Making it a TV...

[mike837go]

Hi All,

Last month I had a bit of a rant on how the new tow vehicle I want is not on the market right now.

After a bit of soul (and my own parking area) searching, I decided that I could make my 1-ton into something resembling a TV.

It is a 2003 Ford F-350 4x4 5.4L Triton 4-speed auto. With a stake bed dump body:



That's the most recent(May 2014) shot I could find. (Ignore the auction-win tractor).

And the bumper has since been fixed and (not visible) the damaged 7-pin connector was replaced and re-positioned.

It came from the factory with the tow kit and I've added a brake controller, so it'll pull my under 5,000lbs 19RD without issue. Bit of overkill, actually.

Now for the real problem: It is a basic equipment standard cab. Manual windows, rubber mats, vinyl seats and an AM/FM radio. The factory A/C works and I added a console/storage box between the seats (2 cup holders and a small tray on the front edge with about 2 cu-ft of storage).

I bought (but haven't installed yet) cruise control since I am a lead-foot.

The stake sides will be removed for long distance traveling. I have a set of 2"x8" sides to keep small things from sliding off.

What else do I need to add/modify to make this truck comfortable to be in for 4+ hours/day of traveling?

Thanks,
Mike

[Mustang65]

Originally Posted by mike837go

What else do I need to add/modify to make this truck comfortable to be in for 4+ hours/day of traveling?

If it has a bench seat in it, which I believe came standard in the truck, head over to the bone yard and find a late model 2012 or later F150 or 250 with the good bucket seats. It will be WELL worth your investment. DW is a happy camper since I insisted that we get the buckets ($400) when we ordered the TV from Ford.

Don

[DocBrown]

What kind of comfort are you looking for? From your last thread on this, it sounds like you've got exactly what you've been looking for.

It certainly ought to do the job well. I don't think it's overkill if it's what you want to tow with.

[Lolead]

For me I would have to have a CD player with some quality speakers. Don't need lots of volume but I must have good sound.

[mike837go]

Originally Posted by Mustang65

If it has a bench seat in it, which I believe came standard in the truck, head over to the bone yard and find a late model 2012 or later F150 or 250 with the good bucket seats. It will be WELL worth your investment. DW is a happy camper since I insisted that we get the buckets ($400) when we ordered the TV from Ford.

Don

It has the bucket seats. Vinyl covered without side support.

Going to the boneyard for more comfortable seats (we did that for my parent's 2002 Explorer) has some real appeal. Hopefully, they'll have stuff for a 14 year-old truck on hand.

[mike837go]

Originally Posted by DocBrown

What kind of comfort are you looking for? From your last thread on this, it sounds like you've got exactly what you've been looking for.

It certainly ought to do the job well. I don't think it's overkill if it's what you want to tow with.

It's not even close to my ideal tow vehicle (1/2 ton, 4x4, Bronco or Suburban, Diesel w/ manual transmission).

This truck is more than capable of pulling the trailer safely. But at the cost of comfort for the driver, passenger and fur baby.

SWMBO suggested noise deadening. Gotta look into replacing the rubber mats with thick under-padding and decent carpeting.

[mike837go]

Originally Posted by Lolead

For me I would have to have a CD player with some quality speakers. Don't need lots of volume but I must have good sound.

Yeah! CD player and decent speakers. Not a tough job at all. The modern radios also include a aux jack for an MP3 source.

OH! USB charging ports! The phones and the iPad have to be kept happy too.

[JFlightRisk]

Ventshades are a nice addition for those rainy times. Also the dump feature will make unloading a breeze! LOL!!! Nice find.

[mike837go]

Originally Posted by JFlightRisk

Ventshades are a nice addition for those rainy times. Also the dump feature will make unloading a breeze! LOL!!! Nice find.

Never considered ventshades before. Hafta look into them...

Using the dump to unload tends to mess up the tongue jack. I don't do that no more.

It wasn't a find. Back in 2012 my 1984 Chevy K20 was nearing the end of it's service life, so I bought this F350 to replace it. The bottom of the bed was so rusty that you could rock it back and forth several inches.

I went through the process of removing the Ford's rotted pickup body and moved the dump body from the Chevy to the ford. Fall of 2013 I added the snowplow package to the Ford and traded what was left of the Chevy for a retaining wall.

The little tractor (Bobcat CT221) was a hard-fought auction win. Paid 1/2 of retail for that scale model of a loader/backhoe.

So, the tally so far:
Cruise control
Replace radio (AM/FM/CD/MP3) and speakers
USB charging ports
Carpeting with good underlayment
Find later/more luxurious seats
Ventshades

Anything else?

[Jagiven]

Originally Posted by mike837go

Never considered ventshades before. Hafta look into them...

Using the dump to unload tends to mess up the tongue jack. I don't do that no more.

It wasn't a find. Back in 2012 my 1984 Chevy K20 was nearing the end of it's service life, so I bought this F350 to replace it. The bottom of the bed was so rusty that you could rock it back and forth several inches.

I went through the process of removing the Ford's rotted pickup body and moved the dump body from the Chevy to the ford. Fall of 2013 I added the snowplow package to the Ford and traded what was left of the Chevy for a retaining wall.

The little tractor (Bobcat CT221) was a hard-fought auction win. Paid 1/2 of retail for that scale model of a loader/backhoe.

So, the tally so far:
Cruise control
Replace radio (AM/FM/CD/MP3) and speakers
USB charging ports
Carpeting with good underlayment
Find later/more luxurious seats
Ventshades

Anything else?

Mike, I would think twice about carpet. You can pull the vinyl and put sound insulation. Vinyl is easy to clean, sand, mud, dirt, salt, just wipes out.

