Barnburner's Build

Hey guys, I'm Will. I finally got around to joining up and it's about time to start a thread for the truck. No crazy plans for it just yet. Goals are pretty minor: improve the things that I can while keeping the execution as clean as possible.

Started off with a 2015 Manual 4x4 SR. Purchased back in May with 38k on it.




The itch to do something to "make it my own" hit quick, so on went the hashmarks. I wasn't sure about them at first, but they really grew on me.



They sold the truck with one key, so I snagged a flip key off of Ebay and had it cut and programmed. Coming from Audi & VW keys, having an all in one key and fob felt good.
Then, after only owning the truck for a month... I got rear ended by a utility van.



The truck was in the shop for about a month, and I took the opportunity to swap in a TRD Pro grill. (I was pushed into the car in front of me too, so the new grill became a lot more affordable since it was being replaced anyways). I considered armor too, but in the end it would have been overkill for my needs.




Got the truck back and then drove it down to TN for a week of volunteer work. Took full advantage of the most scenic romp spot I've seen.



I had a "new" pair of headlights waiting for me when I got home, and started in on my retrofit. I can be kind of particular, and was certainly so in this case. I wanted to keep this as OEM+ as possible so matching the stock SR tinted chrome was a big focus. I debated tinting the chrome with VHT nightshade, but testing it didn't give me the look I wanted at all. (it came out very flat, and didn't preserve any of the chrome underneath. :thumbsdown

My second attempt was with Dupli-color's Metalcast Anodized Smoke, and this was exactly what I was looking for. It has the slightly warmer grey tint of the stock SR headlights, and allowed a lot of the chrome to shine through the tint. I probably could have stopped after one light and one wet coat for a near perfect match, but I opted to go one coat darker.

Basement lighting isn't the best.


I didn't want to get dark reflection around a bright chrome shroud (that kind of bug eye look a lot of retrofits that keep reflector bowls chrome can get) so I painted my shrouds to match the housings, and the result is much better than I could have hoped.




Took it outside to see it in natural light, although it was a bit cloudy so they appear a good deal darker in these pictures. At some angles they almost look blacked out. In brighter light they look comparable to the SR housings.







I still need to polish the lenses, jb weld the shrouds, aim the projectors and seal them up before I can install them. So far I am really happy with how they are shaping up.

After these go in, I think I'll try to leave the truck alone for a while. I say that, but it's never the case...

 

Headlights are on! I'm really happy with how they turned out. Straight on, they look nearly blacked out. From the side, they appear very similar to the stock SR headlights.

 

whoops looks l lost those photos. Anyways, it's been a while, so here is the latest.


Shot of the headlights on the truck. Tucked some color matched Hella's behind there too.




Picked up a UDR short throw a while back. I paired it with an Amazon special shift knob I was able to weight myself. It feels really nice in my hand, but I'd like to see if I can get it to sit lower. With some tricky finagling I should be able to.


Last week I snagged a cap off of Craigslist.


I haven't uploaded pictures of them, I took care of the factory speakers last week too. I swapped in the subie Kicker tweeters, 6x9's up front, and 6.5's in the doors. Still need to make grills for the access cab doors, but even without them, having real speakers back in the doors sounds much better than the crap headliner sound multipliers.

Not sure what's next, but I keep eyeballing ebay for wrecked JF's - if I can get a really killer deal on an AWD transfercase, I'm still considering the idea of a Quattro Taco.

 

Looks nice, I like the decals you added.

@dirty deeds you have a "twin" on here

 

Nice looking truck!
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Must have taken that hit pretty well, looked like a lot of damage to the van.

 

Gotta ask. Where did the name Barn Burner come from?

If it is from where I am thinking, we might be best friends....

 

How did you get in here? Lol

 

Nice truck @Barnburner! Nice to see another super white SR

 

Thanks guys! Yeah, the truck took the hit like a champ. The front of the van was obliterated.

No good photos of the latest, but I snagged a great deal on what I guess was a previously returned MBRP exhaust off Amazon a few weeks back. A bit of a risk because it was for a 3.5 3rd gen, but it bolted right up with no issues. I also picked up one of Meso's ultimate dome lights last week and love how bright that sucker is.

ha maybe? The Barnburner name is actually from a venture that never really went anywhere (building custom "welterweight" motorbikes: http://thebarnburnerbuildforum.com/), but I still dig the name and figured I'd use it here.

 

Here are a few recent shots. Not much has changed lately

 

Got out in the snow the other day.

 

Tonight was the first time shooting the truck with a real camera. Had to shake off some cobwebs, but I'm happy with how these came out, and even happier with the Beachburner rack.

 

Nice truck and a nice clean build. You're in Maryland not too far away! how did you get an SR with Sport mirrors and bumper? I figure you got the color matched rear bumper with the accident.

 

Thanks @Casper66! I think when they were reaching the end of 2nd gen production they started clearing out some parts inventory so SR's came with some cool features. (the darker headlights, color matched bumper and flares... maybe some other bits I'm forgetting) Maybe that was only for a few different colors though.

 

went back out to the same field in the snow. now with foglights.

 

not too much happened lately, but I picked up a new lens so I took some photos

 

Not much new to report in with, at least on the Tacoma front. My wife got a new car a few months back, and it's getting dialed in with a very similar aesthetic. I really dig it.

 

finally did wheels and tires:

 

Haven't been out with the real camera in a while, so a cellphone shot it is.