What have you done to your Tacoma today? 1st Gen Edition

Hey you have a front bumper like me (missing the plastic)

 

I can't wait to paint mine but I dont want to do it in my garage.

 

Your paint will most likely stick, sounds like you've did everything right. I painted my front bumper this winter without a heater warming it up and so far it's held up pretty nicely, just one part got scratched off but that was from wheeling. Did you use a good primer?

 

It was Rustoleum primer, Rustoleum professional enamel, and some-kind of appliance clear coat (forget which). I decided not to use automotive clear coat because the last one I used on my motorcycle unfortunately undergoes a chemcial reaction with gasoline & it gets really cloudy.
So it was 2 light coats primer, 3 coats black, 3 light coats clear. & I threw in some sanding when it felt rough. Should be good.

Although it's nothing like working with real liquid paint and a spray gun. But I don't think you can tell the difference on the finished product. I could've wet sanded, but I didn't feel like wasting my time because I'm probably going to replace the stock bumper in 1-2 years for an off-road one. Overall - happy. We'll see how it holds up when I bump into something. I love ramming stuff with these stock steel bumpers.

 

yeah i did the fog light mod so now all i have is headlights. no marker lights or anything. that is supposedly illegal. so i want some piaa or hella running lights that i can run all the time. my kcs would blind people.
and thanks blackdawg!

 

You should be good man might get a little scratched up but what paint doesn't. Was it hard to take off the top plastic part on the back bumper, just wondering cuz i was planning on painting mine soon

 

Just got a new driver side mirror installed and replaced the power steering pump. Now the check engine light is on. Maybe the ECU just needs some time to figure out there is fluid in the power steering system?

Edit: CEL just went out.

 

Nope... there are like 20 (guess) plastic clips. Get some plyers, lay down some cardboard (cold ground), and look under the bumper with a flash light. You will see a bunch of simple clips. Just squeeze them with your fingers or the pliers and push them up. Comes off real easy. Might have to bend some of them back outwards when you want to put it on again (at least I did). But it's really simple.

If you're unlucky like I was you will find an AMAZING amount of rust under the plastic cover. I spent and hour with a drill and a steel wool brush - eventually opting for a grinder because it was taking so long. I used some layered 80 grit sand paper wheels and the rust flew off with some pressure. The grinder really cuts your time in 1/10th, so I'd definitely recommend it if you find rust or just want to rough up the chrome. If you can't afford a grinder, buy one at home depot anyway & return it within 30 days saying it didn't work like you thought and you were not satisfied. It's a little dishonest, but I see it all the time - especially at autozone with those spring compressors or oxygen sensor sockets.

Also, definitely get some safety glasses and a mask. Hopefully you won't have much rust. I didn't want to paint over deep rust either, but you might be able to do it. My dad told me it was a bad idea & the new paint would crack and be ruined in a few months. He's an old school engineer so I listened & sanded it down.

 

Hope the mod helps. Works great for me.

 

OHhhhhhh right right right. That is a pretty nice bumper indeed. Half tempted to get one like it as they are so cheap...but i just LOVE Tims rear bumper haha

 

Installed LED dome light (pics later)

Rebuilt my slave cylinder...click link in sig:

 

Alright cool thanks for the detailed explanation.

 

im trying to figure out how to make my camper shell more water proof....seems to leak along the bed rails when it rains...any ideas?

 

Caulking. Just run a bead of silicon caulking along the rails. you can just scrap it off when you take the shell off.

 

Weather strip the sides of your tailgate. Thats where all the water comes in on mine. You could go to walmart and buy some thin rubber strips and just lay them on your bed rails too.

 

sounds good.....how do you get the camper shell on with out messing up the bead of silicon that you put down on the rails

 

Put the shell on first. Then run a bead of silicon along the outside or inside rail.

Or you can get some camper shell sealant tape

 

While we are on the subject... Anybody want to buy a black camper top?http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/1s...97272-fs-97-04-xtra-cab-camper-top-racks.html

 

Did an oil change, I gotta say Im getting good at changing that filter, finally