Up-date on an old truck

[y-knot]

Not to sure where to post this, but she has a 12V so here I am.
Over the last 5-6 months I have made several changes to my '97 3500, some were minor and some pretty big, but this last week was the first time I got to pull a load with it. We went up to Silver Lake and I took along our GN trailer, combined it weighed in at 22,562lbs. I suppose that's not much to some, but it is to me. The first thing I noticed was the new ATS trany, it sure isn't like stock. I liked the way it holds the load, and it worked fine, but it does take a little getting use to. You learn to give it what it needs, when to use OD and when not to. I had always like the ATS, but the main reason for installing it was to tow, and I think it does a very good job at that. For the most part my trany temps were 160, and not once did the triple-lock slip. If I didn't know before how bad the OEM TC was, I sure do now. The engine changes I made(TST #5,16 turbo housing,AFE filter,Hogg 4"ss ex) worked out just fine, I was a little worried about them. The boost I gave up on the low side when I add the 16cmsq housings was re payed with low EGT temps while pull'n hard. I ran the whole way 70-75, with a high of 82 mph(thanks to Garmin street pilot) and averaged about 1100 EGT pre turbo and a high once of 1300. My post turbo temps ran 200-250 lower then pre temps. The combo worked great, and the power was there to use, just press harder. The average boost was 12psi on the open, and 32 psi as a high while tugging up a hill. Boy does she sound ******-off at high boost, just get out of the way!
The Hog Exhaust was about what I thought it would sound like, not overly loud, but definitely not quiet either. I kind of like the way she rattles up the hills. Found out I definitely don't want stacks, I don't mind wiping off the bottom right corner of the trailer, but not down the top of both sides. Yes, she does make some smoke. The Commander unit from ATS keeps you locked up, and at low speed or under heavy load, you will throw some. Everything worked like it was addvertised and suppose too, which is maybe a first. Yes the Air Lift 5000lb bags handled the load just fine(I removed the overload spring packs), in fact they rode great. Indiana and Michigan have crappy roads, The bags allowed me to vary the pressure and keep a smooth ride. Only thing that didn't work-out was the weather, cold and wet.
Also the Trxus tires seemed fine, no heat build-up and no problems with the load. Just for those who care the weights were as follows: Front tires 5540lbs, rear tires 6880lbs and trailer axle 10,142lbs.