IronPeaks Forest Road Cruiser

Had a windshield crack that was working its way across my field of vision. Freeman sends their auto glass work to Advanced Glass, they had a tacoma windshield in stock. Waiting on the work now.

 

Got partway home when I realized I had forgotten to remove my awesome @ImMrYo mirror riser from the cracked windshield- of course it was in the dumpster by then, "beers were on me tonight" for the nice fellow that helped me retrieve it.

 

<50$ Budget bugout/truck camping setup. 9$ stove from etekcity, Lindal valve adapter to allow use of inexpensive/easily available 1lb propane bottles. 700ml stainless set from Stanley. Comes with a folding spork and high heat resistant nylon mug/lid, and it all nests together. Stove fits inside as well for storage.The stainless isn't ultralight backpacking weight but I've always carried one and it is a few ounces extra that I don't mind for the durability over Ti.
This will go in my rear seat storage area with a few Mtn House freeze dried meals and hot chocolate/coffee. Will add a Sawyer inline filter and a couple of Platypus bags to the kit soon.

 

Lost a bolt from the rear of my ifs skid, replaced today. After 12 months, each of the other mounting bolts required a half turn to snug-up.

 

Battery replaced by the dealership 2 days after Christmas. They had a special, still ongoing. $119.00, to swap in a new 27f. After pricing and researching batteries I had concluded that I would go with an inexpensive, but smaller, group 24 as some on here have suggested. But when this deal popped up i took it.. Saved a few bucks over the comparable (probably identical) interstate 27f. Was pleased to see a 12/17 sticker which I hope indicates the battery is fresh and was not sitting on a shelf for too long.

I was able to pay for this with a gift card provided to me by TacomaWorld members as part of the Tubbs Fire relief effort coordinated by @Cuffs . Thanks again to everyone who contributed, it has been an immense help.

https://www.freeman-toyota.com/specials/service.htm
$119.95+Tax
WITH EXCHANGE
Time to replace your old worn battery? Get great performance and an 84-month warranty with a Toyota Genuine battery. Valid only at Freeman Toyota. Toyota vehicles only. Includes hazardous waste disposal fee. Excludes hybrids. Please present coupon at time service order is written. May not be combined with any other coupons, discounts or advertised specials.
Offer expires: 01/31/2018

Identical specs interstate battery, $149-$168 suggested retail, (self-swap)
https://www.interstatebatteries.com/products/MTP-27F

 

Charged the new battery when I got home with my 5A tender. Happy to see 12.6v+ at 45° (100%) , 10 hours after the charge. Likely going to mount this new heavy duty charger (it is resin-dipped/potted to withstand vibrations) in my engine compartment and perhaps use a thru-hull fitting on front bumper for the 110v plug. I had run a battery tender extension thru the firewall for my old charger. By hard wiring to a fitting up front I'll be able to simply plug an extension cord in, with no need to pop the hood or even open the truck door, and if I forget to unhook it will just pull out when I back out of the driveway.

 

First proper outing since September. Many of you know, or were impacted~~ Goddess Pele came a' knocking on my door in early October and said "today the people are saying my name is Tubbs, run from me now, and no, this is not a discussion..." i had 30 seconds. She took everything i owned, but in her mercy spared my life.
The Tacoma got me out. Looking back now and retracing my steps i realise that having the foglight anytime mod may have saved my life. The ash and smoke were like a blizzard and at one point i turned off my headlights and rolled down the window to look out and follow the roadside by eye. As i clicked the lights back on i reached foglights only mode, and thats what i ran til i got up to the ridge, above the smoke at that point, on fountaingrove. Ran into a ditch and mailboxes driving blind on the way out the firestorm, not sure a prius would have cut it. Thanks to whomever posted the foglights anytime mod (anytime when key is in on position) with the bent post on the foglight relay. I searched to give credit but there is so many different fog n e time mods.

When I left Sonoma for the eastern Sierra and parts south yesterday I took Mark West Springs to Calistoga, through the Tubbs fire area. I had been avoiding this area as the memories are too much. I wanted to "pass through, and leave behind" on my way to the vipissana retreat when I chose this route. Trying to confront, get closure. None to be had. The area is still in rough shape. Standing chimneys and thousands of burned out foundations. At least most of the vehicles have been removed. Not a lot of green, new growth, what I had hoped to see. Guess because of lack of rain. Still I am glad that I drove through there, I've only been partway up a couple of times and those were painful. It did seem to go on forever, as maybe some people don't realize the fire burned for dozens of miles from East to West. Eventually though blackened trees gave way to verdant cover crops at vineyards. And i was also able to give way. Give way to acceptance. To a new day, one full of happiness and loved ones.

A late late arrival to Mammoth area found a couple of 1st gens dispersed about, and a subsequent late wakeup had the tub to myself. Even dunked the mutt. Was around 95° I'd say. Headed South into no comms land, more reports coming.

TLDR? Fires suck, I remembered foglights anytime mod might have saved my life, now I'm in hot springs with da perro, all's well.

Can hear Tom Petty in the background, was on his dedicated xm channel as he sadly had recently passed.
https://youtu.be/-Cknfra44bE

 

Glad you made it out of there in one piece. As everyone says, things can be replaced but your life can't.

 

So I arrived at DV totally unprepared, failed to do research. But somehow fate and something guided me. I cut in from Bishop/Lonepine and looked for a place to camp. Reaching south of the eureka dunes I made the call to not run the canyon without a spotter. Backed off and went north of crankshaft junction. The coyote kept me and my dog up all night. Yipping and so on.

