First Post with Pics

Aloha,
I finally made the time to get my first post in. I've actually been on here for some time doing research for my lift. I guess better late than never.

I retired from the USAF in '09. My last 4 years were spent stationed on the island of Okinawa, Japan. The reason I mention that is because during that time my Taco was sitting in storage awaiting my return. I bought it brand new in 2003 and about year later I received orders overseas and left in '05. I think I had just over 10,000 miles on it went into storage.

I'm finally getting to do a few things to it. Before I left I had already installed Wet Okole seat covers, Bedrug liner, and Extang Tuff Tonno. These are all awesome products. The first thing I did to my truck after joining this site was the deck plate mod. Soon after came the Weather Tech floor mats. I think I spent the next 2 months or so on this site before I actually decided what I wanted for my lift. I'm sure I saved a little cash as well just for being a Tacoma World member. I was looking for a small lift that I could do pretty much myself. As evident in the first pic(if uploaded correctly), I ended up going with adjustable SAW 2" coilovers for the front and 1.5" aal for the rear. I bought this set up from Wheeler's Off-Road. I wanted the Bilstein 5100s for my rear shocks but everyone was out of them at the time so ended throwing some Rough Country's on and they are fine for now. The ride is fine right now and I can't imagine that 5100s in the rear would make that much of a difference(just waiting for someone to chime in here). Right after I got my wheel and tires installed I headed over to the dealership and got the ball joint recall done and as most of you know that comes with an alignment. Man, it sure pays to do your research.

For my wheel and tire set up I went with Mickey Thompson Sidebitter's (16x8, 6x5.5) and Falken Rocky Mountain ATS 265/75R16. Discount Tire price matched me on the M/T wheels, I think for $152 each. For the tires, I paid around $149. Discount Tire is the way to go imho.

My lift measured around 24" from center hub to lower wheel well all the way around. I got around 2.5" in the front and 2" in the rear. I haven't attempted to adjust the coilovers yet because my truck is sitting pretty level now even after a few thousand miles.

My next purchase unless I can find someone to convince my otherwise is to get CBI Off-Road bolt on sliders. They seem to be a little pricey but I really don't want to modify unless absolutely neccessary. To be honest, I'm still wondering if I could've got the 33''s in the wells without cutting. I'm thinking about bumping it up a little bit but I'm pretty happy with the way it turned out. I didn't really sacrifice anything performance wise.

Well, I'm thinking this is kind of a lengthy first post but I figured it's the least I could do if it helps someone out if there on the fence about their lift, wheels, or tires, etc.

All the best, Paul

 

Welcome to TW 'ol new guy.
Thank you for your service Paul.

 

Sweet!

 

nice ride and welcome from west GA

 

sharp looking truck. how many miles she got on 'er now?

 

Welcome from NV! Thank you for your service.

 

Thanks all. Truck has just over 51k now.

 

Welcome aboard!

 

Welcome to TW!

 

Welcome to TW from Sparks, NV