Finally started 5-ton Hauler.....F950

[BrainP]

I'm open to take a look at both options for the wheel well. That pic was easier to just stretch real quick. Ive got the sheetmetal to do that. Im pretty sure Im going to have to pull it down too. The bed sits pretty high on the frame. Im going to find some sheetmetal quick fasteners of somekind for along the inside of the rear cutouts. Then all that should be visible from the outside is a seam.

 

[olly hondro]

Niice. Am very much interested in what goes on with the electrical & mechanical interfaces at the firewall. Will subscribe as soon as I figure out how

 

[silverstate55]

WOW, fantastic work! Can't wait to see it when it's ready for the highway!!

It's your truck, do what you want with it...personally, I like seeing the cab & body swaps on 5-tons and other trucks. Very ingenious.

Good job!

 

[jdknech]

I think I would have gone with a International 4 door cab myself, but none the less this is a amazing build!

 

[BrainP]

Personally Ive never like the international cabs. I went with the fords because of the availability of them. They have been making the superduty cabs for long over a decade now and they are easy to find accessories for. If it was a perfect world, I would have used a Dodge Megacab, but there isnt a front end I liked. Almost thought of going Chevy, but then I sobered up.

 

[jdknech]

View attachment 452439

is this a photo shop truck, or a actual build someone did?? that has some cool factor! (even if it is a chevy) and a dodge would have been super cool! (I'm a mopar fan at heart) i think the 2010+ front end is pretty mean looking..

 

[BrainP]

As far as I know its a real pic. I pulled it off the internet, so who knows. I do like it. I wanted a larger truck front end like the F650s and topkicks. I wanted that slopped hood for visibility. Like I said, having a complete donor truck for all the hardware and misc is making it real easy. I found an F650 with 500,000 miles so it wasnt very much. Every little mount,tab, and braket is going to come in handy. I bet the dodge hood and mega cab would not have left me much room for a bed either. next time ill use a longer chassi. My roomate is already planning his build, he wants an Excursion cab with a tiny bed off the back end.

 

[Fuzzy]

1st off. nice start, and i'm subscribing. I have long thought about a stock 5ton for hauling my 5th wheel for local trips out to the desert. I have seen/read where the semi conversion HDT rv haulers usually go to an air ride hitch and air ride pin box due to the stiff springs (they also place the hitch mount behind the rear crossmember to put more weight on the rear duals) , and I know a guy who has hauled his toyhauler with a kodiak chassis for the last 6 years and over time the hitch mount in the 5ver completly broke apart. Do you have any plans for this? have you seen anyone else having issues? Love the build so far.

 

[srodocker]

Can't wait to see the final project

 

[BrainP]

1st off. nice start, and i'm subscribing. I have long thought about a stock 5ton for hauling my 5th wheel for local trips out to the desert. I have seen/read where the semi conversion HDT rv haulers usually go to an air ride hitch and air ride pin box due to the stiff springs (they also place the hitch mount behind the rear crossmember to put more weight on the rear duals) , and I know a guy who has hauled his toyhauler with a kodiak chassis for the last 6 years and over time the hitch mount in the 5ver completly broke apart. Do you have any plans for this? have you seen anyone else having issues? Love the build so far.

My first priority is to get the cab on and get it running again. After the cab is done Im planning on doing a full air ride suspension. The girlfriend cant handle the dodge right now do to the rough ride so I have to do everything I can to soften it up. I have never seen a 5th wheel hitch break apart, and Im on my 3rd toyhauler. I wear them out in other ways. That is something I will consider though. We have some pretty rough freeways out here. I would think the farther back you put the hitch behind the pivot point of the tandem axles, the bumpier it will be. Wouldnt it just cantilever off the axles pivot point, unless you had 2 independently sprung axles? Either way Ill start the air ride as soon as i get the truck running again.

 

[BrainP]

Well, who hasnt had a brain fart during a project? I finally have the cab sitting where I want it with the hood and fenders lining up real nice. I wrestled with the fitting of the hodd for 2 days cussing and swearing before I noticed I had the front center rad mount in the worong place. I could have sworn I measured it from the old F650 frame and thought it was right in the center, but its not. It sits off to the side. Lety me tell you guys its just enough to make that **** hood not line up. Its good now. The only down side is in order to get the wheel well and tire to line up I had to lose the stock fan.

