250. C-channel frame, not fully boxed. I actually have the energy suspension bushings, but decided I want to do a "real" pivot system.

Hi all, still dreaming up my flat bed, and ready to start building this spring. The only thing I keep flipping back and forth on is what to do for the actual pivots. Initially I was set on the builder bushings that I believe idasho used, but I do not like the idea of 3 poly bushings carrying...

Depending on the panel, I may "only" need 2 (I realize they are huge and vary in size) to get close to 1000W. My current flexible 100W panel is keeping up, but I'm using mostly propane appliances, and not working out of the camper with internet, etc. Maybe a single large panel will be plenty...

Some older progress. I made these jacks for my current camper, but I will swap them over to the new one when it's ready. Started with a trailer jack, and cut the mounting ring off: The jack shaft has groove down it to keep it tracking. I need to extend the shaft, so I made an inner sleeve...

Thanks for the input. I admit I get a lot of enjoyment out of all my diy projects, and I believe I can do it for a fraction of the cost, learn a lot, and make it exactly how I want it. I'd love to get something turn key, or even a shell like you have, but the only way I can afford this is doing...

Here are some rough "specs" of the flatbed and camper. The idea is to build a quality structure focusing on keeping it affordable and lightweight. I'm just a guy with a full-time job, a two-car garage, and little money. I do not want to build the camper directly on the truck because I use the...

Hi All, I'm creating this build thread to document my build and share what I have and will eventually learn. I find that build threads also supply a source of motivation that I otherwise lack. I've slowly been creeping towards a full-size build over the years, and I'm ready to finally take the...

The reason I have them stacked like that is because I need some height to get the cab over portion of my camper above the cab of the truck. Seems to be the way most of the commercially built flatbeds are manufactured as well. The 3D image I made was just a "proof of concept" and doesn't contain...

Not much, but I went and put the truck under a little twist just to get an idea. Sounds like I need to do this again when I don't have a bed, and I can get the wheels a little higher off the ground, but there was less twist than expected.

After digging around, it does seem that the "die springs" referenced earlier in this thread are one of the better suited and readily available springs. A 6" spring travels 1.5" which is not much IMO.

I see what you're saying, but if I wanted say 8" of travel but the spring can only compress 20%, I'd need a 40" long spring! Looks like even the large vehicles are using a spring about 6" long.

The only thing I'm not sure about is the spring compression. It looks like all the springs in these setups only allow about 1-1.5" of movement. But I suppose that's 1" that I didn't have before!

mounts directly on top of the frame using the factory mount points. Springs under, contained in the C-channel of the truck frame.

Alloy, like rruff said, I can't imagine that a sleeve with do any more damage than a smooth shank bolt, and at 1/2" thick poly with 1 ton spread between 8 mounts; I suspect it will be pretty planted under braking. I don't have the knowhow to calculate this, just going from the gut. Sitec...

I was thinking the same thing. My plan is to have 8 sets of the 70A 1/2" thick bushes with no sleeve, only washers. Not a big deal to have a few extra, and when the truck is level on road a few more contact patches will surely distribute the load a little better. Probably going with 4" gold...

Excellent points. The MMI rating of c-channel I'm looking at is only for straight down deflection, not the twist that I need to compensate for. I really like the poly/spring combo. It seems easy to incorporate with almost no design compromise from my original solid mounting plans I had before I...

Hi all, I'm collecting materials for my flatbed build on my 2003 Ford F250 (crew cab long bed). Since it's an '03 Ford, it has a C-channel frame, and since it's a 250; it's a "1 ton" truck and I never plan to load more than that. I have a 10' slide in camper to get me going, but I would love to...

I had an AVS wind/bug deflector in some of my older photos, but it ended up falling off on Trail Ridge Road, one of the highest roads in the US (I think). I ended up reinstalling it a few weeks ago using riv-nuts, which I am now addicted to. Photo while driving (n) Got a nice Alien...

I'm flattered. I really need to get off my rear and build my bumpers and install my diffs. I've gone camping and off-roading almost every weekend this summer and it's been great, just doesn't leave much time to work on the truck. I'll post a few more if you find them interesting.