Fitting 35’s with minimal trimming NOW ADDING LONG TRAVEL AND 934 CV’s

Exactly... man up and get a full size

 

Or something small like a first gen to fit on tight/narrow trails.

 

Did you modify the skid at all to make it fit?

 

Like an 81’ ???

 

I made two 1/2” spacers for the very front and the rest bolted right up really nicely

 

This gives me hope that my skid would fit without (much) modification...the 4 bolts on the bottom of the skid bolted right up to the lca kit then? I mean the pelf skids aren't really any different than other skids on the market.

 

Exactly like that.

 

oh awesome ! I thought we were going to have to ditch my pelfry skids

 

The benefit of the skid provided in this kit is that the ground clearance is improved compared to any other skid system on the market. I was easily able to adapt my rear/mid skid to the one JD provided in the kit (I opted for steel for this reason). I will be building something custom for the front side of the skid to the bumper, but if his front skid that he showed a few pages back becomes a product that is an add-on, it would seriously be better than the other skids in just about every way. The biggest benefit though, is more ground clearance! Can't stress that enough. My relentless skids were bashed plenty, held up fine, but they hung down lower so were more likely to take a beating. I feel the new skid is better, lighter (even in steel), and higher clearance. I would give the edge in strength however to the relentless/pelfrey syle versions. Skids should be treated as consumables though, when they get messed up enough, replace. I like that idea better than the heaviest of heavy duty versions you have to lug everywhere just to get mild scrape protection occasionally.

 

Wait until you see what I’m doing with the pelf winch bumper that’s on the silver truck... I’m cutting the bottom of it off and brining everything way up.

 

If you can figure out how to install the LCA kit then adapting whatever skid you have won’t be hard

 

I have a feeling you are going to do the same thing that I'm planning with my CBI bumper. Cut of the front frame cross member where the bottom part of the bumper goes, make a new square tube cross member as high up as possible without blocking radiator, then cut off bottom of bumper at the same point. Front skid goes from the forward tube of the LCA kit, up to the new crossmember, then forward to connect to the new, higher clearance bumper. Did I get that roughly right?

That forward lower crossmember is just hanging there like a scraggletooth. I've hit my bumper there a few times. The vision is easy to see, it is right there in front of me, but execution is not fully planned out, and I don't have the tools, bending/cutting skills you do. I'm a little bit wary to take the plasma and cut off wheels and just start going. I do have the steel on hand to do it...

 

@EatSleepTacos did it and made his own bumper.

 

Heck yeah I did.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...h-angle-with-modified-skid-and-bumper.677127/

 

thx for the link, I hadn't seen this before, will do some reading for sure. I knew that others had done this. And the LCA kit comes with tabs to re-mount the trans cooler lines. What did you do with the trans lines if you don't mind me asking, did you just convert to rubber all the way across the front end and up to the radiator/cooler?

 

I have a manual trans so no lines or cooler to deal with. I didn't have to modify any lines or relocate anything for it to work.

 

Ahh... right. thx.

 

Even with the stock lines they can easily be moved. If that's what's holding someone back then that's an easy workaround compared to what you are embarking on.

 

Lots of people did it different ways. Look at @Arcticelf build thread and see what he did to accomplish and accommodate. Also at the beginning of this thread they did it as well. I can't remember who else off the top of my head but they all did something a little different. Most when prerunner style with it. @EatSleepTacos is probably the more rock crawler winch bumper style out there. His is the most detailed too as far as from start to finish and not burried in another thread somewhere.

 

Once you're down with cutting the frame you can do a lot to increase performance.

My only caveat on that is safety: that lower crash bar is there to protect other people when you hit them. The next version of my bumper will include a similar, but bolt on, crash bar for exactly the same reason. It will also help keep lesser vehicles out of your wheel-well and away from expensive suspension components.