Switcheroo - 1 Bored Clerk's 2013 Tacoma Build

[paddlequest]

What are you thinking in terms of your camper project you refer to? Purchase something or build custom? I am in the PNW too...though further north and further west, parked on Vancouver Island. I have a Tacoma too that I am wanting to begin building up. I am thinking a gnarly teardrop for me in the future though for cold weather comfort and hopeful extended trips into Baja and Mexico again in the future. I like your approach to your build and look forward to seeing your camper build.

 

[1 Bored Clerk]

We're looking at a custom build. That can all change as time goes on but its a project I think I'd like to tackle.


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[1 Bored Clerk]

Group 31M Battery

Finally pulled the trigger on a Group 31 battery swap. I decided against dual batteries for the weight/complication and the fact that a lot of folks seem plenty happy with a single group 31 under the hood. Besides, I'll likely have two more of these in the camper when that project gets rolling...that's enough complication for me! To get the much larger Group 31 to fit, you need a way to hold it down. There are several ways I've seen people do this but the Pelfrybuilt battery cage is the cleanest I've seen. Plus, as I found out from my purchase, they are super fantastic to work with!

Here's the battery cage. It's pretty nice. I don't care for the look of the top part of the cage (I liked the original version much better) but that's a small nit to pick. It's all stainless steel but I opted for powdercoating anyway cuz I'm smrt like that. :drool:

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First step is to pull your old battery and 'tray' out. The tray is just a piece of plastic that sits at the bottom. Here's what you're left with. I cleaned it up and put a coat of wax on it...you know, for fun.

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You'll notice that the Pelfrey cage has two different height J hook mounts. The high one goes toward the back...it's obvious when you try to fit it.

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Put the tray in loose at first. As you tighten the J hooks it'll distort the cage. Put the battery in and clamp the top part of the cage down...THEN tighten the J hooks until everything is secure. Hook up your cables and you're good to go! Clean.

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Two things to note: 1. The main wiring harness that the positive battery cable comes out of as well as the hose (power steering/AC??...didn't really check which) that goes into the radiator in that area sit on or very near the edge of the battery cage. I'll likely add extra protection to both of those to ward of abrasion issues. 2. The positive battery cable is TIGHT. I'll likely lengthen it a bit when I finish wiring my aux fuse block.

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Done. Now it's ready for the winch and aux fuse block!

And, yes, I know it's filthy under the hood. It's easy to neglect such things when you live in an apartment complex. Now that we're in a house, I should be able to keep up on that stuff a lot better.

 

[1 Bored Clerk]

So, comparing time and projects, I decided that something needed to get clipped from the list for sanity sake. I ordered a US Off-road front winch 'bumper'. It's similar in general theory to what I want to make but it's much more simple and I can just buy and bolt on for now. I'll still be making my own front setup eventually but this will allow me to get the winch up and running and give me the time to devote to the rear bumper. I should be receiving that sucker on Monday. I'll start fitting it the next weekend then powder coat the next week or so then final install.


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[brianjwilson]

So, comparing time and projects, I decided that something needed to get clipped from the list for sanity sake. I ordered a US Off-road front winch 'bumper'. It's similar in general theory to what I want to make but it's much more simple and I can just buy and bolt on for now. I'll still be making my own front setup eventually but this will allow me to get the winch up and running and give me the time to devote to the rear bumper. I should be receiving that sucker on Monday. I'll start fitting it the next weekend then powder coat the next week or so then final install.


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I've given that "bumper" some thought as well for a temporary or semi permanent solution. Too many projects! Weighs about as much as a full aluminum bumper but at something like 1/3 of the cost. Looks clean too.

Interested to see what you come up with for a camper. I'd love to build my own but don't have anywhere near enough time so I'm waiting for my four wheel camper delivery (which keeps getting pushed back...). I think I have finally decided what I'm doing for batteries, solar, controller etc. Need to compile my next shopping list ugh.

