Capture Colorado 01 TRD Taco - GOAE build

capturecolorado

Hooray bikes!
Get Out And Explore build!

(let's face it, you're probably lazy like me, and want to see the truck in its current state... so, here's to the lazy people :cheers: )

Well, I went from this:
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To this:
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Cab swap details here, here, and here.

Took matters into my own hands.
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And fixed it.
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Rather than buying a new bed, I decided to start from scratch, sold the rear bumper and topper to fund a new project. A la TacoChaser
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Possibly with LT.

Specs:

Driveline:
- Stocker than stocky stockerton.
- 3.4l V6
- Manual tranny
- Stock 4.10 gears
- E-locker rear
- Grey wire mod'd

Suspension:
- Swayaway Racerunner 2.0 LT coilovers w/ 650lb springs
- Light Racing UCA's
- BAMF BPV relocation doohickey
- Stainless extended rear brake line
- Eventually extended front brake lines (when I get around to putting them on)
- All-Pro expedition leaf springs
- OME diff drop
- Tuff Country Nitro rear shocks
- ToyTec adjustable lift shackles - set at 1.5" lift for a little more rake
- NO SWAYBAR
Eventually:
- Limit straps to accompany the additional droop as needed.
- Screw it, let's go LT!

Wheels / tires:
- 285/75r16 Cooper Discoverer ST Maxx (NEW!) w/ Treadwright Guard Dog spare
- Silly stock alloy wheels :\
- Spidertrax 1.25" wheel spacers

Armor / steel bits:
- Relentless DIY front bumper
- Homemade rear bumper w/ tire carrier
- Trail-Gear sliders, welded
Eventually:
- Full skids


Interior:
- Cheapo digital head unit w/ built-in amp, FM/AM and Aux only
- 6-position in-dash switch panel... Fully outfitted with switches
- RAM mount for phone / offroad nav
- Cobra WX-ST 75

Exterior, etc.:
- BedRug
In the works:
- DIY Roof top tent?? hmmmm....
- Custom TacoChaser style bed? hmm...


Lighting / Electrical:
- TRS retrofit headlights - best money that can be spent on your lighting!
- Auxiliary fuse/relay panel
- 2 LED pod lights in front bumper
- 2 10" LED bars facing front
- 1 15" LED bar facing front
- 2 LED pod lights as reverse lights (wired so all 4 come on in reverse, and also activated by an in-cab switch)
- $20 LED bed lighting. Write-up here
In process:
- Alley lights
- 42" roof bar


Recovery / misc.:
- The usual, recovery strap, etc.
- 15lb CO2 tank
 
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capturecolorado

Hooray bikes!
General intro to this dickweed from Colorado...

My previous vehicle, and only 4x4 so far, was a 2000 Jeep XJ that I built in the theme of a 4" lift, 31's, built some bumpers for it, had some fun with it, and then grew tired of the complete and utter lack of cargo space when you have 2-3 people, a dog, and then try to cram photography and bike gear in the back. My goals with this Tacoma are to utilize the bed to its full capacity. In the past, whenever I've gone on a mountain bike trip, it's been a challenge to get everyone's gear and bikes loaded up, let alone food and water. The Taco will serve well with what I have planned in providing a platform for self-sustained single vehicle travel on similar trips... No more relying on other vehicles in the group to store all the food and water (in the big shop van, crammed with coolers and bikes).

When I bought the truck it had a Leer above-cab topper, which was great if you're into that sort of thing, but one of my primary complaints with the XJ was that if I did have space for everything, getting access to something at the front of the pile, under everything, was a PITA. A topper makes this truck a larger capacity SUV...do not want (personally).

Plans for the truck include (in no particular order):
- Lift
- Front winch bumper
- Rear bumper build w/ tire carrier
- Bed rack build w/ custom canvas top (maybe)
- OBA with two 2.5-gallon air tanks hooked together
- Lighting... lots of it. 2-per-side LED alley lights on the rack, reverse lights, and aux. driving lights.


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________________________________________________

These came tonight. Part #1 of the new suspension, Swayaway's with 650# Eibachs. If there's time in my day tomorrow, these might be finding their way under the truck.

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====


This afternoon, I bolted the coilovers in... Turns out ordering the long travel ones made it a bit interesting to bolt in, but once I figured out to disconnect the lower ball joint from the knuckle, bolt the coilover in, then jack the LCA up so I could mate the ball joint and knuckle back together, everything went pretty smoothly.

Before...
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After.
DSC_0309.jpg


Old vs. new. The long travel has about 2" longer stroke over the non-LT version for greater droop.
DSC_0306.jpg


I've only driven these to the auto parts store so far, but I'm quite surprised that for having a 650# spring rate, they don't ride harsh at all, very smooth and well damped. Granted, I haven't upped the preload to give me the 3" lift that I'll ultimately end up at, I'm assuming that the 650# coils and Expo springs will balance out pretty well in ride quality with each other.

Also, ******** the stupid swaybar bolts. I was about to cut the stupid thing in half and get rid of it all together.
 
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capturecolorado

Hooray bikes!
This morning I got an early start to the day with a pile of parts, and a plan.

Well, at least a pile of parts.

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After some grunting, and some cutting of the main leaf spring bolts, the truck started looking a lot more nekkid.

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Then, as if by magic (and the whole day later, a trip to Yota Jim's for a shackle, a trip to pick up a new hard line for the brake, and some lunch).... leaf springs, shocks, etc. appeared under the truck.

