Off-Road Essentials For First Timer

Just got a 19 trd 4x4 and I am interested in doing some entry level off-road/overland type stuff. Just curious what gear you all recommend to get me started safely. I was looking at some of the ARB Recovery kits as well as some on-board air so I can air down and adjust tire pressure accordingly, but apart from that im really not sure what would be best. What do yall recommend?

 

You might find some relevant info here:

Off-Roading Gear

Off road gear/tools/spare parts

Off-Road Tips and Gear List

Where do you keep your recovery/off road gear?


Oh, and welcome aboard!

 

new tires would be my first purchase

 

I'm personally pretty frugal and put 45k miles on those originals Wranglers before replacing them with KO2s which allowed me to appreciate how much better the KO2s are. I've busted the oil pans on every vehicle I own so with this one I went with total underside skid plates from RCI and I ding the heck out of them. My favorite mod is the air compressor under the hood - that has been helpful in all kinds of ways. Have fun and don't damage your daily driver!

 

Perfect, thanks for pointing me in the right direction!

 

Gas money and Hi Lift Jack. Have fun.

 

Yeah this will also be my daily driver, so I will stick with the original tires as long as I can. I have been looking at the

$250 ARB CKSA12 Air Compressor Compact On-Board 12 Volts DC, Designed Exclusively for ARB Air Lockers Locking Differentials

ARB CKSA12 compact on-board air compressor, but really hesitant to buy one of those mounts that are 100+. How did you end up mounting yours? And did you run the wiring for the switch inside the cab?

I will also start looking at underside protection. Thanks for the suggestion!

 

After ditching a previous compressor that was too small and slow I got the ARB CKMA12 and love it. It's mounted on the driver side close to the cab and I ran the wires and put the switch inside myself. A TW buddy sold me a custom made bracket for next to nothing. You could probably make one yourself. Works flawlessly, doesn't overheat and is pretty quick on heavy truck tires.
https://amzn.to/2G6KHT1

You bet bud!

 

Wait, are you talking about installing an air locker or having an on-board air compressor for filing tires, etc?

 

A gun.

 

No air locker for now. This would just be for filling tires and other stuff along those lines.

 

Maxtrax or similar, then go have fun

 

You asked a subforum full of doomsday prepperz, high speed operators, printer repairmen, fear mongers, expert overlanders, engineers, and Bro-scientists what to loadout for. Good luck. Your truck is going to weigh 6 tons.


Also, welcome. Have fun


“What’d you bring?”

“Two assault rifles, a battle rifle, 6 5lb containers of protein, a snatch block, 1/4 mile of max trax, a plate carrier, 2 spares, 10 different kinds of rope, backup battery, portable shower, water purifying trailer, a drone, a full on kitchen, a rooftop duplex, a lawyer, and a bag of beef jerky”

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/attachments/3-jpg.960422/
https://www.tacomaworld.com/attachments/5-jpg.960424/
OEM skidplate on the left, RCI aluminum skid on the right...

 

Wow big difference on thickness.. just saw the aluminum part of your post. Whoops

 

Sliders, a Hi Lift jack and a tow strap.

 

Bring an experienced buddy.

I keep an air compressor in all of my vehicles and find them very useful for a lot of reasons. Buy a decent one instead of the cheapest sold at Walmart. Mine came from Walmart, but is one of the more expensive versions. Good quality jumper cables, make sure they are extra long and heavy duty.

A 25-30' tow strap rated for at least 15,000 lbs. I keep a small folding shovel and a small ax as well as a decent supply of basic tools.

The terrain matters. I'd probably be in trouble in most desert environments and rock driving. I'm more likely to get stuck in mud or slide into a ditch. The shovel is for digging out of a mud hole and the ax for cutting branches to put under wheels for traction. I've had to cut fallen trees or branches off trails in order to get through many times.

 

Any particular brand of sliders you'd recommend?

 

Great info, thanks!

 

You've got some good info above. I second the traction plates. Mine more than paid for themselves and have saved me twice. I got a mount for my compressor from expedition essentials for the bed and love it with the Viair 460. Deflators are nice too. The factory Trd skid dings easy but works until I do more underneath. Just build as you go and have fun. A hi-lift is awesome in lieu of a winch. Pulleys if you end up with a winch and knowing how to use the winch right is huge. I've seen folks destroy things by not knowing how to winch.