4biker

I started a thread in the "check out my truck" section, but I've had people pm me quite a bit about different things (or the same things over and over), so I thought I'd get a thread going that people can post on. Also, I'd like opinions and feedback from time to time, so here we go.

I will detail what I do from this point forward as we go, but I'll quickly run down what I've done in the next few posts. For more pictures and some even more boring reading, go -->here<--

Mods I've done that are worth mentioning (to me )
Factory e-locker, grey wire mod
SAW 2" coilovers front, OME 880 coils rear with OME shocks
TRD Supercharger, 2.1" URD pulley, URD 7th Injector kit, Devil's Own water/meth kit
255/85/16 BFG KM2's
80-series LC wheels
4.88 gears
2" custom square sliders
ARB Tacoma bull bar, Warn M8000 winch
Safari Snorkel
Wet Okole front seat covers
Uniden ProXL510 CB with K30 35" magnetic antenna
Savage Offroad tranny and t-case skids
Tepui RTT
Custom off-road trailer

Stuff I hope to add:
Rear bumper
Front locker
'99+ head and tail lights
hood scoop

This is what the 4Runner looks like right now (as of 4/30/14):

4biker

This is where I started: Fully stock with e-locker


Added OME 881 front and 906 rear springs, and later OME shocks


Then I changed out the rims to stock Limited wheels (later called sport wheels) and added the treadwright tires

habanero

I gotta stop visiting just the desert when I'm out there cause it's crackin' me up to see a snorkel in Utah. I see some pretty interesting stuff there and a nice looking truck, looking forward to more.

4biker

Yeah, we had a HUGE runoff last year so I just about drowned 2 1/2 hours from civilization. I've always wanted one anyway, so there you go

Come out and go to the high Uintahs and there's some amazing land. A little different than southern Utah, so it's great to have both!

4biker

The last picture in the above post shows my square sliders. A couple of guys from TTORA helped me out and we built them from scratch, just 2" tubing and some 3/8" plate with gussets. Later on I angled the ends and that helped the look SO MUCH. They're stuck out far enough to protect the wide flares and they're pretty beefy.

4biker

Next on the list was the bumper. The front bumper is primarily for deer protection driving in remote areas, plus I've just always wanted one. BanditRunner is selling his front bumper design, and I initially planned on building that. The plans were all finalized, purchased, and ready to build, but life got in the way. For three times the price and none of the build time, I bought an ARB Tacoma bull bar. At the same time, I mounted up a Warn M8000 winch. I need to pull it off and paint behind it, but it's beefy and I love it like a brother

as easy as 1, 2, 3:

4biker

The front bumper mashed the heck out of my 881's so I decided to move to something else. I picked up some rotten old 2" Sway A Way coilovers for too much money, and had them rebuilt at hpst.com The guys there were great, and made good suggestions. I ended up replacing the tired red coils with some silver eibach springs that I like the look of better. I wasn't in love with the bright red anyway. The anodized top plate is still red, but just an accent. I told they guys at HPST to crank it up to accommodate for the weight of the bumper & winch, and they got it spot on. I'm really pleased with the noticeably improved ride and look. Total spent with rebuild: around $550. The front is just a hair taller than the rear, but I plan on swapping the rear 906 coils for 890's or 891's when it's time to move on. I need to sell my OME setup now.

Before & After:

habanero

Well there you go. I only mean good and I'm a little jealous. If a snorkel looks funny in Utah you can imagine the looks I'd get on my daily driver here in good ol' suburbia soccer momdium.

I like the beefy sliders, crazy².

4biker

No worries. My wife thinks it's hilarious to hear everyone whisper in hushed tones about what it is, and people are really funny about asking what it is. "What is that tube... thing?" I just look at THEM like THEY"RE crazy.

