^^^ removed mine after fighting the removal of the turbo. Havnt missed it since.
Put my ccv mod back to stock
Removed FRX but am using the fpr part of it since I tossed the OEM fpr. Just capped off the line feeding it

 

Ha ha. I was 25, single, and making a damn good paycheck.

 

Aha! Finally an open admission that Gaugepro is none other than the one and only Joe (CSIPSD).

 

Strait piping my 4" exhaust it was cool 15 years ago ( I thought anyways ) but now am contemplating on putting an aero turbine 4040xl on it I do like some noise but the strait pipe is kinda annoying now days every powerstroke that drives by some young kid is on it stop light to stop light just cause it's loud. Kinda like the Honda fart can mufflers.

 

Metal twister In case you're wondering what the inside baseball is about, Gaugepro is notorious for railing against DP Tuner - back when he was known as CSIPSD on this forum. There are several others that are in his camp, but there will not be an open discussion about that here. If you are on the non-mobile web site, please allow your eyes to drift above the thread title and to the right.

 

Diesel pickups are the new "rice". Things that people made fun of in the 90s are now being put on diesel trucks and all the sudden it's cool. I don't get it but then again I was never a part of either scene.

 

It is amazing to me these things even ran from the factory with all the modification they need (Humor).


After working on Powerstrokes for 20 years I did do some modifications that I would recommend after researching and making informed decisions.


1. The stock air filter and case was junk. We can all agree an update to an AIS or similar was needed to protect the turbo. I've seen drywall screws holding the tops down on the stock air box. What were they thinking?


2. The external spin-on transmission filter was a god send for maintenance. I can drain the pan, torque converter, and replace the filter in about 30 minutes. All but about two quarts remain. The micron rating is much better than the pan filter which I have changed once in 184,000 miles.


3. A chip, REASONABLY configured. These engines are detuned for the application.


4. Harpooned the tank for that extra 5-6 gallons of fuel to me was worth the extra 50-75 or so miles.


5. A coolant filter. Why? Just because it costs $9 a year to change. Don't know as its needed or not. But, it was a take off in the shop and I couldn't resist.


6. Gauges - EGT and Water.


To me, everything else is just smoke and mirrors.

 

Thanks for queuing me in! I wont get in the middle of that!

 

Heck, I didn't even know that. I just recalled the ongoing mystery about the name, but had no idea what was behind it. I think if I had known, I wouldn't have said anything.

Back on topic... a modification that I made to a previous truck (over 35 years ago) that I would never do again is install any kind of lift or leveling kit, not even 2".

 

Why not, and what kind did you install?

 

It was the late 70's and the first Big Foot had just made a name for itself. I had a 79 F250 4x4 Lariat, and recall being disappointed that Ford changed to the lo boy type of front end with the negative arch springs. Previous '77 and earlier versions of the exact same truck were hi boys, with divorced transfer cases, and positive arch springs.

So my first move was to re-arch the factory front springs from negative to positive. I had a professional spring shop do the heating and arching. Then my imagination took hold, and I thought the springs might have annealed in the process, so I got new replacement springs that had more leaves.

I don't remember the brand, as it has been so long ago, but it was the top aftermarket brand in the late 70's early 80's... higher quality parts than Rancho, a relative newcomer then... which probably explains why the company I chose eventually went out of business. One can't give a consumer a good value for the dollar and remain in business very long. I've seen this over and over... when the value equation is fair to the consumer, the business is lost. It always helps to remind myself of this whenever purchasing anything. If a business has been around for a long time, that usually means they have figured out how to consistently get the upper hand on the consumer, where the ratio of dollar given to the product provided favors the business.

I make a belabored point about this, as it relates directly to your original question. Many aftermarket products related to "modifications" do not return an equivalent value product for the dollar rendered to receive that product. The difference is called profit. I keep that ever present in mind when looking at modifications that are promoted.

Anyway, the new springs were not tapered leaves like the OEM springs. instead, each leaf was a constant thickness. I liked that the "lift" was incorporated into the arch of the spring, but the ride was of course ridiculously harsh. After a few years I put back the factory springs. In a few more years, the factory springs sagged back to where they were before I messed with them.

It isn't just the ride... it is the handling, the roll stability, the center of gravity, the usefulness and accessibility of load deck height, the fuel economy, the steering stability, the tire longevity... a lift can muck with all of these things. And for what? Stance? Seriously?

I had to use that truck while working on a horse ranch, and my boss's wife, the owner of half the ranch, could out drive me off road in her 2WD (with a detroit locker) crew cab dually GMC with a stick shift. And she was 80 years old at the time. First, she knew how to drive, but second, her low center of gravity allowed her to feel safer crossing hills than I felt when lifted. These were not "off road trails". These were hillsides we were traversing to put flakes of hay in the tractor tires we had scattered over the range to feed the horses that were permanently put out to pasture.

So the lift kit did not improve my real world off roadability either. Not in a full size truck doing truck duties. As it turns out, the Ford engineers actually knew what they were doing when they lowered the F250/350 4x4 trucks in 1978. While there are some off road situations where taller is better (as long as a significant upsize in tire diameter accompanies the lift to actually gain axle clearance), most real world circumstances that would require a full size truck (as opposed to a crawler, jeep, or buggy) do not benefit from a lift, imho. I'd never make that modification again.

 

Great insight exactly the kind of things I was hoping to hear when starting this thread. as mentioned a few time before, I do not intend to run this thing hard off road. This is only to get me to the desert or the bay so I can play with the other toys. In fact I am in the process of building a VW Thing Until I was side tracked with this f350. Now I can trailer it to the desert. Stock height might be just fine for me and the 5th wheel. Thanks again

 

Things I wouldn't do again.

Front air bags.
Leveling kit blocks on a 2wd.
CCV mod.
Slamming on the brakes with a 2,000 lb load of steel in the bed that bent the front panel of the bed and broke the connections at the corners which ended up causing my bed to develop cracks in it.

 

You too!! My Bobcat welder broke the strap and slid on the front of the bed bent it and now I'm seeing cracks near the bolting points

 

Well heck it sounds like you guys are actually using your trucks? Whats the matter with you! LOL