Long time lurker finally introducing myself

[SCMatthew]

Hello All,
My name is Matt and I live in North county San Diego. We recently purchased a 2003 7.3L SMB Quigley with RB50 from a forum member. After eight years we decided to sell our 1987 Syncro Westy and get some more HP and A/C. We love BLM camping a this rig pretty much gets us there.
I have already fixed the rust on the roof where the penthouse rubbed through and I took it to John at Agile for a suspension upgrade. John and his crew at Agile off-road are a pleasure to do business with. Aluminess is going to upgrade the rear bumper later next month.
We took it on a couple of shakedown trips to JT and Anza before our weeklong trip to Telluride for the 44th Bluegrass Festival. Our first night was at the top of Schnebly Hill near Sedona. The road was a little more gnarly than I thought and I didn’t air down. We must have dinged a sidewall because the next day we blew out the front driver-side BFG. I have learned a couple of things: keep organized, 16 gallons of water doesn’t last long, carry the correct jack, and AIR DOWN!

I will be searching the threads on the forum for some more of my questions—but if you have a favorite please point me in the right direction.
Care and feeding of the 7.3L. What do I need to do to keep this sucker chewing up the road?
Is there a good service manual (this is my first diesel)?
Tools and spares to carry?
16” or 17” rims?
What do you carry in the Aluminess Baja box and bumpers?
Aluminess nerf bars? Worth it?
On board air?
Do you use the Porta Potti?
The aftermarket tape deck blew up. Recommendations on radio with an Aux?
Is the NorCold supposed to be loud and rattle?
Do the cabinets need to be tightened down after each rough road?
Is there an upgrade for the shower out the back of the RB50?
Anyone replace the water heater with a tankless?
What jack do you carry? I could have used a Hi Lift for the blow out.

Thank you very much for all of the help on this forum.
Matt

[86Scotty]

Welcome. Nice rig. The answers to most of your questions are buried here and covered many times. It's no problem to ask them again but in the meantime just read away.

I have a Vanagon Westy lately, but mostly a history of Ford vans. If you kept the bus running you'll do fine with the 7.3. Mostly I recommend earplugs for everyone and a bullhorn for when you need to speak.

[1der]

Matt - 86Scotty is just jealous of your 7.3.

You and I know better.

[boywonder]

17's allow for more brake upgrade options should the van affliction get really bad.....

[daveb]

Yes searching through Google will produce many results. Here are a few:

Care and feeding of the 7.3L. What do I need to do to keep this sucker chewing up the road?
Is there a good service manual (this is my first diesel)?
FORD SHOP MANUAL 3pc COMPLETE SET 2002 E150 E250 E350 | eBay

Tools and spares to carry?
http://www.sportsmobileforum.com/for...arry-3494.html

16” or 17” rims?
As mentioned, larger rims allow you to install bigger calipers. You might want to research tire availability in the 17” size in the E-range.

What do you carry in the Aluminess Baja box and bumpers?
Fuel, propane, Propane grill, Propane fire pit, wood cutting equipment and anything that is too filthy to put in the van. The little bumper storage has a couple hydraulic jacks and a set of chains.

Aluminess nerf bars? Worth it?
http://www.sportsmobileforum.com/for...rds-17238.html

On board air?
http://www.sportsmobileforum.com/for...ion-13656.html

Do you use the Porta Potti?
http://www.sportsmobileforum.com/for...otty-8156.html
Nope. Maybe in the future.

The aftermarket tape deck blew up. Recommendations on radio with an Aux?
Totally whatever you want. A bright display is nice, BT, USB and head phone jack are a must for me. A backup camera might be a good option.

Is the NorCold supposed to be loud and rattle?
http://www.sportsmobileforum.com/for...oise-2684.html

Do the cabinets need to be tightened down after each rough road?
I never have had to but I’ve found quite a few loose screws rolling around.

Is there an upgrade for the shower out the back of the RB50?
SMB sells an outside shower outlet for a wand you can plumb in.

Anyone replace the water heater with a tankless?
Espar + flatplate is what I have.

What jack do you carry? I could have used a Hi Lift for the blow out.
A Hi-Lift jack with the correct attachments is handy but a bottle jack is nice to keep on board as well. Some use a scissor jack.
http://www.sportsmobileforum.com/for...jack-8660.html
http://www.sportsmobileforum.com/for...jack-6297.html