Rossmonster Truck Build – 2024 F350 (long wheelbase)

[gmoon]

The Baja Design LP4s have been installed. It was a long day, and it actually started yesterday afternoon. I went ahead and installed the SDHQ mounting brackets on my 2024 F350. The instructions were good, but not perfect. I also watched the YouYube video of a fellow forum member (@DIYRay), which helped a lot.

The first issue I ran into was that the attachment to the SDHQ mounting bracket (driver's side only) actually attached in a way that it touched the windshield when I tightened things down. That was a big NO to deal with. I reseated everything, but ended up with the same situation that when tightening things down it would touch the windshield and I was concerned about a pressure crack of the windshield. I decided to pull the attachment off and used an angle grinder to adjust it to my needs. That seemed to work and so I installed both mounting brackets and attachments on Friday afternoon/evening. I cleaned up everything ready to continue with the Baja Designs LP4 install on Saturday morning.

When I opened the hood on Saturday morning it made a loud bang kinda noise. When I investigated it turned out to be the hood scratching/rubbing on the area of the SDHQ bracket where the logo and the flag are displayed on the bracket. I took everything off and re-adjusted a few times, but while it cleared the windshield, it did not clear the hood. When I closed the hood on Friday night it already rubbed, but I also never opened the hood for testing once I had adjusted the attachment bracket.

After a couple more tries I got the angle grinder out again and removed the portion of the SDHQ mounting bracket that hit the hood. I finally had it all working and so moved on to install the BD LP4 lights. That was a non-event and then I build my own wiring harness as the Baja lights came without one. Overall, this went well, even though I had to remove the windshield wipers and the plastic cover at the outer hood area a few times to feed my cables and the Deutsch connector through.

I used 12 gauge wires, routed the cables to near the upfitter switch fuse box and then merged the cables from the left and right lights into one before connecting it to the upfitter switch #1 wire for power and attached the ground cable appropriately. In between I tested the lights and wiring and this all worked as expected.

During daylight the LP4 lights from Baja Design were already impressive, but when I went outside when it was almost fully dark - holy cow. Those LP4s mean serious business.

I was surprised and then not surprised about the SDHQ mounting brackets (drivers side) and that it was not a 100% fit. We're talking fractions of an inch or better - millimeters here. It really slowed me down and I still have to apply primer and pain to the main area where I shaved metal off to get this to work, but it was a warm day and I am fully exposed to the sun in my driveway that I decided to do that tomorrow.

When I checked out the lights this evening at 90%-95% darkness - holy cow. I can only imagine what "damage" LP6 or LP9 would do. My LP4s put out significantly more light compared to the Morimoto 4Bangers that I had I at my 2022 F250 Tremor.



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Install looks great, and the output on those LP4s is inane.

We let SDHQ know about your bracket dilemma and hope to get a resolution soon.

Im glad we were able to take care of you with the brackets and Baja LP4. If anyone else is looking to run something similar, reach out! We can hook you up with a forum discount!

 

[Chris-DTA]

Install looks great, and the output on those LP4s is inane.

We let SDHQ know about your bracket dilemma and hope to get a resolution soon.

Im glad we were able to take care of you with the brackets and Baja LP4. If anyone else is looking to run something similar, reach out! We can hook you up with a forum discount!

Thanks, man. Very happy with your service, help, advice, and everything!!!! Will definitely buy from you again when the time comes

 

[gmoon]

We are here whenever you're ready..

We'll be heading to Buckstop/TrailReady soon to pick up something fun before Expo. Excited about it

Did you get yours ordered?

 

[Chris-DTA]

We are here whenever you're ready..

We'll be heading to Buckstop/TrailReady soon to pick up something fun before Expo. Excited about it

Did you get yours ordered?

Rossmonster is procuring all the necessary hardware for my truck - including the Buckstop Outback front bumper, winch, Carli Pintop, and a lot more. It is actually really good with how they structure the purchase and build process. Everything will be ordered a long time in advance to avoid lead time issues or a supply chain crisis. I had to put more money down initially so that they can do so, but in the end this means that the moment I will drop off the truck they will have literally everything ready to go. I do not have to worry about anything accordingly.

 

[gmoon]

Rossmonster is procuring all the necessary hardware for my truck - including the Buckstop Outback front bumper, winch, Carli Pintop, and a lot more. It is actually really good with how they structure the purchase and build process. Everything will be ordered a long time in advance to avoid lead time issues or a supply chain crisis. I had to put more money down initially so that they can do so, but in the end this means that the moment I will drop off the truck they will have literally everything ready to go. I do not have to worry about anything accordingly.

