geekhouse23's "LIFE'S WAITING TO BEGIN" Overland & Home build and all the Adventures in between!

Got a few things done today. I am beat.

I got this thing on a GB and never mounted it until now. The ARB brackets are solid but with the RTT, I think they will have to be flipped down to use both in conjunction with each other. I just didn't have an extra set of hands to help get the tent on and setup everything. Pics nonetheless:





@Gunshot-6A

Got the firewood seasoning shed started today. Made a tripe alone to the hardware store, spent $54 and got everything below done without any help in roughly 3 hours. I'm off Friday and will likely get the remaining materials then and finished up.

*NOTE: deviated from the plans I linked above. The floor will be 3/4" plywood and the side slats spaced out a bit more. The size is a bit bigger too. It's a 5' x 4' footprint now. Pretty happy with the progress so far.*





*DISCLAIMER: Roots are a bitch. The back right corner is raised up a bit due to a root system like I've never seen. Going to work at it a bit more to try to get the whole think leveled out better. I might move it a bit to the left more, but can't do much about the roots.*

Lastly, got paint laid down on a tribute guitar project I'm working on.



Got my chainsaw go bag all buttoned up too. The 24" Milwaukee bag works great. Plenty of room to hold everything.

Overall, good Sunday.

 

Thanks for the tip man!

 

Jeebus man. Makin me look bad.

My tasks today were drilling out a door and installing a deadbolt, pondering going mountain biking, and then fighting an electrical fault with my switchpro (yet again)

 

But now Im watching The Wire, and enjoying some delicious ribs I made the other day.

If you come across "bone suckin sauce" at lowes, I highly recommend it.

 

Don't worry man. I got us both covered. Also went to the gym, cleaned the house and went grocery shopping. When the wife's "brunch" turns into being gone for 7 hours, shit gets fucking done.

 

I was blown up with emails this morning; 3 to be exact. All from UPS.

My Deavers arrived at the 4x4 shop. I am off on Friday and I will be grabbing them then. Question being, will I beat @JHEAL77 to install?

 

Sounds like someone knows how to properly brunch!

 

I've decided to potentially hold on my Deaver install for the moment. I didn't seem to need them in the past weeks' adventures to Maine. Oddly, my medium-duty Dakars seemed to hold the weight of my tent and all the gear just fine. Maybe they bottomed a little more often on rough terrain (what little time I spent offroad). My fear now is that my truck is going to get super rigid with those and no other mods (and without the rear bumper installed). Thoughts?

 

My guess is that once you add the swingout, you will need an AAL at the very least.

If you remember, or weren't aware, my HD Dakars were once installed on a shackle flip kit setup; setup improperly to boot. A few weeks back, I had the RTT installed and my leaf packs were pretty much flat. Bed was unloaded; just the topper and swingout. The topper has been installed for 4 years in November, and the swingout has been installed for 1 year and 4 months. Over time, the rear suspension has seen a lot of cycles, abuse and changes in geometry. The Dakars have been installed for 6 going on 7 years.

The topper is 250-300 lbs roughly
The swingouts range from 150-200 IIRC (?)
The spare is 50-60 roughly (steel 16" rim with a load E 285 Duratrac)

I am sitting between 450 - 600 lbs roughly on the ass end without a RTT and expo gear. I will even be pushing 1k once I load up completely, add another person or two and all their stuff.

I am hoping that the Deavers get me a little taller in the rear (3.5-4") "unloaded" as well.

I also tow occasionally and, while having a fully loaded ass end plus towing a trailer would not be common, the fact that I could do it would be nice.

I really am hoping this is the last iteration of the rear suspension setup for the life of this truck; replacement of wear and tear items being the only exception.

Below is information from @ovrlndkull who had S3 Deavers in the past before full sending into Chevy 63's:

 

In case anyone is looking for these:

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/marlin-crawler-lca-gusset-kit.624206/

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/total-chaos-cam-tabs.624207/

 

Got my BAMF bumper brackets in today:



Also, I purchased a dual battery controller from the IG B/S page. Saved me about $30 and just used the funds from selling some patches on here. That's what I'm doing from now on. Selling patches and any money I make from that or any money I would have spent on purchasing patches will now be going to truck mods and getting out on trips and exploring more.

Going to pick up the Deavers on Friday morning and then it's a tough decision to work on finishing up the firewood shed or installing the Deavers, BAMF shackles and BAMF bumper brackets.

I'm also thinking about starting a mod day and BBQ locally here. These mods would be a good start and hopefully I can sell some of the old parts I have laying around to recoup some money for more modding.

 

Welcome!

 

@TaKoToy @JHEAL77 @ovrlndkull

Took delivery of these HEAVY bitches today..one weighs 70!!! I am really looking forward to getting these installed! I was hoping to do it today, buy with moving them into the truck at the shop and then out of the truck at home, I think I want to hold off until I have some help..these things are no joke!!



Spent another ~$75 dollars at the hardware store today so I hope to have the firewood seasoning shed finished up in a couple of hours @Gunshot-6A

 

Got a firewood shed and a workbench to build myself. Just gotta find the time to do it.

 

I'll post some pictures when I'm done and maybe it'll motivate you

 

Also need to borrow/rent/steal a saw. Meant to borrow a friends and just got backed up last weekend.

 

Guess I gotta move there so you can borrow tools...

Just finished*, packed up and cleaned up:

*Home Depot didn't have corrugated roofing panels. Apparently Lowe's does and if they don't Menards should. That's the last thing I need in order to finish. The plywood is temporary and I hope I can finish it Sunday when we come back from the lake.

Pictures:







Started filling it up with what I already have that is sizeable and burnable.



Still have all this to cut, split and season.



Added one final touch!





*NOTE: Drinking and sharp tools is a no no. I do not drink beer. I have friends that do and bonfires on weekends. The bottle opener is for those bonfire nights.*




Gonna rest up now, shower and then meeting the wife and a bunch of friends at top golf tonight. Need a good night's rest, gym early tomorrow morning and then heading up to the lake. Got a tree to cut down and half a cord to bring home Sunday. Tomorrow night we're going to the McHenry county Fair and races! Back early Sunday morning for errands etc. Maybe I'll work on the Deavers if I'm feeling up for it but I'll probably wait until next weekend.

Good start to the weekend!

 

Looks damn good man! I'll prob make a very similar design, but only half as deep.

 

Thanks man. At first I didn't think it was big enough. I guess I'll see once I get the wood from the lake house home Sunday. Still have a tree on our property to remove and there's at least 2-3 12' to 16' cords. Hoping that whomever removes the willow is willing to leave some logs for me.

Going to have a lot of bonfires this fall to make room in the shed so the wood can season over the winter.