Rigid Industries’ Damon Flippo Builds a Stealth Tribute: Ford F-350 Dually Honoring the USMC
As a marketing and events manager for Rigid Industries, Damon Flippo proudly represents the company at all of the events he attends. Given that Rigid Industries found its early calling in the off-road market producing state-of-the-art LED lighting, Damon’s had several lifted trucks and even a few Peterbilt rigs in his stable. This time around he opted to go with a lowered, stealth build to display the different applications and possibilities for the various styles of Rigid LED lights.
Damon picked up the 2011 Ford F-350 dually that was already worked on but not complete. He wanted to set about putting his own spin on things in order to build a rolling tribute to the United States Marine Corps and all those who’ve served our country. Having served with the Marines himself from 1989 to 1992 as an MOS 0311 Rifleman, Damon knew the heritage and honor that the Marine Corps stand for. Given this awareness, he felt it was his duty to keep that tradition alive by showcasing its history on his build.
A lot of the basics were already complete, but Damon sought to add his own touches as well as murals depicting the history of the USMC. CR Designs helped Damon’s vision come to life by airbrushing the matte black stripes throughout the white dually. On the hood is the centerpiece, a waving American flag with the USMC eagle, globe and anchor emblem, as well as the iconic Battle of Iwo Jima image. One side pillar of the cab depicts a Marine honoring those who came before and the other pillar brings the foundation of the Marines to the modern age. Covering up the bed is an A.R.E. Z-series camper shell that’s both stylish and function.
To tie the custom touches to Rigid Industries, the front end highlights a mesh grille insert complete with flush 30-inch LED light bar. But the lighting didn’t stop there; he also enlisted the help of Plain n Simple by Design to customize the taillights as the headlights were fitted to hold dual Rigid lights with both the USMC and Rigid Industries emblems inside. Another Rigid light bar and Q series LED fog lights finish off the color-matched front bumper. All of the external lights are controlled with an iPod control module that makes it easy to switch them on and off.
To give the truck a sleek look it’s been fitted with a 5/7-drop kit from DJM suspension. This includes dropped Dream Beams and coil springs up front. To get the rear to the same level, a DJM shackle and flip kit were put in place. Keeping the ride smooth is a set of shocks from Pure Performance that were designed to keep internal fluid temps down and prevent fatigue. Since the new rear duals are wider than factory, an adaptor kit was used and the bed was cut out to get the wheels to fit within the 2010 factory fenders with Street Scene air vents cut into them. To compensate for the added weight of the semi-style wheels, the brakes were upgraded with better components from SSBC Performance Brake Systems.
The truck was already equipped a 6.7L “Scorpion” Power Stroke that had 390 hp in its factory form. Plenty of performance goodies to help the diesel haul were added, including an aFe Power Stage-2 Si sealed cold air intake that was engineered to improve volumetric efficiency and maximize performance while lowering intake air temps. On the other end is a 5-inch exhaust from MagnaFlow that lets spent gases escape with ease. To help keep the 6R140 transmission cool is an aFe Power pan that holds 3 quarts more fluid than stock with external fins to dissipate heat.
Not only does the truck look slick on the outside, but the interior has also been upgraded to step it up a notch. For starters, the seat upholstery was upgraded with a set of leathers from Katzkin. The headrests were then upgraded with Rosen Electronics AV7900 replacements with media players and monitors already mounted to them. Sounds now pound out through a Rockford Fosgate sound system complete with four 10-inch subwoofers. Making sure the truck has enough juice to start and power the sound system, a pair of Kinetik HC1800 power cells was installed.
The end result combines all aspects of Damon’s life from the Marine Corps to custom trucks to his career at Rigid Industries. He’d like to thank his father, Pat Flippo, Bryan Bergey, Cody Elliot and Nick Kimmel for their service and the sacrifices they made for our freedoms, as well as his wife, Krystal, sons Anthony and Justin and Mega Motorsports, NY Mike Murray, Justin Rainwater and all his brothers from Relaxed Atmosphere. DW
