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Sadly no updates on this one for a little bit. Next step is mounting the solar panels, but the first kit I got from Amazon was missing the solar charge controller, the second kit was a wheelbarrow. Yes, a literal wheelbarrow. Let's hope try #3 works out better.

Started the air locker install today and ran into a few interesting things. One, I was sent two different style locker solenoids, one that had three ports, one that had two ports. This: Untitled by Tim Souza, on Flickr and this: Untitled by Tim Souza, on Flickr Not sure if that was...

They came with zip ties from ECGS. So I'd wager that it's okay, but perhaps I'll stick a borescope in there when I drain the diffs at 500 miles to see how they are holding up.

Gear change pt. 1 Last Thursday the diffs from ECGS arrived. Both were built with Nitro 4.88 gears and ARB air lockers. Figuring the rear would be the easier of the two, I chose to tackle that first and get my mojo going. In advance I laid out all the tools I thought would be necessary and...

^^^ What he said. Funny that you were re-gearing this weekend as I down the road doing the same.

Looking forward to following along! I second boxing that area of the a-frame. It's probably fine as-is for normal on road use, but I wouldn't trust it for long-term durability. Nice choice on welder, I went with the same. :) You going to run gas + wire or just go with flux core?

No dispute. We all know that the published numbers have some safety factor built into them, which of course I'm sure Toyota would readily admit, but what the safety factor is and which component is the weak link we as consumers will never know. We can infer numbers based on similar components...

80+ replies deep and the entire thread so far can be summarized by this statement.

Diffs arrive Thursday. Going to take Friday off and see how far I can get on the swap. :smiley_drive:

The highlight of this trailer was always going to be the skylight above the bed. One of the best parts of camping to me is getting out far enough away from light pollution that you can see the countless number of stars and the Milky Way overhead. The prospect of falling asleep to that sounds...

If you intend to add a camper, doing a gear swap is a good way to help offset some of that weight. It should bring some of the pep back to the truck. Of course the 16+ Tacomas were spec'd with engines that start to get into their power band at higher RPMs. It was one of the biggest complaints...

Ain't that the truth. A small portion of the engineers I have worked with have any experience with manufacturing processes. It was funny how many of the kids walking into the machine shop were bamboozled that what they drew up in Solidworks was impossible to make.

Untitled by Tim Souza, on Flickr Transmission cooler mounts modeled. Top attaches in the OEM horn bolt holes, bottom hits the cross member and will require two holes to be drilled. This will allow me to eliminate the OEM transmission cooler and mount a Derale 52506 in its place. You'll have to...

Where's the fun in that? :D In all seriousness, the inside face of the tube has the plywood wall flush against it, though I suppose I could have cut reliefs in the plywood for the hex nuts to sit in. No real reason I had to go down the path I chose though, just made the most sense in my mind at...

Not an awning perse, but what about just getting an EZ Up? Easily stored, doesn't take up a whole lot of room, is cheaper than most awnings and you wouldn't need the rack if you wanted to bring it along.

Travis is spot on. I initially tried to put the stiffeners over the top of the Bedrug, but the bottom portion of it with the foam backer is just too soft to be able to snug down the bolts adequately. So I ended up at this compromise, the bottom of the TC stiffener is under the Bedrug and the...

Progress has been slower than I hoped for. Who would have thought building a trailer in the middle of winter might pose some challenges. Awning is on and it's going nowhere! Given that I'm a stubborn SOB, I managed to install it by myself (just had to prove my wife wrong) using a couple of...

Love the color and the build. Anything else in the queue? Or are you going to do the rare thing and just enjoy it?

Every once and a while I like to flex my engineering muscles and justify why I spent all that time and money in school. :)

Anyone have a good source for water jet or CNC plasma cutting and press braking? I would prefer aluminum, but steel would work for me too. I'm drawing up some of my own mounts for the Derale transmission cooler, not a huge fan of the mounts that they offer. Looking to solicit a few quotes and...