 

[1 Bored Clerk]

I'm jealous that you have a camper on the horizon! Everything sounds fun to me about building a camper except figuring out how to properly mount and seal the soft sides of the pop up.


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[1 Bored Clerk]

Here's the U.S. Off-road bumper straight out of the box!

It's pretty nicely made. There were a few corners that I rounded off to make handling and final look a little nicer. I don't understand why some corners were rounded and others weren't. It all appears to be laser cut. It makes no difference to the laser if it cuts a corner square or round. It feels a little bit like laziness in CAD. No biggie. Nothing a few minutes with a file or angle grinder can't fix.


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[1 Bored Clerk]

I test fit the bumper to make sure there wasn't any issues before powder coating. Good thing I did as there was a big interference that needs to be taken care of.

I'll cut out the black sharpie area with an angle grinder prior to powdercoat and it should be good to go.

I also found out that my m8000 winch can be rolled into place in the bumper after the bumper is bolted in place. That's really nice.

Now I need to finish the little modification and get it powder coated. I'll also need to figure out where I want to mount the control box. Hmmm... I think it would be nice in the engine compartment but maybe I should leave it down by the winch? Any suggestions based on experience would be greatly appreciated!


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[1 Bored Clerk]

I just got notice yesterday that my LRA tank is ready for pickup at the port of Portland! I'm planning to pick it up on Friday. Though it won't get mounted for a while, I can't wait to check it out in person. I'll get lots of photos posted as soon as I can.


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[1 Bored Clerk]

I'm just going to leave this here for now.

More pics to come...

I'm also going to take this opportunity to give a shout out to the single most useful and fantastic accessory ever created for pickup truck owners: the spider net! I've had the one pictured above for 15 years and it's been absolutely flawless. Once you have one, you'll wonder how you ever managed without one.

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[1 Bored Clerk]

There has been a ton going on...which is why the updates have been non-existent. However, this is going to be a big week! Here's what's up:

Winch and bumper are mounted and wired up.
Factor 55 flatlink showed up today...will mount up and spool the rope on the winch today/tomorrow
5 new BFG KM2's of the 255/85 variety are sitting at the tire shop awaiting my orders for install
4.56 stuffed diffs should be delivered today from ECGS.
LR UCA's, 887 springs, bumpstops are on order from wheelers
A-Pro EXPO rear suspension kit will be here early July.

I've got a three day weekend starting Friday and a LOT of wrenching to do. And predicted 100+ degree weather. Should be fun! Pics will start rolling in soon.


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[brianjwilson]

Good luck, sounds fun aside from the high temps! Hoping for slightly lower when I get home.

Post up about your experience with the third member and clamshell install please.

 

[1 Bored Clerk]

Here's what 4.56 gears look like to me.

ECGS built 3rd member and clamshell. Solid spacers and front diff bushing.


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[1 Bored Clerk]

Got my super bling factor 55 flatlink too. The finish is much too nice to hang on the front of the truck. I couldn't resist the red...so very Rudolph. I'll get this put on when I find a suitable time/location to properly stretch the winch rope.

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[1 Bored Clerk]

I finished my winch install as well! I'll get better pics of the whole front end of the truck to show off the bumper and winch combo when the lighting is more favorable. Here are some close ups of the solenoid, though.

I wanted it hidden but accessible without opening the hood. I was going to have to make a bracket anyway so I could pick wherever I wanted. I chose here on the right side.

Just enough room to move the connector cover out of the way.

Easy to hook up the controller.

Bonus with this location is that all of the supplied cables fit. I did cut down the power cable to the battery but you wouldn't have to if you didn't want to.

The downsides that I can see are that you can't mount lights on the light tabs in the bumper (I wasn't going to anyway), the control cable has to cross over the area of the fair lead if you are controlling the winch from the drivers side or from the drivers seat, and the solenoid is pretty low and more susceptible to water. I'm willing to take those trade offs for now. I'll be happy to revisit this in the future if any of this proves to need some changing.


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