GA Tacoma Owners BS Thread

Where or who can I get a CMC from done correctly with fill plates? Looking in the metro Atlanta area.
I think its about that time, since I've changed my directions in future tires.

 

May be able to order the full plates from somewhere and then ask the 4Runner group if somebody could cut it up and weld it back. Or don't weld anything back and just cut it with an angle grinder and be done

 

is there a beneift to the fill plates, other than cosmetics? I know BAMF sells the fill plates. I'm always more willing to keep my money in the local economy, though.

 

Strength.

The vertical part of the body mount adds considerable strength to the horizontal bushing mount surface. The CMC chop removes one vertical side, eliminating support, and (eventually) allowing the horizontal surface to move.

The fill plate, welded in, replaces the vertical part that was removed.

 

Thanks Scott. That was a very informed and helpful answer.

 

You're welcome.

If you look at the body mount, you easily see what am saying.

 

Did you slide into a tree, Dan?

When I went through there, the trails were all pretty smooth, its just hilly, you can put yourself in some off-camber situations and articulation is helpful. I also went when it was pretty dry. I can imagine it gets slippery in the wet.
When I went through there were a group of guys in a stock Cherokee Trailhawk. They made it trough everything ok once I worked with them on locking the rear diff (the things have no flex, so they kept lifting wheels) and them bottoming out on approach and breakover angles.
It was a fun place to mess around and I camped somewhere back there (not sure if that was allowed...)

 

What Scott said, I just know Thomas bought the truck without filler plates and has been running it without them ever since. Mainly because he needs to chop it more but meh

 

Saturday at the Left Nut Brewery with @KaptainH plenty of parking for more Tacomas. #awesomephotoop

 

For all you guys with a house, not sure if I want to buy a house or buy some land and build a house exactly the way I want it.

 

How much land?

 

If you can find some cheap land, build. Once you get it built, there will still be some stuff that you'll decide you should have done differently, but you can look at it and say "damn...I did that".

I just got moved into mine back in april. My dad and I Basically did all the interior ourselves. I made all the decisions. I chose the colors. I chose the cabinets. I chose the granite countertop. It's a good feeling.

I don't want to do it again for a long, long time.

But it's a good feeling.

 

Whatever you do, don't rent. Renting is nothing but throwing money away. Sometimes you don't have a choice. But....you might as well take money and light it on fire.

 

I'm not sure at the moment, not like 100. Probably 20 max and atleast 2. Dad had 110 in Sparta, Ga for a hunting club

That's what I was thinking. I will be able to do most of it my self, dad has done grading and pipeline his whole life. My uncle pours concrete slabs and footings so I've learned a thing or to.

My dad has done briefed me on that, especially leasing a truck or something

 

This is an area I'm familiar with. Here's what you do:

Rent for a while or buy a few houses before you build. Rent/buy at least 2 different places so you can get a feel for what you want and what you don't and how much house you'll want/need when you decide to build. I've seen SO many people build houses after college and 99% of them become dissatisfied with them because they didn't know what they wanted. If I'm paying the extra money to build a house, it's going to be 100% what I want. Also, if the house is on family land and you build a house you hate, you're screwed. This is exactly why my wife and I bought a house and are living in it for a few years before building on her family's land. If you're not building on family land, then if you hate the house, you can at least sell it. However, building a house costs more than buying a house, so you're likely going to lose money doing this. Moral of the story is rent a few/buy a few houses before you build. Now, I'm going to explain why renting isn't a bad idea as you think below.

Welcome to part 2...Renting isn't always a bad idea.

1. landlord: with a landlord, you get the luxury of not paying for that $4000 A/C when it goes out or having to meet your insurance deductible when a tree falls on your roof. A proper rental lease releases you from liability on all major repairs, which can save you big bucks. The wife and I rented the house we live in now for a year before buying it because of this very reason. We knew we wanted to buy the house and it was for rent at the time. We lived there and let everything that was wore out (refrigerator, air conditioner, gutter) get replaced on someone else's dime. Now, we're about to close on the house and we've already escaped having to pay around $10k for shit that was bound to die on us.

