Mike Bass of Burbank, California, is like most of us. He has always dreamed of owning a big, bad, and fun truck to tool around in on and off road. After acquiring a '93 Ford F-250, Mike was one step closer to his goal, but a lack of cash was keeping his dream from becoming reality. Then one day, Mike's job as an electrical contractor did more than just pay the rent. Mike was called to do some electrical work at Off Road Unlimited (ORU) in Burbank. After noticing that ORU builds plenty of cool custom trucks, Mike sensed a deal in the making. Mike would do the electrical work in exchange for a reduction in price for ORU's work. With a little labor, Mike could finally afford his dream. The two sides came together, a landmark agreement was reached, and the work began.
The major surgery started with the front of the truck. From the factory, a Ford F-250 comes with a Twin-Traction Beam (TTB) frontend. Since Mike desired a major boost in altitude and didn't want to have to worry about breakage, the crew at ORU decided a live-axle swap was a necessity. The TTB axle was torched out of the way along with the coil buckets. Next, a reverse shackle kit was thrown up front and new mounts were made for the custom springs from National Spring. Under the new front springs, a Ford Dana 60 was slung complete with 4.56 gears and a Detroit Locker. A crossover steering conversion was then performed to make guiding the big Ford down the road a non-event. Finally, two ORU shock hoops were mounted into place upon which dual Rancho RS 9000s were hung.
Next, attention turned to the rear of the truck. The stock 10.25-inch Ford rearend was wisely retained but was fed a diet of 4.56 gears and a Detroit Locker. To match the front, another set of custom springs from National Spring was also grafted into position. Single Rancho RS 9000s also found their way out back to provide a smooth and adjustable ride. With all the suspension work done, some major meats in the form of 38.5x15.5-16.5 Super Swamper Radials on 16.5x12 Weld Racing wheels were bolted up.
After the patient had recovered from its suspension surgery and was up and running, a few more mods were performed. The drivetrain had few miles on it and was left in near-stock condition for reliability's sake. However, some light boosting and beefing was done in the form of a freer-breathing K&N air filter for the 460 V-8 while the E40D automatic transmission received a Banks Trans Command unit to firm up shifts and cut down on heat. Lastly, the drivetrain was allowed to spin the axles with new and longer ORU-built driveshafts.
With all the work done, the truck gets driven to job sites during the week and then gets to play in the mud and sand on the weekends. The truck is supposedly finished, but we know better-no truck is ever really done. Hey, does ORU need any more electrical work?