Anyone else notice their running boards angling down? When I put my foot on the board, I can feet the surface isn't flat. The outer edge furthest from the truck body is lower than the edge up against the truck. These are ford factory installed boards with lights. I wouldn't think the bracket would be bending even after 9 years.

 

Yes. I've noticed the "angling down" from day 1 (20 years ago), and it does seem to be a bit more now (20 years later), but that could be just my imagination, due to the initial observation.

In 2003, I changed the OEM step running boards on my 2000 that had no lights, to some 2002 Excursion running boards that had lights, so that I could put the original 2000 running boards on a new 2003 crew cab, which didn't have any steps.

When I mounted the 2002 Excursion running boards to the 2000 crew cab (note that the Ex running boards are a few inches longer than Crew Cab running boards), I used five (5) brackets per side, and used four (4) mounting bolts and body nuts per bracket.

All told, that is eighty (80) fasteners (5 brackets x 4 mounting holes x 2 fastener pieces per hole x 2 sides left and right) holding up the running boards. I think the fasteners cost more than the boards, where were take offs, but I bought new fasteners from Ford.

Some crew cab running boards only use 3 brackets per side, and all Ford step installations only use 2 bolts per bracket. So there is a built in opportunity to increase the number of attachment points of the steps without any custom modification.

At least the angled down step drains water away.

 

Thank you for the info!

I noticed there were only two, but could that really cause an angle as opposed to a sag? The middle is fine, just the entire thing is angled down and it feels terrible underfoot.

 

I filled all four holes in each bracket with fasteners, and added two more brackets per side (in the spaces already preordained and drilled for brackets), more to distribute the forces transferred to the body sheet metal holding the running boards. The more fasteners, the more contact engagement surfaces, the more friction, the better distribution of load, and the less peak stress at the load point of each fastener.

While the extra brackets and fasteners may have reduced opportunities for flexing the inner panel of the cab rockers, it does nothing to reduce the flexibility of the 90° hat channel brackets for the running boards. The depth of the U channel at the bend isn't deep enough to prevent deflection. Some guys have removed these L shaped U channels, and welded on additional gusseting to stiffen them and prevent deflection.

Even Ford later redesigned the brackets, with more material in a vertical plane that juts inboard, so as to keep the outboard end from deflecting downward.

So no, you're not the only one who thinks that the OEM running boards in the earlier years of the 99 up Super Duty feel terrible underfoot.

Perhaps the worst running board design Ford came up with in that era was for the Lariat LE or the Texas edition Platinum, where some designer thought it would be cool to have a diamond plate look surface on top of the running board. Only the surface wasn't very diamondy, and could hardly be called treadplate. Might as well have laid out banana skins neatly in a row across the entire length of the running board, and added water misters to keep them wet. The bulb at Ford was not burning brightly with that decision, and those boards were quickly and quietly discontinued.

I've threatened to change my running boards from time to time... but they still work, and there is no point to fixing something that ain't broke, and isn't breaking. It's only bending a little, but the bend isn't great enough for the steel to yield. It can handle 200 lbs easily and bounce right back.

 

Thanks for the information!

It's more that I have size 16 feet that barely make it enough on the boards as is, so I'm sensitive to this slope. I wonder if I can mitigate it with some heavy duty washers on the outboard side or something like that. Just add a washer every year!

 

So update, I was wrong. I mixed up the bracket count on the old 150 and the 250. I got under the 250 with factory running boards and counted five brackets on each side. The brackets themselves seem not be 90 degrees. And I did see a washer under every bolt so perhaps adding 1 or 2 will shim it just enough for me. I’ll try it this weekend if I have time. Can’t believe 5 steel brackets would all bend, so I imagine that’s just how they are.