fillsrunner4

All good points. Really the elements arent too big a factor nor deal to me. im gonna get dirty anyway . Its gonna be pretty sealed from all but water if i get in that deep however im gonna get water in the cab regardless. Ive got most my important electronics such as my ECU as high as possible also. As for heat it should not really be a factor either. My buddy uses leather to cover his hole and yes it gets hot to touch but it doesnt really do anything bad or noticable.

Im going to most likely cover the tunnel in a rhino like material maybe hurculiner. that should help with noise as well. the primer is also a high temp primer and protects some from heat. As for sealing the lower part of the tunnel were i welded parts of the sheet to the tunnel... I'll fill it in with a filler maybe even just some bath tub caulking or somthing.

Oh and the cup holder idea isnt such a bad one, either cup holders or a little box to lock things in

fillsrunner4

More work has been done on the tranny tunnel today. Ive still got to mount the shiffters but that will be done once i get a small rubber cover for my middle t/c i dont have right now and need to order.

I fully welded the rear sides and for now i just built a cover plate instead of using a see through material. I used vinyl to cover the t/c output and very far forward area to the firewall. It should work well
Pass side rear

Driver side rear and primed

Cover for Dshaft


I know some of you wanted to know were my ECU is and if its out of the way of the elements... Well if you see it on the high right thats were i mounted it. I made and angled bracket and mounted it as high as possible. Ill have to be extremly deep to hurt that

T/C covered

Bigger view and you can see the front also

Seats will be added in very soon ive just got to find the perfect fit im looking for

The reason for using vinyl is because it creates a lower profile in my already limited space im going to have for the seats. its also makes it easier than using the sheet to do this. If my tunnel wasnt as big i could have used all sheet easier so this is how i decided to do it with my limitations

fillsrunner4

So in my quest to find the perfect seats that will fit in my crammed cab ive found this
The Corbeau A4. Its slim and looks to be pretty comfortable. I know offroading is rough driving so a comfortable seat is of high importance to me. I also have to keep in mind anything bigger than this dimension wise has a very slim chance of fitting. The Flatbelly and cage for it take up alot of space so question??? has anyone sat in this seat before? also any other recomendations? It must be slim and low profile. Ive been searching for a good seat for some time and this seems to be a pretty good choice


This one is cool too its the same design yet in microsuede.
Ive got alot of red on my truck so its a decision if I want red or black seats also

woody88

those look really nice awesome job on your 4runner.

fillsrunner4

Thanks

Its just choices for the seats I need some opinions if anyones got any. Im really thinking about these ones

dirtyrice

LOL, I was going to say the same thing! even though it may not move much, once you get mud, dirt and sand between the tank and the tray, you are going to get holes....whether you think it's moving or not. Just the vibration fron the tires may do it!

You could use spray insulation, but be aware that it will hold water and cause premature rusting on the tray. You could get it sprayed with bedliner, but it will not stop the dirt/sand problem, just be softer. The tanks (for the most part) are designed to hang with nothing under then except a shield. You have got this far and everything looks good, so I'm sure you'll figure it out.

Also, as far as the 'pro welder' comment with the sensor bung on the header...LOL. I have to say, I am a 'pro welder' and I wouldn't have done much better. Those headers are ceramic coated and no matter what you do, the welds are going to look like heck...unless you want the guy to bead blast the coating off to get a 'pretty' weld. At that point, you have a perrt weld, but the rest of the header would look bad. To get them recoated, we charge $150.00. I would take the bad weld for now.

Also, being a welder, I have to say that some of the welds and designs look a little weak...to me anyway. I think you said you were looking at going to coils anyway, so it really doesn't matter too much now. Just be safe, WEAR GLOVES (nice pic of the bare hands while welding...hehehe) and think things through...just as you have been, by the looks of the way your project is coming along....as it could save your life.

I do have to say that overall, you have done an awesome job! I think it has progressed VERY nicely and can't wait to see more pics! GREAT job on it and good luck to you AND your 4runner!

fillsrunner4

Ya im no pro welder myself so im sure alot of my welds look really weak for sure however the entire suspension was welded by a friend of mine who is a pro at it so for saftey thats all good. Ive still got alot to learn but what better way then actualy doing it

And No gloves is my friend Eric. He sometimes rushes but is an amazing welder and mechinest. and could really care less even though its extreamly bad. I cant go without gloves and such because I burn. Being red headed and light skinned thats not an option.