Love that! Its good that they make it easy. Just know the buckstop range allows for a lot of customization for lights, so you dont have to only get 2x in the bumper, etc.

I cant wait to see how yours ends up!

 

[Chris-DTA]

I just published a new video about why I chose the Rossmonster Baja over the competition.

 

[Chris-DTA]

New video drop. It took me a long time to commit to a flatbed. Initially, I just could not get myself to cut up that brand-new Tremor and install a flatbed. In this video I will go into more details, but also provide some thoughts about what to consider if you are in a similar situation related to a truck camper.

 

[Chris-DTA]

In my 2022 I had the Builtright Dashmount and even routed power to it so that I could add a USB outlet to it. That was the plan for my 2024 as well.

Installed the Builtright Dash Mount today and failed to complete this today. Lol The dash mount is fairly easy to install. I did it in my 2022 and so I figured it should not be too difficult in my 2024 either. Oh, boy …

I watched the Builtright installation video and it seemed straightforward. Removed the speaker cover first and that was easy. Don’t remove the speaker they said – well, screw that. Broke the plastic trim around where the speaker goes because those 2024 clips did not let go easily. With the clips being so picky, I'd highly recommend to remove the speaker so that you can properly grab the tray and get the clips to release the tray.

I removed the speaker and then was able to remove the tray. Lost 5 clips along the way. As mentioned I broke a part of the tray where the speaker is and fixed it by using a ligher to heat the plastic and push it back together.

I then installed the dash mount and the support plate. Now I switched over to get power routed to the tray location. This was easy in the 2022, but the 2024 turns out to be more challenging.

I checked where my USB port would go and found a good location to install it. Once that was done I got into the truck and fed the wires from the dash mount area towards the passenger side of the truck where the fuse box is. But when I checked, there was no fuse box. Had to Youtube it. They moved the fuse away from the side panel. Once I had it located I identified the fuse that I wanted to use for my “add-a-fuse” adapter. But where to put the ground wire?

Finding a ground location in the 2022 was easy, but not in the 2024. I am still struggling with that, but for other reasons. I think I found a ground and connected everything. Fortunately, I had decided not to install the dash mount all the way as I wanted to test the electrical first and I am glad I did. The USB ports did not light up. I swapped fuses and fuse locations. Nothing. I was confident in my wiring, but after more troubleshooting I got concerned. Maybe the ground I had was actually aluminum? So, I wired a quick ground wire from the engine compartment to test things out. Nothing. I moved to different fuses and all that stuff – nothing. I cut a 12v adapter with a USB outlet, and use the wiring to connect to USB adapter. Well, there – nothing. 90 minutes of troubleshooting wasted due to a faulty USB outlet.

I was cooking out there in the sun and this was so frustrating. I decided to cut my losses for the day and finish up the dash mount, but not the wiring.

Finding a good ground location seems to be most challenging part of this. I identified a location in the passenger side foot area, but it is very difficult to get to. I am probably just using a splice connect and hook it into the one ground cable that is attached in that location. This area is so difficult to get, I do not see any other option unless I would pull a new connection through the firewall, but we’re talking low voltage USB stuff here.

At least the dash mount is installed and I can mount my phone, the GoPro, and down the road an ipad. I have a new USB USB outlet on order and if it comes early enough I will install it tomorrow – otherwise, next weekend.

 

[TRAMPER]

FWIW, and this really shouldn’t change your install but Aluminum should be a fine ground. Hell wiring was made aluminum for a long time.

Doesn’t really help with your issues but just as an aside.

I’m sure it’ll look great when it’s all done!

 

[Chris-DTA]

FWIW, and this really should change your install but Aluminum should be a fine ground. Hell wiring was made aluminum for a long time.

Doesn’t really help with your issues but just as an aside.

I’m sure it’ll look great when it’s all done!

I did not know. Really? You're telling me this now?! lol Get outta here ....

Now I started googling this. Unbelievable! It may be enough to get this situation going. lol There is a couple of locations. I was losing my mind today troubleshooting this and really questioned my own wiring work (and I am really careful from that perspective).

 

[MrFancypants]

Is there no dash subframe? The whole thing should be grounded to the chassis. Can’t believe Ford could make it rigid enough without a steel frame somewhere.

 

[Chris-DTA]

Is there no dash subframe? The whole thing should be grounded to the chassis. Can’t believe Ford could make it rigid enough without a steel frame somewhere.

