Ram-Rodding a Dodge Diesel

While most guys might think of a ramrod as something to prep or clean a gun barrel, it has a bunch of other meanings, as well (some of which we can’t mention in polite company). Any-way, the word also refers to somebody who takes charge and gets the job done, such as a trail boss on a cattle drive. Maybe that’s what Kim Schwindt had in mind when he built his 2008 Dodge Ram.

“I didn’t want a showboat with a 15-inch lift on 46-inch tires,” he said. “I wanted something I could charge through corners and that would take a beating.”

This is for a good reason, since he lives in a fairly remote area of northern California. “I go on washboard bumps and pothole-riddled dirt roads every day to get to my property.”

As a result, his rig had to be able to ride on some pretty rough stuff. But he also needed some serious performance, because he and a few friends were working on a Baja 1000 race truck. “I was determined to make my Dodge diesel a prerunner for the course,” he noted.

Combining those two goals into one badass Dodge began with a Kore Unlimited suspension with custom through-bed shock towers, Deaver leaf springs and Fox Racing shocks. This rear end setup telescopes through 14 inches of travel in the rear but lifts the truck just a few inches.

The front axle is trussed and fitted with Dynatrac ball joints. The front and rear diffs are fitted with Mag-Hytec covers and ARB air lockers, providing 100 percent traction on demand at the flip of a switch. Trent Fabrication, in Reno, Nevada, handled the locker installation and 4:56 Precision Power gears.

To clear the 37-inch Toyo Open Country M/Ts fitted on Walker Evans bead-locks, Schwindt opted for Glassworks fenders and bedsides, installed and finished by DC Customs, in Ukiah, California. (Schwindt says, “Just a little advice if you’re planning to do fiberglass fenders and bed sides: Be prepared to do a lot of skimming and Bondo work to make them nice and smooth for paint.”)

Up front, “the bumper choice was a no-brainer,” Schwindt points out. “When you’re coming around blind corners with deer everywhere—not to mention other vehicles—on one-lane dirt roads, you’re going to want something beefy up front.”

Consequently, the truck was fitted with a Road Armor bumper. Besides its “intimidation factor,” Schwindt just digs the way Road Armor bumpers look. As for the rear, he went with Fab Fours’ bumper, simply because “it’s cleaner looking.”

We neglected to mention another aspect of his Dodge that determined his choice of upgrades:

“I also use my rig to pull a 36-foot weekend warrior,” he adds. “So I added Carli long-travel air bags.”

This system allows full axle articulation when aired out, retaining a full 14 inches of travel. So now, Schwindt can tow and haul more, keep his ride level at any weight range and still go play in the dirt.

Speaking of the dirt, what happened with those Baja plans?

“Being the owner of a mini self-storage facility and a clothing store, I started to feel the crunch of the slowing economy,” he admits. “So the Baja race truck got put on hold, and I took what money I saved up and threw it into the engine compartment.”

Drake Swett, a good friend who works at Total Performance Diesel, hooked him up with an Industrial Injection twin turbo setup, an aFe Blade-runner intake manifold and a host of other power parts—all of which crank up the Cummins 750 horsepower on the dyno to level 7 on the Smarty Tuner.

To fuel the beast, the system starts with an AirDog II system that feeds Industrial Injection twin CP3s. Fuel then goes on to Industrial 150hp injectors. With twin turbos and lots of fuel, a set of ARP head studs is good insurance.

To handle all the newfound power, the stock trans was fully rebuilt with all the right components, including a Sun-Coast billet input, output and intermediate shafts, a billet drum, valve body and torque converter.

On the appearance side, Schwindt added an SRT-10 Viper hood and seats, AMP Research Power Steps and a Tire-Gate at the rear. A Warn MT12000 winch, complete with synthetic rope that is fed through a Rubicon choker, is fitted nicely into the Road Armor bumper. A Carriage Works black billet grille, Hella 4000 series Baja lights, PIAA auxiliary lamps and NightRunner black headlights add some visual intensity to the frontal area, as well.

In the Rhino-lined cargo area forward of the through-the-bed shock towers, is a powder-coated lock box for holding a 20-pound CO2 Power Tank. Bringing up the rear is a B&W stowaway hitch. For the final finish, the bumper, hood and paint, along with 3M urethane film, were applied by Farmer Brothers Auto Body (in Ukiah, California).

All told, Schwindt has built one of the cleanest, best-equipped Dodges we’ve seen in a while. His truck is loaded with the best of both worlds in suspension and horsepower.

Who says you can’t build a hard-core off-road diesel? UDBG

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