2. closing costs, interest, property taxes, and insurance: a down payment on a home isn't cheap. Expect to pay around 20%. If you're buying a $200,000 house, that's $40,000. Do you have $40k laying around? Of course, you can put less down than that, but your interest rate is going to go up.

3. He's too damn young to buy a house...1. what are you, 19? As much as you think you're grown, you're not. I'm sure 99% of the guys in this thread are NOTHING like they were at 19. This matters for a few reasons: 1. you're not as mature as you think you are. When you own a home, it's a lot harder to go buy shit on a whim (I'm talking 4-wheelers, truck parts, etc.). 2. You haven't had ample time to build up a next egg of emergency money. I'm not talking about $100 you keep hidden in your wallet behind that old condom. I'm talking $5,000 you keep in a savings account just in case you get laid off, your house needs a major repair, or your transmission takes a shit. The bank doesn't take IOU's. Also, take into consideration that you may wake up one day and want to move somewhere else, be it for work, a girl, a spiritual awakening, etc. If you have a home latching you down, it's going to be hard to move because selling a home is hard, expensive, and time-consuming.

4. Renting is cheaper than buying and, although you have no equity in rent (assets, basically), the freedom you have is often worth it: freedom of extra cash in your pocket, freedom of being able to move, freedom of not having to be on guard for repairs, and freedom of not having to deal with the stress of how you're going to pay your mortgage when your boss replaces you with a Mexican who does your job for half the price. There are online calculators (or better yet, financial advisers) who can do an analysis to determine whether it's cheaper in the long run for you to rent or own. They take into consideration things like market value of the house you want to build/buy, the potential amount of rent you'd be paying, and the length of time you plan to stay where you'll be living.

5. Even if you are in the financial position right now to buy a house, there is a chance that that will change and you'll be up shit creek without a paddle. Being up shit creek without a paddle happens to a lot of people, but do you really want to start your life out on that foot? Something like that will haunt you for a very long time. Play it safe.

TL;DR: You are WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY too young to buy/build a house. You're 19...stop trying to grow up so fast and enjoy life. Owning a home is no light task. Even if you can afford to do so, don't. Why would you want to anchor yourself down like that at such a young age? I know you think you've got it all figured out, but you're 19. When I was your age, I was a freshman in college, drinking Natty Light 5 days a week, and humping anything with a pulse. THIS is what you need to be doing!

 

Ahhhh, the good ol' days...

 

@zacharypaul89 I want to hire you as my life coach! For real.

 

Exactly. Renting is great, especially if you can find a place that meets your needs for the time being and if you already know you aren't going to be in the same area for too long. I wish I could have found a place to rent down here. No big ticket repair items to worry about, no worrying about selling the place at the end, just pick up your crap and leave.
I own a place now, which has its advantages, but I'd totally rent again in the future.

 

Ha thanks. This is just one area I am really familiar with. The company I work for has a loan division and I'm around this kind of stuff every day. My S-I-L is also a financial adviser and we talk about this kind of shit all the time because that's how lame we are.

 

Great, Great advice on rent or own. Man, you hit the nail on the head. Awesome advice to follow.
For an investment you could buy some property with some 10+year old timber, sit on it, hunt, fish, enjoy it. After a few+ years you could thin out the timber or cut it all and have a decent amount to play with. If you decide you're not happy with the location you could sell it.
An acre of decent planted pines, around me, go for 1500-2500/acre. Clear cut can go for as low as 8-900/acre but mostly averages 1100/acre.
19 yrs old I moved to South FL, twice, Central FL, twice, and finally left for GA in my mid 20's. I thought I knew what i wanted at the time but as my moving suggests, I didn't. I still don't and I'm 32 with house, 2 kids and wife. Good luck in your choice.