Powerboost mild 'build' continuing...

[Sentinel1201]

I have been wheeling the Powerboost more than expected. We have done 3 family trips to CO and Utah since buying it last June and wheeled it with the entire family each time.

So far, I have ditched the factory fixed running boards (swapped with AMP powersteps), 35" KO2s, PPF to cover the sides of the truck, and have all my recovery gear and viair compressor. And truck has done great!

However, next trip is me and the wife going solo into Canyonlands national park white rim road for a week - you can be on that road for days and not see a soul so we want to be prepared. We aren't going to be doing hardcore rock crawling however we don't turn back from canyon passes and some sections get fairly hairy. Here is what I am thinking for next phase:

1. A mild 2" lift. I want to lift both front and back as I want to retain the factory rake (tow a lot and want to keep the factory airflow, don't like the leveled look)
2. A winch mounted on a hitch so that I can move it front or back. I also don't want to get into intercooler relocate and don't want a heavy winch sitting out front exposed to the weather all the time. Having it hitch mounted solves all those problems. (I already have zero gauge wiring going out to bed for my fridge with anderson connector)
3. Maxtrax or pullpal to have on hand?

Here are the parts I have lined up. Let me know what you guys think and whether you know of better components than what I came up with:

1. Front hitch: 2021 Ford F-150 Front Receiver Hitch - Curt (etrailer.com)
2. Rear lift block: 21-22 F150 Auto Spring 3" Rear Blocks BL214WD (stage3motorsports.com)
3. Falcon sport/tow haul shocks for 2.25” lift: SPORT TOW/HAUL SHOCKS | falcon (falconshocks.com) (part number: 05-04-32-400-002).
4. Winch. Amazon.com: X-BULL 12V Synthetic Rope Winch-13000 lb. Load Capacity Premium Electric Winch : Automotive (thinking of skipping the WARN and going with an off brand since it will be hitch mounted meaning won't even be exposed to the weather and sit in the garage / back of bed under tonneau most of the year)

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[UGADawg96]

Love these pics!

 

[DBL R]

Awesome pictures. I appreciate the info since I’m working towards building a better over-landing type truck while still having a nice daily driver for the family. If space is of concern gotreads makes a folding recovery track that has good reviews.

 

[Sentinel1201]

OK folks, parts are arriving.... @DBL R I took your tip and got the folding gotreads.

The compression adjustment on the rear shocks for what they call "tow/haul" is what suckered me into the Falcons. However, when they arrived, I realized fronts don't come with springs and pre-assembled, they only give you the shocks. Meaning I have to buy a spring compressor and take my stock springs out of my struts, or buy new springs which is not great. If I had known that I would have gone with Icon Stage 1 for the same price.

 

[Sentinel1201]

OK I have decided to get new springs for the falcons so I don't have to bother dis-assembling the stock struts. Can you guys tell me what else I need to order on top of springs? Are there any isolators, bump stops, nuts, washers, etc, that are part of the front struts???

 

[Sentinel1201]

OK, status update -

Front level and rear lift both installed. Went without a hitch (ha, see what I did there!) for the most part.

Front level kit install notes -

1. The cheap standing spring compressor I bought on Amazon did not prove up to the task of compressing the front springs. The welds on the compressor tool started to break so we just took the struts to local shop and they did it - added a bit more to the cost of the project, but went smoothly. Our trucks' springs are extremely tough so budget for a solid wall mounted compressor ($1k) or paying a local shop for this part of the project.
2. We did the front struts on the ground, and did not remove the rotor/hub/IWE line etc. like most of the youtube videos say to do. I did it like I did struts on my previous raptor - disconnected the swaybar, upper control arm and lower control arm and got enough clearance to pull the stock strut out once you pry the LCA down. The falcons go on much easier due to the through bolt design for lower mount instead of those silly rivet bolts that stick down far under on the stock strut.
3. The top nuts for the struts are very easily accessible on the driver's side and on the passenger side, two of them are easy to get to but the third one is buried. Takes a bit of finangling. Ratcheting wrench is a must.
4. The overall quality of the Falcon components and hardware seems very well made. Except for the bottom seal on the strut. I hit the zerk my grease gun and within 2 pumps the seal just broke loose. And it has no lip and is just sort of seated on so we aren't convinced this is going to last. hmmm....
5. Post lift, the stock UCA *may* make very slight contact with the spring upon full droop and dynamic loads. It does not make contact with the truck just standing there not moving, but its very close to the spring. Not a big concern, but just something to keep in mind.
6. Front end lifted quite a bit. We think we got more than the 2.25" and hope it settles a bit after a few miles.

Then came the rear lift blocks. For this, we put the rear of the truck on my lift so that we can let the axle droop.

1. Went without any trouble and I got most of my factory rake back (front level was 2.5" and rear lift was 1.75")
2. The falcon website will say that the rear shocks in the normal travel kit can "handle rear lifts of about 1 inch" I called and spoke to them and said Im doing a 1.75" lift in rear and asked if I should buy their long travel rear shocks instead. They said no, and advised sticking to the normal and said it would be fine.
3. The falcon adjustable damping rear shocks come with their own bump stops and striker plates. Machining quality of the components is top notch.
4. The 3" leveling block from stage3motorsports came with the right rounded ubolts suitable for our 2021 trucks. They are a tad too long so if you really wanted you can trim the bottoms once you install but I didn't bother.

Then came the front hitch and winch install.

• The curt front hitch needed to be bent out a bit to fit over the front frame welds. We used the broken front spring compressor for this and it worked ha.
• We used 350 amp anderson connectors for front and back of truck - I already had zero gauge wire going to my bed with a 175 amp connector, so we just upgraded that connector to 350 and installed a new 350 connector for the front.
• The "x-bull" winch seems pretty good. Synthetic rope, two wireless remotes as well as a wired remote.
• The front hitch is the part that I am least satisfied with. It hangs pretty low (I think its made to work with the silly factory airdam in place) and I am sure I will scrape it out on the trails. I don't know if any of the other brand hitches are better, but I am not thrilled with the Curt hitch to be honest. If anyone finds a better hitch that tucks up better, let me know and it would be worth replacing mine eventually.

Here's the final before and after photo. I am quite happy with the end result. Truck definitely feels a lot taller without going way over the top. And looking forward to the ride quality improvements with the new shocks especially while towing.

 

[desertlivin]

This is a great write-up. I have been wanting to give the truck a little lift to do some of the same type of off roading you are doing. However, my primary use is towing. Your experience here is very helpful.

 

[Sarynnus]

How come you have wiring going to the bed for the fridge as opposed to plugging it directly into the bed of the truck since you have the Pro Power Onboard Generator?

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