MaK92-4RnR

I'd tell them its a pivoting plasma cannon... gives kids a small zap when they misbehave... heh

the kid

i like the bighorns on everything but hard packed snow and ice, they suck and are down right scary! -but i have a set of bridgestone blizzak dm-v1's for winter, and they are phenomenal. SAR is long hard work(sometimes back breaking) often time(99% of it) with no glory or praise(or pay). you have to do it for the love(sickness) of it or for some other alterior motive, for me its to become a paid deputy in the sheriffs office.

-i only did the tundra wheels cause when i bought the truck it had 17" tacoma wheels on it and i hated those. so i traded those for some off a totaled tundra at a friends body shop before the insurance co took it a way. i didnt know it at the time but that allowed me to do the tundra brakes upgrade, and they are amazing i went with the 231s and so glad i did with all my armor and weight

4biker

I've heard stuff like that about the bighorns, but they're a great inexpensive tire. Either way, there seems to be a snow shortage this year anyway. It's like 40 degrees right now, when we should have a foot of snow on the ground. As far as the tundra brakes, I'd love to do that - I'll have to put that on my wish list in the first post. I'm a little leery of grinding on a brake caliper, but I'll see which way I go.

4biker

A couple of days ago I posted on habanero's build thread about how to paint the center caps on my wheels. She was kind enough to give some great instructions, so I got the stuff and went to town. I scuffed and sanded them with 000-fine steel wool and painted. I think I ended up with 5 coats. I just hope I got the right paint color! Thanks, Hab!

(You can see the ugly yellow center caps on the top photo in post #1)
Here they are painted:

Here's the paint can I used (The color is just silver in the metallic paints)


*edit*
I got them put on yesterday, and it snowed like crazy here! I didn't get a picture in real light, but here is one I just took in the garage:

scuba

I use that color for my rims! Looks just like an OEM alloy.

the kid

if im not mistaken you can clear 231s with those wheels, you wont need to grind down the calipers or the wheels, and if the 231s wont work you can use the 199 caliper, its a little smaller

habanero

No prob, they look great!
Your whatever room that is looks kinda like our garage...

Kind've an old pic, we've since added a couple of tandems. Hey look! It's my truck, stock! It doesn't even fit in there any more. Don't even ask me why 3 people need that many bikes. We just.....do.


The kid's right about the 5 stars and the 231s. The Land Cruiser wheels (think I remember you off-handedly mentioning them) require spacers.

4biker

That exact paint can must have been a lucky guess. It was literally the first can I saw at Home Depot. The lid looked close, so I picked it up. I'm pretty pleased with it so far, and what a great improvement for only a couple of bucks!

That's really good to know. Habanero also confirmed that, so I'm happy to hear that. When I have bigger tires I still want to be able to stop, especially with my camp trailer that's in the works (I know, I want my cake and to eat it too )

That is a TON of bikes! I used to have 3, but I've pared it down to just my trusty old Rocky Mtn Element T.O. (1998!) If I ever convert my wife to two wheels and pedal power, I'll start a collection again. Thanks for the confirmation on the calipers - all of your research (from all of you) is a great help to me!

habanero

Guess I'm seeing wheels, just as good as more bikes sometimes.
The hubby's newest bike is the '01 Ellsworth Truth. We met on the trails. My oldest mtb is the 91 Trek, my newest single mtb is the green 97 GF Supercaliber. 'Course, all that's left of the original components is the Chris King headset, Monkey lite handlebars and I forget which handlebar stem. The rest has been bashed, battered, crashed and just plain ridden out of existence. Gotta love the old bikes.

No probs on the info...it's out there if you can get the search button to work right.

4biker

Thanks for letting me talk about mtn bikes! I've been thinking I need to get in shape after a long, lazy fall & winter.

The one that got away was an '89 Paramount painted red, white, and blue with all Suntour components. That was a dumb day. I miss having a quick, comfortable hardtail.

*I just realized you were seeing the yellow tires on my friend's bike. His brakes are kaput, so I need to get them patched up.

Here's my buddy: It's mostly still stock, but you can see some stuff has been swapped out. (this is a build thread, right?)

habanero

I'm out of shape too and affirmative, build thread.
That looks like a fun bike and now I feel like I should've gone riding today.