Power Wagon Registry

Got the Thuren parts (Track Bar and Short Arms) put on this weekend. Had it aligned to Thuren specs, and the truck is running very nicely. I did not notice much difference in the feel of the suspension, but I have not done any hard driving with it yet. My suspension was not worn out yet either. However, the quality in the parts from the factory to the Thuren stuff is remarkable. These arms and bar are very stout. I think they will be great. No more rubbing, and I can turn as sharp as I want now. Overall, I am very happy with having the bigger tires and the new parts!

ghaugo wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 26, 2018 10:27 pm

Got the Thuren parts (Track Bar and Short Arms) put on this weekend. Had it aligned to Thuren specs, and the truck is running very nicely. I did not notice much difference in the feel of the suspension, but I have not done any hard driving with it yet. My suspension was not worn out yet either. However, the quality in the parts from the factory to the Thuren stuff is remarkable. These arms and bar are very stout. I think they will be great. No more rubbing, and I can turn as sharp as I want now. Overall, I am very happy with having the bigger tires and the new parts!

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congratulations on the new suspension parts, I think you’ll be pleased with your decision!

How do you like your topper? I've been thinking about getting one for my '13 and am leaning towards the ARE Z Series. Mind if I ask how much it ran you? Did you get any special features/add-ons? How is the visibility out the back?

I really like the topper so far. The visibility is very good, pretty normal for a topper. There are only 2 things I think could be improved. The back window handle seems like it may be prone to failure, and the side vent windows are finicky about closing. The mechanism seems a little weak. Other than that, it looks very good, and it has made the truck much more useful for my needs.

I think I paid around $2,500 for mine. I got carpeted headliner and normal rear light. The add on's were expensive to go with more.

I see you're in ND too. I grew up in Fargo before I left for the Army. I go back every year once or twice to see my folks. Hope this info helps!

I noticed the chrome/plastic on my grille started to wrinkle up, so I began looking for a replacement grille. The factory ones were very expensive, so I decided to go a different route. I got it installed and it looks pretty cool....very cool for $149. The LEDs are yellow and they turn on along with the parking and clearance lights. I know it looks a little Raptorish, but I still thought it was a good look and even better price.
I also ordered some Overland Shocks from DamageWagon, so I will be upgrading from the factory Bils as soon as they arrive!

I got a box of Thuren Overland Shocks today. Took off the factory Bilstein and replaced them with the Overlands. The driver side front is a pain in the butt to get in and out. I also got the shock boots, but they don't seem to attach that well, so I may cut them off. I took the truck for a test drive and it seems to be firm but very good over bumps. The factory shocks were not bad for me, but the truck seemed to bounce and rebound several times when hitting speed bumps etc.

I talked to DamageWagon, and he got me set up with the Overlands since I do mostly city driving, towing, and some slow speed off-road driving. I am very pleased so far, and I will update on later use.

Sweet Gar!! I think those shocks are underrated for general purpose use. I’d be interested to hear what you think when you put some weight in the bed or tow the next time!

ghaugo wrote: ↑

Sat Jan 05, 2019 10:17 pm

I got a box of Thuren Overland Shocks today. Took off the factory Bilstein and replaced them with the Overlands. The driver side front is a pain in the butt to get in and out. I also got the shock boots, but they don't seem to attach that well, so I may cut them off. I took the truck for a test drive and it seems to be firm but very good over bumps. The factory shocks were not bad for me, but the truck seemed to bounce and rebound several times when hitting speed bumps etc.

I talked to DamageWagon, and he got me set up with the Overlands since I do mostly city driving, towing, and some slow speed off-road driving. I am very pleased so far, and I will update on later use.

Heck yea, let us know how you like em. When I go with the Thuren kit, I am pretty sure I am just gonna do the white body shocks also. Sounds like I use my truck a lot like you do (mainly DD, towing travel trailer, and light/minimal off roading). I think they are all I probably need.

Hey, out of curiosity, I was on the AMSOIL website in your sig... Im looking to do drivetrain oil replacement, and trying to figure out how much oil for each location... is there any info for this on the website?

olyelr wrote:
Hey, out of curiosity, I was on the AMSOIL website in your sig... Im looking to do drivetrain oil replacement, and trying to figure out how much oil for each location... is there any info for this on the website?

Enter your vehicle information on the Amsoil website and it will tell you the fill capacities.


