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

Well, shit, I guess we will see. I have the material saved in Amazon that I was going to use. I'll compare these with the stencil I have to make sure everything lines up in the event I have to go with DIY.

There's a lot going on right now and I don't know that I will have the time to commit to refining the DIY version of these. The extra $25 spent is worth the time saved.

I'm actually curious to see how the toolbox drawer liners will work out that Randy made. I'm think the heat will dry them out rather quickly and turn to dust.

I'm wondering if I can put some 3M adhesive heat shield on the back side of these things...

 

Haven't done one of these in a while..



Money Monday..

Kneeling pad:



Tekton 3/8" torque wrench for tight spaces; figured this out when I was torquing the caliper bracket bolts - doable but I do what I want:



HD spring compressor; figured it would be good to have on hand in a pinch and better quality than the vatozone ones you can rent:



Lastly, succumbed to peer pressure; part of the Lang gang:

 

Made NTD (in hand) happen as well:



Stopped at Home Depot on the way home from the gym and picked up a ratcheting 19mm spanner and new bolts for the new ABS sensors.

Still haven't ironed out a date for a July mod day yet because we're waiting word for out T4R buddy's carbon fiber snorkel to ship.

Bougie...

 

Definitely "Titanic" vibes...





Stainless is definitely the move this time...

 

Aug 10, and Im in

 

Little paint action tonight. First time using this stuff. It's pretty cool. Used an entire can and probably could have used two cans, but, at $14/can, I'll be happy with one, medium/thick coat.



BEFORE:



AFTER:



Have a meet-up on Saturday morning at the local 4x4 shop. Hoping to put the LCA skids on beforehand, but not necessary (because mall crawler). I don't want to rush it since I know the bolts I have are going to be too long and have to be trimmed so I don't tear the CV boots.

Perhaps Friday night..

 

I need to do this mine are starting to fade. I don't care so much about the color but don't want them to start cracking everywhere.

 

The fade of the plasti-dip is REAL. Ideas are brewing on how to best handle the paint in a more permanent way; all the paint.

Need more funds..

 

TL ; DR

Ordered these:

https://www.polyperformance.com/pol...5-tacoma-03-09-4runner-gx470-07-09-fj-cruiser


Back story:

Early morning scrolling on Facebook led me to them. I keep seeing posts on Tacoma Facebook pages about people running into alignment issues with the tabs bending over. The other day, someone posted a pretty "overkill" solution for me:

https://jdfabrication.com/collectio...JgoVVMCiTSpOvnnXaiW62ZX1ZizajLoRnJn3jyGhkSE8c


Perhaps if I was @EatSleepTacos and had my own "George" with a credit card..


I don't have any of the resources (mostly necessity) to go with that solution.

This morning, someone suggested these:

https://optoffroad.com/products/ali...wuPh_RxfNuWc3azmXvHw7vHBGIu8qgIcN2LbIxVxEutzA

I don't like how these can still move. The poly performance kit you have to unbolt everything to adjust the alignment.

So I revisited the Poly performance kit again.

I know the taco tabs are probably overkill too and I have the lifetime alignments from Firestone. But, the annoyance of having to take the truck in after a wheeling trip really isn't ideal. Plus, there are reports of people having issues getting their trucks with aftermarket suspensions aligned at Firestones in other states.

I also don't have the resources to do the typical "align and tack" method that others have. Plus, tacks can break and the investment for that method isn't an option at this very moment.


I watched the video from their website and I'm more confident in the installation. Choose the tabs based on the current alignment specs, remove and install the pieces from the TT kit. Easy.

Just have to get the toe corrected and you're done.

"Set it and forget it" like the video says.

https://youtu.be/eTWAv8imQHg



One less thing to worry about.

 

Man i just went through the majority of this thread. So bitchin

 

Ive been looking at those. I got my marlin lca braces in a box though. Dont you have the marlins? I think they can be modified to work together. I saw one guy who did it.

 

I appreciate the kind words. Some stuff is bitchin. Some stuff is not so bitchin in here lol

Like you, I have the Marlin's in a box. Thinking about combining the taco tabs with the Total Chaos kit instead.

 

I gotcha. Decisions and options ..... other factor being modifying the LCA skids to work with the marlins. Never ends.

 

That's also in the back of my mind too.

 

Let me know if you dont want the Marlins

 

Special discount to pick up lol

 

I love my taco tabs! You'll be pretty happy with them.

 

Probably helps to actually hit "submit order" to get them.

I was holding off in case a bigger discussion was going to happen. And I think if I combine them with the TC kit, the peace of mind will be reached.

 

That'd be a good combo. I dont have the TC gussets but if I had to do it again, I'd do it all at the same time.

 

No doubts. I need better friends (those that have welders).

I'm hitting up the open house event at the local 4x4 shop this weekend. Going to network a bit and see if they're going to finally hire a welder.

I'm actually thinking about making a big sign that says:

"Desperate to befriend welder. I like yotas, working on yotas, wheeling yotas and long walks on the beach being hands. Let's be friends *insert number here*"

Idk how I could make it anymore obvious.