 

The next night found me south of Racetrack at a dry camp near a mine. And in heavy rain. I looked and death valley gets 1/2"-1" of rain in January and I'm guessing 1/4"+ fell last night. Waking up to rain on my face and getting up at 2am to string a tarp across the back of my truck was interesting lol. Ran Lippincott the next morning, and then another pass over to stovepipe, encountered snowy conditions, met a stuck couple from Salinas with street tires on a 2x4 Nissan. Considered towing them to the peak of the pass but determined there was too much snow and they had no proper tow point on the front of their Frontier. Recommended they turn back and gave them water and food.

 

TeaKettle Junction. That night it rained on me for 5 hours in one of the driest places on earth. Shown is the foglight anytime, foglights only mod. My preferred mode for visibility when offroading/not wanting to run headlights. The stock 55w fogs low on the bumper plus the yellow markers really make you stand out when viewed from oncoming vehicles. Included is another pic of the foglight/marker from Titus canyon.

 

Gained a few pinstripes on my trip. And as expected lost a tire to the sharp rocks. Made a compromise, knowing these les shwab brand Cooper made tires would get chunked out and thrashed against having to buy a new set before or after. Paid the price by having to swap the torn tire at a narrow part of lippincott. Rolled dice and lost but knew the odds beforehand so no biggie. The tear was about 2cm and I attempted multiple times to stuff the gap with plugs, using around 8 or 10 total in several attempts to fix. Luckily the tire was the drivers rear so i was able to monitor it with my side mirror. Either the hot road surface or the flexing of the tire kept pulling/pushing the plugs out. Ive had good luck with plugs but usually with nails/screw holes this was a rip that pushed the radial wires out. Was hoping to repair the tire just for the duration of the trip so I would still have 2 spares. Luckily I carry a 2nd spare on trips, and I recommend everyone does. Knowing I still had a backup allowed me to, once again as on other trips, continue on in the backcountry. If you run rocky routes you ARE going to get a flat, sometimes unrepairable. The 2nd spare makes it so if you get one more flat you arent screwed. 2nd spares, on rims, can be found on Craigslist for 20$!!!, and can be the difference between scrambling to town for a tire fix or continuing your journey. Easy/no brainer purchase to make.

 

Here I would like to talk a little about my electro-gear. Most notably my Fenix pd35 rechargable flashlight. It it 18650 based but has a micro usb input to recharge whenever, without having to remove the battery. There are better standalone chargers that will extend the lifespan and effectiveness of the battery but this convenience overrides that. At around 900 lumens it is blazing bright for its size, has a great spot/flood pattern. It also features a low setting that runs an astonishing 150hrs (5-6days!) This enables me to leave it on at night in camp as an easily found nightlight that i can ramp up to full brightness by holding down the button. So if I am woken by something, the flashlight is on the super low almost nightlight-like setting and i just grab it and boom I can light up whatever it is with a blinding light within moments. And without having to worry about buying endless AAAs to replenish a regular light. Plug it into my phone charger for a few hours during the day tops it up. Also within reach/in glove box I have 3 LiPo battery banks, 2 8000MaH, one of which is a jumpstarter, and the big boy 20100 MaH bank by Anker. These with my tablet and phone make me confident that I can at least see a stored GPS map, and also start a dead battery truck. The 20100 powers the tablet thru the night (it can fully charge the tablet several times over) to watch movies, write emails/journal entries and so on. If the jumper fails or runs low it can be recharged by the others for more attempts. Each are the size of a deck of cards (the dbpower shown is maybe 4"x3"x1" and started a completely dead f250 diesel after minutes of cranking) and I plan to add another backup jumper. With the size and price of these new gen jumpers there is really no reason not to carry one or better, two. Added bonus, jumping an old ladys car in a store parking lot without having to bung up your truck by jumping battery to battery.

 

Good stuff happening with your build!

 

Mounted my battery tender using a piece of aluminum stock. The local Ace Hardware cashier gave me the scrap 1' section of 1/8" for free when I went to price it at the register. Plan to run the 120v out to behind the grill so I can just plug it in without having to pop the hood or anything.

 

Going 255 this week,
This was the quote, the top part is for replacing the torn les sgwab branded (think is cooper) AT tire. This would be my 3rd time, two sidewalls and now a large gash on the tread. Big price difference, also less aggressive sidewall/ shoulder lugs on the toyos. Plus alot lighter.

 

I was comparing the st maxx and toyo at-11 in 255/80/17, and several things stuck out. The toyos are taller 33.1 vs 32.8, but the tread depth is deeper on the maxx by several mm. The little extra height of the toyos would be better looking, but i am afraid of longevity differences because of the lesser tread depth. Also the maxx 255 series regardless of the listed specs are being reported as appearing quite wide for that size, whereas the toyos are definity pizza cutters. The toyos were 50 lbs as opposed to the maxx at 58. Quoted 1300 installed for the maxx, and 1070 for the toyos at les shwab (without shopping around at all, I'm sure there's a betterdeal out there). Still deciding. Thoughts?

Toyo at11

 

Trigger pulled. 255/80/17 Toyo AT-II. I found a local place says can have the toyos in this week, and for a better price than shwab. Shwab sucks for alot of reasons but they do have stores in the places i travel to, and were good about replacing cut tires.. Decided to go with them over the maxx for these reasons - taller by .3", lighter by 8lbs. Did some research and the actual dollar savings when running a smaller/lighter tire are insignificant ( <couple hundred dollars a year, if that) but this will save me accelerating power, wear and tear on my bearings and whatever else is affected by adding heavier tires. And most importantly time. Several less trips to the gas station over a few years (my likely faulty math says 5 less trips/yr than if i added 285s) can really add up. Say the tires go 45k, 5x gas station stops x 3yrs = 15 at say 10mins each, wow theres a few hours there. This is extra time I will be able to spend with my family. Priceless.

 

Tall n skinnyz happening!! James @T4RFTMFW you weren't kidding so far just two floor jacks lol