2019 F350 4x4 custom HPI flatbed/AT Atlas topper

[java]

Steel? How long is your cabin again?
How much does your rig weigh (dry or wet)?

Yes, just the floor though. 12'2 long. I'm 14240lbs with half tank fuel half tank water, three people and 200lbs of dog.

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[mk216v]

Yes, just the floor though. 12'2 long. I'm 14240lbs with half tank fuel half tank water, three people and 200lbs of dog.

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Oh, and aluminum structure walls. And overall length? Hi pup!

 

[java]

Oh, and aluminum structure walls. And overall length? Hi pup!

25' bumper to bumper!

Yeah all everything above the floor is alu. Walls are 1/8" ceiling is thin 20ga maybe?

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[mk216v]

Had some good discussions with some of you here about keeping my RegularCab chassis-cab or selling and getting a SuperCab pickup (for dogs, 34gal midship fuel tank for better weight distribution vs 40gal aft-axle tank in c-c, ability to put spare underneath truck in pickup version, pickup is ~164"WB vs my c-c is 145"WB so smoother ride with the pickup but worse breakover angle, since I'd have SuperCab for the dogs vs the Alum-line tunnel box I could go with a 6.75' bed on the pickup version vs my 8' "bed" on my c-c, more possible Ford options with pickup version, but also would cost about $15k more to make this swap--eek). The way I see it, the fact that the tunnel box will be universal upper/lower storage, but that the dogs will be housed in soft crates in the top...that tunnel box storage will be a bonus for the buyer if/when I got to sell this thing. Need to get Alum-line on the phone to talk over the flatbed/tunnel box setup, pricing...get it going. Been discussing insulation options for the doghouse portion of the tunnel box. Maybe some custom vents too to aid in keeping it better climate controlled.

Just finalizing some details on the FWC before I place an order by 2/9/20.
Looking at other possible "furnace heater" options besides the Dometic/Atwood that FWC uses, as there have been many reports from new FWC owners, of troubles/failures with this setup (supposedly ever since Domestic took over the furnace).
Also working with suppliers on some other FWC upgrades.

Working on front ARB air locker possibility as per ARB USA tech dept, they don't make an air locker for the '19 F350. Engineering friend many of you know here is working on a possible solution using Ford CAD models. Will let him provide info if we're successful.

Need to call Warn and Buckstop about bumpers. I do like that Buckstop offers an aluminum version, vs Warn steel.

Found I already have 5 of the Method 701/Trail's; I forgot I had bought 5 vs only 4, so this takes care of the spare--cool!

Drew up a sketch(still on stock tires, no susp lift) of what my RC c-c would look like with 27" tunnel/doghouse/storage box, flatbed deck cantilevered out to create a porch so the 37" spare can be on the back. While I realize the "porch" isn't ideal due to poorer departure angle(than without a porch), the porch would also allow dual spares, storage for other gear (Rotopax for fuel, axe/shovel, firewood bin, etc);

 

[Buliwyf]

That's nice. I wouldn't sweat the rear overhang much. It's still plenty high. Chances are, that anywhere it would be a problem for me, a fullsize truck and camper wouldn't make it anyways.

Is ARB just checking compatibility before saying they have a locker for the '19+ models? I don't think the front axle has changed ever, except for the Tremor. Isn't it still just a 35 spline Dana 60?

 

[RAM5500 CAMPERTHING]

Had some good discussions with some of you here about keeping my RegularCab chassis-cab or selling and getting a SuperCab pickup (for dogs, 34gal midship fuel tank for better weight distribution vs 40gal aft-axle tank in c-c, ability to put spare underneath truck in pickup version, pickup is ~164"WB vs my c-c is 145"WB so smoother ride with the pickup but worse breakover angle, since I'd have SuperCab for the dogs vs the Alum-line tunnel box I could go with a 6.75' bed on the pickup version vs my 8' "bed" on my c-c, more possible Ford options with pickup version, but also would cost about $15k more to make this swap--eek). Need to get Alum-line on the phone to talk over the flatbed/tunnel box setup, pricing...get it going. Been discussing insulation options for the doghouse portion of the tunnel box. Maybe some custom vents too to aid in keeping it better climate controlled.

Just finalizing some details on the FWC before I place an order by 2/9/20.
Looking at other possible "furnace heater" options besides the Dometic/Atwood that FWC uses, as there have been many reports from new FWC owners, of troubles/failures with this setup (supposedly ever since Domestic took over the furnace).
Also working with suppliers on some other FWC upgrades.

Working on front ARB air locker possibility as per ARB USA tech dept, they don't make an air locker for the '19 F350. Engineering friend many of you know here is working on a possible solution using Ford CAD models. Will let him provide info if we're successful.

Need to call Warn and Buckstop about bumpers. I do like that Buckstop offers an aluminum version, vs Warn steel.

Found I already have 5 of the Method 701/Trail's; I forgot I had bought 5 vs only 4, so this takes care of the spare--cool!

Drew up a sketch(still on stock tires, no susp lift) of what my RC c-c would look like with 27" tunnel/doghouse/storage box, flatbed deck cantilevered out to create a porch so the 37" spare can be on the back. While I realize the "porch" isn't ideal due to poorer departure angle(than without a porch), the porch would also allow dual spares, storage for other gear (Rotopax for fuel, axe/shovel, firewood bin, etc);
View attachment 564566

I've also been communicating back and forth with Buckstop on bumpers.