There were a few things that I think would qualify, but I literally wasted hours to troubleshoot this stupid thing. I even made a custom wire connection to go straight from the engine bay ground inside the cab lol

The new USB port arrived today and I will pick this up again later this week after the holiday.

 

[Blue Devil]

There were a few things that I think would qualify, but I literally wasted hours to troubleshoot this stupid thing. I even made a custom wire connection to go straight from the engine bay ground inside the cab lol

The new USB port arrived today and I will pick this up again later this week after the holiday.

I was doing something similar and realized real quick there isn't the same amount of room as the previous MY's.....Interested to see if you get the Fast Charging capability with the new USB ports.

 

[Chris-DTA]

I was doing something similar and realized real quick there isn't the same amount of room as the previous MY's.....Interested to see if you get the Fast Charging capability with the new USB ports.

The ones that are coming in are fast-charging. They are flat at the bottom and there is plenty of room for the wires. Just need to get the power connection into place. I'll pick this up on Friday or Saturday this week and finish it then.

 

[Blue Devil]

The ones that are coming in are fast-charging. They are flat at the bottom and there is plenty of room for the wires. Just need to get the power connection into place. I'll pick this up on Friday or Saturday this week and finish it then.

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These were the ones I was looking at on Amazon when I saw what you were using..... Great minds!

 

[Chris-DTA]

These were the ones I was looking at on Amazon when I saw what you were using..... Great minds!

Ha, very cool. Good to have a second pair of eyes on this as well. I'll let you know when I have 'em installed.

 

[Blue Devil]

Ha, very cool. Good to have a second pair of eyes on this as well. I'll let you know when I have 'em installed.

What size fuse and which fuse did you tap into?

 

[Chris-DTA]

What size fuse and which fuse did you tap into?

I finished this up today. Initially, I had planned to use fuse #15 (5A), and while it worked, it turned out that #15 is always hot—even with the truck turned off. #15 is for the "Center high-mounted stop lamp camera" over the bed. I am concerned about a potential power draw with an always hot circuit, so I switched to #20 (inverter). It only turns on when the truck starts.

For the ground connection I stuck to the passenger foot area as there was easy access. One note regarding the add a fuse. The 23/24s have their passenger side fuse box location different from the 2022s and before. It looks like you cannot re-attach the lid/cover once the add-a-fuse connecter has been inserted. I did not want to mess around too much and cause any damage by accident. So, I only attached one side of the lid/cover and then re-installed the carpet cover as it sits right below the cover and keeps it in place. Not ideal, but good enough and completely out of the way.

PS: I removed the springs from the sliding USB port covers as I found it difficult to access the ports, but I will have short USB cables connected at all times anyway.

PS II: The fast charging works like a champ.

 

[Blue Devil]

I finished this up today. Initially, I had planned to use #15 (5A), and while it worked, it turned out that #15 is always hot—even with the truck turned off. #15 is for the "Center high-mounted stop lamp camera" over the bed. I am concerned about a potential power draw with an always hot circuit, so I switched to #20 (inverter). It only turns on when the truck starts.

For the ground connection I stuck to the passenger foot area as there was easy access. One note regarding the add a fuse. The 23/24s have their passenger side fuse box location different from the 2022s and before. It looks like you cannot re-attach the lid/cover once the add-a-fuse connecter has been inserted. I did not want to mess around too much and cause any damage by accident. So, I only attached one side of the lid/cover and then re-installed the carpet cover as it sits right below the cover and keeps it in place. Not ideal, but good enough and completely out of the way.

PS: I removed the springs from the sliding USB port covers as I found it difficult to access the ports, but I will have short USB cables connected at all times anyway.

PS II: The fast charging works like a champ.

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Great stuff! I have a fuse tap in place in that fuse box for my dash cam. I had to strategicly think of where I wanted the wire to come out from.

I ordered these and got them in today and those springs are just so dumb anyway. That design doesn't make any sense to me either.

For the fuse you put in, it's still a 5 amp fuse right. Is this right? That's my plan as well when I finish planning this out a bit more.

 

[Chris-DTA]

Great stuff! I have a fuse tap in place in that fuse box for my dash cam. I had to strategicly think of where I wanted the wire to come out from.

I ordered these and got them in today and those springs are just so dumb anyway. That design doesn't make any sense to me either.

For the fuse you put in, it's still a 5 amp fuse right. Is this right? That's my plan as well when I finish planning this out a bit more.

Correct, 5 amp for the fuse. I used a wire-fish to pull the wiring up. Was super easy to do. For the dashcam I've been using the Dongar adapter right at the mirror. PS: I used size M6 for the bolts/nuts to attach the USB outlet to the dashmount.