u/spoonandpig

Hey, so I am wondering about feasibility of taking a truck camper from Telluride to Ouray via Tomboy Rd and Imogene Pass. The weight is about 11k lb and the height is 10’ 4”. I figure I can see if it’ll fit through the Tomboy “Social Tunnel” and if not, there’s a good turn around spot right before it. Besides that I’m mostly worried about the weight with regards for the various little bridges.

I’ve watch several videos of the trip and tried to examine specific segments using Google Maps (whole thing has “street view”). There don’t appear to be any places where I’d be overly concerned about roll over or turn radius (it is surprisingly tight).

Ophir pass is not a problem if that is any reference.

Obviously I want to use the truck for what I hoped to build it for, but at the same time I don’t want to be reckless and ruin the fun.

Any advice or criticism would be appreciated, thanks.

My understanding is that fiber glass and wood framed camper like an old Bigfoot is less safe than a metal frame/skin camper because it does not provide the Faraday effect when hit by lighting… but is it dangerous enough to warrant waiting out a rolling thunder/rain storm in the truck cab?

I’m usually fairly risk adverse, but not sure how to handle this situation.

Also, tires do not provide any insulation when talking lightning.

So my question is, like the title says, how concerned are y’all about lightning? I’d like to here from owners of all camper types.

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So I’m trying to figure out my winch setup and I’m a little stumped. It seems like the bumpers with the highest max winch capacity for F450/F550 are designed for only 16.5k lbs, but the GVWR is 15k lbs on my F450. I’ve read an ideal winch capacity should be 1.5x GVWR, so don’t I need a a bumper and winch that can handle 20k+ lbs? Seems like what is available on the market does suite the weights of the vehicle.

I get that using a winch block with a 16.5k lb winch resolves the capacity issue, but then I’d be at half length.

What am I missing? I want to maximize self recovery options given my weight. Thanks.

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Yes it worked! Vendors be lying for some reason, liability? Idk. To future problem solvers: message me if you need any help.

I have looked everywhere but can’t find a definitive answer on this for 1999.5-2001 trucks. Is the man harness connection pin layout different?

My 2000 F450 7.3 ZF6 needs the top/main engine harness replaced. The harness that runs across the top of the motor and plugs into the valve covers, ICP/IPR, etc.

I know the 2002 and 2003 manual trucks had some harness differences and extra coolant sensor stuff, but from what I can tell my 2000 is the earlier simpler setup (VOAA strategy, Federal emissions).

I found the Prosource Diesel 99.5 to 01 Federal “auto” harness and visually it matches mine exactly:
- same routing
- same UVCH connectors
- same connector count
- same plugs everywhere

Only difference I can find is the replacement harness has the EBPV flap actuator connector in the valley and mine does not.

Prosource says it won’t work because it’s for an automatic truck, but I’m struggling to see what would actually be different on the engine side.

Has anyone actually used one of these “auto” harnesses on an early manual truck?

My 2000 F450 is having the following symptoms:
- Cold + ICP plugged in → no start
- Cold + ICP unplugged → starts, but rough
- Warm + ICP unplugged → somewhat better
- Warm + ICP plugged in → stumble at ~1800 RPM

When the truck is cold, it has trouble or won’t start with ICP plugged in. With the ICP unplugged, it usually starts and idles without issues, but sometimes will die after a minute of idle. After warming up it runs “fine” with the ICP unplugged, plugged in there is still the RPM stumble issue mentioned above.

I have replaced the ICP sensor and pigtail with Motorcraft parts. When replacing the pigtail I did not notice any oil wicking into the harness. The computer shows that the ICP voltage is around 1V, which I believe is correct.

The next thing I was going to replace was the IPR valve but I’m starting to think I should stop throwing parts at this and see a pro.

Any help is appreciated! Thanks.

(photo included for visibility)