[mike837go]

Originally Posted by Jagiven

Mike, I would think twice about carpet. You can pull the vinyl and put sound insulation. Vinyl is easy to clean, sand, mud, dirt, salt, just wipes out.

Yeah, but it is soooooo ugly! SWMBO and the fur baby shouldn't have to put up with THAT, should they?

If I installed the rugs myself (probably will). Then replacing them after 3 years of abuse won't be too big a deal.

[SmokerBill]

Make sure you have a few 12vdc plugs for accessories, and add an inverter so you have 120vac. Having an ac outlet in the truck is a really nice feature- comes in really handy sometimes.

[Phatkd]

Some sexy rigid industries light bars on the front for night time driving and animal avoidance,..Also a set of "Dually D2s" from rigid industries mounted facing the rear for low light situations (The also work really well for people driving behind you with their brights on)

[mike837go]

Originally Posted by SmokerBill

Make sure you have a few 12vdc plugs for accessories, and add an inverter so you have 120vac. Having an ac outlet in the truck is a really nice feature- comes in really handy sometimes.

Originally Posted by Phatkd

Some sexy rigid industries light bars on the front for night time driving and animal avoidance,..Also a set of "Dually D2s" from rigid industries mounted facing the rear for low light situations (The also work really well for people driving behind you with their brights on)

The truck already has two 12VDC outlets. No need to mess with that.
I had added a 150W inverter to my daily driver 4 cars back and moved it with each change. It was necessary for keeping 'things' charged. Until the current car. Don't miss it. Personal electronics have standardized on USB charging. An inverter in the tow vehicle is passé.

I've got a 2KW inverter (3kw surge) that I connect to the TT's battery. (They're not totally extinct.)

Additional rear (hitching) lights is a very good idea! Just have to place them where they won't get crushed when I back into a snowbank during plowing operations. (See 'drooping' bumper in the 1st posting's pic.)

[JFlightRisk]

[QUOTE=mike837go;436957]"Never considered ventshades before. Hafta look into them..."

" Using the dump to unload tends to mess up the tongue jack. I don't do that no more."
You're right, that would definitely make me say "Oh darn".

[mike837go]

[QUOTE=JFlightRisk;437600]

Originally Posted by mike837go

"Never considered ventshades before. Hafta look into them..."

" Using the dump to unload tends to mess up the tongue jack. I don't do that no more."
You're right, that would definitely make me say "Oh darn".

That's nothing compared to the fun of watching the stuff put on the flatbed fly and roll off when heading down the highway...


Seriously, the open-deck flatbed that makes it an almost-perfect chore truck is the biggest hindrance in making it a tow vehicle.

Help from the other direction may be on its way... On the welding forum I belong to (big surprise there), I've made contact with a welder/fabricator that works for a custom car building shop. We're bouncing around the idea of taking 2 trucks (1/2 ton Chevy Suburban or Ford Excursion and a 1 ton manual transmission equipped 4x4 of the same make and close year). Use the body and frame from the 1/2 ton, the running gear (T-case, axles, etc.) from the 1 ton. Add the I6 Diesel engine. Exactly what I want. We'er still working out details (like $'s and realistic time frame).

But I still have to get Montblanc civilized enough for extended weekends with SWMBO and Puppykins for the remainder of this year.

[JFlightRisk]

I've found that anything is possible given enough time, experience, and of course, money. The neatest conversion I've seen was a 1948 Ford fire truck (small), that was getting a Toyota engine and tranny. It sure was strange sounding, going down the road, but a cool resurrection. If you can put a Cummins into a Ford, anything is possible. Good luck.

[SmokerBill]

Originally Posted by mike837go

. An inverter in the tow vehicle is passé.

Ha Ha! Not hardly, Mikey boy. Especially if you need to charge a Macbook while cruising. There aren't any 12vdc chargers available for those, unless you trust non-Apple workarounds. And with my Mac, I don't. Good luck with your truck.

[mike837go]

Originally Posted by JFlightRisk

I've found that anything is possible given enough time, experience, and of course, money. The neatest conversion I've seen was a 1948 Ford fire truck (small), that was getting a Toyota engine and tranny. It sure was strange sounding, going down the road, but a cool resurrection. If you can put a Cummins into a Ford, anything is possible. Good luck.

Back in the 1980's my dad and I hammered a Buick V-6 into a Ford Courier (rebadged Mazda B-Series) pickup. It took reshaping the front cross-member and the wheel well liners. Custom built exhaust. Electrical merging! And the poor engine was near redline at 60 mph. A few weeks after we had it on the road, we found out there were kits for putting a Ford small block V8 in there.

Originally Posted by SmokerBill

Ha Ha! Not hardly, Mikey boy. Especially if you need to charge a Macbook while cruising. There aren't any 12vdc chargers available for those, unless you trust non-Apple workarounds. And with my Mac, I don't. Good luck with your truck.

Just because I believe certain things no longer belong as part of my kit, has no bearing on what others feel is necessary to keep handy. I stopped wasting money on battery-powered tools a few years ago. Phone, the TT's key fob flashlight and my iPad. That's it. (Ok, you can get picky about cars, truck and campers having a battery.) But I don't use cordless screwdrivers, drills, saws, ad nausium enough to justify the cost of the battery and the lack of power for tough jobs. I have a 5 small gensets (1, 1.5, 2.2, 4 and 5.8 kw) so powering up 120V or 240V tools in the field isn't an issue. However, I've seen professional drywall installers running cordless all day. Swapping batteries as needed. Works for them!

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I'm pressing SWMBO for ideas on this subject. Maybe she'll insist on using her truck just one more time?

[TWP723]

Don't forget the Yosemite Sam mud flaps. Not a TRUE rig till it has Yosemite Sam mud flaps.


Just sayin...