Lord Humongous Gigahorse Tow-coma Build

Yes they are definatly rugged little air bladders. Like the video you watched showed they are a locksmiths tool but have a ton of uses.

 

Yeah he's definatly a strange dog lol. once it got cold we couldn't get that sweater off of him haha

 

I was trying to hide this but oh well might as well share and call myself out in the process. Hot sauce helps the crow go down....

I pretty much copied a couple other members on the grill derp/emblem ect so thanks and give credit where it's due.

It does look much better


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Best use for plasti dip is probably huffing it. I mean you've already made one bad decision covering up the awesome CHROME! Why not make another and have a good time doing it lol



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You've just inspired me to dip the chrome on my tailgate.

I quit the dip about 6 months ago but luckily had a empty can in the tool box lol


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Mine is at the dealer getting the hood glued back together. They gave me this in the mean time. I think I'm gonna rattle can all the black chrome and start posting in the 2nd gen sections.


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The 2nd gen guys always brag about the extra power from the 4.0 and the Lord Humongous is an unapologetic lover of chrome.

 

Be glad you aren't wearing 245 75 16s like my SR5.

I am convinced that the majority of TW users are rim and tire junkies. Even with all the upgrades, the Gigahorse still needs the shoes to be considered badass around here, or out on the road. You already invested in the high end lift...

I know that I am getting old because I just got excited about buying a new washer and dryer and microwave and not once did I regret not spending the money on my truck

 

Today I installed an alternative communication device (CB radio) in the Gigahorse. Here is a quick list of the parts used as well as basic install guide.

• Stryker SR89MC (I bought this CB from a dude at the swap meet and he said it's totally legit!).
• 3' ethernet cable Cat 6
• Femal/female cat 6 ethernet industrial panel mount
  $12 InstallerParts CAT6 RJ45 Shielded Industrial Panel Mount Bulkhead Female/Female Feed Thru Coupler - Network Connectors - Capless (Single Pack, Black)
  https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01D0N79K2/ref=yo_ii_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1
• 18' RG8X coax
• Heavy duty velcro
• C4 bottle opener/ Antenna mount
• Francis stainless steel antenna stud
• Heavy duty antenna spring
• Firestick antenna quick disconnect
• 5' firestick II antenna
• Silicone

My first order of business was to mount the antenna and start running coax.

I ground down all the paint from the area where the C4 antenna mount will contact the truck. I did this to ensure an good ground
for the antenna.

I didn't take any pics of the next process but I mounted everything up and used masking tape/paper to mask off the area around the mount and antenna stud. I then painted everything on the truck with black bumper and trim paint and sealed up any cracks with silicone after the paint dried. This pic shows the stud, spring, quick release and antenna mounted after paint.




Next I ran the coax through the taillight, along the passenger side frame and in to the cabin via the plug under the passenger side seat. The plug was cut for the coax and re-sealed with silicone.


Due to the lack of space in my Taco cabin I went with this radio since all of the controls are located on the handset and it has a remote base station which can be mounted out of the way. The handset connects to the base station via ethernet cable. I've also heard this unit can be tuned up for BIG power but I'm sure this one is only pushing the legal 4 watts.


Here I have the base unit mounted under the passenger seat. Also in this pic is an inline SWR meter. That will only temporarily stay there until I'm done tunning the Antenna.

You can see the plastic vent in this picture that I mounted the base unit to. It's mounted with good ol' velcro . Sounds ghetto but it holds great and doesn't require screws into the floorboard!!! Also a side note make sure the battery is disconnected when unbolting and moving around the seat. It's full of sensors, airbags and accidental detonation could potentially cause severe injury!!!




Next task is to run power to the base unit and bring the ethernet cable to my mounting location. I plan to power the unit via the switch-pro system in place and use the female/female ethernet panel mount in the center console for clean factory looking install of the hand set. For this I removed the center console cover. To do this remove the shift knob and use a plastic trim tool to release the center console.

Returning to this picture you can see the blue 3' CAT6 ethernet extension cable and power wires wrapped in a loom running into the center console. Once the seat is mounted these wires become invisable.


It's difficult to so see here but the power wires run through the console across the drivers foot well and through the firewall in the same location the switch-pro runs through. From there I'm using the second position my Switchpro terminal block for power(radio). Also seen in this pic is the mounted ethernet panel mount in place. I drilled out a pilot hole and used a rotory cutting tool to make the hole large enough for the mount. The blue ethernet cable is running to the other side of this mount.

Just pic of the "radio" button on the switch-pro.


