i'm new here and just wanted to do a quick introduction. i recently bought a 1996 dodge ram sport 4x4 regular cab short bed from my father after he wrecked it for $1000. i do body work as a profession so repairing it wasn't too big of a deal. all it needed was a hood, grille, bumper, radiator, condenser, trans cooler, and core support. basically a one day job. since i've been driving it though i have had to replace more and more parts. first was master cylinder and brake booster, then power steering pump and now brake lines and gas tank straps. i'm upgrading the brake lines to pre-bent stainless from inline tube and braided stainless hoses from russell's. he had a decent set of 265/75-16 bfg all terrains installed before i bought it so i'm set for tires at least for the summer.
so now that you know the truck i guess i should introduce myself. i am 25 years old and live in northwest ohio. i am an eagle scout so i love to be outside, camp and backpack. i have been away from off roading for a few years since i traded my last 4x4 trailblazer for an audi tt. other than that i have also owned 2 blazer zr2's and another s-10 blazer that i had put on an 85 3/4 ton chevy truck chassis. i'm fairly new to the idea of having an expedition vehicle. to me i would like to have a vehicle that does a few things good rather than doing one thing great.
future plans for the truck are to finish the rest of the body, rust repair, add a cap, and small dings and dents. paint the whole truck with inexpensive tractor paint. i've used it in the past with great results. it's really inexpensive, fairly durable and easy to spray single stage. then i need to address the interior. new/used seats, fresh carpet and headliner. then i'm going to try to squeeze a bit more power out of the engine with some long tube headers and mopar intake with larger throttle body. after that i will be adding a bit more altitude and some larger more aggressive tires.
and while all that is going on i plan on adding things here and there to make the truck more capable of doing some small weekend treks for myself and my girlfriend. unfortunately this is where my knowledge comes to somewhat of an end. i know what is needed to camp and backpack but don't have any experience with "expedition" travel.
so now that you know the truck i guess i should introduce myself. i am 25 years old and live in northwest ohio. i am an eagle scout so i love to be outside, camp and backpack. i have been away from off roading for a few years since i traded my last 4x4 trailblazer for an audi tt. other than that i have also owned 2 blazer zr2's and another s-10 blazer that i had put on an 85 3/4 ton chevy truck chassis. i'm fairly new to the idea of having an expedition vehicle. to me i would like to have a vehicle that does a few things good rather than doing one thing great.
future plans for the truck are to finish the rest of the body, rust repair, add a cap, and small dings and dents. paint the whole truck with inexpensive tractor paint. i've used it in the past with great results. it's really inexpensive, fairly durable and easy to spray single stage. then i need to address the interior. new/used seats, fresh carpet and headliner. then i'm going to try to squeeze a bit more power out of the engine with some long tube headers and mopar intake with larger throttle body. after that i will be adding a bit more altitude and some larger more aggressive tires.
and while all that is going on i plan on adding things here and there to make the truck more capable of doing some small weekend treks for myself and my girlfriend. unfortunately this is where my knowledge comes to somewhat of an end. i know what is needed to camp and backpack but don't have any experience with "expedition" travel.
