TFaoro

I'm shooting for a clean 2nd gen, and to me the ranch hand is not clean. It is functional, but the look, IMO, is terrible. (That and every moron who had their daddy buy their truck in my area has one) I will not be putting one on that has a grill guard built in. Maybe a single bar that protects some of the grill would look good. I don't like having the whole grill covered. While it does provide more protection looks are still important to me. I spent thousands on paint and plastic to get the truck looking original, so I'd like to show it off. 3/16 steel is very strong, especially when braced properly. I have no doubt if I built a bumper it would stand up to a large animal just fine. If you hit a large animal damage is going to occur one way or another. I'd just like to lessen the damage with a good looking bumper. On this one we are going to have to agree to disagree

They love the liquid here... Weekely washes have kept the truck 100% rust free.

OEM paint color Forgot this showed up yesterday. Polished it up today Thank you War Eagle for finding it!

One spot has a tiny bit of bondo... rear door, passenger side behind the window. Someone pried on the window with a crow bar and CRUSHED the metal around it. The tailgate has a small spot that couldn't be pulled out. The PO smashed a huge dent in it. My paint guy hates bondo though, so he stays away from it as much as possible. He's been doing this work for over 30 years, so he knows how to work metal really well. Thanks.... most have no idea how much money I've spent to make it this way though. In the end.... Worth it! My brother calls it a 2nd and a half gen because it's in its own category haha. I could never have a ranch hand on my truck... IMO they are very protective, but don't look very good. One definitely wouldn't fit this build. I think one of these bumpers could be strong... just have to brace it properly! Literally anything is stronger than the stock bumper. It's terrible.

This may be the best looking aftermarket bumper I've seen! If only I had hit the lotto.... Next summer may be the time though! I got everything lined today. Looks really really good! It should stop the rock chips, which I find to be a major source of rust. I really like the liner. It has texture to it, but it isn't rough enough that it holds in dirt. Here are some pics.

Thanks! I really like the color too. I may buy black rims... but there's no way I would powdercoat the ones I have. Way too nice the way they are! Pictures are coming..... Thank you, but the road I drive back and forth to work is riddled with deer and stupid drivers. I would hate to see my investment go to waste because a buck was in the road. Hmmm I'm going to try and dig up some pictures with the tubing. Well I took it out for a short drive today to get everything warmed up and antifreeze flowing through the radiator. I didn't want to drive too much without the bed on it, so I only went about 10 miles on the back roads. I can say on stock dodge tuning I hit 30psi of boost easily. Wasn't even in it all the way . I was really careful after that to keep the boost down so that I can re-torque the head studs. It's hard for me to say just how much some of the new parts helped. I can't remember the last time I drove the truck on dodge's tuning. So a "real world gain" will have to be measured when I can add some fuel. I was able to tell a HUGE difference with the damper. The engine is significantly quieter than it was before, and it's much smoother. The str8 pipe sounds AWESOME And from what I can tell it isn't even droning at highway speeds! We'll see when I get it back together, but I'm pretty excited about that. I then took the truck over to the paint guy and started sanding. Ever torn into perfectly good paint that's less than a year old.... It hurts, but hopefully the liner will perform as expected! The front outside part of the bed will be getting lined as well.

You really need some timing to help out.... really any box or programmer is going to help.

That's a nice bumper Joe! I'm just not sure if I like that boxy look all that much. My truck also might look funny with stockish sized tires and that big bumper. Well I backed it out of the shop under its own power tonight!! Just have to top off the T case and trans fluid and the "hard" part is done! Bed was painted and cleared tonight. I'll probably start sanding on the cab to get it ready for rhino lining. Hoping to spray that Sunday. Won't be able to drive for a couple days, but I better do it now or I'll never do it. After that it's time for the maiden voyage to somewhere!

Buy a beater car. If you break down just walk home haha Other than that... plug it in full time and drive around till it's warmed up.

If you were in colorado I could help out....

Just get the EGTs up around 1700* like I used to My pistons were pretty clean when I pulled them!

My original didn't have any marks, and neither does the fluidampr. 24V just has 4 bolts, unlike the CR with the roll pin.