OK now to mount the the hand unit up and put everything back together!!! The hand unit plugs into the Female to female ethernet mount and mounts on the dash next to the AC controls with a provided bracket. The handset unit has several back light colors to choose from. I think the blue matches the factory interior lighting nicely. The finished install looks great!!!





A couple pics from the outside.




Some install notes:

1. I still need to finish SWR tunning in an appropriate space but I still may get rid of the spring and use a "unbreakable" fiberglass antenna.
2. The switch-pro power source seems to be working and not causing any "noise". If needed I will go straight to the battery in the future.
3. My little plug for Big Rig Radios in Phoenix. If you have any questions about radio coms do yourself a favor and talk to these guys. They will get you set up! I'm not affiliated with them, just happy customer!!!

 

Relocated the auxiliary reverse lights with another C4 tailgate mount. Only one pod now but they were taking a beating under the bumper!

 

I hear ya! It's like none of the other mods count without big tires lol. The problem is these stock OR tires actually perform pretty well both offroad and towing. Bigger tires are bad ass but I'm thinking this new 6 speed trans is gonna have a hard time towing with them. At the moment I'm leaning towards a re-gear which of course means $$$.

Maybe I should build another Bronco for my big tire fix? I used to have sick mall crawler that I actually miss sometimes lol. 1986 Ford Bronco that I SAS'd and had about 17.5" of lift on. I ran 42s on that truck and they were still about 4 inches under the rocker lol. (I couldn't afford anything bigger at the time) That truck was so much fun to drive lol!!!

 

Truck is lookin really good man!

 

Noice. Few tacomas, if any, can have those kinds of numbers. Tires, large or small, will get you from point a to point b.

But can you lose functionality of your tow equipment with the extra rubber and then still enjoy your truck? Since you have added so many useful gadgets, you now have this vehicle capable of so many extra tasks , you have to ask: do I need bro approval and appreciation to make me feel better about my ride?

 

That's the gamble. I'm the kind of guy that will watxh monster trucks all day and not give a f@$& about what football games are on. With that said... BIG TIRES!!! I've been doing some rpm calculations and believe 5th gear will hod better with 4:88s and 33s. But like I said it's an expensive roll of the dice!

 

Thanks dude! I'm running out of projects though lol.

 

Ha ha, I wish I was! It seems for every project I check off the list, I add 3 more! Got the first stage of my onboard air done this weekend with the Powertank.. Now I need to get my sliders and skids, then move to the back with a rack and rtt, gear etc, then arb high output single compressor under the hood.. then power station in the bed.. and then and then and then

 

Yeah I keep telling myself I'm almost done but......On a side note the on board air with the switch-pro is the sh!!!t! You will love it. The other day I used it winterize the trailer. Instead of antifreeze, I used a air chuck connected to a water hose to blow the water out of the water heater and lines (good enough for Phoenix winter). I pulled the taco around and used the Bluetooth controlls to turn the compressor on and off from inside the camper while opening and closing faucets. AWESOME!!!

 

Oh hell yeah!! The Bluetooth function is so cool! The power station in my bed will be wired to the sp.. my plan is to have LED lighting in my rtt that I plug into the power station and have the ability to turn it off and on from my phone in the tent. All camp lighting for that matter

 

I always park the truck perpendicular to the trailer just incase I need to activate some tactiCOOL lightbar strobes with the switch-pro and shoot my out!

 

Ha ha. Dude, the strobes are fun to mess with!! Especially when I get both light bars going opposite each other

 

Forgot to post but my best SWR readings were about 1.7 in channel 1/40.

My super scientific range test involved driving towards a truck stop and asking for mic checks lol. Transmit was about 7 miles and recieve was a bit better.

I plan on returning the 5' firestik antenna and just go with the "big mama" 102 whip antenna. I figure since I'm removing the antenna for day to day use anyways I might as well go big and get the best performance when needed. I also have plans to make a tie down system on the oem roof rack so it doesn't beat the living sh!t out of the trailer on road trips lol.

With that said I'm going to hold off on having the system pro tuned until the new equipment comes in.

 

Love the red and good work on all the wiring.

 

Thanks! That wiring gets to be a little nauseating sometime I still need to shorten some of unnecessary lengths of the compressor harness and run some more loom under the truck but just haven't found motivation for that...

 

Well I changed my mind again and just decided to head out to Big Rig Radios this morning after work. I ended up with a 4' flexible firestik firefly antenna. Zeke at BRR recommended this setup since it doesn't use a spring which he said can act as a load coil and hurt performance. He tuned the system up and got my SWR down to 1.05! I'll keep the exact distance to myself but transmit and recieve distances are outstanding for 11 band considering the antenna and questionable ground plane with a tailgate mount. Super Happy with the setup now!!!

One more pic since I'm pretty proud of this install