Great White Taco build

Hopefully you are headed somewhere cool, toasty here in NJ

 

Heading to Western Maryland, Green Ridge State Park

 

@AR15xAR10

 

@Crom do you have full length L-track in your bed? How did you figure out where the ridges are on the underside of the bed/where to drill? Also how did you tighten the nuts under the bed?

I want to replace the piece of wood that I have my fridge mounted to, and my recovery gear box mounted to, with L-track. But kind of stuck right now. Also I need to measure to decide if I want to order a 4 piece set of 4ft, or 1 96" piece and cut it down to what I need..

 

You can run full length pieces, but you have to do a little custom work. Have a helper to tighten the fasteners, helper person in the bed and you underneath, you have to move the spare tire out of the way.

You can drill pilot holes from underneath, then finish from topside. Also you can use magnets to determine where to drill the pilot holes put a strong magnet on top and then on the bottom you can figure out where to drill.

The l-track is formed from extruded aluminum,it's easy to drill and make countersink cutouts, with a countersink bit for machine screws. This will be necessary to work around the ridges in the composite bed.

It may sound harder than it is but it's actually really easy to do.

Good luck

 

Doing a cost writeup on new dual battery setup. Not including my labor costs, because I have no idea what those would be.

6061 1/8" aluminum sheet ordered from here. Also got one for my tailgate.
https://www.midweststeelsupply.com/store/6061aluminumsheet
(2x) 55x17.5 - $140 shipped

CTEK D250SE - $341 shipped

$347 CTEK D250SE, 20A, 12V Battery Charger For Starter And Service Batteries In RV, Truck And Overlanding Vehicles, Solar Battery Maintainer, 12V Lithium Ion Battery Charger And Smart Alternator Compatible

https://www.amazon.com/CTEK-Overlan...&qid=1653697180&sprefix=ctek+d,aps,159&sr=8-1

Newapowa 100w solar panel kit, 2pcs - $159 shipped

Newpowa 100 Watts Monocrystalline 100W 12V Solar Panel High Efficiency Mono Module RV Marine Boat Off Grid(2 pcs)

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07JX61QJ5?ie=UTF8&th=1

BougeRV 10ft 12ga solar wires - $18 shipped

$20 BougeRV 10 Feet 12AWG Solar Extension Cable with Female and Male Connector with Extra Pair of Connectors Solar Panel Adaptor Kit Tool (10FT Red + 10FT Black)

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08DCS662P?ie=UTF8&th=1

8 gauge 25ft Red/Black wire - $22 shipped

$22 ROCKRIX 8 Gauge 25ft Black and 25ft RED Car Audio Power Ground Soft Touch Wire Cable Set

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0895LKB2L?ie=UTF8

various terminal connectors/heat shrink/braided loom - $40 shipped

various nuts/bolts/washers - $10 shipped

Total ~$650. Note, these are the prices that are listed today. When I started buying things around September 2021, things were less.
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I also have a blue sea 6 fuse panel and a 60a breaker. Not necessarily needed, but its going to allow me to add accessories like fridge, bed lighting, and diesel heater in the future.

 

Test fitting some things

 

Making progress on this new project. Burned in passenger side today. Confirmed with Total Chaos that my giant tires will probably warrant spacers, so I ordered these (on recommendation from @EatSleepTacos )
https://www.wheeladapter.com/product/extended-wheel-studs-for-toyotas-set-of-12

And a pair of Bora 1/2" slip on hub centric wheel spacers.

only things left to do is weld on the resi mounts on both sides, then pop out to my friends place in Maryland for a revalve. So close to cadillac smoothness



Next project is either Deaver Stage 3 leaf install or start tackling the 12-15 lower hvac dash swap. Also need to delete the rear view mirror and add a wireless one with a monitor and a tap from @Puppypunter if he remembers to build me one . I know youre busy bud, so no rush

 

@geekhouse23 what battery are you running?

should I:
Die Hard AGM group 24F - $230 + $22 core
Optima Yellow Top group 27F - $349 + $22 core
X2 Power group 27F - $379 + $22 core

Apparently I need an AGM for the SDHQ battery terminals that I just installed. Any other recommendations?



Update:
Didnt want the 1/2" to be too small. So I canceled my order on ebay for the Bora 1/2" and the extended lugs. Ordered a pair of Bora 3/4" from Toytec for $30 less than the ebay price, and they shipped today. I should have them on Sunday if Fedex plays nice.

Also ordered a reverse tap + ground from @daveeasa . Part of the next step to delete my rear view mirror/back up camera, and add a wireless camera and monitor. Maybe even get a front camera. Need to figure out a head unit too. I think I will not get the Alpine ILX-W one that @EatSleepTacos got. Maybe ill try Pioneer in the $400 range

 

I ended up with the Kenwood Excelon DMX706S to replace the alpine and it’s treated me well.

 

I will check it out. Im not particular to a brand, just dont want a cheapo one

 

X2

 

Seconded on the X2. Mine has been flawless and despite the rumors, appears to be at full charge on the stock alternator. Plug it in to the battery tender every so often and it goes to green immediately.

Only place an Optima belongs is in the dumpster.

 

Do you have a voltage booster?

 

nope. Literally 1:1 swap with the oem battery and that was it.

 

According to a thread on here about AGMs you should have one. Because they say it can degrade the life of the battery since its not getting its full voltage charge. BUT.... A LOT of people have also said they have had an AGM battery on their trucks without it and have lasted them a long time.

 

I'm on 3.x years with my X2 Group 31 and no issues with stock electrical setup.

 

I added one to my watch list on ebay. Its only $25, so might as well get it

 

Im taking a slight break from buying truck parts. Need to finish/get to a good break point with what ive got on hand before buying more. The X2 is definitely on the list. What group size should i get? Dont need bigger, i dont think.

Just want to get my bypass setup done. Also need to put in my Deavers.

I almost forgot that I have a FJ manual shift t-case that i need @6 gearT444E help with too