Questions about 3/4 ton vs. 1 ton....
- Thread starter matthewp
- Start date
I have (and love) the Ford lineup. I do have a Cummins in a FC80 (it IS a great engine, just dont want what the rest of the stuff it comes with 
). I would look for a F-350, you can always get custom rims for it to get rid of the duals if that is what you find reasonable $$. I agree on all notes as to the trans needing to stay cool (drop a 6.0 $550 tranny cooler in and your fine), mileage, manual hubs, windows, etc... we have three boys to cram in the cab so CC/CC long bed for us. I stumbled into my rig and got lucky (under 100K), it is almost exactly what I would have factory ordered. I did upgrade the front seat, and pocketed door panels for travel maps/goodies (XLT), and it had A/C (a must) and found a tilt wheel column to throw in. Basically other than cruise (perhaps someday) it is a great machine for what I do. I did put F-450 spings and mounts on the rear, and went to 19.5" tires for durability. Mine is "anti bling" and needs a silver/grey paint job and some F-550 flares. Good trucks, I have a 00' 550 4x4 work/crane truck, and sold another 00' that was a 7.3 manual 2x4. Also, if you plan to run highway speeds with the hubs locked in rebuild the front driveshaft, more than one person has taken out the tranny AND transfer case housings when they "GO". I rebuilt both of mine as insurance as it is a $4500+ parts bill IF you can even find them.
A note on the manual vs auto tranny, while my old manual 7.3 550 could pull a house, the auto keeps the turbo "spooling" (under power/pressurized) and delivers a much faster and effective pulling truck. I like the auto, especially around town. You just GOTTA put hte 6.0 cooler in it. Also, a tranny and coolant filter are GOOD ideas for long term durability. See FordTruckEnthusiast for lots of tech details, by engine and truck size.... http://www.ford-trucks.com/
Buy the one ton (or 450/550), and you can trailer your Liberty and not even effect your mileage. Look in "Truckpaper" good source. http://www.truckpaper.com/
Also, a dealer n Kentucy gets ALOTof fleet units, it is Larry Stieger (spelling) that might be a source. http://www.stigerstrucks.com/ looks like there are two nice ones a 7.3 F-250 and a 350 on there now. Both are well equipped (Lariat, and XLT)
DO NOT take the statement about the 6.0 LIGHTLY, you do NOT want one..........
Jronwood
). I would look for a F-350, you can always get custom rims for it to get rid of the duals if that is what you find reasonable $$. I agree on all notes as to the trans needing to stay cool (drop a 6.0 $550 tranny cooler in and your fine), mileage, manual hubs, windows, etc... we have three boys to cram in the cab so CC/CC long bed for us. I stumbled into my rig and got lucky (under 100K), it is almost exactly what I would have factory ordered. I did upgrade the front seat, and pocketed door panels for travel maps/goodies (XLT), and it had A/C (a must) and found a tilt wheel column to throw in. Basically other than cruise (perhaps someday) it is a great machine for what I do. I did put F-450 spings and mounts on the rear, and went to 19.5" tires for durability. Mine is "anti bling" and needs a silver/grey paint job and some F-550 flares. Good trucks, I have a 00' 550 4x4 work/crane truck, and sold another 00' that was a 7.3 manual 2x4. Also, if you plan to run highway speeds with the hubs locked in rebuild the front driveshaft, more than one person has taken out the tranny AND transfer case housings when they "GO". I rebuilt both of mine as insurance as it is a $4500+ parts bill IF you can even find them. A note on the manual vs auto tranny, while my old manual 7.3 550 could pull a house, the auto keeps the turbo "spooling" (under power/pressurized) and delivers a much faster and effective pulling truck. I like the auto, especially around town. You just GOTTA put hte 6.0 cooler in it. Also, a tranny and coolant filter are GOOD ideas for long term durability. See FordTruckEnthusiast for lots of tech details, by engine and truck size.... http://www.ford-trucks.com/
Buy the one ton (or 450/550), and you can trailer your Liberty and not even effect your mileage. Look in "Truckpaper" good source. http://www.truckpaper.com/
Also, a dealer n Kentucy gets ALOTof fleet units, it is Larry Stieger (spelling) that might be a source. http://www.stigerstrucks.com/ looks like there are two nice ones a 7.3 F-250 and a 350 on there now. Both are well equipped (Lariat, and XLT)
DO NOT take the statement about the 6.0 LIGHTLY, you do NOT want one..........