Thank you! I'm dying to drive it as well. My brother bought my dad a gopro camera last year with a suction cup mount, so I should be able to get plenty of videos for everyone! I got the exhaust all prepared last night but was unable to install it due to the engine position. I am not sure what the "lean" will be without the trans in, and how the engine sits now I can't even get the pipes to slide together. (downpipe is pointing down) The transmission bearing didn't show up yesterday, so I was unable to put the transmission back together. Hopefully today I'll get the bearing, put the trans together, and stick it back into the truck. The bed was supposed to be painted last night or today, so we'll see on that. I'm also getting the rhino lining done on the rockers, so unfortunately I probably won't be driving it until mid week. The body protection should be well worth it though! Rhino lining will be done inside the bed once I purchase a set of aluminum bed rails. Perfect lines are priceless....

Seems a tad low to me as well. I would thing at LEAST 15 with that kind of weight.

If you'd like one in the truck I can try tomorrow, just let me know. You can see the tip of the pipe by the ecm here.

No worries the truck has had full coverage since the day I put insurance on it. No there is no way I could ever get out of it what I have in it, but at least I could buy it back from the bank and keep the motor. I'm really looking into a bumper (Buying or building.) I would hate to destroy the motor in a wreck but bumpers are EXPENSIVE!! I like the look of the Iron Cross though.

Likely due to the edge comp fooling. I have voltage, speed, engine temp, and RPM on mine.

He may be little but he's actually my older brother I'm 21 and he's 26! If you make the trip up to CO I might even let you drive it down the driveway! So I got my exhaust all taken apart on Tuesday. Started welding things together yesterday. I'm sure I'll need a resonator, so for now I don't care if I have to splice 4 pieces together to make it work. If / when I put a resonator on I'll route DP to resonator to single piece then over axle and out the side. Been chasing down a couple leaks. I've tracked one to the seal betweeing the timing case and vacuum pump. Surprisingly the seal between the vac pump and PS pump isn't leaking. Either way the whole kit is on the way and should be taken care of this weekend. I've also got oil on the back side of the head that I'm not sure how it got there. Either I overfilled before the initial startup, the valve cover gasket is bad, or the rear head studs are holding the valve cover up. I bought some playdough to stick in the valve cover and see if the studs are in fact hitting. Everything else appears to be leak free. The transmission bearing should be here today, so I'll stick that back together and at least get it started in the truck. It's hard to tell where the downpip is going to sit with the engin being able to move freely. The bed was primed last night and should be painted today. I may also do the rhino lining on the lower part of the truck and inside the bed with the paint guy. (Spray type not roll on) It would be nice to have it all done at once and not cost over $1,000 like LineX quoted me. So if it can be done, I'll take the truck over this weekent and have the rhino lining sprayed. Interior is complete, except for the area around the shifter. I really do hate the dashes in these trucks I kinda just want to drive it at this point.......

Well that's a simple program... Just about anyone could do it! The only one I would want is the fuel pressure. Boost doesn't matter, and I can't get my EGTs hot while towing.

My ScanGaugeII has a "boost" and "MAP" setting. Boost is supposed to be a MAP of "zero" when the truck is started, but it doesn't work on mine. The major temp swings looks like a thermostat and possibly plugged rad... I doubt it though with your vent mod.

Of which one??

I've got two... Tappet cover and the original extended down (METAL) with a bend. I can take pics if anyone would like. I'm actually still trying to figure out where I'm going to route the tappet cover.

Sorry to hear it.... Hopefully it all works out for you!

Winner! (Mostly) It's just the downpipe with the sound being recorded through the hole in the floor (You know.. the spot where a transmission should be) So hard to decide on length....

I'll check the PDF's tonight. Mike, those manuals should have the special parts list in there, so I won't post any pictures. I'm going to straight pipe it for now.... The bug got me! Then if it drones I'll add a resonator. Hawkez, does the resonator completely eliminate the whistle of the turbo through the exhaust? I was thinking about the shorter one. TEASER! Turn the volume up.... That's only 1500rpm too. Can anyone guess what the exhaust is and where it's recorded?