TRDJapan sport series grill(satoshi)

Its really just a satoshi but everyone has a different way of doing it. I like to call mine a "TRD Japan Sport Grill." I named it this because I ordered the emblem through ebay from japan lol.

It took me about 15 hours or work spread across 3 or 4 days dude to drying times and all that. Could be done in a weekend if you like to wake up early. you need the sun to help it dry.

I started at 11A going to Home Depot to get:

flat black rattle can
blue tape
sand paper
Bondo
2 part epoxy for abs plastic
4'x8' piece of perforated metal
fresh hacksaw blades

All in all about 50 bucks or less. Got home around 1 had lunch then started at like 230. I have few pictures of my work bc I was worried/excited to get it back together.

Tape all of the painted section in case you sand it a little and at the spray paint phase it will be necessary anyway. Cut center out with hacksaw manually. I just put on gloves and started cutting as close as I could, grabbing the blade itself, no handle. Being very careful not to take too much, leave extra material from the center sections to be sanded later. That said, you can get very close if your careful. You can see plastic in the rounded triangle cutouts at the end where the center section used to attach, i harvested that from the center sections flat portions, just cut them with tin snips and then hacksaw. I made them too big so I could attach them to the back of the lip easily with 2 part epoxy. My goal with these was to close the holes, eliminating the fiberglass step some people do:


So now I stopped taking pics til it was done. Essentially to finish I allowed those pieces to dry then filled in their gaps with Bondo. Make sure as you come closer to the surface you mix the Bondo with less hardener. i probably did 3 layers of Bondo. It was my first time using it but I now know that the more liquid it is the better it is for final layers. Plus it gives you more time to remove the extra material before it hardens and starts to get chunky.

Next sand down all the other tie ins from the center section on the lip, go slow and try not to gouge anything. I just put a little Bondo at each spot but I think it would be very hard to tell they were there even if you didnt.

Now the fun part, sanding. Once you have enough material in all locations to have filled the holes then you must begin to sand them smooth. I recommend a handheld sander with a low profile to expedite this process. I did one side of the lip by hand, I was able to go slow and get it just how I wanted. After that I did the horizontal parts of the lip, which is when I pulled out the handheld sander. Just buy one if you don't have one, I found out after I did the horizontal sections that it works just fine on the ends too as long as you keep the Bondo out of the corners.

So I hand sanded one side of the satoshi, and used the sander on the other. finish the hole setup by hand sanding it, just look at it from all angles until it looks like it isn't wavy at all.

Increase the number of the sandpaper being used as you approach the final sanding. If you are painting the lip flat it isn't as important to use a super high grit for the final stages. If your painting it gloss you wanna go to a 1200 grit probably for your final sanding. Once you sand it wash it off or use a air hose to remove the dust. Primer and paint the lip with a few coats.

Trim with tin snips and paint the grill portion. Its held in with zip ties, I drilled into the grill to provide the holes to anchor to.












I relocated the horns to the bottom of a support behind the bumper. I bolted both to the same hole by just bendig one of the mounts so they can fit. Hang them so the horn openings face down to keep water out.

Ask any questions you have ask. If you are in S.D. I have extra grill material or I can make you one for a price.

 

Looks nice. Just need to paint your radiator with high temp black paint to hide it and it will be finished.

But good job

 

Yeah i want to get a trd stencil and spray red on the rad maybe instead. And im also thinking of ordering the customcargrills.com mesh like the raptor mesh

 

Nice job!

 

Thx homer. You are the man. Im glad i did it myself. Very rewarding

 

Nice Job, Came out great.
How 'bout a close-up of the emblem, if ya get a chance.

I'd still spray black on rad before red TRD.
Keep in mind, light coats on radiator, so multiple colours (that's for OZ-T ) will build up
And I'd do the emblem on grill OR Red TRD on Radiator, but not both.
Just MHO, for my rig, but you should make it your own.

Agreed, It IS Rewarding,
Again, Good Job


CC

 

I will post a pic when I get to the comp. Doesn't work on my phone or tablet. http://m.ebay.com/itm?itemId=121275154689

 

Thanks, the link will suffice.
Like 'em, hadn't seen 'em before.


CC

 

Do you have any pics of the rear of the grill? You say it hooks on with zip ties but I don't see where or how.

 

Looks good!