JDay's 2018 F250 Powerstroke Build

[Jday14]

How's it going guys... I'm a long time outdoor enthusiast and truck nut. I recently decided to combine two of my favorite things and get into this whole "overlanding" thing. In July, I traded my 2015 Chevy 2500HD Duramax for a 2018 Ford F250 Powerstroke. The truck is a crew cab, short bed with the FX4 package, giving me the selectable rear locker. I realize a truck this size isn't the ideal offroading rig, but I need a full size and can't justify the cost of a second vehicle (I do also have an '89 Wrangler, but I barely trust it to drive beyond walking distance from my house).

Here I am with both the day I made the switch:


Soon after the purchase, I added a 2.5" coil spacer leveling kit and a set of 35x12.50 Toyo MTs. I also installed a pair of 8" light bars in the grille. The factory auxiliary switches make wiring a breeze.







I've got pretty good plans for the truck, including both mods and places I want to take it. This build won't be anything too fast, but I plan on documenting every step of the way in this thread. I look forward to receiving constructive criticism.

Current mods:

Ready Lift 2.5" coil spacer leveling kit and track bar relocation.
Toyo MT 35x12.50r20
Rough Country 8" Light Bars
Addictive Desert Design Stealth Fighter Front Bumper
Baja Designs 40" OnX6 combo light bar
Baja Designs 10" S8 light bars

Planned Mods:

37x13.50 Toyo MT
17x8.5" Method Wheels
Built Right Industries bed panels
Front Runner Outfitters bed rack
Carli 2.5" or 4.5" suspension
ADD rear bumper
Rock sliders/steps of some type
Roof top tent
Ford Raptor steering wheel

Planned Trips:

Big Bend National Park ETA December 2018
Padre Island National Seashore ETA spring 2019
Alpine Loop/Imogene Pass/Last Dollar Road ETA summer 2019
Matagorda Beach ETA ???

 

[Tex68w]

Congrats on the new ride. I miss my 2017 at times, they are great trucks. I'd suggest you consider a set of Sulastic rear shackles for your truck, they'll improve ride and road feedback.

PINS is a fun trip and a good way to see the Texas coast far removed from society. You'll see a lot more traffic and others along the beach past the 10 mile marker during peak season (May-September) so I would suggest going in off peak season if you want the beach to yourself. Also, make sure you check on the tide chart because there are areas where literally the entire shore line disappears during high tide.

If you want a similar experience to PINS in a much shorter trip you should check out the Matagorda Beach. It's roughly 20 miles long and you can run it from Matagorda up to Sargent and back for a total of 40 miles. I live nearby so if you wanna run it one afternoon/weekend hit me up and I'll tag along.

 

[Jday14]

Congrats on the new ride. I miss my 2017 at times, they are great trucks. I'd suggest you consider a set of Sulastic rear shackles for your truck, they'll improve ride and road feedback.

PINS is a fun trip and a good way to see the Texas coast far removed from society. You'll see a lot more traffic and others along the beach past the 10 mile marker during peak season (May-September) so I would suggest going in off peak season if you want the beach to yourself. Also, make sure you check on the tide chart because there are areas where literally the entire shore line disappears during high tide.

If you want a similar experience to PINS in a much shorter trip you should check out the Matagorda Beach. It's roughly 20 miles long and you can run it from Matagorda up to Sargent and back for a total of 40 miles. I live nearby so if you wanna run it one afternoon/weekend hit me up and I'll tag along.

Thanks, I'm really enjoying it so far. Overall, I'd say it would be a hard decision choosing between it and the Chevy, but I'm really enjoying the added confidence of a solid axle and the miles of ground clearance this thing has over my Chevy. My only regret is that I got a little impulsive and didn't find one with clearance lights and the factory LED headlights. But that's simply aesthetic.

I may have to take you up on Matagorda. It looks like a nice trip that's not too far from home.

 

[Tex68w]

I will say after having the Quad Beam LED's there is no comparison, they are one of the most worthy options on those trucks.

And just let me know about Matagorda, it'd be an easy trip.

 

[Rakkasan3187]

Check out the new Morimoto LED headlights that are on presale now.

 

[marshal]

Check out the new Morimoto LED headlights that are on presale now.

this. they're also 2x the output of the OEM lights

 

[Jday14]

this. they're also 2x the output of the OEM lights

Will do for sure. Big fan of Morimoto. I had their HID low beams and LED fogs in my Chevy.

 

[Mako1114]

Congrats on the new truck. That Stealth Fighter is a great looking, low-profile bumper.

Cheers

 

[marshal]

Will do for sure. Big fan of Morimoto. I had their HID low beams and LED fogs in my Chevy.

https://www.theretrofitsource.com/ford-f250-f350-f450-superduty-xb-led-headlights-2017-2018.html

 

[Buliwyf]

Give the stock lamps a chance. You might find they cut through dust better. And there are brighter bulbs for them.

I have no choice, I live in the snow belt where LED's are useless.

 

[marshal]

Give the stock lamps a chance. You might find they cut through dust better. And there are brighter bulbs for them.

I have no choice, I live in the snow belt where LED's are useless.

these OEM LED's and the ones from Morimoto are heated

 

[Jday14]

Lights are here. Just waiting on the bumper so I can get everything installed. Should be another 2-3 weeks.

 

[onac255]

Padre Island National Seashore is awesome!!! Me and the family (5 of us) went there. 12 hour road trip and camped on the beach for 2 days.

Definitely going to go back!

Sent from my Moto G (5) Plus using Tapatalk

 

[Jday14]

Saw a bunch of dirt roads over the weekend driving through central Texas. Really wishing I’d spent the money on the Carli suspension already rather than the bumper and lights, which, by the way, should get here this week. The picture below is at the Regency Bridge near San Saba, Texas.

Looking forward to Big Bend in a few weeks.

 

[Marine]

Got to love Texas, my inlaws used to winter in port aransas. Beautiful country