What Have You Done To Your 3rd Gen Today?

Another fellow Louisianian! Nice truck!

 

How about sourcing some clear plexiglass and cut out a lense from it using the good one as a template?

 

Does your water port change shape when pressurized? Mine bulges. Don’t know if that’s typical. I don’t pressurize over 45 psi.

 

Topped off the Taco with a Prinsu today.

 

Any important safety tips/notes?

 

Nice! Geaux Tigers!

 

1) Don't look at the arc without a shield.
2) Get good gloves to learn.
3) Wear long sleeve shirts.
I've seen good welders use crappy units and do an excellent job then I've seen people with high dollar equipment do shitty work.
It takes practice and until you get proficient, have a grinder ready.
I use a little Harbor Freight fluxcore mig($200). It's not great but it does the job for me.
Good Luck!

 

Wear shoes you dont care about (sparks fall on them and will burn them up), dont wear things that are flammable, WEAR A WELDING MASK, and just remember, your making metal very very hot and causing sparks to fly. Your going to get hit with little burning hot balls of metal, they will go in your shoes, they will get in your hair, and they will land on your hands/arms. You can get gear to cover all these things so you dont get burned, but if your just welding every once in awhile its not worth it and you can just brush them off. You'll end up with a few dozen little burns, but they heal up pretty fast.

Also, get welding blankets to cover anything near by. The sparks that fly while welding are small molten balls of metal. They will destroy anything they touch (paint and clear coat gets fucked by these sparks)

But, the most important thing is to wear the welding mask. Dont use sunglasses, dont use a torch mask, get a welding mask. You cant see shit with it on till you hit the arc. Welding without the mask will hard boil your eye balls and cause serious damage. You will get a sun burn on your face without a welding mask. The arc from a welder creates UV radiation that will cook your face very fast.

 

Did the differential drop and skid plate spacer. While I was at it, I painted the OEM skid plate red and replaced all the bolts because one broke while taking it off. There were only two bolts in the skid plate. Sometimes I wonder if lifetime dealer oil change is worth it..

 

I use a cheap fluxcore CH welder I got from northern tool about 20 years ago. Cost me 60 bucks and ive welded up tons of things with it.

 

Yeah, mine has paid for itself several times over. I originally bought it to weld up the framing for my camper garage. Since then I have had to build many racks, gadgets, and repair things for friends and family. Definitely worth having one. Just need to get a tig now to weld aluminum.

 

Did the rail bolt right up or did you have to complete some modifications?

 

Yeah, Ive always wanted a aluminum welder to make some cool rack for my fishing/kayak stuff in the bed of my truck.

 

Literally unscrew the 5 bolts on the back top rail and then screw them back in with the rain. Nothing else needed.

 

Looking for a non scooped hood? Hey, you’re pretty close. Doesn’t hurt to ask

 

New to the forum. Purchased the ‘18 TRD Sport exactly a month ago. Started with some inexpensive aesthetic mods with long term goals in mind, because well...I just bought a truck.

Don’t hate on the “raptor” lights and trd sport badge. I like the look and have been driving an ilx for the last 9 years so I don’t know the politics, get over it.

What would you guys do next?

Mods so far:
badge and emblem removal
Added TRD Sport TRD Pro style badge
265/70/17 Wildpeak AT3w
Cheap ass pro grill replica
Grille lights

On the way:
Tonneau bed cover

Goal:
Prinsu roof rack w LED light bar
Body armor low profile front bumper
Bilstein 5100s adj

Considering removing pillar vinyl

 

A Diamondback would be nice.

 

Nothing to exciting today, installed the oem bed lights. 5 min job and done!

 

Yeah, thanks, but no way to attach, it's a molded, clip-fit. I could probably silicone on a clear piece, I may do that with this one for a spare, I can see this happening again if you use your truck. I'll bite the bullet and get OEM this time and start building spares.

 

Maybe figure out a way to put a protective bar in front of the lenses. I bet your not the only one who has accidentally damaged one of these new OEM bed light lenses. Something like this?

$26 X AUTOHAUX 2pcs 8" Black Metal Car Bar Grille Speaker Subwoofer Grill Cover Protector

https://www.amazon.com/AUTOHAUX-Gri...ck+Metal+Car+Bar+Grille&qid=1603073547&sr=8-1

I installed LED lights under the side bed rails. They are well protected there.