PD1744's Build

[PD1744]

PD,

You are an animal. I always look forward to seeing what you are up to and also how things are going. I have to tear into my 2010 soon, my electrical dash issue has returned and it looks like I will need to get this repaired once and for all. Are you interested in making a house call to NM. The pay sucks and the work conditions are not much better but the project list is long...

Good to hear from you Steven! Thanks man. Offer sounds super tempting. If your issue were mechanical, I could possibly help figure something out... However, I'm an electrical dumb dumb. But definitely feel free to reach out and bounce any questions off of me. The list here seems to expand and contract as always. Been pretty good at whittling it down lately though. Hope all is well!

 

[Steven_Born]

Doing good and I do have the mechanical issues as well. Just crossed the 201K mile barrier and think that I will have to perform the front end maintenance that you have completed. I am really interested in the Devers and your perception on how it changed/improved the truck. I have not completely gone that path yet but I am really interested in the changes it made.

 

[PD1744]

Doing good and I do have the mechanical issues as well. Just crossed the 201K mile barrier and think that I will have to perform the front end maintenance that you have completed. I am really interested in the Devers and your perception on how it changed/improved the truck. I have not completely gone that path yet but I am really interested in the changes it made.

Oh man. So much to be said for a properly sprung, properly damped vehicle when it comes to ride and handling characteristics. At the end of the day, all suspension is really there to do is keep your tires in contact with the surface so they can do what they do.

I've heard the factory ride described as too stiff unloaded and too sloppy with load. I'd have to concur. The only time I've felt like my rear end was compliant was with a bed full of mulch. Seemed to be the right amount of load for that spring rate.

Having a more progressive spring rate allows it to be much more comfortable under normal driving and much more reactive to dynamic situations. I've only done street driving so far and it is fantastic. Soaks up absolutely everything and keeps the rear planted, predictable, and stable.

 

[CoronaRaptor]

Awesome build and preventative maintenance. Where do we drop off our Raptors?

 

[PD1744]

Awesome build and preventative maintenance. Where do we drop off our Raptors?

Bahahaha... Bruh, I'm down to wrench with any of you boys any time. Just bring the beer and let's get it done.

 

[Steven_Born]

Ok, name the date, beer and address. I am packing my stuff as I write this.

Well I wish but it's worth the thought.

 

[PD1744]

BED STIFFENER BRACKETS

Installed a set of these this weekend. I went with some cheap eBay specials. These parts are so simple, I really couldn't justify paying a premium for them. If they suck, oh well. Lesson learned. But figured I'd roll the dice.

So far though, my first impressions are great. I paid like $38 bucks for them. Delivery was fast. They came from Cali, but for sure made in China. Packaging was great, fasteners were nice, parts were beefy with a nice powder coat, and even the installation instruction were very good.

Fit was also perfect and install was simple though made more difficult because I had to remove my bed extender. I've done a lot of wrenching in my life, but thanks to the snow-less, salt-less area I live in, have never had to bust out the torch out to get the job done.... Until now. The nut that holds the bed extender on one side was seized and, oh yeah, they are round. Got it done though. Also trimmed away a little of the spray in bed liner to make sure the mating surface was flat.



I initially thought my bed was already tweaked because the gaps between the tailgate and bedsides are very uneven. Nearly touching on the driver side and wide on the passenger. Also the tailgate protrudes out past the edge of the bedside and doesn't seem to latch very securely on the driver side.

The hope was that these parts would remedy this issue and square everything back up, but after install it turns out that, yes the bed is tweaked, but not in the traditional way like I thought. I think the normal fatigue causes the bedsides to splay out at the top after rough play and brackets like these will remedy that. However after installing these, the gaps look identical to how they looked prior to install. Not only that, but the gaps are uniform all the way down. That shows me the the tailgate is shifted off-center. There's no L-R adjustment that I can identify, so that tells me the bed is actually out of square. I'll need to check that and see if I can figure out how to square it back up if that's possible.

Anyway, after all the recent work, we'll be going into our event in less than two weeks, with a lot more confidence. Now time to pay out all this work and investment.

 

[Jakenbake]

BED STIFFENER BRACKETS

Installed a set of these this weekend. I went with some cheap eBay specials. These parts are so simple, I really couldn't justify paying a premium for them. If they suck, oh well. Lesson learned. But figured I'd roll the dice.

So far though, my first impressions are great. I paid like $38 bucks for them. Delivery was fast. They came from Cali, but for sure made in China. Packaging was great, fasteners were nice, parts were beefy with a nice powder coat, and even the installation instruction were very good.

Fit was also perfect and install was simple though made more difficult because I had to remove my bed extender. I've done a lot of wrenching in my life, but thanks to the snow-less, salt-less area I live in, have never had to bust out the torch out to get the job done.... Until now. The nut that holds the bed extender on one side was seized and, oh yeah, they are round. Got it done though. Also trimmed away a little of the spray in bed liner to make sure the mating surface was flat.

View attachment 327635

I initially thought my bed was already tweaked because the gaps between the tailgate and bedsides are very uneven. Nearly touching on the driver side and wide on the passenger. Also the tailgate protrudes out past the edge of the bedside and doesn't seem to latch very securely on the driver side.

The hope was that these parts would remedy this issue and square everything back up, but after install it turns out that, yes the bed is tweaked, but not in the traditional way like I thought. I think the normal fatigue causes the bedsides to splay out at the top after rough play and brackets like these will remedy that. However after installing these, the gaps look identical to how they looked prior to install. Not only that, but the gaps are uniform all the way down. That shows me the the tailgate is shifted off-center. There's no L-R adjustment that I can identify, so that tells me the bed is actually out of square. I'll need to check that and see if I can figure out how to square it back up if that's possible.

Anyway, after all the recent work, we'll be going into our event in less than two weeks, with a lot more confidence. Now time to pay out all this work and investment.

Going to Durhamtown?

 

[PD1744]

Going to Durhamtown?

Yes sir! You going?

 

[Jakenbake]

Yes sir! You going?

Yep, me and the wife will be there. Had to get that chic fil A for lunch again.

Still got a small list of items to finish up first. Time is running out lol.