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Low_Sky wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 07, 2019 6:59 pm

olyelr wrote:
Hey, out of curiosity, I was on the AMSOIL website in your sig... Im looking to do drivetrain oil replacement, and trying to figure out how much oil for each location... is there any info for this on the website?

Enter your vehicle information on the Amsoil website and it will tell you the fill capacities.


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Thats what I thought, but I could not find it. I entered my vehicle info and it directed me to fluids to use, but I cant find the capacities for each.

Oh for cripes sake! I found it

Glad you found the info you're looking for. If you ever run into an issue with finding something on the site, I would recommend calling Amsoil. They actually have real, helpful, people that work for Amsoil not some call center who will assist you with questions, orders, etc. I have always found them to be very helpful. They have a Technical Services group as well who assist with technical questions. Amsoil as a company seems to be what I would call "good people." They make great products and they work hard on the customer service end.

Additionally, if you have any questions feel free to give me a call, email, or PM. I usually check this site most days, but I was tied up on some other work. Feel free to contact me if you have any other questions, I would be happy to help.

As far as the usage of your truck, it does sound very similar to mine. I am looking forward to towing my camper out to Moab in March to do some wheeling' and family stuff. I will tell you after a week of using the shocks, I am very impressed. They seem to be firm but smoother overall. The biggest difference I notice is over RR crossings on a downhill (we have one such area that was always rough at the posted 40mph limit). This particular crossing was totally tamed with the new shock setup. At that point, even my young kids noticed! If you switch, I believe you will be happy. Excited to try some towing starting this spring!

I had to remove my sliders as the Aluminess body mounting system did not work well. They sent me some parts to attempt a fix, but it would still be body mounted. I have decided against that, so I am going to have the Aluminess sliders modified and mounted to the body in a similar fashion to the White Knuckle ones. I figured I did not want to waste the current ones, and it is less than half to have them welded, painted and mounted. The shop I am using has done a few jobs for us at work, and they are great. I have had no sliders for a while, and the kids will be happy to have a step again.

I also debated between a tuner and just calibrating my speedometer. I was on the fence with the tuner, so I got the Hypertech calibrator for the truck and set the size today. My 315s are measuring 33.5" on the truck, and the speedo was only off about 3 mph at 60. I did not notice a great deal of change, but it does seem a little more light on the pedal. My mileage and odometer are working properly which satisfies my OCD about the truck.

I like the thought of putting a full tune on the truck, but I am hesitant to jump in for reliability issues. I have never used one before, and I want this truck to last. I figure the stock settings will be the most reliable ones to use, so I will leave it for now. I will update with pics of the sliders when they get on the truck. Hopefully this week!

Used a Hypertech speedometer calibrator to adjust for tire size, and I ended up getting better performance and mileage. The truck feels just like it did prior to the tire change. I also got sick of the squat when towing the camper, so I put on some Airlift Loadlifter 5000 ultimates with the internal bump stop. I used the Daystar cradles to keep my articulation, and so far, I love the way it handles with the camper attached. The cradles fit ok, but they are look like they are not quite centered. They seem to work fine, but I haven't taken it wheeling yet. I am working on some pictures.

I was able to make a trip to High Country Customs where I met with Ryan (the owner) and one of his employees, Thomas who put on the new bumper. They did a great job and fit me in even though the shop was officially closed for the holidays. I was going to head up last week, but we could not make it work that day. So, I took the 3 hour drive to Gypsum, CO where Ryan was nice enough to get me set up at his shop.

The bumper looks awesome! It is hard to see how nice it actually looks in pictures, kind of like looking at a trail in photos. They just don't do it justice. Ryan has a cool Powerwagon of his own, and he is an off-road buff as well. It was great to see them work, and I tried to stay out of their way. I have a DOR steering brace that needed a small amount of grinding to clear the bottom portion of the bumper, but other than that, it was smooth sailing. The powder coating was very nicely done, and the bumper is very stout! I didn't notice any difference in the front height of the truck. This bumper seems to be built up in the right spots without being overly heavy.

I am very happy with the bumper and the company. Ryan was very accommodating and he worked around my schedule to get me set up! I traded him a set of JW Speaker led lights that he had already mounted into the bumper. They fit the holes perfectly, and they are plug and play which is great.

I am very excited to get a chance to try out my rig with its much improved approach angle.

They started by removing the bumper and taking the bolts out of the winch cradle.

