The Getaway...Crom's build and adventures

Just back the 14mm bolt heads that hold the hubs on out into the wheel studs and it backs its self out and falls into your hands.

 

lol That's why I sometime call them Scamazon! Glad you got it!

Good to hear it. Thanks.

I will be sure to have maximum fun with the front end. I have an air chisel, but I've never used it. I don't use air tools because I don't like the noise they make. Either electric impact, or manual wrenching.

I did replace the front hub / wheel bearing on my car along with a bunch of other stuff a few months ago.

The lower arms on my car were orders of magnitude more difficult than the Tacoma. They are pressed / wedged into place between sheet metal buckets. Pry bar / hammer was my friend, and oh the words that were said that day!!!



I have not had to deal with axles before, so that will be new for me. Gonna do the ECGS bushing when it's all apart. Gotta get some new pry bars too. I have one, and it's 36" and I think that's too big. lol

GOod to know, thanks. I read this thread today "How To Remove CV Axle+Replace Front Wheel Bearing 2nd Gen"

 

Let me know when we are doing this. I will make an effort to come by. Just not this weekend since I will be in Ocotillo camping lol

 

Thanks! Will do! Have fun in Ocotillo! I wish I was able to get out... I would meet up with you out there if I could. I'm trapped in the grinder for at least another month. We usually do our annual Joshua Tree trip this month, but unfortunate extended family matters took priority.

 

Im planning on being out of state the entire month of November but let me know

 

I was wrong.

My paint job was a disaster. I did everything wrong. I didn't do a small inconspicuous test like the paint can said to do. I rushed through the project, painted in the evening (bad idea), and I didn't rough up the metal with sandpaper, Duplicor recommends 320 grit for bare metal. Metal was too smooth. I got terrible adhesion.

Of course I found this out after I mounted the bumper... I started to scrape the paint off (not hard to do) with a paint scraper, but what a mess! I said to hell with this! I called a shop. Shop is going to sand blast it for $35.

Then I got them to quote all of the rest of metal parts for sand blasting and power coat too. They gave me a good price, I think. Won't know final price until it's done though.

I agreed and took my bumper off in their parking lot with my impact in less than 5 minutes. lol



I should get it back on Friday.

 

That sucks, but the end result will be awesome.

 

PC is a much better choice for such a fine piece of armor. Sometimes we learn the hard way. Over the years I've had to sand off a bunch of recently applied paint to random things I've built. Now in my older/wiser/more patient years I know to take the time and do it right. Can't wait to see this on your truck!

Also, that impact has probably paid for itself by now.

 

Thanks Chip. I'm looking forward to the outcome. Love the new avatar btw, love me some Blues Brothers!

Had a poster of them on my wall as a young kid.

Elwood: There's 106 miles to Chicago, we've got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark out, and we're wearing sunglasses.
Jake: Hit it.

I've never paid for anything to be PC before, so kind of excited to see how it turns out.

The last bare metal thing I painted was my sliders 7 years ago. I remember acetone, primer and paint, can't remember if sanded or not. The result on those were great! lol Anyways, with my latest experience, it just goes to show that cut corners, rush job wastes time and money.

On the impact, my only regret was not buying one sooner. It's frightening how quickly stuff can come apart.

Nothing on the Tacoma has come close to slowing the imapct down. It takes bolts out like they're not even there, no way else to describe it. lol



Maybe enough torque to open another dimension?


I am very careful when reassembling. With my hand, I always back the bolt off a thread until it drops, then thread by hand two or three turns, then impact to run through the threads, and tighten with ratchet / torque wrench. Etc.

 

Always sumthin cookin in the Cromatorium!

 

Can't wait to see that beautiful beast on your truck, man! Gonna be awesome!

If you don't mind, I have a question for you: My buddy has a 2011 TRD Sport, and he just lifted it via Toytec coilovers and Dakars. He now has a pretty noticeable takeoff vibe, but it's smooth the rest of the way. I know you just had your DL and carrier bearing done recently, and I'm wondering how much play you have in the bearing; both axially and radially? He's seeing a fair amount of sop in his.

Thanks, Nick!

 

oh hell I thought your DIY sounded more better than mine...i did a phosphoric acid bath for etching then brushed on this thick rust converting orange primer then
brushed on some black rustoleum. looks ratty but i like it ratty.
i was thinking afterward that i should have paid for powder

 

I think Blues Brothers or The Magnificent Seven was the first "adult" movie I ever watched with my Dad.

As for the electric impact... Some years ago I bought a DeWalt 24V for work more out of a whim and a desire to "spend corporate money". It sat in my tool box - unopened - for six months until we were having hell with my suspension installation on my PreRunner. Seized bolts? Pft. Rusted-ass nuts? HA!

I have bought two since. Those things are worth more than their weight in gold.

 

Thanks.

I made a video of my CSB and posted in in this post. I don't remember checking for side to side movement, just vertically. My DS shop expert called it "sag" he said the CSB would sag over time, just a characteristic of the crappy rubber components (my words not his).

One thing is for sure and that is with a two piece drive shaft, the pinion angle should match the slope of the first shaft. That is very important to mitigate unwanted vibes.

I previously measured my angles and calculated u-joint operating angles in this post here: Drive line angles measured.

I also thought back then that slightly negative pinion angle is good. It's really only good if your a race car, or use in very high torque applications @nfs257 ? . I shared all that I had learned with my DS expert, and he said nah... He said do what Spicer said and make pinion and 1st shaft match as close as possible while trying to keep u-joint angles small.

When lifting the Tacoma, I don't think it's possible to keep all the u-joint angles in spec (<3°). Physically it just doesn't seem possible.

The take off vibes your buddy feels... It's all subjective, but I think it's completely normal and par for the course when lifting. It's probably related to axle wrap. My truck is doing the same from 3-7 mph I get vibes, and it's smooth from 10-80 mph it seems.

On my punch list, is to get under the truck and measure angles, post leaf pack reconfigure, DS rebuild. I need to know if I need to make any corrections before major trip, etc.

 

I like what you did there. I'm guessing that the acid bath was extremely helpful for adhesion purposes.

In discussing my paint woes with Billy (Brute Force Fab), he relayed his experience with sandblasting, and highly recommended it along with painting immediately after blasting. From my discussion with the shop, their prices were very economical. I'll try to get a break down of what my costs are to share.

 

sad face for shared pain.

There is a certain satisfaction about just throwing money at it and let a pro shop paint it.

I was a little curious how the shop blasting process works.

I showed the shop guy all the threaded holes in the metal and they said they plug them before blasting / PC. Some internet searching tells me they use silicone masking plugs in the holes. Makes sense. Silicone can withstand the high temps of the oven, and presumably hold up to the blasting.