The buffer will be added in shortly but again i just need it up and out of the garage for space so I didnt mess with it. To do it will e easy and take no time at all.

Thanks for the comments and Im sure youll see better progression as my fabrication experience grows. Until then I do the best I can


BTW what I should have done was grind down the welds for that sensor bung if I really wanted to clean it up but really its no biggy

fillsrunner4

So really the last interior mod I have to do aside from coating the tranny cover and Add seats/ brackets is to cover the rear shock I have coming through the floor. I was going to do this yesturday till Mother Nature decided to snow on me

Heres what I did. I wanted to save as much space as I could and also make it easy to change the shocks from underneath the rig instead of making the cover removable. I fully welded it shut. The back portion was a bit tough since the body has the waves. To do it I tacked the sheet in a few spots and pounded it into a better position and let me tell you welding sheet sucks but im getting better at it. Wish I had a tig

The outer and inner portions are thicker plate and the front and back covers are sheet.
Inners welded

Outers welded

Front looking back

Back looking forward


I could have just covered the whole thing but im sure I could stuff somthing under the center and definetly somthing on top so I like this design and chose to do it that way


Time to put some seats in already

sleepy970

This may seem like not a big deal to you or others, but how easy is it going to be for you to unbolt your rear shocks at the top. Looks like it might be a tight space.

fillsrunner4

Great question

I actualy thought alot about how I could get to the top bolts easily and what I did was cut a bit more out of the floor and make sure i could easily get a socket wrench and normal wrench up into the area and move around. It will be very easy for my to take them out if I need too. Again I took alot of time to make sure that exact problem would not occur. Ill try and get some pics of the space i have left it is kinda tight but Ive got alot of tools to get it done if need be.

idayota

you could use a hole saw and cut two holes in line with the bolt head and nut to access them with a socket and extension. to fill the whole you could use a rubber body plug like you would use on the firewall. they are cheap at the local parts house and come in lots of sizes. looks sharp. are you gonna put a back seat in at all? i'm guessing not judging by the size of the shock towers. when is she gonna be ready to wheel?

idayota

i take it back...i was looking at the pictures wrong...you must be planning on a back seat...i'm a nerd, sorry!

fillsrunner4

ya I actualy just put the back seats back in That hole saw idea is actualy an awesome idea I might just do that The seats fit great even with the tower being so high they are still about 3" or so away (I never really measured but it looks like it)

Thanks for that idea you may just see it in an up coming pic (All credit to you BTW if I do so)

sleepy970

Well alrighty. Looked like a tight fit to me and was just wondering. The build looks good. Only wish I could do a build on mine right now but with kid on the way and other things don't have time nor money. Oh well I'll just keep reading your's and everyone else build and dreaming of the day.

fillsrunner4

Youll get there man I appreciate you even looking at mine and hope it inspires you and others to get out there and do this same stuff to your rigs if you can. Life is short and youve got to enjoy it while you can.

Congrats on the baby coming Thats exciting. Be sure to get him/her into your hobby of trucks and have them help you. Like free labor

And again youll get there

sleepy970

Thanks I know I'll get there one day. I pretty excited really I'm having a boy and already have one project vehicle that my dad and I started on but haven't finished. He turned it all over to me and now has his own 71 Ford Bronco. I envy him. I'm glad that thing will be a vehicle he wants to keep in the family. But once my son is old enough get him started in the outdoors. Keep up the awsome build.

fillsrunner4

Will do your projects sounds sick and im sure they will be

sleepy970

76 Chevy Nova not one of the most popular years but I like it. Has a ways to go though

fillsrunner4

Novas can be real sick

I got my stuff in the mail from trail gear for my shifter and finaly got all my shiffters bolted in.





As for the seats Im still leaning towards those Corbeau's the only thing is they recline and once my cage is in there will be no use fir it. I dont want to spend more on a feature that I cant use. They only thing is that these seem to be the best fitting for my situation and Ive looked everywere. for plain buckets but cant find any skinny enough that look good and comfy. So I think I may order these this week. if theres a place around me to try them out too that would be awesome

bigarms23

the center console looks real clean and nice