Trucks For Sale Here

Long Bed Conversion

The first order of business on Project LBMC was to get rid of that silly short bed. Seriously, Dodge, you give us a truck with a giant, spacious cab, a rock-solid diesel tractor engine, solid drive train, and what ... a short bed? Really? What are we supposed to do with that? Put our kids’ bicycles in the back? Or maybe an ATV if we leave the tailgate down? We need an 8-foot bed to haul motorcycles, ATVs and plywood. And especially to pull a 5th wheel or gooseneck trailer. Crunched cab corners tend to be a real eye sore.

We took the Mega Cab to Precision Bodyline in North Salt Lake, Utah, where they have performed more than 120 long bed Mega Cab conversions. They cut, lengthened and reinforced the frame, moved the rear axle back 20 inches, lengthened brake lines, exhaust, the driveline, wiring and installed a Dodge factory long bed. Precision also installed a Pop-Up 30,000-pound rated gooseneck hitch, a set of AirLift Load Lifter 5000 air bags, and finally, a WirelessAir compressor and wireless remote control to regulate and adjust the airbags.

We are very happy with the long bed conversion on this truck. This is definitely our favorite upgrade. The long wheelbase of the LBMC is excellent for hauling heavy loads in the bed and pulling heavy trailers. It rides more smoothly than stock and with much more stability. When towing large gooseneck trailers down the highway at night, it’s easy to forget they’re behind you when you don’t see them in the daylight. All of the welds and finish on the frame are in great shape. No cracks, indications of stress or sagging are present on the frame or body.

Read the Full Article
 

© October 2009 Issue, Diesel Tech Magazine

A MEGA CAB DUALLY THE WAY DODGE SHOULD OF MADE IT

"We took our new 2007 5.9 L Mega Cab 3500 DRW to Precision Bodyline in North Salt Lake, UT, to have it stretched to proper specifications. We chose Precision to do the job because their solution to the conversion has been engineered for maximum strength and they have extensive experience (64 trucks to date).

People ship their trucks to these guys from all over the country. Precision knows what works and what doesn't. We also liked the fact that Precision is a collision repair shop, so they have all the equipment and tools necessary to properly align frames of damaged vehicles, making us feel better about simply extending our new, straight frame.

For those of you who have seen long bed Mega Cab trucks on the road across the country with sagging frames under a heavy load, fear not. A few different shops have attempted the conversion, but Precision Bodyline has mastered it. They've eliminated the possibility for sag by engineering their frame splice to be placed in the center of the bed, above the rear axle, cradled between the spring mounts. This way, there is less stress placed directly on the splice. Most trucks experience sagging when the frame is spliced under the cab, where the splice is forced to support the weight and load of the truck in two equal halves.

Another benefit to splicing the frame under the bed is that it gives a gooseneck or fifth-wheel hitch a more secure attachment. The reinforced splice is thicker and more rigid than the factory frame where these hitches attach. Finally, consider the fact that they don't have to re-locate cab mounts, fuel tank mounts, fuel lines and cross members (like their competitors do), keeping as much of the factory setup in place as possible."

Read the Full Article

© October 2008 Issue, Diesel Tech Magazine.