Tacomarin’s Chubby Unicorn Build

Hah! No worries, you’re not the first to ask. I can only take credit for finding the tracks. Our contractor made the magic happen. And my wife made the organization happen.

 

That is a sweet setup!

 

New wheels and tires on! SCS Stealth 6, 17x8.5 Matte Dark Bronze with 285/75r16 BFG KO2’s. I love this tire size! Still need to CMC and do some more clearance work but it’s driveable for now.



I also installed this awesome KO’O gas cap holder that just makes me happy every time I see it. Super fun little mod and actually really functional.


A few weeks ago I replaced my Mobtown Offroad tailgate panel with a Mountain Hatch one. I kept the Mobtown hardware which is critical for being able to use the tailgate strap I have to close it from the inside, but the new panel is quite a bit lighter which is great because my tailgate damper works again! It’s a pretty good product though I’ve heard the factory screws at the bottom of the panel are too short for this panel. It wasn’t an issue for me with the Mobtown hardware though.

 

For those wondering, yes you can fit a 285/75r17 under the bed. I moved the hoist backwards a few weeks ago, and already chopped the exhaust. The passenger side tire tab needs to get hammered nearly flat (I bent it up slightly once everything was in place), the driver side one I don’t think needs to get touched at all (I hammered it and then re bent it). It’s a bit of a two person job to position it because you have to push it back and towards the passenger side, but it is solid once it’s up there. As you can see, it’s a very tight fit, but there appears to be adequate room for the brake lines and diff. Time will tell!

 

Got my CMC and pinch weld flattening done a couple weekends back. Much thanks to @Bentrodder ! No more rubbing! (Don't mind those drips in the second picture. That's overspray from the flex-seal.)

 

What's the status on your OVTune?

 

I got it a while back and have been running 2.0 Finalish for a couple of months. It's really good but I also ordered some 5.29 gears this week. I also have VF tuner now so I'll be able to do the alternator output voltage change for my AGM.

 

Guess I never updated this for my onboard air setup. I did a write-up here on the install using the MORE bracket with a 1 gallon tank and twin ARB: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...cket-install-overview-and-impressions.673061/




I've only used it a couple of times but it is so fast and easy to use with the dual inflation setup. So glad I did this, especially with these bigger tires.

 

Awesome! Mine is on the way. I didn't realize you were able to use the VF Tuner to adjust the alternator output voltage!

 

Well once he releases the vF 2.0 tunes for the AT you will. The MT guys have already done it. Just waiting for that to release.

 

Starting to plan out my new drawer platform build. The theme is light and simple. ¾” plywood for the frame, ½” plywood for the drawers. Carpet on top, everything else will be painted or stained. Lots of material removed from the frame to keep the weight down, and an open bottom to the frame as well. I do really like my V1 build, but it is heavy. I used all 3/4" marine grade plywood with 60" drawer slides. The drawer slides alone weigh 80 lbs a pair! With the plywood and carpet, I'm guessing the whole drawer system tips the scales at 300+ lbs, without gear! I'm not sure what this new unit will weigh, but hopefully a lot less. I'll still have the cubby covers in front of and behind the wheel wells just like I do now, I just didn't model those up.



The passenger drawer will still be used for gear storage. By doing away with the drawer slides and just having the drawers slide on the bed pan, making the frame with only one 3/4" center support, and using 1/2" plywood for the drawers, each drawer will get almost 2" wider and 1" deeper. Doesn't seem like much? That's a whopping 144 more cubic inches of storage!!!!



The driver side will still be used for cooking stuff. I'm doing away with the idea of cooking on the drawers themselves. Though it has proven to be handy at times, the downside is that when it's time to go to bed everything has to get cleaned up, disassembled, and put away. And then in the morning you have to open everything up and do it all over again. My plan now is to cook on the tailgate, or more likely on the table (more on that below).



These are the latches I plan on using for the drawers:

$10 OWACH Slam Latch Hatch Round Pull Latch AL-958-3 for 1/2" Door Replace Southco M1-63 RV Marine Boat

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N6Z0W68/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_3?smid=A1GAMQ2CRQDG4V&psc=1 The plus side on these is that they take up less space inside of the drawers, but the downside is they need a strike plate inside of the drawer frame. Hopefully that doesn't prove to be problematic with stuff in the drawer catching on it.

