APOLLO: FORD F-250 PLATINUM

Words: Kristie Real

Photos: Dale Martin & Eric Warren

James Erickson knew going into his build that he wanted something big, flashy and loud, but it also had to be functional, with the capability and comfort to be driven daily. According to him, it needed to be the “ultimate cowboy Cadillac.” Because of its flashy exterior that shines bright like the sun, James decided to christen the Super Duty “Apollo” after the Greek god of the sun, archery, music, dance, truth and prophecy.

With a solid name and vision going into the build, James needed to first figure out the accent color. Originally, he was going to go with a Smurf blue, but changed his mind because it wasn’t bold enough for his standards. “Some of the blues are really hard to see in photos or at night, so after many days of staring at the Prismatic Powders website and looking at other show cars, I chose to go with aqua teal,” he admits. “I feel it accented the build exactly how I wanted it.”

James went into the rest of a build with an open mind and looked to Truck Guru Chris Payne for guidance. Bigger is bolder and he knew he wanted 30×16 wheels and 44” tires combined with a 24” lift. Aside from those requirements, he was pretty open to mod suggestions for his F-250 Platinum Super Duty and Chris aided James in selecting additional products to finish up the build.

After all was said and done, James was in love and amazed at how it all turned out with his favorite being the suspension that was fabricated by BK Fab (Busted Knuckles Fabrication) in Homosassa, Florida. “Eddie Hendrickson, owner of BK Fab, and I bounced so many ideas and shared so many photos back and forth while he was designing the suspension. When we initially started discussing the build, I told him I wanted a higher than usual lift that didn’t look like any other,” he describes. “From the one-of-a-kind suspension with the triangulated rear, the badass cradle, all the polished overlays to the triple bypass shocks on bags, they definitely delivered.” According to James, the truck rides better than stock thanks to the BK Fab suspension.

Thanks to his “bolder is better” mission statement, James’ truck is definitely a crowd pleaser. Whether it’s on the trailer heading to a show or going down the road for a ride, people always tend to have their phones out to snap pictures of the mighty Apollo, James mentions. “If I stop anywhere, I need to have at least 30 minutes to speak with everyone in the parking lot about it. But it’s so awesome seeing everyone go nuts for the truck.” There’s no doubt that James built something to get a rise out of people and he loves the feeling of having so many admire his creation.