'22 SR5 "Daily" & Weekend Fishing Rig (PIC HEAVY)

Hey guys!
Long time lurker here, and on 5/18/25 I purchased my 2022 SR5 Double Cab! I've been eyeing a Toyota truck for years, but never pulled the trigger until now. I'm so pumped to build this thing out and put a LOT of miles on it, and even more excited to share it all with you guys!
Some stuff about myself to get the thread started. My name is Zack, I'm 26, and born and raised in South Jersey. Vehicles have been and still are a huge part of who I am. I currently am a foreman of a small heavy duty diesel shop here and have been with this company since I was 19 years old. Over the years I have owned around 20 vehicles that i have built/tinkered/fostered. Some honorable mentions are plenty of s-chassis Nissans, BMW M cars, Cadillac CTS-Vs, and my beloved 2ND Gen Cummins 6 Speed (which will probably in the back of a lot of the photos in this thread.
This year I have been going through a transitional period of my life and have opted to take a step back from older cars needing a lot of work to keep on the road. Working 50+ hours a week wrenching, and coming home to do it again was taking a serious mental toll on me. Also, my 2nd passion has always been the outdoors. I spent countless summers in my younger years in the Pocono mountains, and in my early 20's took multiple trips to the western side of the US with my closest friends. This paired with the fact that last summer I dug my old fly rods out of the basement and hit some streams in PA solidified the fact that I needed a vehicle that could serve a purpose for everyday life, and some trips to get back into nature.
The plan for this truck is build something I can comfortably use every day to get to work, and deal with Home Depot trips, picking up parts, transporting my bicycle, and any other boring 5 days a week tasks. Then, on the weekend I can hop in and hit the road to get to trout waters comfortably and deal with less than ideal road conditions that come along with it. Eventually I'd hope to get this rig to the point where i could take the truck on longer trips for 3 + days and have everything with me that I'll need. No insane off-grid crawling, no river crossings, and no months away from society. Possibly a week dispersed camping out west, so no overkill build, but something capable.
I hope ya'll enjoy following this build thread 1/2 as much as I have enjoyed reading all of yours over the years!!

 

Man I can't get over this thing!!!

 

Took the air dam off the front and it definitely toughens up the front end's look!

 

Congrats on the new truck! It looks awesome already, can’t wait to see what you do with it.

 

Congratulations, awesome truck. You’ll appreciate that it’s relatively easy to maintain. We all enjoy pictures on this site so no worries there. These are not the greatest daily drivers in a heavy commute but really shine on quiet back country roads and remote FSR exploring. So great choice for getting away. After 4.5 years of ownership we still love our truck. Not one issue other than a failed centre cap. Continue to admire it after parking while walking away.

 

I LOVE your truck man, definitely close to what I'm aiming for!

 

Thanks man! I really appreciate it. It’s definitely perfect for daily driving plus adventuring.

 

And I’m subscribed to your thread!

 

Im pretty new to posting/using this platform, but I'm pretty sure im subbed to yours as well!

 

Awesome! It’s always cool to see what other people do for trucks that are still daily drivers.