COSTMAN13's 2001 Tacoma

[Claytonburns]

awesome truck and build! i really like simplicity of it and the truck looks super clean. Cant wait to see it with the apex bumper all mounted up.
and if you don't mind me asking, what rims are those? (they are bad a**)

 

[Costman13]

:box:

awesome truck and build! i really like simplicity of it and the truck looks super clean. Cant wait to see it with the apex bumper all mounted up.
and if you don't mind me asking, what rims are those? (they are bad a**)

Thanks for the kind words, the wheels are 16x8 KMC Enduro in matte black. They look great, unfortunately they scratch fairly easy. I have to keep a paint pen in the center console. They also don't have a great backspacing, Im not sure exactly what they are but the 285/75s rub the frame just before full lock. They worked great with the previous 265/75s.

 

[Costman13]

So I got a few things done the past couple of days. The APEX Bumper showed up and all I can say is wow. This thing is stout. Very well built and looks great. It is at the powder coater and should be done by the weekend. I chose black in color with 60% gloss, so it should have a nice Satin or Semi-Gloss finish. The Trail Gear sliders showed up along with the TG diff drop kit. I ended up priming and painting the sliders. I opted not to have them powder coated due to the ease of touchups on both the bottom / business end and the top where myself and passengers feet are bound to scuff them up. I chose Rustoleum Pro primer and and Semi-Gloss black finish. They came out pretty good.

I also installed the diff-drop kit. I hit the freeway but could only get going up to about 65MPH due to traffic, yet there was no vibrations. I'm going to remove the center support bearing spacers and see what happens. If it was just the front diff being too high up and a steep CV angle, than I will keep them out permanently.

I am really liking how things are turning out. Now on to some pictures.











I'm thinking about welding the sliders direct to the frame. I don't foresee myself ever taking them off. Can I get a little input on this? Past experiences? Would do overs?

Cheers and thanks for looking

 

[jeverich]

Looking good!

I swear, some day, some how the planets will align and we'll do some exploring.. Planning on taking August off and doing Hell's Canyon in Eastern OR - Quillomene/Whiskey ********...maybe the WABDR, too. Did you see those pictures from this past weekend?

I welded mine on. Looks like all that you'd have to do would be to put a bevel on your mounting plates and grind off the paint. Bolting to me, seems to just create a cavity where water will collect; leading to rust. Although, a good bead of 3M 5200 around the mounting plates would seal them off sufficiently.

Side note, you should really think about getting your HAM ticket and a mobile 2 Meter rig. Mine is steadily making CB look like a child's play toy.

Hopefully someone else a little more knowledgeable will chime in here.

 

[washington taco]

I have the heavy OME all the way around and have no vibration but I do have sliders, winch/bumper, rear bumper swing out, dual battery, sleep platform and all my recovery gear installed.

Mike

 

[mtnbike28]

I would have preferred bolt on sliders. I welded on my Taco's first set and it was a pain to do the annual rust sanding/repainting. But I lived in NY then, now that Toyota replaced my frame and I live in NC I am considering the same again. Bolt on seems better....

 

[Costman13]

Jake, thanks! It is slowly coming together. I really just don't want to drill all those holes, and I agree about water intrusion. The pictures were great. I don't even have a CB, no one I know or wheel has one so I never saw a point. I had one a few years back on a crawler of mine and rarely touched the thing. As far as a HAM, that's the better idea IMO. Especially being tht I'm out alone majority of the time. I'd like to pick your brain a bit.

Mike, the vibrations are gone now with the diff drop kit.

Jay, thank you for your input. You bring up a great point about the annual maintenance of these things. I'm also contemplating having my rocker panels Line-X'd maybe I can have them do the same to the sliders at the same time. Although it would be nice to have them off for painting.

Hoping to have my bumper on this weekend or early next week. I'd like to hit a trail Sunday if anyone is around?

Cheers

 

[uscg2008]

I need to grab some photos of the inner boot as well...


Everything looks fine here. I don't thing this is where my vibration is coming from.

Love what you have done so far. Such a clean truck, Sub'd for pics of the bumper installed. Oh and hey hey from a fellow coastie :088::wavey::wavey:

 

[Costman13]

uscg2008, Thanks! :wavey:

Went and and kicked around on some FS roads for a few hours this evening. Ended up knocking my alignment all to hell (thank goodness for lifetime alignments). The OME set up really is great. I love it so far. I still have a few kinks to work out such as another slight vibration and a few odd noises, but over all, its awesome.

Enough of that. Pictures.

















Rubbing on the fwd part of the wheel well.

 

[robert]

Not sure if I know Adam..

Just got off the phone with All-Pro, apparently their APEX jig wasn't working correctly so there has been a delay. They tell me it should ship tomorrow, then again it was supposed to ship by the end of last week as well...

