A moderator with a Tacoma? (Not anymore, traded in.) {Come on over to new build thread}

I’ve had a garmin inreach for about 10 years now. I would 100% recommend. I’ve been all over the country and the iridium network has been solid. Trees, valleys, canyons have never been a problem.

I just got the messenger this fall and supposedly the antenna is even better on it than the explorer+ I was using previously. I haven’t used it enough yet to know for sure

 

Your truck's built in GPS will work fine on all the stuff in Arkansas. So will your phone.

And as outdated as the graphics are, the locator feature on maprika has never let me down despite looking like something out of 1998.

I mean uh, get the most expensive Garmin you can find. Yep

 

To help clarify, they are not discussing GPS navigation - most people in our group use Gaia and are capable with that. They are talking about backup emergency messaging devices for remote areas where cell signal doesn’t exist. The Garmin they are discussing has no navigation features, just text messaging via satellite. Maybe not needed down there but not a bad idea to have anywhere on longer trips, and we have plenty of remote areas in Wisconsin/Upper Michigan where they can be a useful tool as well.

 

Would this work in a pinch?
https://gearjunkie.com/news/apple-iphone-satellite-messaging-off-grid-how-it-works

 

For an emergency yeah. I’ve tested it and it’s definitely better than nothing

the inreach is nice cuz you can do 2 way messaging with anyone instead of just sos

 

^^^What he said. It only does SOS emergency messaging and appears Find My iPhone sends location but again only for emergency crews. No two-way messaging.

The good news is that we have the technology now to do this stuff so it's probably a matter of time before it gets fully integrated. Cool for the future but for now a phone + an InReach still seems like the best option.

 

Why those versus other shocks on the market? Are the 5160s not enough any more?

 

You can also mount resi to the shock or get the ones with the integrated resi like the foxes on the pro

either way a 2”+ mono tube shock is pretty good even without a resi

 

Tyler, to help with bottoming, an AAL would help more than any particular shock.

 

Ahh I see, that makes sense. In that case yeah running a bigger body shock with an aluminum body makes perfect sense. After having the same 6112/5160 combo and watching them corrode instantly over one winter I can understand. And while they are a good starting point for suspension upgrades, I'm not going to pretend they are the end-all-be-all best choice in all cases (and especially not for people doing jumps like you LOL). My current Fox 2.5s with the aluminum body look brand new like day one even after road salt abuse, and I do think having a bigger shock with stiffer valving does help with the bottom outs. You might also want to consider switching your RXT pack from 1 to 2 but suppose that depends on your loadout.

 

You guys should just coat your shocks when you do woolwax / fluid film. Then you don’t gotta worry about it

 

I did coat my Bilsteins, they still corrode a bit. Didn't learn until far later after installing them that some people clear coat to give some protection long term.

Fox 2.5 aluminum bodies get zero woolwax because they already have a pretty durable finish and I've seen zero change in them yet.

 

Which knockoff Amazon trd pro front skid did you go with, are they all likely about the same? Thinking of getting one, and did not pull up [oops, as many as expected] useful search results in forums.

KUAFU Front Skid Plate Compatible with 2016-2023 Toyota Tacoma Off-Road TRD PRO Sport SR5 Replacement for PTR60-35190 PTR60-35160 Protection Aluminum

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08LK1V9NR/.

Front Skid Plate for 2016-2023 Tacoma Off Road TRD PRO Sport SR5

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B091PRVVBG/

As long as it’s real aluminum and reasonably sturdy and easy to attach, looks and functions okay, without weird functional problems, i don‘t care if it’s a bit rough

 

They're new and big. I would say much better suited to hauling gear around and crawling. Remote reservoirs are really only necessary. If you heat your shocks up by doing high speed desert runs etc

I coat everything under there, drive line differential suspension all of it and people think I'm weird... They're also surprised when they turn around and see that I've snuck a 5000 lb turd up next to them and they never heard me coming because there was no squeaking creaking or banging.

I got a real skid from RCI