I gotta say, theyre one of the few in this process that has totally impressed me with their responsiveness and willing to do anything custom i want to the bumper!

Also, that "porch" is a "different" flatbed idea than most, and i LOVE it!

Lots of folks leave the rear end all exposed and unprotected which could (and i'm baffled it don't more often) damage the rear departure area in the event of a collision or sliding off a bigger drop than expected.

Well done sir!

 

[Rovertrader]

Minutia, but with the above design, which is great IMHO, the bottom rear of the camper can be squared off to allow additional storage which is always at a premium- regardless if utilized/accessed inside or out.

 

[RAM5500 CAMPERTHING]

Minutia, but with the above design, which is great IMHO, the bottom rear of the camper can be squared off to allow additional storage which is always at a premium- regardless if utilized/accessed inside or out.

Thats the FWC Flatbed and it comes as shown in that sketch, cant be squared off. I asked awhile ago

 

[mk216v]

That's nice. I wouldn't sweat the rear overhang much. It's still plenty high. Chances are, that anywhere it would be a problem for me, a fullsize truck and camper wouldn't make it anyways.

Is ARB just checking compatibility before saying they have a locker for the '19+ models? I don't think the front axle has changed ever, except for the Tremor. Isn't it still just a 35 spline Dana 60?

Thx.

From ARB; "We currently do not have any product for the 2019 F350.[ie bumpers, diffs] Our lockers will not work with the 2019 F350 regardless of gear ratio."
That's what we thought (PS--what was different about the Tremor)?
Buddy overlayed Ford CAD data using earlier F-SD and current F-SD and there are some minor changes yes, but still investigating further using ARB locker. I may have mentioned it above, but what's bizarre is that the new #RD166(for 4.56+ gears) ARB locker I have in hand from my E350 Unicorn build, nor the #RD167(for -4.10 gears) covers the 4.30 axle I have...meaning the 4.30 is in no man's land.

 

[mk216v]

I've also been communicating back and forth with Buckstop on bumpers.

I gotta say, theyre one of the few in this process that has totally impressed me with their responsiveness and willing to do anything custom i want to the bumper!

Also, that "porch" is a "different" flatbed idea than most, and i LOVE it!

Lots of folks leave the rear end all exposed and unprotected which could (and i'm baffled it don't more often) damage the rear departure area in the event of a collision or sliding off a bigger drop than expected.

Well done sir!

Wow ok then, that seals it--Buckstop aluminum bumper it is! Thanks for the feedback Kevin.
Was impressed to see here he struck a deer at 70mph and no real damage apparently; https://expeditionportal.com/forum/...-the-group-needed.147701/page-14#post-2735688
So that means the NoGrill, while a clean look, is a no-go due to no front grille protection.
Classic1 is ok; https://www.buckstopinc.com/classic-1-1751.html
While it's large, I think I like the Outback the best of all choices and offers most front end protection; https://www.buckstopinc.com/outback-1753.html . $3133 bare aluminum w/ 6" and 4" round so I can get it coated the satin black I use; oy! Or $3008 w/ quad 3.5x5" rectangulars...and it looks like Rigid E-Pro in 4"(actually 2.7x5.2") would be the ones; https://www.rigidindustries.com/e-series-pro-e-series.html . Yeah, I'll do rectangular vs round, as the front end is rectangular and has no roundness to it.

Thx for the porch feedback too. Plan is to engineer some sort of "wheelie bars" back there so the bottom of the porch slides off terrain more easily.
Note that it doesn't pass Jane Mansfield law, so will need to have Alum-line advise on this.

 

[mk216v]

Minutia, but with the above design, which is great IMHO, the bottom rear of the camper can be squared off to allow additional storage which is always at a premium- regardless if utilized/accessed inside or out.

Yup, you got it, thx! I'd like to make that small "triangle" storage encapsulation, removable, so that IF I remove the spare/camper, I could still use the flatbed deck as a flatbed. Not planning on doing this often, but I want to build in the modularity and not hose myself with a fixed triangle storage box near the rear of flatbed.

Thats the FWC Flatbed and it comes as shown in that sketch, cant be squared off. I asked awhile ago

I think he means enclosing that area to use as storage for longer items.

 

[Paredneck]

Thats the FWC Flatbed and it comes as shown in that sketch, cant be squared off. I asked awhile ago

One of the main reasons I haven’t pulled the trigger on a flat bed model. That angle is such a waste of space and just looks awkward on most builds.

 

[mk216v]

One of the main reasons I haven’t pulled the trigger on a flat bed model. That angle is such a waste of space and just looks awkward on most builds.

No one likes awkward. ;-) I think they were going for Outback cool with the departure angle. Why not put the angle to use?

 

[mog]

Note that it doesn't pass Jane Mansfield law, so will need to have Alum-line advise on this.

As I have 49 CFR § 393.86 - Rear impact guards and rear end protection handy for my truck, I've attached it here.

 

[RAM5500 CAMPERTHING]

Thx for the porch feedback too. Plan is to engineer some sort of "wheelie bars" back there so the bottom of the porch slides off terrain more easily..

Good man! Smart man! I like it!

See lots and lots of folks with these “departure angels” but they’re nothing more than the fiberglass or whatever the camper is made from and they’re almost never protected with any sort of skid plate or such for some odd reason, very easily damaged.

Bravo