The stock 8.8-inch rear axle was rusty worn-out junk, so we swapped in this Dynatrac Dana 60 with disc brakes and Motive Gear 4.10:1 ring-and-pinion. After several years of service (and abuse), it has performed flawlessly. Some may think that it's overkill on a 1/2-ton rig with a small V-8 and 33-inch tires, but every time we tow, haul, and wheel we have the peace of mind that Your Highness brings. We also fitted the axle with a Detroit Electrac electric locking differential (now discontinued and replaced by the E-Locker). We actually like this diff a lot. It's a limited-slip diff that can be locked. We've found that the limited-slip works so well, we rarely need to lock it. One issue we did have is our own fault. We mistakenly wired the locker to a hot connection on the fuse block instead of a keyed connection. The locker solenoid draws power continuously, so we had a dead main battery when the rig sat for over a week (another reason we're sold on the dual battery setup-it gave us a back-up battery). The dead battery left us stymied for a while until we traced the problem and made the easy correction. Finally, in this image you can see one of the MTS Company polyethylene fuel tanks. These tanks are inexpensive and will never rust. We highly recommend them.
Here you can see how nice...
Here you can see how nice our F-150 looks after Vintage Iron & Design restored the truck with new LMC Truck body panels and Keystone Automotive refinishing supplies. You can also see the ultra heavy-duty Reunel rear bumper that holds the 9,000-pound Warn winch. One of our favorite mods, most of which are visible here, is the 360-degree perimeter lighting. Until you have this much light at your fingertips, you don't know how much you need it.
One thing we've used a heckuva...
One thing we've used a heckuva lot is the Extreme Outback compressed-air system. We mounted it in a Continental Manufacturing Pro HD toolbox and we fitted air chucks on each side of the box. This allows us to connect the hose into either side. We can't say enough about the benefits of having this system on board. It works great. It'll even power airtools.
We gutted the interior and...
We gutted the interior and lined the tub with Boom Mat sound deadener from Stylin' Concepts before installing new carpet and seating from Stylin' Concepts. The difference was utterly incredible. In this image you can also see the Husky floor liners and a trio of Nordskog digital gauges in a Pro Pods A-pillar mount. A note about the gauges: We opted for transmission temp, transfer-case temp, and volt gauges. Skip the transfer-case temp gauge. Turns out that the transfer-case fluid temperature stays well under 100 degrees, which means monitoring it is a nonissue.
Jon Wise at Trinity Coating...
Jon Wise at Trinity Coating Systems lined our truck's bed with Vortex bedliner. This was another good investment as we're not too easy on this area of the truck. We've treated the Vortex material badly, and it shows no signs of wear.
A 4-inch suspension lift and...
A 4-inch suspension lift and 33-inch tires turned out to be a good combination for our work-oriented truck. It gave us added ground clearance and it wasn't too tall for chores around the farm.
We've helped recover a variety...
We've helped recover a variety of vehicles with the Redhead. One of the more unusual was this Bobcat.
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