Machinebuilder
Senior Member
My Copilots
Sox
Gabby
Outside Kaycee, Wy
Outlaw Cave Campground
Sox
Gabby
Outside Kaycee, Wy
Outlaw Cave Campground
I'll give a brief write up on the truck, but it did everything I asked of it. and some places were pushing my limits while being far from home and alone.eyemgh said:Glad you’re enjoying the truck! We’re pulling the trigger on a 2022 F350 Super Cab with a 7.3/4.30 this week.
The only difference I felt in 4WDL is its a lot slower, it does turn off all of the traction control stuff.eyemgh said:Great write up. Sounds like it was a fun trip. We just ordered ours, configured quite similarly. A Hallmark K2 will ride on the back with a Bowen flatbed and upper and lower boxes. It will be a 20" increase in wheelbase over our Silverado/FWC combo. How did it feel in 4WDL?
Compared to parts of the back country byway that’s a highway.michelle_east_county said:Machinebuilder, ' looks like good road to me!
I had the same issue with the ridiculously large front air dam on my F-350. I ended up going to my Ford dealer and ordering the front air dam for the 2wd version which is only a couple of inches. It looks OEM, because it is!Machinebuilder said:I said I would give a brief write up about the truck.
I went through a cat scale on my way to Wyoming, so a I was still basically loaded for a 3 week trip with my 2 dogs.
the trucks rated
Front GAWR 5200LB
Rear GAWR 7230LB
GVWR 11800 LB
From the Weigh ticket
Front axle 4560lb
rear axle 5120lb
gross 9680 lb
Remember this is a big heavy truck, driving the front seems slightly over sprung, the rear is awesome,
With the FX4 package it gets "off road rated shocks" they are a bit stiff in the high speed damping and adequate low speed damping.
I learned a lot about suspension setup from my dual port bikes, but all I know is I don't know enough. The truck works well enough I am not going to rush buying replacement shocks, the springs I will not touch. I plan on a big beefy front bumper and winch at some point.
The 10 speed transmission works well, I did have several times that the programming leaves something to be desired.
I would not hesitate to get this engine transmission axle combo again. with the 4.3 axles in 10th gear at 75mph its running about 2200rpm, just enough into the power band to maintain speed most of the time. In 1st gear it it slow enough to crawl most things.
With the FX4 you get "Hill Descent Control" this is an automatic braking/speed control for up to 20MPH, it works really well.
there were a few places I shifted to 4 low, something about a narrow steep washed out 2 track made me extra careful. I idled up in 3rd gear at 3mph.
I see no reason for me to "upgrade" tires and suspension, I did scrape the front air dam a couple times but nothing damaging. I do not want to go rock crawling with a rig this big……
We drove that exact road (trail is more like it, correct?) from outside of Winifred, MT into the western part of the CM Russell NWR, through the Two Calf Creek crossing about a year before you did. Doing so was a route planning error on my part, partly because my low range wouldn't engage (operator error, it turned out) which made both the descent into the Two Calf Creek canyon and the climb out of it way too difficult in high range, but mostly because we were towing our 19' long nearly 3,000 lb popup camper trailer. I had failed to re-read the trail guide which led me to consider the route in the first place. To add insult to injury, the bottom of the Two Calf Creek wash entry and exit were so steep that I managed to knock the camper off of the drawbar ball. It took an hour of chocking, jacking, and backing to get the camper hitched up again, then began the long, steep climb out. My wife is still giving me grief about that route.Machinebuilder said:Compared to parts of the back country byway that’s a highway.'''
Improved road is still a big stretch
WOW, I can't explain my adventure to route planning error. I wanted to drive it.Foy said:We drove that exact road (trail is more like it, correct?) from outside of Winifred, MT into the western part of the CM Russell NWR, through the Two Calf Creek crossing about a year before you did. Doing so was a route planning error on my part, partly because my low range wouldn't engage (operator error, it turned out) which made both the descent into the Two Calf Creek canyon and the climb out of it way too difficult in high range, but mostly because we were towing our 19' long nearly 3,000 lb popup camper trailer. I had failed to re-read the trail guide which led me to consider the route in the first place. To add insult to injury, the bottom of the Two Calf Creek wash entry and exit were so steep that I managed to knock the camper off of the drawbar ball. It took an hour of chocking, jacking, and backing to get the camper hitched up again, then began the long, steep climb out. My wife is still giving me grief about that route.
Glad to hear your F350 succeeded where mine came close to failure! Your new truck seems like a great vehicle.
Foy
I will get back there someday, I hope to be retiring soon and have more time to explore. I really enjoy the remote places and the incredible scenery you can find there.Foy said:The BigSkyFishing dot com website was in fact the trail guide I referred to, I just called it a trail guide for simplicity's sake. Yes, it's a bit vague in places but it does detail the deterioration of the route as one heads east and he gets very specific on the steep climb out, I think he refers to it as a quarter mile, and I'd say that's good on the initial climb, but that it's very much a roller coaster with steep climbs for at least 2 to 3 miles from the floodplain. My "poor planning" reference was to my own failure to read through it again before sticking my neck out--I'm sure I hadn't read it in at least 2-3 years, but I wanted in so bad that I just didn't think of it.
I also never saw the summary at the end where he writes: "Trailers--No". I elected not to tell my wife about that omission.
I had maps in the form of my trusty Benchmark and DeLorme, but no more detailed topos which might have readily shown the steepness.
We approached from Big Sandy, MT and crossed the Missouri via the McClelland Ferry, then turned off to the east before reaching Winifred, which I highly recommend if you get back out that way. The ferry and the long 50-55 mile gravel road segment to reach it from Big Sandy were excellent choices.
And back to your truck--It'd be a kick to see your pic of the crossing. The one I'll add shows a naked drawbar ball and the coupling on the camper dug into the silt in the creekbed. I wasn't feeling much like preserving evidence of my foolishness for all to see so didn't take a lot of pics.