New England B.S. Thread

Sounds about right.

 

Pre-bent is definitely the way to go, from every one I've seen it strsight up looks like 2 90s and a center section cut to length

 

When I get back from my Maine trip I'll give welding 304 exhaust a try. After that we can see which one is a better option.

At that point flatbed is a better option.

 

Looking at brandons pic it looks like itll need a 22.5 to get level to the ground.You might be able to make it up with the 90 on that end though.

Is 2nd and 3rd gen exhausts very similar in this section?

 

I believe so, I was also thinking just make up the difference with the cuts to keep it simple

 

Flatbed everything

 

Flatbed on the fiesta

 

Flatbed willow

 

Was debating the UpTOP UTE, but there were a bunch of others too.

 

Yeah, they should be super similar, but the dude made it janky cause he didn’t cut out the fully flat part. He said he kept part of the downturn and had to work with it.

 

The bowen customs crawler bed is sweet. Too bad is costs more than I bought my truck for.

 

If I had a 6 ft bed I'd go HC and get one of those toppers with a door for sleeping in like a hobbiot hole back there. Before I went for a flatbed setup, at least for what I do.



Yes, this is something I am taking into consideration when looking at future builds

 

"So, where is it raining in Mass right now?" "...Yes"

 

I wouldnt get a flatbed like the ones I just posted. I think theyre cool but just a plain ute tray would be sweet. A 5 foot bed is annoying all the time for truck stuff.

 

That is exactly what I would get, with a removable canopy.

 

"Look at how I put my bikes in the bed, it's so convenient!" ....

"Look at how the kayak fits in the bed nice and easy, don't have to hoist it on the roof!" ....

"Look how I have my sleeping setup in the bed, it's so convenient to pull up and have all that space!" ....

almost all 6 ft

Jokes aside I was looking at the 3.3 F150, same basic performance as the Tacoma, a bit more space in the cab, longer bed, and it's not super expensive. "Problem" is I've got about another 140k on the clock before I would sell off the Taco. BIGGER problem is Ford just dropped the 3.3 from it's next gen F150.

I don't regret the 5ft bed. 95% of the time, I don't want/need a longer bed. But the next truck will have a longer bed...

 

I like those connectors. I got lazy with my last 3 caps and never have them on hand. My cap connections are trailer 4-pin. 2 grounds, one hot for the 3rd brake light, one hot for the LED interior light. Works well, weather-proof, cheap and fool-proof.

 

What we all need (mostly myself) is an in depth lesson from the electrical master @deanosaurus with using larger pin number connectors and bundle it all nice and neat. The idea he brought up at a mod day with “wiring headers” is so damn good I might have to rip out all my old stuff and redo it nice and neat.

 

As someone who owns zero fords but for some reason maintains 3 of them I wont own one. Unless its a 7.3.

 

The 2.7 is super reliable - arguably more so than the current 5.0. CGI block, no significant widespread issues. Loads of power and great fuel economy too. I wouldn't be afraid of it, and would have gotten another if it wasn't for the poor payload in the higher trims with that engine.

I'm annoyed by the 2024 F-150 selection too, though - they dropped the Lariat SuperCab a couple years ago, which I get because it was probably just me and a few retired old guys that bought them. It's worse now, though. If I wanted to stick with a SuperCab, I can't even get a decently loaded XLT anymore - a "302a" (higher optioned XLT) is crew cab only now. If I accept a >20 ft long truck I can get a Lariat crew cab 6-1/2 ft bed, but can't get it without chrome for some weird reason.

Ford always had an advantage in how configurable their trucks were, but that seems to have come to an end. At this point I kind of want to take a look at a Tundra double cab limited since it's the closest to what I want.