Project: Blanco, The 2007 F350 Standard Cab Adventure Truck

[Metcalf]

After a long look, and a bit of a break building other vehicles, I finally located a suitable replacement for my good ol' 1992 Dodge 'Doitall'

Specs-

2007 Ford F350 Regular Cab Long bed 4x4
Gas V10 3-valve engine 362hp/457tq
G56 6-speed manual Transmission
Lever shift transfer case, NV271F ( with a fixed rear output surprisingly )
4.10 gears with a rear limited slip
18x8 Steel Wheels with 275/70R16 Tires ( Goodyear Dura-trac, nearly new luckily )
Manual locking hubs
Bench seat ( but with the cloth option )
Vinyl Floor
Factory AM/FM Radio
Cruise Control
Air Conditioning
38 gallon fuel tank

This won't be a quick build as I have other projects going on right now, but this truck will get used for sure. It's general purpose is to take over where my old Dodge left off. This truck will be my daily workhorse, tow mule, haul rig, camp platform, and general adventure support vehicle. My goal is to end up with a cross between a Dodge PowerWagon and a Ford Raptor but wrapped in a low profile clean simple looking work truck shell.

One main area of focus will be designing and fabricating a custom topper for the bed. I want a light tube frame that is a spin off of a baja rack combined with a contractors rack. It will have some clear hard modular panels that will transform into a few different configurations without having to leave any of the big parts behind. With all the panels down I would like to have a simple enclosed weatherproof camping setup or locked storage. After a few minutes it could be converted to different configurations such as having the top panel and some structure folded away so I can load taller stuff in the back. I need to be able to haul sticks of tubing on the top of the rack. It would be nice to be able to stand on the top. The list keeps growing....

Stay tuned. I'm just so happy to have another truck with such promise.

 

[Metcalf]

First mini-mod for Blanco tonight...



The elastic strap on the drives side vinyl was pretty stretched out, it wouldn't really hold anything anymore. A paper clamp allowed me to dial in the amount of tension I wanted and also provided a straight line for a little stitch work. The loop I created was sized to hold one of my special valve stem core tools....



Pretty simple dual purpose repair mod. The loop could be sized to fit whatever.



All done, doesn't even hit the head liner.

 

[plumber mike]

I had a V10/manual a while back. Thirsty girl....but reliable. I believe the trans was a ZF6. Kinda notchy and tight compared to my old dodge. Looking forward to seeing what you come up with for the bed. I’m looking to build something similar.
Many happy miles to you.

 

[BigAl]

Regular cab, no chrome, vinyl floor, I love it!

 

[Metcalf]

I had a V10/manual a while back. Thirsty girl....but reliable. I believe the trans was a ZF6. Kinda notchy and tight compared to my old dodge. Looking forward to seeing what you come up with for the bed. I’m looking to build something similar.
Many happy miles to you.

I knew the gas engine was going to use more fuel than a diesel, BUT I think there is a huge offset cost reduction going with the V10 over the diesel. Diesel truck prices are just silly these days with people asking 2x more than I paid for this truck for a 300K mile diesel version. I live 3.8 miles from work so it isn't a huge deal for daily use either. The 38 gallon tank makes the range tollerable even if the mileage is high single digits. That said....

The drive back home with the truck seemed to be a pleasant surprise in that department. I filled up in Ridgeway, Colorado and drove home to Durango via Dolores. That makes for a nice mixed mounting drive with two decent passes and everything from 65mph to 25mph sections. While I am not going to get super scientific with filling and all that....I just stick the nozzle in and wait for the click. It seems to fill to the same spot close enough for me. The trip was 141.7 miles. The truck used 8.68 gallons. That gave me 16.3mpg. This caught me by surprise. I was very much expecting 10-13. I still don't know why....I still don't know if it was a fluke. My only theory so far is that you just don't see too many trucks optioned like this....basically the lightest most stripped down truck with more gearing and a bit more tire. I have always heard that the V10s like gearing. This truck does have that with the factory 4.10s.

 

[UHAULER]

I bought mine , 04 v10, 6 speed, supercab ,shortbed, stock 265/75/16 tires, in Salem Oregon and drove over 500 miles home mostly on I-5 and some backroads and got about 16.5 mpg. Since being home most of my trips have been short runs to town about 10 miles, haven't checked much but I expect it to be about 12-14 mpg. I'm leaving mine a stock old man truck, eventually putting on 285/75/16's but it's main purpose is to pull a small camp trailer with a dirtbike in the back. Look forward to seeing your truck evolve. I believe it will be a better platform than your old truck.

 

[Metcalf]

I bought mine , 04 v10, 6 speed, supercab ,shortbed, stock 265/75/16 tires, in Salem Oregon and drove over 500 miles home mostly on I-5 and some backroads and got about 16.5 mpg. Since being home most of my trips have been short runs to town about 10 miles, haven't checked much but I expect it to be about 12-14 mpg. I'm leaving mine a stock old man truck, eventually putting on 285/75/16's but it's main purpose is to pull a small camp trailer with a dirtbike in the back. Look forward to seeing your truck evolve. I believe it will be a better platform than your old truck.

Do you know what gears you have in the axles?

This one has 275/70r18 tires stock with 4.10s. It seems like an odd combo from what I can find. The wheels are factory 18x8 steel.

I totally expect to get down into the single digits when towing with the truck. The empty road mileage is a nice little perk honestly.

 

[Adventurous]

I have no idea how you manage so many projects simultaneously.

Best of luck getting this one off the ground. Cant wait to see what's in store for this one. I'll be following along here and on Instagram.

 

[Metcalf]

I have no idea how you manage so many projects simultaneously.

Best of luck getting this one off the ground. Cant wait to see what's in store for this one. I'll be following along here and on Instagram.

I don't think this will be a big or fast build, I do have a lot of stuff going on for sure.
This will be more of a 'support vehicle' rather than a huge project I hope.
Thanks for watching.

 

[UHAULER]

Here is my truck. It has 3.73 gears

 

[Metcalf]

I grabbed a base weight on the truck today at lunch.

 

[nitro_rat]

Somebody did a good job ordering that one. No trucks like that down here in Texas!

 

[Dances with Wolves]

I just spent the last few days reading through the DoItAllDodge thread. I was surprised that you didn't go with a 3rd Gen Dodge. I do love your Ford, kind of a unicorn in the current world of 4dr 4WD livingrooms.

 

[Metcalf]

I just spent the last few days reading through the DoItAllDodge thread. I was surprised that you didn't go with a 3rd Gen Dodge. I do love your Ford, kind of a unicorn in the current world of 4dr 4WD livingrooms.

I tried, in two years of looking I just really didn't find what I was looking for ( base model, reg cab, longbed, manual, 4x4, white, etc ).

I do think there are some things I like better on the Ford, but I would have been happy with either honestly. The truck I ended up with will be juuuussst fine for me and what I want to do. I think the 05+ Dana 60 front is a better unit than the AAM 9.25.....larger ring gear, more locker selection, better gearing selection, 35 spline inner and outer axles, locking hubs, etc. You can even retrofit the later 1550 u-joint axles.....and sky is the limit for aftermarket stuff generally. Seems to hold up a bit better generally.

Thanks for reading the DoItAll thread.

 

[Metcalf]

Mini-mod for today, some better quality 'silicone' wipers. I can't say if I have ever run a wiper like this honestly....



The ones on the truck where done. I like vehicles that use the same wiper on both sides, this one takes normal 20" J-hook versions that you can find anywhere.
I was also impressed with the wash spray pattern, volume, and the intermitant seems to work well.