Alright, so over a year after starting this thread I finally pulled the trigger. Yesterday I brought home a 2017 F-250. XLT crew cab short bed. 6.2 gas engine, camper, FX4, and XLT Premium packages. 3.73 gears w/ selectable rear locker. "Blue Jeans" color. I spent more than I would have preferred to, and I also got more options than I would have liked. But the heated seats, Sync 3, and nice big console are pretty nice little luxuries. Walked away with a pretty decent deal.
No real "build" planned, just some convenience things over the next few weeks (some quality rubber floor mates, spray-in bed liner, etc) and eventually small lift and wheel / tire combo similar to
Big50's (except I'll probably stick with 35's rather than 37's in order to minimize the chances of wanting or needing to re-gear), and a real front bumper with a winch and LED lighting. Oh and a good camper shell w/ roof rack. Maybe eventually a FWC or similar.
Went back and forth between diesel and gas over and over again right up until a couple days ago when I settled on this deal with the Ford dealership. I love diesel but in the end, because I don't tow or haul anything heavy, I just couldn't justify the significantly higher expense of buying and owning the diesel. If I ever decide that I want a 3800# Lance cabover or a 15,000# 5th wheel, then I'll trade this in on a dually with the 6.7. I don't see that happening anytime soon though, so I think I'll be quite content with the gas engine. I'm actually pretty impressed with the 6.2 so far.