What have you done to your Tacoma today? 1st Gen Edition

Figured I’d run one, too.

 

Mmmm, crotch vent. Wish we had those.

 

I have a Relentless Fab Predator bumper sitting on a shelf in my garage.

 

Yes we know.


The dust layer on it is probably as thick as the steel.

 

I’ll get to it one day. Think I’ll go take some welding classes first.

 

YouTube’s cheaper

 

I can learn everything I need for my degree off YouTube and Wikipedia, but it doesn’t mean it’s a good idea.

 

Well that’s a shitty attitude

 

An Optima 34/78 will fit in the back left corner of the engine bay. The hood wont hit the terminals as long as you mount the battery box directly on the wheel well hump and make sure you use (somewhat) low profile clamps.


It looks like it will hit. Made me nervous the first couple times I shut the hood... I have had no problems with it though.

 

I got my first welding job which was a mig fabricator, from learning on scrap metal projects and you tube. Only take classes if your gonna do structural stuff. I bet if you just sit down for an hour or two, and play with the settings some and run bead after bead you'll be doing great in no time. The tricky part is when you do get good, youve gotta plan all your welds out to counteract the heat distortion. Also, dont mig weld outside if your using gas, or else you'll never get good.

 

Sorry, it’s Monday. Haha.

I learn better hands-on.

 

I can lay beads okay, they just don’t look very good. It’s just a matter of practicing.

I like using gas instead of the flux core, but flux core is easier to practice with because it’s dirt cheap compared to what AirGas charges me for a 10cf tank of C25.

 

Lol airgas. They are the most expensive name in the game. Find out who supplies the local welding school. Gurantee they'll give a discount to anyone who even looks like a student. I use Arc3 gasses for this reason.

 

That’s the thing...

They are my local welding school’s supplier. Haha.

The guy gave me a student discount, but it was still $55 to fill my dinky 10cf tank. I had no choices. No other gas suppliers around here besides AirGas. I bought the 10cf tank from them outright for $120.

 

Buy a bigger bottle. The smaller the bottle, the more they charge you. Its only $40 to fill my 80cf tank of argon. I paid $140 upfront since I opted to own the bottle rather than lease. That and 10cf wont get you through a bumper build. Id go atleast 80.

 

Replaced the carpet on my 97 Tacoma . When I bought the truck I used a putty knife to scrape a whole bunch of old coins off the carpet which ended up totaling in $15 worth of coins!! (Boiled them in water and vinegar to clean them off.).
Anyways $150 for the carpet in carid.com. Doesn’t come with holes pre-cut and I got a little cut happy around the stick, but that’s fine, shoved some of the extra carpet under the gap. The road noise decreased significantly with the new carpet

 

holy hell that's nasty, lol (the original carpet). $15 worth of coins embedded in years of foot grime and dirt?

 

I also have an 80# tank Argon/CO2 and Airgas here in Indiana is charging me about $70 to refill. Can't remember what I paid for the tank. I use a Hobart 150 and that 80# usually will last me about 6 mos with fairly frequent usage. Not commercial... just redneck usage . Use soapy water (dish detergent +water) to make sure your fittings are not leaking. I have lost gas due to back of welder loose fittings. They just work loose from moving welder around when changing spools.

Try to simulate bad angles and tight spaces while your practicing. Definitely practice verticals. That's the hardest part for me about welding on vehicles is there never enough space, and seems I am always at a difficult angle, either with the gun or my body. Also, make sure to practice holding the gun in your non-dominant hand. A lot of times I have to use my off hand to get in somewhere.

 

Threw on the new wheels/tires from @Discount Tire Direct. Very happy with the upgrade. Before/After pics

 

What brand did you go with?

NVM just found the $150 one.