Shauncho's "Who knows where this is going?" Build

Just a quick question... but can we 4WD guys use the spindles to lift our trucks to 3"?? I'd be interested in keeping my stock suspension, and only use spindles.....

 

i would love to see a 2013 prerunner out there running around with the best of them...but from what i hear, that's a long, expensive road.

 

Well, as the title states, I have no idea where this is going. And as you pointed out about the cost, who knows how long it'll take. Most of the ideas I have for now are cosmetic mostly because I don't even know what level of off-roading my driving skill level will allow me to take on, so not sure to what degree I should be modding my truck for rugged terrain. Then there's always the consideration of the usage/cost ratio which I have a hard time justifying dropping several g's into something I'm only going to use 1-2 times a year however the thought of where my truck can take me and my landscape photography does make me want to go balls out!

...only time will tell.

 

that's a great way to think about it! its a lot better to be realistic about what you will use it for, instead of just doing what everyone else thinks is cool. for your purposes, a little bit of lift and slightly more aggressive tires should do the ticket. that rear locker will help you out with pretty much anything you are likely to see in it. if you haven't yet, just browse the second gen builds and start to get a feel for what you like and don't like, and make a list! thats what i do, but it's gonna get me in trouble if i ever have money to spend...

 

I try to be realistic but at the same time, I understand the desire to just pour money into these trucks because I love mine and I want to buy it the world! Based on comments by Mr. Salty and some other research I've done, I'm thinking I'll go with spindles. Probably won't go over 3". And I'll definitely be getting some new tires, possibly new wheels too. And I don't think mine has the rear locker. When I look at the toyota.com page and read through the package description, the TRD sport package doesn't come with the locking rear diff, only the TRD Off Road package. but oh well...I wonder how much it would cost to get one installed if that's even at all possible.

One question I have about going with spindles. So if I go with 3" spindles, should I get longer shocks in order to smooth out the ride a little? Would there even be much of a difference in ride quality?

 

i don't know too much about second gen prerunners... but from what i can tell you will probably need new shocks. but like i said, thats a question for someone smarter than me.

and i thought TRD sport prerunners came with the diff lock? i very well could be wrong about that. but either way, most backroads, trails, etc. are very 2wd accessible. when i'm on my hunting property in middle tennessee, there are very few places where i need 4x4. i usually have it in 4lo just to crawl around like a boss, but i could get around in 2 with little problem. having good tires helps with that. my almost bald tires get me around alright

 

does that front plate holder say HAMER on it?

Thats my last name....can i have it? I'll pay shipping.

 

Yeah, for the most part I don't imagine myself going anywhere I'd need 4x4 or a locking diff...If that ever changes then maybe it'll be time for a new truck!

Absolutely! Hamer is the name of the dealership I bought it from. You can have both of them! all that I ask is that I can keep them until I get my plates just to prevent cops from pulling me over in case they don't see the window sticker. but as soon as my plates come in, they're yours. I'll pay shipping. don't even fret it. If someone had a truck bought from a dealership named Yen, I'd want those too! go ahead and PM me your addy now so I have it for when the time comes.

 

HA! thanks, I googled the dealership too. No relation (that I can think of anyway), but still cool.

pm inbound

jeff

 

4x4 can't get lift spindles like the prerunners only thing you could do to get a lot of lift is drop bracket 6inch lift

 

So I finally got off my lazy ass and blacked out my emblems. Took the easy route and just plasti derped them and actually, I'm quite happy with the results. Also took off the skid and painted that too. Lovin' the new look! Now all I need to do is get some darker tint on the windows and do the BHLM. I decided not to remove or relocate any emblems this time around. I may go back and do that later but for now, I'm just digging the way it looks all black.

So here's some things about my experience using plasti dip:
- Keep a wet rag with you to wipe the tip when you're not going to be spraying anything for a few minutes. Otherwise it starts to spit chunks of plasti dip at your work.

- The finished sheen and texture of the plasti dipped center grill emblem almost perfectly matches the plastics on the inside of the grill. a huge bonus for now until I decide what I'm doing to my grill. The plasti dip has a slightly rougher, more porous surface but from a distance, they look identical.

- As with any spray painting, if you don't mask enough you'll have overspray. the fortunate thing about plasti dip is the overspray just rolls right off with your hand or a soft cloth. just remember when using a cloth, the fibers build up with plasti dip particles so after a couple passes with one section of the cloth use a different section of the cloth or else the plasti dip will start to rub into your paint. you can still get it off but it just makes it a lot harder than it needs to be.

- it was a hot day when I did this. the first couple sprays dried on contact. When I peeled away the large sections of intentional overspray immediately surrounding the emblem, there were little random black spots. If you see this, you can skip over the part where I freak out thinking I messed up my paint, and just proceed to rub a little harder with the softest cloth you have to remove it. those were just the particles of plasti-dip that dried on contact and thus never really incorporated with the layer that I peeled away. don't try to remove these little specs immediately. give it a day or two to let the plasti dip really dry onto the emblems or else you'll accidentally rub it off the emblems. I had to remask and respray a couple spots because I was being impatient. don't be impatient.

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Here's a during shot:

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that black on black looks awesome. Keep the mods coming! I'll be watching for your BHLM. That's something I want to do, but not sure when I'll get around to it.

 

Thanks! I'm just trying to build up the courage to break open perfectly good headlights fully knowing that I could completely fuck them up. I'm pretty mechanically inclined...I mean I built the guest house that me and my wife have lived in for 2 years, I used to be an electrician, I do all sorts of general carpentry and finish work...I think i could handle it but yet I'm still scared $h!tless. I keep waking up from nightmares of me taking my headlights out of the oven and them looking like a Salvador Dali painting...no bueno.

But some day, I'll do it. It's the TW community that keeps me inspires to go mod wild!!

 

You say that but, super white looks great. I have a BSP and they are a lot of work to keep clean.

 

i'm diggin the blacked out badges. looks good!

 

It definitely is a lot of work to keep clean but it looks so good clean, its worth all the work to me. Ive always wanted a bitchin black truck!

Thanks man! Its encourgement like this that keeps me modding!

 

What does BHLM stand for? Something to do with headlights?

 

It stands for black headlight mod.

 

I am getting a 2013 White TRD Sport DC 4x4 this saturday. Totally pumped for it. I don't think it comes with a skid plate in the front stock. I think I need to order it right? Did you look at any aftermarket skid plates? I definitely want to get one and paint it flat black. I am getting matte black wheels, matte black nerd bars and I am going to paint the badges matte black. Should look pretty sweet I think. How much did the skid plate run you?

 

Yeah, I don't think the skid comes stock but it's around $160 from the dealer. I did look at other aftermarket skids but I don't think I need that level of protection not to mention I don't think I want to carry around unnecessary weight on my truck if I'm not really using it. If you do plan on doing any hard core wheeling, you'll want to skip the OEM skid and go straight for something that's actually gonna protect you from big rocks.

Awesome plan! Post pics when you get your new ride!