I am going to look at trucks today and would like some input. Here is my senerio, the tw trucks are both diesel, 4x4, crew cabs with the short box. I am towing 11,500 pounds maybe 6 times a year. The truck will be my daily driver and I put 15-20k miles a year on my trucks. My fuel is paid for by my company. I am trying to deciede which way to go on the above two trucks. The price difference is only 1500.00 as I am a A plan child.


Thoughts....

Also is there a big difference in the ride quality of a 250 verses a 350.

What about a SRW verses a DRW?

What is the difference between the 350, 450 and 550? I assume it is just bigger axles and brakes.

Can you get a supercab, shortbed dually in the bigger ratings?
(can't in a 350)

The big diffrence in these trucks is the suspension, axles and brakes. I have an F-550 wich is a 19,000LB GVW truck where I think the 350 is 10,000LB. tow ratings are also much higher mine is 17,000LB. I dont think anything larger than a 450 is sold by Ford with a bed though, only as a cab and chassis but there are some aftermaket companys making beds for them now(I don't know why but I'm told the standard bed won't fit)

The standard bed of say a F350 is still shorter than the overall length of the F450 and 550's and actually ford only sells the 450 and 550 as cab chassis no bed, tried to get a 450 with one, would have had to go through an add-on compnay. Actually I think the 450 and 550 use bigger frames too. As far as the dually riding stiffer, that is the difference in the 350 and 250. The 350 does come with bigger springs than the 250, even with the single wheel, there maybe a bit more stiffness with the dually over the single but in my experiance not much. The 250 will offer a better ride, but i feel safer pulling the weight with the dually. As far as handling it yes it will, but the dually would be better for it. I drive my dually everyday and just order a new one. So if you can, I would get the better truck for towing, you get used to it driving, and the only issue is parking and again that gets easy too, just back it in. Heck my girlfriend even can drive and park it, with no fender loss yet......hopefully it stays that way.

I'm in the hunt as well. So explain what the difference is between the DRW and the SRW's?...

some of the ride difference for the worse in any dually is simply a matter of unsprung weight, that extra set of wheels and tires plus the hubs/spacers. several hundred lbs. there. Plus with the larger "contact patch" it isn't as easy for the suspension to work individually per side.

This is all abstract from the spring package itself.

Don't forget a good compliant shock can ease up the ride also dually or not. The Tennaco's (GM) on my HD are hittin' the dumpster here soon in favor of the Bilstien or adjustable Rancho. The Tennaco's are junk for dampning.

With the airbags installed, are they adjustable? If so how?

I just traded a 3/4 ton for a 1 ton dually 4x4. Only reason was for towing capacity. I used the 3/4 ton as a daily driver as well as the current 1 ton dually. Both trucks have the Banks Systems installed. I figured I might as well have fun with them since they will be my DD. I really liked the 3/4 Ton. I especially like the 1 Ton. I put air bags on the 1 ton and keep 5 pound in unless I am towing. As a daily driver, I'll take it anytime. As far as towing, never even new the 12K was back there from Alabama to Fort Wayne. Tows like a dream!

Just my .02

My AirLift has a compressor that I installed under the drivers side floor board. I ran airlines to a dual switch/dual guage assembly that I mounted under my sterring column. each switch adjusts each air bag individually. The guages show the amount and are pretty accurate. There are also relief buttons to let the air out for each side. Installed real easy. Not the most expensive on the market, but they work for what I needed them for. If you want I can send a some digital pics for you.