Big Blue, A matte wrapped, do it all, OEMish build

[somecatchyphrase]

The build as ordered in Fall of 2022:
2023 F150 XLT 302a Sport 4x4 SuperCrew 6.5ft bed 3.73 gears 5.0 engine in Atlas Blue Metallic

At the time of this original post I have had my truck for a few months shy of three years and am finally making the time to do a retroactive build thread. I spent a good portion of 2022 theorycrafting and building out my dream truck on the Ford builder website. In an effort to make as informed decisions as possible I became the ultimate forum creeper, scouring every thread for any tidbit of knowledge and wisdom that may aid my quest to build my dream truck. I found the most useful information to come from when users of this forum took extra time to explain their thoughts/reasoning/theories/justifications behind why certain mods were done and choices made. I found that to be very helpful in guiding my own decision making. I will attempt to share my own thoughts about philosophy of use with this build in the hopes that others will be able to make well informed decisions (and for my own selfish desire to have my own truck porn thread).

After many months I had accumulated dozens, if not hundreds of hours of forum creeping. Alas, I finally felt I had enough knowledge/insight to place a well thought out order for a new F150. The order was placed on 10/11/22 and to my great surprise the truck was built and available for pickup just 10ish weeks later. I drove Big Blue home the day after Christmas of 2022.

First sighting after being delivered to the dealership on a stormy day:

Stock with factory paint job shinned up as best as I can get it on a sunny day:

Window Sticker

The Truck as it currently sits in Fall of 2025 loaded down for a family camping trip to the Florida Keys:

As an aside: This “Big Blue” F150 is an homage to my first and only vehicle before this, “Little Blue” a 2001 Ranger Edge:

Over time I will update the thread in semi-chronological order of what got the truck to this point, and of what is to come. Thank you for reading.

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[jrt_197]

Nice truck! I take it you did not wrap the truck yourself? I am trying to wrap my f150 with a satin wrap but it’s hard finding someone who can provide quality film since I’m not a certified installer.

 

[somecatchyphrase]

Did not wrap the truck myself. I briefly looked into the possibility but quickly decided it was not a DIY job. I have PPF on my truck which, as I understand it, is much thicker and difficult to work with than the more common vinyl wraps. Vinyl wraps are thinner and easier to work with so maybe more of a DIY option.

I also realized that all of the legit PPF manufactures only sell their product to licensed installers, though I'm sure you could find some black market PPF.

 

[somecatchyphrase]

By far the biggest cosmetic (and costly) change planned for the truck was to matte-out the Atlas Blue shine. I did quite a bit of research and opted for Xpel Stealth PPF and had it installed by a local wrapping shop about 2 months into ownership. I decided on Paint Protection Film (PPF) vs a vinyl wrap because 1) I like the factory Atlas Blue color 2)PPF is thicker and more like having thicker skin on the exterior capable of deflecting small rocks and minor abrasions and 3) this PPF is allegedly self-healing, capable of fixing small scraps in the film when heated up (more on my disappointment with this feature later).

The shop had the truck for a full week. 1 day for a complete detail and paint correction (not that much was needed being a new truck, but I figured I wanted the factory paint as close to perfect as it can be before getting mummified). Two days to wrap the majority of the truck, and another 2-3 days addressing peeling edges and spending more time on the difficult parts to wrap (hood, tailgate). Below are photos provided by the shop:

A preview of what it is going to look like:

Leading up to this there was so much internal conflict about this major modification, especially since it is ultimately just a cosmetic change. Alas, after seeing the truck complete my heart was lifted and it still makes me smile every time I gaze upon its beauty. Big Blue took a big step towards its final form on this day.

 

[Eighthtry]

If internal conflict means the wife, first, she says, "I thought we talked about this and you were going to wait until 2029 to buy a new truck".

You, feigning ignorance, say "when did we discuss that?"

She says "while you were drinking beer and scarfing Frito's and watching the Super Bowl. So you did it anyway? I told you we did not need a new truck. Your 2011 with the Fred Flintstone brakes should last at least 5 more years. Now that you screwed that up you are going to throw more good money at it to cover up the paint??? The only thing I like about that truck is the blue paint because it complements my eyes. And now here I am stuck driving this ratty old 2023 BMW until my new one comes in January."

So you obviously heard "Fire away big boy. I did not want Christmas presents anyway".

She now has one of three decision to make.

Do I keep him and make him sell the truck?

Do I keep him if he gives me the truck?

Or, do I just take the truck for myself and give him the POS BMW?

Guys have no say in these decisions. The original conversation never occurred because you don't remember it, which is a fact. I had the same discussion with my wife about my Z06 which I don't remember, but she remembers me having 7 2/3 beers and 2 bags of Dorito's with a "best by 8 23 2021" stamped on them and the Chiefs won.

I survived my escapade by going to wally world and buying her a pair of beaded necklaces for $7. She glared at me when I gave them to her because I did not wrap them.

Speaking of wrap, that gray tint in the wrap is what makes it pop for me. It seems a very subtle change, but completely changes the look and character of the truck. If I was ordering one it would be in that color with the wrap and add a Ford Whipple supercharger. Then I bring it home and tell her it makes her blue eyes poop pop.

