Ok...this is a stretch but does anybody know where I can find official production numbers for the 1997 F350 7.3 4x4 Crewcab with the factory "dually" option?????

 

having trouble finding one?

to the best of my knowledge: 0 were produced directly from ford.
in pickup truck form,ford didn't offer any cab configuration 4x4 dually pre "super duty".
that's why your not having any luck.

they did build an f350 cab n chassis dually 4wd.however even still,not sure about a crew cab c&c 4wd even at that......maybe.

so as to not bore you any further,you'll want to buy yourself a:
94.5-97 (im assuming you're looking for a psd of course) f350 crew cab 4x4 SRW pickup and convert it to DRW yourself.actually fairly simple (for any average shade tree mechanic) and can be completed in a single weekend alone.can be costly depending on how you want to do it.how would you be using it?

alternatively,you can look around for one already converted by co's such as centurion.

 

Ok...just so I'm understanding you correctly....you're saying that my 97 F350 with the DRW wasn't installed off the line? Rather it was installed somewhere down the line of ownership? So all 1997 F350's came SRW at the dealership? Again, I'm really interested in how rare it is in terms of production numbers. Especially for insurance purposes. If I can prove that there were less than 4,000 DRW's produced for that year then I can classify my truck as a classic.

 

In the F350, they produced 4x4 SRW C/C's, and 2x4 DRW C/C's. There were no factory 4x4 DRW trucks until the 99-03s. There were conversions done aftermarket by companies like Centurion, as stated above, and people did them on their own There were also adapter kits sold. Do you have a true dually rear end or did someone ad adapters?

 

There were LOTS more than 4k of them.centurion converted them for a living....not exactly a cottage industry.ford built exactly o.

 

How can I tell if I have a true DRW axle or if it has the adapters? Again..I apologize for the ignorance..just trying to educate myself on my new toy.

 

Pull the rear wheels and look for a 2" spacer

 

Where exactly should I be looking for the spacer? i.e. between rims, back of plate?

 

On the hub in between brake drum and wheel

 

post up your axle tag info (every letter and number you see.top to bottom) along with the axle code on the door jam too,and we can tell ya even more about what you have under there.

 

Dont worry about it.NO worries.you hang around enough you will learn more than you ever wanted to know...

 

And spen more cash then you every wanted to spend.

PMS is a b itch

 

Sorry for the delay in getting back to all of your advice! I just want to say that I am in awwhh over your willingness to take the time out of your crazy hectic days to answer some ignorant questions from the new guy. It doesn't go unrecognized or unappreciated I can testify to that!! I will definitely get the numbers and post as well as pics. I did check for spacer and it appears that there isn't one. Also appears to be all stock. I'm seriously stoked to get this bad boy up to FTE's specs/approval. It just may take a little time/money....neither of which I have in surplus right now but I will do what I can.

THANKS AGAIN TO ALL VIEWERS AND REPLYS...I WILL KEEP YOU POSTED SOMETIME THE WEEK OF 9/17/12......MUCH RESPECT!!!!

 

I'm pretty certain what you have there is a conversion of some type. The "1FD" that starts the VIN confirms it was an incomplete vehicle ei "cab and chassis." All pickups have the "1FT" VIN. The 8600lbs gvw would be a 250. So I'm thinking possibly you have a 3/4 ton someone "converted" to an F-Superduty (springs, axles) OR, it is a legit Superduty, that had a cab swap. Like stated above, the F-Superdutys had a 15000 gvw. But when they were built by upfitters, they might have made chassis/suspension/brake alterations, and been able to bump the weight rating to 17 or even 19k.

 

The last post on this was 2012. 8 yr ago.