The drawers will have plastic sliders to slide on the composite bed floor. The hope is to use the channels as tracks for them but I haven’t really looked to see how feasible that is. Worst case I'll just glue a sheet of 1/8" HDPE to the bottom of the drawers and have them slide on the tops of the ribs.



The drawers will be kept from tipping up by the frame, which will be bolted down to the bed floor, similar to how it is now. Hopefully with the frame bolted down and wedged against the wheel wells it will feel pretty solid. Worst case though I'll add some strapping under the front drawers to keep the frame from racking.

I'll use a retractable pin latch at the back of the drawers to act as a stop against the latch strike plate. This will keep the drawer from coming out all the way unintentionally, but allow quick removal of the drawer as well if needed. Something like this:

$11 Building Doors & Door Hardware Loop Style Spring Locking Barrel Bolts for Sheds, Gates, Doors - 1 Pair

https://www.amazon.com/Doors-Hardwa...l/dp/B01M70ER0W/ref=psdc_511280_t4_B07C2BZ6VJ



And finally, I think what will by one of my favorite things is this slide out table with these height adjustable legs: https://www.foldingchairsandtables....ight-h-style-steel-folding-table-legs-2-pack/. What I've realized is that having a table is really, really useful at camp. You can leave your stove out, leave your dishes out to dry, etc. But having a normal height table sucks for food prep. This table will be adjustable up to about 38" tall, which should be plenty high for food prep without killing your back. And it can also be slid partway out to use as a shelf on the back of the drawers if desired. The table will slide on angle iron with a strap welded at the front, which will also have the strike plate for the drawer latch.



That's it for now. I'm hoping to start this project sometime this fall/winter when things start cooling down.

 

No truck updates, just a trip report from this past weekend. We bagged Pyramid on a 12 mile day hike (started at 3:30 PM, finished at 10:30 PM.... not sure I recommend that) and camped at the truck the first night because of permit limitations. Tacos and beer make everything better though. Then we did an overnight to Lois Lake via Rockbound Pass (8 miles) and back via Red Peak Pass (10 miles). The trails were rugged and hard, the lake was beautiful, but the fish were non-committal. Smoky and hot, but surprisingly the air wasn't too bad.






We also checked out the entrance to Barrett Lake Trail. This trail is the real deal. The night before we saw 4 purpose built rigs coming down the road. One was a 1st gen Taco that was literally pushing its driver side wheel down the road with, I assume, a bent tie-rod. But it was definitely the 85" wide gate at the entrance kept us out, not the prospect of panel damage and broken everything.


And why not... one more of the pavement prince.

 

You those 5.29 cores in the mail yet?

 

Due in on Friday. Planning on installing them 9/26. Can't wait!

 

Hello! Maybe you can assist faster than the OvTune zendesk. I recurved a zip file fill of tunes but they are not super descriptive. Were you provided any information as to what each file is? Did I miss something? There isn't anything provided with the zip file. Thanks in advance!

 

Does this help?


ECU ID FIRST, OCTANE (Regular or Premium), TIRE SIZE (stock, 33's, 35's), ThrottleOption (Enhanced throttle), Gear size (4.88, 5.29)



(when selecting tire size, select one that is the closest match to your tire)

ECUID_Octane_TireSize_ThrottleOption (thx)_GearSize



Thx = Enhanced Throttle Response

Enhanced Throttle = Some throttle changes that makes the throttle more sensitive based on vehicle speed and requested Torque (accelerator, basically).
Tip in is not modified between the two nor is the low speed range.

 

Uh, yes! That helps a ton. I wish they would have provided that in the email! Thanks so much! Trying to get a flash in before my trip tomorrow!

 

Welp, gears are in! Took us about 6-7 hours to swap the pre-assembled third/clamshell from ECGS. Installation was relatively smooth with only one brain fart that cost us about an hour to resolve. The rear is so easy it's pretty much cheating. The front is easy too, it just takes quite a bit longer while to get everything out of the way so you can pull the diff. We even finished in time to drop the cores off at UPS and go camp for the night.

I'm about 300 miles into the break in and also just flashed OVTune 2.0 with the 5.29_33_THX_Premium tune. I'll be honest, the result of all of this is not super exciting. The truck just finally drives well. It hasn't magically turned into a race car, it just has an appropriate amount of low RPM torque and overall drives better than ever. Definitely worth the effort though and I can't wait to get this thing off road! Hopefully the forests open up soon so we can get out there!