There are 2, shim plates that go inside between the frame and winch cradles. Once they were in, they lined up the holes and traced the outline for the bumper onto the front fender liners. They removed the bumper and trimmed the liners. I would have taken more pictures, but I always forget to get some of each step.

After grinding a bit of the edges on the DOR steering brace, the bumper lined up perfectly. I purchased some JW speaker LED lights which were plug and play for the factory harness. The factory harness was removed from the old bumper and zip tied above the winch once the bumper was tightened down. I was glad to have Ryan and Thomas mount the bumper since I did not have enough hands to do it myself. After watching them, I think I will be able to remove it I ever needed to, but it was nice to be able to see how it goes together.

After we were done, I took it outside and took a drive through the rockies in the snow. I really wanted to take some trails, but my time was running short. I am very happy this bumper is available again. I always liked the ones I saw on this forum, and now I have an opportunity to try it out. Now all I need is more money to spend on my truck that "really doesn't need any modifications."

It has been a while since I updated my build sheet, so I figured I would add some of my recent changes. I kept losing the center hubs on my wheels, so I took them off. The aluminum wheels were a bit scratched, and I wanted to switch to black wheels after I switched my front bumper. So....I decided to try some painting projects. I painted my wheels and then my rear bumper. The bumper had some dents and scratches, so I was looking to replace it with a black aftermarket one anyhow. I took a couple days of COVID lockdown to do some home body shop work! I used Duplicolor Ultimate Wheel Coating for the wheels, and they turned out way better than expected.

Next, I started working on the bumper. I sanded it down and pulled it all apart. Then primer and Rustoleum bumper paint in the front yard. Since I was in the mood, I did some Rustoleum version of Plastidip for the rear emblem. I had never used this before, but I figured what the heck. My emblem chrome was starting to peel anyway.

I was surprised again!

Now I had one project left. The side of my truck slid into a log during hunting season. It dented the bed just in front of the driver, rear wheel. There were some small dents in the corner of the cab and scratches too. I did some amateur body work with a body work hammer kit, and I got most of the softball sized dent out of the bed portion. The problem was the paint was destroyed and it looked like crap. The body shop wanted a ton of money to fix these, and I had a bunch of gravel chips on the lowe portion of the truck and pinch welds. I had been looking at having the lower part of the truck redlined, but they wanted $1200 just to do the bottom. Too rich for my blood, and I was having a blast doing my home bodyshop work. I figured I would give Monstaliner a try. I ordered a gallon kit to do my body and my sliders. I took the sliders off and did some prep work which was a pain in the butt.

It was a little nerve racking when I started sanding the black paint. Here is the pre-lined look.

After the prep work and cleaning. I had the wife help me with rolling on the Monstaliner. It was actually a lot of fun. I was unsure what it might look like, but again, I was very surprised. I did the sliders as well and put them back on. Now my truck has a new black textured look.

Other than having some dust and rain spots on it. I was thrilled! Now all my gravel rash is gone and the dent is harder to see. All total it cost me about $250 for all the mods in total. We are headed to Moab to get out of town in 2 weeks, so now the truck looks like a completely different beast! I am waiting to receive an Airlift Wireless One system and a spacer for my swaybar bushing. Other than that, I am about tapped out for mods. I got the Amsoil changed for the towing season, and I will put the other pieces together when I get some time this weekend.

I also did some pandemic offroading during the lockdown on the weekends. They encouraged people to get outside and stay away from others, so I thought that would be a great way to do it. My buddy and I went up with our rigs and did some snow wheeling. I noticed when I aired up my bags, I did not get axle hop like I was without air in the bags. It seemed to make a big difference in the snow traction ability. I figured it would be harder for the axle to hop with the heavier springs. Not sure if anyone has noticed this, but that caused me to order the onboard compressor. I will have to get out and try it again.

looks good! Nice job.

Hmmm. Giving me ideas for my '13. So is the Monstaliner like a rubbery bedliner type coating, or is it more of a hard plasticy coating? I've been thinking about coating my rocker panels and Maple sliders with something textured.

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The Monstaliner is rubbery when you put it on, and once it has cured it feels hard to the touch. It has texture from the rollers they have you use, but it is not gritty or really rough. It works great on my truck. It doesn't make the sliders super grippy, but it does add some texture. I will have to try using them for a while. The snow and ice are the worst on the sliders. They get down right dangerous.

Ghaugo, looks good!

Simon: Might want to look at Linex Platinum Armor coating has worked great for us on our truck bed & rocker panels. I know other folks have used other similar products,,,,