I started on this project a few months ago but figured i would post it up here for any that are interested.
A couple of months ago i purchaced a 2000 F-450. It came equiped with the 7.3 and the 6 speed manual and a 4.88 rear. The only option that the truck has is A/C. The truck was purchaced with the sole intent of being a truck built for haulin, either my 2003 to the truck pulls or the 5ver on vacation or any other load that i need to move. I plan to replace all the ford emblems with international emblems hence the name International Hauler (IH).
So that being said, here is what i plan to do with the truck. It had a dump bed on the truck when i bought it. That has been removed and sold so now it is just a open chassis. I am currently building a custom bed for the truck, but will tell more about that in a moment. I also would like to update the front end of the truck to a newer style. I really would like to go to an 08 style but am not sure what would be involved in doing this. Right now i have the intention of upgrading to a 05 style front clip. I also plan to upgrade to the 22.5 semi wheels and tires. I would like to go to the super single in the rear like the truck that FCDP is building but not sure on that yet. I also have started to collect the parts that i will need to convert the rear suspension from leaf spring to air bag.
The interior is strickly for work with rubber floor and a bench seat. I plan to replace this with a carpet floor and captain chairs with a custom built center console. I also am looking into swapping the dash over to a 2005 since i really like the built in brake controller and aux switches. Installation of a basic stereo is called for as well since it only has a radio now. Nothing crazy just a cd player and new speakers, And of course a CB.
Now for the bed that i mentioned earlier. I looked into putting a regular dual wheel bed on the truck and found out that the frame is longer on the 450 than the 350. I found a place that sells kits to mount the bed on the frame and fill the gap between the bed and cab but the price of the kit plus the price of a bed was way more than i wanted to spend. I thought about just putting a flatbed on it but really dont like the look. After some thought and looking around i came up with this idea. I bought a single wheel 8 ft bed and cut the center section out of it and spread it to the width of a dually bed. I also cut the sides of the bed down to lower the bed height when pullin my 5ver. I am building the sides wider like a utility bed but with no storage inside. Just enough room in the center for my fifth wheel. I have some pics that i took i will try to post them up later.
A couple of months ago i purchaced a 2000 F-450. It came equiped with the 7.3 and the 6 speed manual and a 4.88 rear. The only option that the truck has is A/C. The truck was purchaced with the sole intent of being a truck built for haulin, either my 2003 to the truck pulls or the 5ver on vacation or any other load that i need to move. I plan to replace all the ford emblems with international emblems hence the name International Hauler (IH).
So that being said, here is what i plan to do with the truck. It had a dump bed on the truck when i bought it. That has been removed and sold so now it is just a open chassis. I am currently building a custom bed for the truck, but will tell more about that in a moment. I also would like to update the front end of the truck to a newer style. I really would like to go to an 08 style but am not sure what would be involved in doing this. Right now i have the intention of upgrading to a 05 style front clip. I also plan to upgrade to the 22.5 semi wheels and tires. I would like to go to the super single in the rear like the truck that FCDP is building but not sure on that yet. I also have started to collect the parts that i will need to convert the rear suspension from leaf spring to air bag.
The interior is strickly for work with rubber floor and a bench seat. I plan to replace this with a carpet floor and captain chairs with a custom built center console. I also am looking into swapping the dash over to a 2005 since i really like the built in brake controller and aux switches. Installation of a basic stereo is called for as well since it only has a radio now. Nothing crazy just a cd player and new speakers, And of course a CB.
Now for the bed that i mentioned earlier. I looked into putting a regular dual wheel bed on the truck and found out that the frame is longer on the 450 than the 350. I found a place that sells kits to mount the bed on the frame and fill the gap between the bed and cab but the price of the kit plus the price of a bed was way more than i wanted to spend. I thought about just putting a flatbed on it but really dont like the look. After some thought and looking around i came up with this idea. I bought a single wheel 8 ft bed and cut the center section out of it and spread it to the width of a dually bed. I also cut the sides of the bed down to lower the bed height when pullin my 5ver. I am building the sides wider like a utility bed but with no storage inside. Just enough room in the center for my fifth wheel. I have some pics that i took i will try to post them up later.