Have a new Super Duty F250 XLT coming in shortly. I will not be lifting the suspension at all but was wondering if adding a Hellwig anti-sway bar to the rear would be of any benefit and worth the $200+ costs. Also, Hellwig lists two different models, the 7677 and the adjustable 7693, any preference on those two? They also have a BIG WIG for heavy work but that would be overkill for my planned usage. I plan on towing about a 6500 lb or less trailer camper and a two place snowmobile trailer so I'm thinking my 6.2L will have a picnic. Just real curious as to the benefits of adding an anti-sway bar with a non-lifted suspension.

 

I will tell you that it's well worth the price! The 7677 is the one I bought - the 7693 wasn't even in the catalog 2 years ago when I bought mine. It looks like the front mounting point on the 7693 can be moved forward or rearward to change the amount of pressure that the bar exerts on the rear axle. The 7677 works fine. My truck had the Towing Package but didn't have the Camper Package and I carry a Lance slide-in camper. I looked into what the difference was between the two and it was only the addition of a Rear Sway Bar. I put it on to stop the rear "swaying feeling" I was experiencing when the Camper was on board. It totally took care of that and had the added advantage of making the truck handle like a large sports car. I love it - I have a 2.5" leveling kit in my truck but have no fear of throwing into an off ramp at speed - it squats down and hugs the turn like I could never have imagined.

In Short - DO IT!

I see no reason to spend extra on the new model but if it's a small difference, it won't hurt to have the extra adjustment positions. It's up to you...

 

I love it when you post Jim, cause the paint on that truck is so good lookin. I really like it. Was that a custom job, or some factory version I've never seen?

 

Thanks Craig! I actually did it myself - I would NOT try it again however. When I quit painting motorcycles many years ago, we didn't have these two part epoxy paints that are on the new vehicles today. The entire project took me about three weeks, the first of which was a vacation week so it was all day, almost every day that week. I loved the older Fords with the "Mid-Stripe Two-tone" - the way these trucks are sculpted, they lend themselves to a center stripe like the older trucks, so I did it!

Long story>short, I had to wet sand the stripe area and NOT break through the original clear coat. Then I had to use a special primer sealer, followed by three coats of the Black Cherry metallic. Quickly, before it setup too much, airbrush both of the "Beach Scenes" then put on 4 medium coats of clear coat! The weather was very humid that day and I ended up with a significant amount of orange peel. Yes, wet sand and buff, wet sand and buff, wet sand and buff... that seemed to go on forever but finally looked reasonably smooth.

I couldn't find a decent pin striping guy so I bought a masking kit the was made just for that. I airbrushed a metallic silver pinstripe at every transition point going from the factory Torreador Red to the Black Cherry panels to set them off. Then I had my sign shop cut me the new "4X4 Beach Truck" and "Powerstroke Twin Turbo" lettering and put them on as well as airbrushed the "Dragon's Skull" on the hood and tailgate. Three weeks - if I had it to do over, I would send it out! I'm too old for that kind of stuff... I was exhausted. Anyway, that's my story and I'm sticking to it - thanks again for the comments!

 

Another opinion:
Unless you're planning on a slide in camper, drive it first.
(With a camper, I'm with jim - it's a seriously ought to mod)

I do not use slide in camper. I did not want to add a sway bar as we sometimes do some relatively rugged off roading, and I did not want to give up any more articulation. Even without rear sway bar I've ended up with opposing corners in the air.

I have small rear lift (F350 blocks).
We tow a 7K travel trailer on regular basis, sometimes with the bed full of firewood and water and two quads on top of side rails. With less than 1000 pounds in bed and trailer attached, I did not feel any need for sway bar. It was planted. With the full load and quads up high, it was a touch more "sway-ey" than I wanted. Not scary, but enough to pucker when making evasive manuevers.
My solution: Remove one leaf from rear spring, add air bags, and use Rancho RS9000XL adjustable shocks. With 65-75 psi and damping cranked up, it feels VERY stable with heavy load and and yet still comfortable. But then it takes just a few seconds to revert to much more compliant and off road capable than stock. Perfect when we're crawling across creek beds and washouts while hunting for old mines. Now I just need to figure out a quick and easy front sway bar disconnect....

 

Thanks for the replies! That is one damn good lookin' truck.

 

...I've never heard that one before but I immediately realized you were talking about a "pucker" at the opposite end - having been in a similar situation before, I knew EXACTLY what you meant!
That was probably the BEST feature about the new Dodge Power Wagons - I believe both sway bars have disconnects on them.
I also know what you mean here - in the following picture, what you can't see is the left rear is about four inches off the ground!

 

Yup, pucker factor! That comes from my motorcycling life. We rate near crashes on how many pounds it takes to pry the seat from our butts....

I'll have to check out the Power Wagon setup. I know the Rubicons have one, but I wouldn't trust those to be strong enough for the SD's.

We had one little situation in a creek bed in Nevada where the "high" tires ended well over 2 feet up. That was momentarily stressful. Right at the point she teeter tottered over the top, the lack of a real locker was bothersome.

 

Sounds like you really earned the good looks. It looks awesome man. Kinda reminds me of a 70's era F-series custom trim paint job. I love the 4x4 logo.

I'm thinking about doing some of my own pinstriping myself later on, when I start to get some stuff done on my truck I have in mind. I'll definitely be doing some practicing though, since what I have in mind would have to be done free hand. I can be pretty patient with that stuff when I need to be though.