the f350 like this might be hard to come by, let me know if you know where a clean one for sale is, thx, rm
the 350 has bigger brakes than a 250 in these years correct ?

F250 and F350 are virtually identical in those years, except for a little bit stonger rear springs and taller blocks in the rear suspension. You do want the F350 though. The brakes are identical.

There is no such thing as too much truck. Go for the F350 Dually. I absolutely love mine, and plan to drive it for a LONG time. I would aim for 2000-2003 with the 7.3L. I found a sweet deal on the very top of the line 2000 dually (Lariat LE) with 59,000 miles on www.cars.com . Also keep your eyes on www.ebay.com and www.autotrader.com . I always thought the dually was too much truck and would be a hassle. Its actually a LOT nicer driving one as you know you have that much more piece of mind when towing.

i hear you but the thing is im moving to costa rica and a dually is out of the questions for a lot of the roads and driving in san jose would be a nightmare, the rear fenders would be torn of in a week and i'll be towing with the truck like 3% of the time. im going with a 4x4 crewcab short box f350 if a i can find a nice one if not a f250. but thx for your input, rm

The 99.5 is the truck that started the better 7.3L upgrades, but get the 2000 if you can; as they worked out more bugs.

In the case of a dually not feasable, make sure you have airbags installed on your SRW truck. Have your airbags installed with either separate air fittings, or the ability to use an on-board compressor, and fill each bag individually. Its a much more sound system this way. These REALLY improve the towing and payload handling ability of any truck.