 

[Eighthtry]

By the way, that SuperCab is the best choice. I had to buy used because I wanted a SuperCab and they no longer made it in Lariat trim. I did not get the color I wanted, but I get over that stuff quickly. The second seat is perfectly usable. I never have more than the wife in it anyway.

 

[somecatchyphrase]

If internal conflict means the wife, first, she says, "I thought we talked about this and you were going to wait until 2029 to buy a new truck".

You, feigning ignorance, say "when did we discuss that?"

She says "while you were drinking beer and scarfing Frito's and watching the Super Bowl. So you did it anyway? I told you we did not need a new truck. Your 2011 with the Fred Flintstone brakes should last at least 5 more years. Now that you screwed that up you are going to throw more good money at it to cover up the paint??? The only thing I like about that truck is the blue paint because it complements my eyes. And now here I am stuck driving this ratty old 2023 BMW until my new one comes in January."

So you obviously heard "Fire away big boy. I did not want Christmas presents anyway".

She now has one of three decision to make.

Do I keep him and make him sell the truck?

Do I keep him if he gives me the truck?

Or, do I just take the truck for myself and give him the POS BMW?

Guys have no say in these decisions. The original conversation never occurred because you don't remember it, which is a fact. I had the same discussion with my wife about my Z06 which I don't remember, but she remembers me having 7 2/3 beers and 2 bags of Dorito's with a "best by 8 23 2021" stamped on them and the Chiefs won.

I survived my escapade by going to wally world and buying her a pair of beaded necklaces for $7. She glared at me when I gave them to her because I did not wrap them.

Speaking of wrap, that gray tint in the wrap is what makes it pop for me. It seems a very subtle change, but completely changes the look and character of the truck. If I was ordering one it would be in that color with the wrap and add a Ford Whipple supercharger. Then I bring it home and tell her it makes her blue eyes poop pop.

Ha, thank you for sharing the story. I often get asked if it has been color-changed vinyl wrapped. People tend to be surprised when tell them it is a factory color, but with matte (but really more satin) PPF on top.

 

[gb7FRz26]

Your roof rack sir - pray tell of it's origins.
There's like 327 versions to choose from for a Tacoma, 165 for a Ranger, and 0.7 roof racks available for our aluminum F150's.

 

[somecatchyphrase]

Your roof rack sir - pray tell of it's origins.
There's like 327 versions to choose from for a Tacoma, 165 for a Ranger, and 0.7 roof racks available for our aluminum F150's.

I drilled t slot tracks into my roof. I wrote about it in depth here:

https://www.f150gen14.com/forum/thr...t-on-yakima-roof-rack-installed-review.21771/

 

[BigBruce]

I was thinking of using the same matte style ppf to put some racing strips on the truck but in a phantom look on my antimatter blue. I really like how it looks on your truck,

 

[somecatchyphrase]

Go for it. If you end up not liking it the PPF can simply be peeled off.

What originally turned me onto the Matte PPF was the shop owner showing me his sports car where he did a partial wrap, following the trim body panels. The contrast looked sharp.

 

[somecatchyphrase]

I planned on doing these posts chronologically and I suppose I still will but since we are on the topic of PPF:

Since the photos of the original PPF application above were taken a little less than 3 years have passed so I guess this a long term review of how the Xpel Stealth PPF has been holding up/performing.

Overall I am still very happy with my investment. The matte/satin finish makes the truck for me and I routinely get complimented on it. I dare say that the overall sheen of it looks better today than it did when new after 3 years of laying ceramic coating and other products on top of it. Ceramic coating does not make it shinier, but I would say it makes the metal flake in the paint shimmer more. I like the look. In bright daylight it may be easy to not notice the matte wrap but I would say the wrap shines (pun intended) the most when it is overcast/not bright outside.

Not that I did this PPF wrap with the sole intent that "it is going to protect my paint" I would suspect that my paint underneath is in much better condition, if not pristine condition, than if I had not done the wrap. I plan for this to be a 20+ year truck for me so I'm happy keeping things as good as possible for as long as possible.

When I first talked to the shop about this project they were clear with me and said that from 3 feet away the truck will look perfect, but from 3 inches away you will be able to see seams where the matte wrap meets the unwrapped paint. I was also told that it should be expected to have to bring the truck back a few times to trim back edges as it ages. In the past two years I've taken the truck back 1 time to have slightly peeling edges in some areas and self inflicted damage to the wrap taken care of. The reality is that any deformation/lifting of the wrap is more noticeable than having a small amount of "shiny" blue visible.

My only letdown with this wrap is the "self healing" properties. I was under no illusion that if I drive into a bush, or take a direct impact from a large rock, or have an overhanging tree limb rip the crossbars off my roof rack and scrap the T-bolts across my roof that it would heal. However I am disappointed that some seemingly superficial pinstripes from narrow trails have not healed. All the damage described above was able to be addressed by the shop so that the trimming is not even noticeable 3+ feet away, but nothing can be done about those darn pinstripes. Fortunately, they are only visible on a perfectly clean truck and in certain sunlight.

Photo bomb incoming:

 

[MarkY]

Care to share what that wrap cost? I'm guessing between $6 and $8k.

 

[somecatchyphrase]

Care to share what that wrap cost? I'm guessing between $6 and $8k.

$8k. It included a full body detail/clay bar/paint correction prior to applying the PPF. So in theory I have pretty close to perfect paint hiding underneath.

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