With the bumper on its way (hopefully), I would like to start looking into winch options. I don't see myself using a winch often, if at all (not because I'll never get stuck, but because I will not be getting in too deep with the truck.... yet.), but with the recent lack of exploring buddies, I would hate to get stuck while out by myself. I have always carried a Come-Along with me, yet anyone who has had to self recover a stuck pick up with a come-along knows there's a better way. My thoughts are with a relatively less expensive Smittybuilt XRC 8 Comp Series winch. At roughly $450, I can justify sticking this in the bumper and rarely using it. If anything, it's a nice piece of mind.

Any thoughts on the Smittybuilt winch?

When you get some free time call around to a few tow companies and ask them what they charge to send a 4wd wrecker out. I travel alone most of the time (rarely anyone to go with me and I like it also) so being able to do a self recovery is a must in my opinion. Sure, I could do most recoveries with some tools and a Hi-Lift, but the winch is (generally) safer and gives you more options. I've been lucky so far and not needed the winch on the current Tacoma, but the last one got used a few times- and that's all it takes to pay for itself.

There is a longer thread on winch recommendations in the recovery section.

 

[Loubaru]

Hey Costman, since you are in B'ham I'm assuming your lifetime alignment is from Firestone? Have you had good luck with them? I'm probably going to get the lifetime alignment for my 4Runner but I want to make sure they are somewhat decent first. When I had my STi I almost bought the lifetime alignment but after having their alignment guy get nowhere close to what the factory cam bolts should have allowed I didn't opt for the lifetime (ended up getting my alignments done at the "Alignment Shop" or whatever its called off or Iowa. They got the alignment exactly where I wanted it but the shop recently changed ownership).

Are those pictures taken on the forest service road off North Fork where everyone goes shooting? Looks like it. If your ever looking for someone to go out with on the weekends send me a PM. I'm somewhat new to the truck world but definitely not new to vehicles or mechanics. My 4Runner is lifted but still has factory size street tires on it. I plan on getting slightly larger (33" max, would like to go smaller if possible) AT tires soon.

 

[jeverich]

Looks somewhat familiar...

 

[uscg2008]

I'm so jelly of you guys. I need to take my truck out, I've been procrastinating on some mods I still need to do.

 

[Costman13]

A few updates here. I was able to get the APEX bumper back from powdercoating and installed! :wings: The install was very straight forward. You have to cut down the side (as opposed to the bottom) frame side mounts, as there are "points" forward of the nut. These "points" will not allow the bumper to be put in place until removed. They had to be removed snug to the forward nut for proper fitment. Nothing a little cutting and rounding with a flap disc couldn't handle.

My only gripe I have with the install was the fog light buckets. One of the buckets was spot on and perfectly squared up within the bumper, while the other side is about 20 degrees off from square. This would be no issue at all if I were installing the lights prescribed for the light buckets, but I am not, and the only way you can tell is that the 4 LED lights in a square configuration (of the Blitzpro lights) are not the same from side to side. Yes I realize this is quite picky of me. All in all, this bumper is awesome!









Sorry for the poor quality pictures. It was pretty dark in the warehouse and I am not much of a photographer.

On another note. I am in the market for a 110V Welder and have my sights on a Hobart Handler 140, up to 1/4" and 140 amps. I realize that in the welder world the bigger the better. I have a Lincoln Weld Pak HD 220V MIG in my Father's shop, but with no 220 access in my current house, its going to stay put for the time being.

Can anyone offer insight on 110V welders such as the Hobart Handler 140?

 

[Costman13]

Hey Costman, since you are in B'ham I'm assuming your lifetime alignment is from Firestone? Have you had good luck with them? I'm probably going to get the lifetime alignment for my 4Runner but I want to make sure they are somewhat decent first. When I had my STi I almost bought the lifetime alignment but after having their alignment guy get nowhere close to what the factory cam bolts should have allowed I didn't opt for the lifetime (ended up getting my alignments done at the "Alignment Shop" or whatever its called off or Iowa. They got the alignment exactly where I wanted it but the shop recently changed ownership).

Are those pictures taken on the forest service road off North Fork where everyone goes shooting? Looks like it. If your ever looking for someone to go out with on the weekends send me a PM. I'm somewhat new to the truck world but definitely not new to vehicles or mechanics. My 4Runner is lifted but still has factory size street tires on it. I plan on getting slightly larger (33" max, would like to go smaller if possible) AT tires soon.

Sorry for the late reply!

Firestone is Firestone... There is an older gentleman there whome I trust much more than the younger guys. I had him do the first alignment and he was great, came out went over the whole procedure with me. The younger guys did the second one, and I watched through the window the entire time. The reason I went with a lifetime alignment with Firestone is I can have my truck aligned at any firestone in the country, though it may not be perfect, It would be better than a far out of spec alignment in the middle of a long trip. I still would prefer the designated alignment / front end shop.

and yes that is road just past the Brewery. Lots of guns blazing this day! Likewise, if you are looking for someone to hit the trails with, please look me up! (although I have a pretty sporadic work schedule...)