The Getaway...Crom's build and adventures

What up David K? Good to hear from you. I still would like to go to Baja. I may have to wait until my kids are out of the house. I dunno.

I'm glad your truck is still going strong. Long live the 2nd Gens! I am glad we were able to connect for the maintenace on your truck. It's great you did more authoring--very cool. Summer is coming to a close, kids are going back to school (remotely). My wife and I are pretty focused on our careers. It's amazing how fast time passes now. The older I get the faster it goes. And yeah, there are times the monotony shifts into boredom. Work-from-Home, is a pain with a full house. We're otherwise doing well.

 

Oh boy, you also have discovered the relativity of time. The more time that has passed, the faster it passes. Enjoy all you can, when you can.
My two kids are in their 30s and I am reliving the memories of my daughter when she was small through her daughter (my granddaughter... who turns 10 next week). The cycle of life!
When you are ready for a Baja trip... I am here to help!
My new road guide was to have been published this past spring/ summer but Covid dashed that... so it will wait... The cover might look like this (featuring the truck you helped run great):





A few page samples...

 

Thanks David, Beautiful cover pictures thanks for sharing them.

 

Maintenance Log Consolidated 2020-2021

Truck maintenance (2020-12-27)

• Replaced Aux Battery with new

Truck maintenance (2021-09-07) 82,415

• Cleaned 2lbs of dust from engine bay
• Replaced engine air filter
• Replaced cabin air filter
• Greased Rear drive shaft zerks
• Greased UBJ, LBJ, Tie rods
• Replaced vinyl wrap on back glass
• Replaced gas struts for rear shell door
  
• Cleaned hi lift Jack
• Washed truck
• Replaced starting battery with new
• Replace oil and oil filter
• other stuff I forgot to write down, and can't remember

Notes

• last oil change May, 26, 2018, which makes the oil over 3 years old, but low mileage.
• The hood paint is going south fast. Paint is blown and holes are forming with some rust spots beginning to show

New replacement struts for shell door back glass (16" Gas Props (15.7" extended, 9.4" compressed, 38 pounds of pressure). $32.50 Very happy with these. All struts wear out and at 9 years old the OE was finished.


Replaced Vinyl wrap on back glass with new. This time I performed the wrap with one (1) whole piece. It was challenging and fun. It came out really good, I give myself a 96% rating on job. The old wrap was in very poor shape at 8 years old!


VViViD Black True R Carbon Fiber Vinyl Wrap Roll with Air Release Technology (2 Foot by 5 Foot
$27.11




New Aux Battery to use and abuse


My youngest kid is now nine (9) and she is my best helper.

 

Man they grow up before you know it. I'm sitting here with my youngest daughter (25) and her husband. Feels like just yesterday she was 9

 

Very cool report, Crom!
I am still on the tranny fluid you helped me replace. With such little driving, compared to before I retired and Covid killing Baja trips for a couple of years, I am over one year from my last oil change... I think maybe 6,000 miles? I use synthetic, so good for 10,000 + miles.
As I recall, I had about 90,000 miles on the odometer when we flushed the transmission, about 5 years ago? The truck is around 130,000 miles now, I think... At this rate, I'll be dead before the truck needs another tranny flush! LOL
My Toyota will never die!
Thanks for your fantastic posts here on TW!
If you ever need help planning a Baja trip, you know who to ask for.
My missions book is still in print, too!
www.vivabaja.com

 

Thanks. Time does move fast. Live in the moment is the best we can do.

Thanks David.

 

Solo in the Sonoran desert (2021)​

 

Nick's back!

 

Looking forward to getting back to Baja and even Borrego for a little desert four-wheeling!
Until I do, I have been upgrading and adding to my website which is now on a new platform... Trip photos, maps, and more at www.vivabaja.com . I made it to help others plan a Baja adventure trip.

 

2022 Adventures
Reconnected with friends; adventured into the wildlands

Home sweet home, once more

Recapture

 

Death Valley 2022

North of the Amargosa Chaos, the languages of a dozen nations was heard. The salt of the earth was consumed, and a mortal spilled blood (minor injury). Prayers were said, and meditation followed. This reminded me of a quote, "We come from the earth, we return to the earth, and in between we garden." -Alfred Austin

Mormon Point Turtleback, The Black Mountains​

Camping in Death Valley​

Here endith my trip report

 

You ought to meet up with @Wild Crow next time he’s out there. They camp full time. Great couple to visit with very interesting and truly good folks

 

Can you elaborate some on why you wrapped the back window of the shell? Looks cool but can you still see out of it now? Or was this for privacy? I just got a similar shell and put ceramic limo tint all around for heat prevention and privacy

 

Sure. Stop sun from entering shell and creating greenhouse effect, so heat management. Also privacy. I can't see out rear view, but other mirrors work fine.

I hope your tint works well for you.

 

Ok I figured that was what it was for. But I saw a curtain inside as well so I wanted to double check. Any other insider tips you have learned with your shell over the years? This week has been my first experience with one... ever. Excited to break it in on my next trip!

 

Good for you. I think everything has been said in the build thread. It has been said before, I still think that the truck shell is one of the single greatest value-add modifications to a truck. You may now discover that you wish to stop dust intrusion into the shell / tailgate. Patience and persistence seems to be key. I have 99% succeeded in solving that problem. Depending on what you store back there, you may need to find a way to vent heat. Being in the California Deserts, you know how hot it can get each season, and that heat fast tracks stuff to their doom, especially food. Good luck!

 

Hey @Crom, awesome build. I'm going to be installing some L-track in the bed of my 3rd gen, taking inspiration from your setup, but had a few questions about your install of tracks towards the front of the bed. Did you install the pieces towards the front of the bed (not the vertical pieces against the cab) using locknuts+washers or rivnuts? How much clearance did you have between the bed and the gas tank? I'm probably going to mount some l-track closer to the front of the bed than yours and it looks like I'm going to have clearance/access issues on the underside and I'm wondering if I'm better off using rivnuts for those? Did you apply silicone between the l-track and the bed or at the bolt holes to help seal the mounting holes? If you were to do the l-track install again, is there anything you'd change or do differently in terms of layout or mounting?

Sorry if I've missed the answers to these questions somewhere in this thread.

 

I'm curious about your track install too.

I put a dust seal on the tailgate per your earlier post and it knocked dust entry down by about 90%. Looks like the kind of thing I will need to redo every few years but it is a cheap and easy solution! Thanks!

 

Thank you. The truck is doing very well. The L-Track is a smart move; good luck with your install. Yes its in here, see the quoted post below for full details with pictures. I also included a couple random pics of the hardware.

Short answer: Stainless locknuts & washers everywhere, if you make a long reach tool. If you remove the spare you'll have plenty of room. For between the gas tank, make a tool to reach and you will be fine, my quoted post explains more. No sealing is necessary between l-track and bed in my opinion, but if you want to go the NASA clean-room route, it would only help. The holes are 1/4" and the machine screws fill the holes well enough.

I am 100% satisfied with every piece of l-track I've laid and the locations. For my purposes the anchor points are optimized for any configuration, be it a full load out for 1+week of family trip, or a simple overnight / day trip. I can secure the load and I never have to compromise. Nothing ever moves; cam-buckles and ratchet straps hold everything down.

That's good. The carpet I put on the tailgate is the secret sauce that works with the tailgate seal and cuts dust down to < 1%.