Jronwood
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Nicaragüense
Observer
Is there a way to increase the gvwr legally, due to the previously mentioned risks with the lawsuit happy crowd?
It can be done but it is a dealer inspection and would likely incurr a reconstructed title as depending on how far you wanted to take it, it would require quite a few upgrades (brakes, springs, etc.....) I would assume it varies by state, and at least here it is not looked upon lightly. I would like to convert my 350 to a 550 but that would require ALOT, frame, Dana S135, etc...(local yard has the frame for $450)...tempting......A low mileage 7.3 4x4 F-550 CC/CC is as rare as hens teeth, would be easier to just build one.
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I've an 01 Ram 2500 Quad Cab short bed with the 8800 lb GVWR rating, full tow package and off-road package including skid plates, a 200+ lb ladder rack, a full tool box, a milk crate with coolant, oil, etc, and a bed bar with a winch mounted to it. when I cross the scales every other week. All that, a full tank of gas, and me= 7000 lb almost on the dot. That leaves 1800 lbs of GVWR remaining to play with in my case. I've had 2500 lbs in the bed and the truck handled fine in every regard.
As far as expo-ing the rig, just plan your weight accordingly and actually know what your gear weighs. Take the time to set you loaded coolers, etc on a scale and keep track of your weights. The truck's too heavy? Get a trailer
As far as expo-ing the rig, just plan your weight accordingly and actually know what your gear weighs. Take the time to set you loaded coolers, etc on a scale and keep track of your weights. The truck's too heavy? Get a trailer
lllateralus
Observer
Just to clarify, my 2003 F250 (7.3 auto, Crew Cab, 4X4, manual hubs and manual transfer case) has the Dana 60 front axle, and the rear overload springs. (will take pics, if need be)
FellowTraveler
Explorer
The line between an private use RV and commercial use is the reason.
Good recommendations all around. As far as the tranny cooler is concerned, a good quality aftermarket Derale cooler runs about $100 from Summit Racing. Just make sure you get the "plate" style cooler and not a "tube and fin" style cooler. Big difference in durability and cooling efficiency. As suggested earlier, it is a good idea to keep track of how much all your stuff weighs. Start with the curb weight of the truck and then start adding in your gear to see where you end up. I know that a diesel F350 4x4 is about 7200-7500lbs empty to start with depending on cab and bed length.
bftank
Explorer
since we are focusing on ford, the 99-02 f350's were also known to have the dana 50's in them. a dana 50 is identified by it's axle ujoints, they are tiny like a dana 44. yes a dana 50 has the same bearings and balljoints as a dana 50, however the smaller axles shafts and gears are a draw back. the 99-02s did have some d60's in them as well which is why it is important to be able to id them as the housings appear the same on the outside.
in 03 ford went to dana 60's in f350 and f250 trucks.
i am a firm believer in having more truck than you need vs. needing more truck than you have. towing a 10k trailer over the appalachians with a 95 gmc 1500 cured me of any desire to do otherwise.
when looking for your truck look for one with a rear swaybar, as this will help with your camper.
my vote would be 2003 with a 7.3l and a 6 speed f350.
oh and the f250 and f350 single rear axles are the same sterling 10.5, the dually uses a dana 80 for the most part.
in 03 ford went to dana 60's in f350 and f250 trucks.
i am a firm believer in having more truck than you need vs. needing more truck than you have. towing a 10k trailer over the appalachians with a 95 gmc 1500 cured me of any desire to do otherwise.
when looking for your truck look for one with a rear swaybar, as this will help with your camper.
my vote would be 2003 with a 7.3l and a 6 speed f350.
oh and the f250 and f350 single rear axles are the same sterling 10.5, the dually uses a dana 80 for the most part.
Same u-joints between the d50 and D60 as far as I know, I just did a set on a 2000 F250 not long ago and I can tell you they are not tiny D44 joints or shafts. Basically its identical to a D60 with the exception of having a 9" ring gear and the axle shafts neck down to a smaller dia and I think 30 spline at the carrier. It is a high pinion axle and its pretty damn strong, true its not as good as a D60 but even the D60 in the superduty isn't that great, ball joint, unit bearing, vacuum hubs, ect... Also I believe the D60 started showing up in late 01, and most of the 02 seem to have them...