“We knew Andy was going to haul a camper as well as other items with the truck, yet still drive his kids to school and everyday when not utilizing the camper. “The rear suspension was a completely new design for us,” Doug explained. All told, these upgrades provide the truck with an impressive 12 inches of travel in front and 15 inches in the rear. A lot more was done to this truck in what DEFCO officially calls its BA350 Stage 1.5 Overland Edition package, but you get the picture. For the suspension, the truck got a pair of King 3-inch triple bypass, remote reservoir shocks paired with a King 3-inch remote reservoir coilovers in front, while the rear got a pair of King 2.5-inch external reservoir shocks, a proprietary floating rear airbag package-designed with the help of Matt Ward at Hallmark-and a custom set of leaf springs from Atlas Suspension. To ensure the drivetrain is up to snuff, DEFCO reinforced the front Dana Super 60 and Sterling 10.5-inch rear differential with custom gussets and bracing and re-geared both axles to a 4.30 final drive ratio using the factory electric locker. Aside from the new fiberglass fenders, bedsides and matching fiberglass hood, the truck also got a new grille, custom front and rear aluminum bumpers, a heavy-duty Warn 16,500-pound winch, and a set of custom machined, 20×14-inch Weld XT wheels with Continental MPT81 43-inch mud-terrain tires. What exactly makes this Ford F-350 conversion, affectionately called The Yeti, so special? Quite a bit. One of Andy’s concerns was the ability to drive it every day, his exact quote to me was that, ‘this is the only truck I’ve ever built that I didn’t want to sell a week after I got it. The truck works flawlessly as witnessed by Andy’s recent trip to Moab. He desired a big-tire truck that could traverse many types of terrain, yet be compliant enough to drive every day. “He wanted something fresh, something functional, something new for the overland market. How did DEFCO get involved with Hallmark in this impressive, Overland Expo build? “In January, we were contacted by Andy Ward of Hallmark Campers who wanted something different,” explained Doug Paddock, owner of DEFCO trucks. Not only that, but this DEFCO Ford F-350 conversion, with its numerous upgrades, is just as capable off-road as a regular F-150 Raptor. This fully decked out F-350 SuperCrew SRW model with the 6.7L PowerStoke turbo diesel offers a payload of 4,000 pounds. The standard Ford Raptor lacks it in a big way with a maximum payload rating of only 1,200 pounds. Why go to the trouble of building a “Raptor on steroids” when you can purchase a turn-key, F-150 Raptor for less money? One reason-payload. This Ford got a complete, $66,000 wide-body makeover, courtesy of DEFCO Trucks. As you can see, this isn’t your typical F-350 pickup. In fact, we liked this rig so much, we gave it one of our highest rankings. By far, the best truck camper rig on display at this year’s show was Hallmark RV’s showcase rig, a 2018 Hallmark Milner 6.5 mounted on a 2018 Ford F-350 4×4. One of the best places to view the 4×4 variety is at the Overland Expo West. We love truck campers here at Truck Camper Adventure.
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