PD1744's Build

[Brad12]

What did you paint your hood vents with? Looks good.

 

[PD1744]

What did you paint your hood vents with? Looks good.

Thanks man. Holding up well so far and definitely made a big difference to me. I just used whatever trim/bumper paint they had at my parts store which was Dupli-Color brand. My buddy used SEM brand stuff and it's really nice. If that was available, I probably would have gone that route. I used the remainder of the can on a rear bumper trim piece on my other truck. It didn't seem to go down as nicely on that type of plastic as it did on the Raptor (this was weeks later), but it still turned out really nice. Overall definitely happy I did it.

 

[PD1744]

Few little things. Added some X-Track for some additional tie downs like for securing the cooler.




Threw some poly-fill in the factory sub enclosure. Read about it somewhere. I was unsure about it but for the cost and effort of the mod I think it was pretty decent.




And then added a Kicker hideaway 10” sub lol. For what it is, it’s decent. I think my expectations were a little higher and I’m probably spoiled by the system in my other truck. It’s okay. Will do for now.




Installed a Bulletpoint Dash mount. I really like it so far. I originally ordered a Scosche/ProClip vehicle specific magnetic charging mount for the same price but it wasn’t compatible with my new phone and case.

 

[PD1744]

Another quick update while I got a second.

Back in early November took a trip with the TORR group and did a bit of the Trans-American Trail through parts of NC, TN, and GA.






Needed a new windsheild after this run, which means I needed to have my winshield re-tinted. Ugh... My fault though. I shouldn't have been following the guys so closely.

Installed a new sounds system for her Christmas present.

Went with an Alpine iLX-407 as the head unit stacked with a Alpine KTA-450 Power Pack amp. iDatalink Maestro RR Interface Module and iDatalink FOR1 Dash and Wiring Kit to make it all work:



For speakers I chose Focal RSE-130 up front and RCX-570 in the rear:

 

[PD1744]

Then proceded to replace my little Kicker Hideaway 10" with a 12" Rockford Fosgate shallow mount P3 and Kicker CXA 400.1 amp.



Box fits perfect under the seat as far as wanting to cram a 12 in there goes:



Amp lives behind the seat:



I'll eventually clean everything up but it's in there and all working now. The Hideaway was good for what it was. At low volumes and on tight bass it was sufficient. Just didn't get quite deep enough or loud enough for my taste.

 

[Steven_Born]

I have to say that I like the look of the new head unit. Keep up the great work.

 

[PD1744]

Forgot to mention that I needed to replace the passenger side seat heater element. Wife discovered it took a crap during that brutal cold spell that hit us all last month. Great timing. Job was not as fun as I remember.




Then I replaced those 2 year old Mevotech ball joints with OEM a couple days ago. @BenBB you were right. Both boots have been blown on the aftermarket ones for a while. When I pulled them I couldn’t feel any slop in the actual joint but boy did replacing them make a difference. The Motorcraft set was pricy but really nice. Even comes with a bottle of green Loctite. Rides better in every regard. Handles tighter, rides smoother on road and over bumps, quieter, and this bump steer I was experiencing is gone. Visibly I could only see the blown boots but I knew something wasn’t right up front as my front tires are wearing very unevenly (wearing more toward the outside). I think this was it.





Trying to get a few maintenance items knocked out as I’m preparing to take the truck way out west for a big job change. I’ll replace a couple (or all) tires, check alignment, change oil and send it. Hopefully she gets me there safely.

 

[BenBB]

OMG OEM FTW!!! At least when it comes to those lower balljoints, FoMoCo made ‘em apocalypse-proof haha! Glad you got them swapped and it helped. I gotta replace my front seat foam soon and not looking forward to it heh. How far west? Also looking at moving this year but likely only as far as TX/OK…

 

[PD1744]

OMG OEM FTW!!! At least when it comes to those lower balljoints, FoMoCo made ‘em apocalypse-proof haha! Glad you got them swapped and it helped. I gotta replace my front seat foam soon and not looking forward to it heh. How far west? Also looking at moving this year but likely only as far as TX/OK…

I shoulda done the foam on the driver seat while I was in there. At this mileage, it certainly wouldn't be a bad idea.

For now just about as far west as I can get.

 

[PD1744]

Quick post/truck update. Been radio silent basically all year for several reasons. But life has been crazy and I've had zero time for truck stuff, off-roading, forums etc. all year. Is what it is. Last weekend I got to do a little something. Installed some Kibbetech billet upper control arms:



That's all. Hope everyone is doing well.