| djm Drop Kits Ford Trucks custom Ford Trucks
When it came time to drop a Ford for this issue, we contacted another mover and shaker in the industry, Larry Wiener, from Performance West Group (PWG). Larry partnered with Jason from Hulst Customs to build a killer set of Fords for the SEMA Show, which are featured in this very issue. Both of the trucks were statically dropped using DJM gear at Hulst Customs. The '09 F-150 features a new set of lower control arms to bring the front down, while the '08 F-350 uses a new set of dropped I-beams. Out back, both trucks received a flip kit and some shackles to close the gap between the truck and the ground. Both trucks roll on Pirelli rubber and big shiny wheels to complement the new stance. Check out the sidebar for more information on the rolling stock.
| 2009 Ford F150 djm Drop Kit
What's In The Box?F-150: To drop the F-150 3/4, Jason picked up this kit from DJM. It consists of a set of Calmax control arms for the front and a flip kit out back. The Calmax control arms are made from seamless DOM tubing and feature urethane pivot bushings with twin-tube sleeves. The Calmax arms lower the truck by moving the spring pocket down and the lower ball joint up, relative to each other and the frame. The flip kit moves the axle from beneath the leaf spring to on top of the leaf spring. DJM makes the flip kits with adjustable axle locator brackets, which gives you the ability to rotate the axle to the proper pinion angle instead of using shim plates.
| 2009 Ford F350 djm Dream Beams
F-350: To get the big F-350 down, a set of DJM Dream Beams and another flip kit was used. The Dream Beams are tubular in design, using thick-wall DOM material. Each tube is larger than the next so that they can be slipped together and welded in a radial manner. This prevents the beams from tweaking during construction for a more precise fit. DJM does it this way because there is no way to adjust caster with beams because it is set by the construction of the part. All of the suspension products from DJM feature a hammer-tone powdercoated finish for good looks and durability.
| djm Drop Kits Ford Trucks tire
Rubbers N' Rounds!No dropped custom truck would be complete without a new set of shoes. A total of ten new rollers came in the front door of Hulst Customs. The F-150 got a set of two-piece 22-inch GT rims from Rodtana. These are machined to look similar to what you would find on a classic Mustang, but in a six-lug bolt pattern. The F-350 went a little bigger with a set of 24-inch Calibers from American Force wheels. These billets feature the big-rig lug pattern for true big truck machismo. A special adapter is sold with the wheels to convert the F-350 to the big bolt pattern. Each rim was shod with new rubber from Pirelli in the way of the Zero Asimmetrico. The F-150 rolls on 305/40ZR22s and the F-350 features 295/40ZR24s.
The Final WordWe think every truck looks good lowered down on shiny wheels, but the Fords look really bitchin. As you can tell, this is not a bolt-by-bolt install of the products, but it should give you a good idea of what it takes to drop either of these trucks. If you need more information on how to do it, DJM has complete instructions on its web site. Now if you just don't feel like building a truck by yourself, you could always commission Jason at Hulst Customs to do it all for you.
