Well, look who made it in town today! My town that is. Lance ("Bighead") and his wife traveled here for the CO 4Runner Jam all the way from NC and arrived in CO Spgs on Sunday afternoon! What a trooper! A big Colorado welcome to you both. And actually, the jam was most of the reason, but not all. He also had installed a couple of (very) nice pieces of armor here before we head out tomorrow evening that he has been waiting quite awhile for. Yesterday, he had the Rock Ware bumper put on, which has been sitting in their shop since mine was built in mid-May and is an identical twin. And today, he had Christo put on his Slee-Sliders and stopped by my work before heading back down to the Springs.

(By the way, Christo and fellow shop buddies gave mad props on our bumper, a credit to Matt at Rock Ware for yet another sterling design. Rock Ware also did Adrian's ["Flygtenstein"] for his '95 shortly after mine and are currently making another one right now for a gentleman from OR who is also attending the jam this weekend. We will have 6+ 4Runners with rear bumpers in one place this weekend, 5 of them 3rd Gens!)

Anyway, a big overhaul in two days! Not to mention a recent OME convert from Downey/Bilstein (for the rear) the past week or two.

The other items shared between both our rigs are the T15, Sway-A-Ways, and Staun tire deflators (okay, not necessarily a mod per se). We will both end up with Mike's skid plate and possibly end up with the same wheels as well. I have the Mickey Thompson Classic II's sitting in my living room waiting to be put on. Now Lance didn't opt for the UFO package like I did up top, but that is understandable. Overall though, that is a healthy amount of shared modifications. Oh yeah, mine is the blue one!

Congrats again, Lance! Your 4Runner looks absolutely awesome, and is a real beast now! See ya again tomorrow.

 

wow those both look sweet as hell!!

I wish one day mine would like like one of those. But I doubt it....:chicken:

 

very very very nice lookin rigs you got there!!

 

Is that blue a Toyota color? I don't think that I have ever seen it before. It looks great on the truck.

 

The pictures don't do it justice. It looks really nice in person when it's all shiny.

Nice shot, Darren. We'll have to get a side-by-side-by-side shot tomorrow evening if we are caravaning. I put a fresh coat of wax on my rig last night. I think I'll have to cancel this week. I don't want to get my rig dirty.
NOT!!!

By the way, what time did you want to meet at that gas station?

 

Thanks guys!

Noel, the color is Stellar Blue Pearl (code 8L7) as noted in my profile. It is most certainly a Toyota color and was introduced for the 4Runner on the '98 models. It's also used on some Tundras. It is very rare indeed. And no, it's not purple, contrary to what some may say on the boards.

I emailed you, Alan.

 

Nice rides guys, see ya tomorrow!

 

Lookin good!!

NC to CO is quite a drive! That's dedication!

 

THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT I NEED and have been looking for...

How big a spare tire is that and where did you get that rear bumper and spare tire holder?

Please do tell! PLEASE!



Brian

 

See the link above? Rock Ware Bumper

The tires - including spares - are 285/75-16's

 

I looked at the ROCK WARE site and was looking for a little more insight and detail into the rear bumper spare tire mount that you guys have. I WANT ONE and NEED ONE!

Did you guys get the spare tire mount put on your factory rear bumper or is that a totally new rear bumper assembly. I can't really tell from the pics. Also, can you tell me how hard the assembly was and what you had to spend?

SWEET LOOKING RIGS!



Brian

 

Can you post some more pics of that bumper? Some close ups of the sides and back.
thanks

 

Dog gone it! You guys are gonna cost me soooo much money. Those are two of the best looking runners I've ever seen. How do we North Carolinians find out about Colorado Jams?

 

Two of the best looking runners I have seen. You really should post a few more pics. Again very nice.

 

Is Lance("Bighead") a member of Yotatech, and if so he should join the 4ROC NC Chapter b/c tat is one sweeeeeeeet rig and I can't bare to think that there is a Runner like that driving around this state, and is not a member w/ either Yotatech or 4ROC NC. I would really like to see him at some 4ROC runs in the future. Awsome Awsome rigs.

I also would love a rear bumper rom Rock Ware like that, I'm sure it's some serious $$$ but I would be willing. Can someone let us now how much we are looking at here.

 

I know Lance will chime in at some point, hopefully today. He's staying at a buddies place at the AFB in Colorado Springs, so I'm not sure how often he's been able to get online.

My web site has been down for the past month and a half, otherwise all the information on the bumper and everything else could have been found there. I'm working on getting it restored. But, I have added some stuff to my ISP's space in the meantime. Here is a link to some nice, big pictures that will say more than I ever could.

Rock Ware doesn't display more than a few small products on their site as they are a custom fab shop first and foremost, and one of the highest regarded in CO at that by the local off-road communtity. They haven't updated their site since early in the year with the various projects they work on, so information in this regard will be quite limited. So, if anyone wants one, they have to do like Lance and Michael did (from Oregon) and drive out here. It's a 2-3 day project from start to finish. Colorado isn't too bad of a spot to vacation anyway. Come on out, I'd look forward to meeting you!

My price paid was $1,118, which is a real fair price. Slee's bumpers are in the $1,800 range which is also fair, believe it or don't. Both guys at the shops have told Lance and myself what processes are involved to tackle such a project. Parts are cheap, but the labor is where the cost is at. I know Lance and myself would be more than willing to answer any other questions you may have as well.

Thanks for all the compliments, guys!

Regards,
Darren

 

I really like the fact that they incorporated the hitch into the bumper and the custom look and fit. Too bad I won't be driving to Colorado anytime in this lifetime...

SWEET!



Brian

 

Hey all, I am finally able to log on. Thanks for the compliments on the 4Runner. It was really good to finally meet Darren yesterday, especially after all the PMs and phone calls over the last several months. Then drive was long (~1600 miles) but it has been worth it. The wife and I are really enjoying ourselves.

Alan is right. The pics don't do Darren's rig justice. It is truly a distinctive color (I thought it was purple to... ).

Slee Offroad and Rock Ware were awesome to deal with. Christo, Ben and Robbie at Slee Offroad were great to talk to and had no problem answering my endless stream of questions. All three of those guys are very meticulous in how they do their work. I am very pleased with how everything turned out. If I had a Land Cruiser, they would be the guys working on it. Matt was the main guy Darren and I dealt with at RockWare. Once again, he was great to deal with. Hell, he had no problem storing my bumper since May. He answered any question I had and like Slee, is very meticulous in his work. I would heartily recommend both shops for any work. Granted the prices can get up there fairly quick, but you will get what you pay for.

Stump, this is the first real break I have had since Nov last year so I have not had a chance to check any of the NC offroad clubs or runs. I will fix that when I get back.

 

Sweet Lance, whenever you get home and get some time to settle in just go look under 4ROC and find NC, drop a post and I'msure everyone will respond. I'm trying to make a runto Uwharrie before it closes for the winter but we shall see how that falls into play later.

 

Sounds good. I am only about an hour or so from Uhwarrie (Southern Pines/Pinehurst).