E350 Chinook Build

[willywalderbeast]

Cool rig!
The weight over the rear end plus a locker will get you just about anywhere a rig that size will go.

You got profiled ha! You wern't speeding it was just his "in" to attempt to find drugs. Pretty sure its against your rights to hold you. My lawyer brother would have had them call in the boss, which would have resulted in have a nice day in under 10 minutes.

Well we were speeding, 20 over actually, and for some reason the rig did smell like weed on the outside up front. So I just cooperated and went on my way. The two park rangers were cool and after talking to them for 20mins or so I think they realized we were straight shooters. He even I think radioed in to cancel the K9 sheriff but he was only two minutes out. The sheriff was a total ******* and I made him look stupid in the end so it was slightly entertaining haha.

 

[Weldtec Designs]

Ford Chinook RV suspension lift

That pic of horseshoe bend is killer!
Thanks Jon for making the trip across the country to let us play with your Chinook RV. We look forward to seeing pics of it with its new tires. Here is a couple more pics.
Baja Grocery Getter front suspension with a set of custom leaf springs in the rear with FOX shocks at all 4 corners

With this killer lifted RV a Front winch bumper was a must have!

 

[willywalderbeast]

Another Zion shot, tiny camper haha


Currently in windmill country...

 

[willywalderbeast]

Over the last month I have been trying to figure out what tires to get. That also had me looking into options for wheels as well. The options for wheels are slim and I didn't want anything other then a clean stock lookin wheel. I love the look of the 19.5 "big rig" style wheels but the tire options suck and are expensive. After researching for a while I pretty much settled on using the stock steel wheels and a 255/85R16Cooper ST Maxx tire. Looking into buying 7 tires I found that the same tire dimension could be had for about $30 a tire less in 255/80R17. Doing more research, I found that our 8x6.5 bolt pattern is shared with Dodge and Chevy.

So then i decided i was going to look for a set of dodge 3500 steel dually wheels in 17s. Their wheels are the same width and the offset is ET45 compared to our ET0. This actually works out perfectly for me as I was going to have to run a 2" spacer in the rear to avoid the tires from rubbing each other when aired down. Now that 45mm (1.77inches) will do that for me. I've checked and it looks I have plenty of room for the wheels to sit 45mm in more on the front and rear inside wheels as well. 17s will also give me more room for a brake upgrade in the near future, although I think the stock 16s would have cleared the +08 brake upgrade as well.

So for the last couple weeks I have been really checking CL for 17" dodge dually wheels with no luck. Either people wanted way to much for individual wheels that I would have to make a set, or they wanted a lot of money because they have "takeoffs" with new stock tires on them which were of no use for me. Then last night I found a set of 17" dodge dually wheels with get this, the exact tire I want already mounted and balanced on the wheels with only 500 miles on the for a steal!!! The guy wants $1000 for the set of wheels and tires! I couldn't buy 6 of the tires for even close to that, never mind the money to M&B them and the cost of the new wheels! I'm super excited to pick them up today after work, just hoping I can fit them all in the back of my 4Runner

Here's a quick reference of the difference in offset. Also the center bore will need to be opened up 3mm which shouldn't be hard.

 

[ajmaudio]

how do you like the new suspension? actually thinking about buying a chinook.... curious how yours drives....

 

[willywalderbeast]

how do you like the new suspension? actually thinking about buying a chinook.... curious how yours drives....

I like it a lot! It drives way smoother then stock, takes bumps and rough roads like a Cadillac, and still goes down the highway at 80mph with ease. A few things I need to address like a good alignment once I get my new tires on and a small vibration/droning noise when over 80mph. I think the vibration/nose is due to the new driveshaft angle, hoping new ujoints will fix the issue.

 

[ajmaudio]

I like it a lot! It drives way smoother then stock, takes bumps and rough roads like a Cadillac, and still goes down the highway at 80mph with ease. A few things I need to address like a good alignment once I get my new tires on and a small vibration/droning noise when over 80mph. I think the vibration/nose is due to the new driveshaft angle, hoping new ujoints will fix the issue.

Thanks for the info... curious... would you be afraid to take it into mild offroad conditions?

 

[Slicky72]

Pics with the new shoes on?

 

[willywalderbeast]

Thanks for the info... curious... would you be afraid to take it into mild offroad conditions?

No, thats the reason I'm doing all this is to make it more capable off road.

Pics with the new shoes on?

Not on yet, need to open the center bore up 3mm on the new wheels.

 

[Deshet]

This is my almost a chinook van. It is a 1996 E350 7.3 diesel BornFree shell. It started life as a mobile office.

I would love to see more interior pictures of your van so that I can copy the layout. I know the chinooks are solid and well built. Do you know what layers of material they use between the outside wall and inside wall. I want to have a solid mounting surface and good insulation. We are getting an IKEA this summer and I thought about getting all of cabinets from them.

Thanks,

 

[bajarat]

Great build WWB !

PM sent, THANKS

 

[willywalderbeast]

This is my almost a chinook van. It is a 1996 E350 7.3 diesel BornFree shell. It started life as a mobile office.

I would love to see more interior pictures of your van so that I can copy the layout. I know the chinooks are solid and well built. Do you know what layers of material they use between the outside wall and inside wall. I want to have a solid mounting surface and good insulation. We are getting an IKEA this summer and I thought about getting all of cabinets from them.

Thanks,

I will try to get some more interrior pictures for you when I get a chance to clean her up, she's a mess right now! Not exactly positive what's in between the two fiberglass walls. Just mounted a tv in the bed area, she's officially a Glamper now.

Great build WWB !

PM sent, THANKS

Thanks!

 

[86scotty]

Lookin' good! I haven't caught up in awhile. Looks like I missed a lot of excitement.

A friend of mine put 255/85-16 ST Maxx's on his ambo build that Agile Offroad did and it looks amazing. Probably not very fuel efficient but he wanted the capability more than anything.

I have a 25' class B I'm going to lift and maybe convert in the next year or so. I'm planning on ditching the chrome simulators and running steelies as you are. I love the way it changes the whole rig from Grandpa to aggressive. I'm going to color match my paint (a metallic gray) on the wheels eventually. I plan to run 235/85-16's Toyos since mine will still be essentially a pavement rig.

I love the look with the lift and the bumper! Good stuff man.

 

[willywalderbeast]

Thanks 86scotty!

Test fit the wheels today, need spacers in the rear.

 

[willywalderbeast]

Question to anyone who is reading, about to build an onboard air system and wondering if I should power it off my coach battery or my house battery bank? Thoughts and suggestions?