 

[Motiracer38]

That looks pretty sick. Did you have to do anything to the firewall to clear the motor? Do you forsee any fender trimming needed to be able to turn the tires off-road?

 

[BrainP]

I did have to trim the fire wall just a hair, but no more than a normal F650. The doner parts truck has a small cut out to fit the Cat motor. I made the same mod to accomodate since this cab had a v8. I will trim the small fender a bit to clear the back of the tire to give it a little more room.

 

[Fuzzy]

My first priority is to get the cab on and get it running again. After the cab is done Im planning on doing a full air ride suspension. The girlfriend cant handle the dodge right now do to the rough ride so I have to do everything I can to soften it up. I have never seen a 5th wheel hitch break apart, and Im on my 3rd toyhauler. I wear them out in other ways. That is something I will consider though. We have some pretty rough freeways out here. I would think the farther back you put the hitch behind the pivot point of the tandem axles, the bumpier it will be. Wouldnt it just cantilever off the axles pivot point, unless you had 2 independently sprung axles? Either way Ill start the air ride as soon as i get the truck running again.

I have heard of the pin box breaking before and know of 2 that broke the welds around the inner frame bracing. the kodiak guy had a catastrophic failure but when inspecting the steel you could see where some welds had broke eariler(minor rust around steel) we had to weld some steel reinforcments all around just to limp it home (with portable premire power welder)


again build looks great and I love the idea. you will probably not have any issues with an air ride setup.


on the cantilever issue < i do not know for certin. but alot of the class 8 rv hauler conversion are set up like that. It might just be to unload the front axle for weight dist???

 

[mendo]

on the cantilever issue < i do not know for certin. but alot of the class 8 rv hauler conversion are set up like that. It might just be to unload the front axle for weight dist???

or it could be that the truck can handle the weight and that gives you more storage/cabin area on the truck when the trailer is back further.

 

[quickfarms]

Interesting

The earlier trucks with the 7.8 in them had a doghouse in the cab to clear the back if the engine.

By the way it would not be a F950, it would be a FT950

 

[MidnightDuramax]

Any updates on this project. It looks awesome so far.

 

[BrainP]

Sorry, I took a short break. I am still moving into the new shop. I am trying to get it organized before I get to far ahead of myself. I also had to take time to build a new welding table. I brought home a 4'x6' piece of plate to weld legs to to due the job. I think it will hold up to anything I put it through without warping from heat. Its 2" thick steel! I needed my loader to move it into the shop.

Im just about to wrap up the cab mounts. I broke up some 1/4" plate to make all the mounts. The ones at the rear of the cab were the most challenging. A Ford frame follows the curve of the cab, but as everyong knows a 5 ton frame is more or less 2 pieces of C channel. The cab sits higher off the frame than I would like, but it lines up good over the engine and radiator. It gives me room to move the air tanks and battery box to a nicer location. I like how it looks on the frame so I will live with it.

I realized I am getting old, and have a limit to how much hard work I will put in to save a buck. The cab I found didnt have body mounts with it. I was going to spend the weekend at the local pick-n-pull and remove them from a combination of trucks to get a set. After talking it over with my buddies, I went the a slavage yard on the way home from work. They had the same truck/cab in their lot, and for $100, pulled every nut, bolt, washer, and rubber bushing from the truck. I stopped by the next day on the way home from work and picked up my box of mounts. I know some people would shake their head, but Im a heavy equipment mechanic for a world wide construction company. I turn enough wrenchs all day to keep my knuckles bleeding. Somedays its hard to want to come home and keep working. It sure was nice to have every little piece in a box ready to go. I'll try to get a few pics of how the mounts came out soon.

My next task is going to be hooking up the steering box to the Ford shaft. Since the cab is a lot farther forward, the shaft comes in real high compared to the stock one. Once again, it is nice to have a complete Ford F650 to compare to, and steal ideas from. I think I have an easy solution.

 

[frogman2]

Awesome build,originally was going that way but looking for an International Crewcab and retain the stock front to hopefully simplify things,but I already have a Ford cab now I am torn,lol.

 

[PA71Deuce]

This truck is awesome I have been recently toying with a similar idea of an old GMC brigadier.