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Slee gave me some black die-cut stickers. Black stickers don't belong on tinted windows, and I don't want to put stickers on the sheetmetal.

Clearly this was the wisest placement of sticker.

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Then I moved on to the front. I didn't feel like dealing with the UCA's today, so I didn't. I'll get around to that eventually. But until then, the coilovers are going to look just as good without the new UCA's.

DSC_0337.jpg


From the short test drive I took (up to 80mph) I don't have any vibration coming from the front end, which I'm fairly pleased about... considering I wasn't able to break the bolts free to install the diff drop kit.

Otherwise, I'm really happy with the way it's turned out. The handling is on point, body roll is significantly reduced, the ride is smooth but firm and controlled. I also put on some Spidertrax wheel adapters/spacers to kick the track width out a bit, which added nicely to the aesthetic of the truck being lifted and sitting on 31's :)

I'll get pictures of the truck tomorrow after work.
 

MtnClimber

Ready To Explore!
A few too many questionss: Do you plan on continuing to run with the front swaybar? Did you, or are going to, use axle shims for better pinion angle? How 'bout a CSB drop? Pictures of the front CV angle? Why did you go with new UCA's? Thanks in advance!!

oh ya, subscribed :coffee:
 

capturecolorado

Hooray bikes!
A few too many questionss: Do you plan on continuing to run with the front swaybar? Did you, or are going to, use axle shims for better pinion angle? How 'bout a CSB drop? Pictures of the front CV angle? Why did you go with new UCA's? Thanks in advance!!

I hadn't really put any thought into not running the sway bar, I hadn't heard much if that's a thing folks regularly do with these or not; I've mostly thought about trying to make disconnects for it to get it out of the way for wheeling, and still have the option to run it for highway and driving around with the truck loaded down. The pinion angle is actually pretty good, better than it was on my XJ's rear shaft, and this one is quite a bit longer than that of my jeeps - so I don't have any intention of putting some axle shims on there. I've got a diff drop, and intend to install it eventually (same with the UCA's, which remain uninstalled now)... I just need to get some time and be prepared to deal with more seized bolts; I might ask the alignment shop to throw their impact on the 3rd member mounting bolts when I go in tomorrow. I'll do my best to remember to snap some pictures of the CV angle for you tomorrow when it's light again, they're not *too* bad, but I figure for $30 and almost no loss in ground clearance I'll do the diff drop to help make them last. And I wanted to get new UCA's because I got the long-travel swayaways, and these were the recommended control arms to help provide better alignment and better use of droop with the long travel's.
 

capturecolorado

Hooray bikes!
Got the chance to get some updated pictures of the truck tonight.

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It's really not as raked out as I thought it would look. The coils are cranked to do 3" lift, and the expos are supposed to give 4" lift when unloaded. I think it looks good like this.
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capturecolorado

Hooray bikes!
Are you running the Treadwright Guard Dogs? If so, do you like them?

Yes I am. They're phenomenal tires, they've been wearing very well so far, and they're quiet for what they are. I much prefer these to any AT on the market, and would prefer these to most mud tires out there. They're quieter than most any m/t, but grip excellently in the rocks, and still do great on street and in snow. My original intention was to have them siped 2/32 each winter to help with ice traction and prevent chunking when I go offroad, but I've found that's mostly not needed. Offroad, they grip well in rocks and soft dirt, they're no mud tire, but unless you're running a dedicated trail rig, I'd bet these tires would do well for most folks out there, while still being very streetable.

What shocks are those in the rear?

They're just Tough Country twin tube nitro shocks. I think I want to get the monotube, these ones are a little too harsh for my taste, the damping isn't well balanced between the front and back.
 

capturecolorado

Hooray bikes!
While I was at the alignment shop this morning, I had some time to kill.

So I killed time. Killed it good.

This design uses simple dimensions (all 3/16" wall), 2x6" tube for the top, 4" plate for the large bevel, and 2" plate for the small bevels. The large portion will be supported by multiple 3"x3" gussets, and the sides will be supported by 1.5"x1.5" gussets. I'm also ordering tire carrier parts tonight, dual sheer spindle, latch, pop pin, etc. I'm thinking about doing something rather unusual with the tailgate, as well. With my XJ I grew tired of having to deal with bikes on the rack, swingout tire carrier, and the hatch. Too damn many processes to deal with. I'm contemplating unbolting the hinge pieces from the tailgate, and bolting the tailgate to the swingout itself - think tiregate, but more useful. I'd still be able to detach it and use the tailgate as a tailgate if I need to, but as long as the tire carrier is there, the tailgate will be useless to have open downward. It would attach easily via bolts and spacers through the sheet metal to tabs on the swingarm, pretty straight forward and non-permanent.
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I also convinced the guys to throw their impact wrench on the seized front diff bolts, and help me throw the diff drop kit in. Cost me nothing, too :)
 

climber-420

Adventurer
Looks good. Simple and clean. Been looking for a bumper like this for a long time. What do you think it will cost to make?
 

capturecolorado

Hooray bikes!
Shouldn't be too pricy, since I'm using 2x6 and 2x2 tube as the primary structure it's added a little to the cost, but given the receiver, I want it to be able to hold up to full towing duty should the need arise, and not rely on simple plate. Especially given that class III hitches use 2.5" 1/4" wall square for the crossbar, the 2x6 3/16" should suffice for anything these trucks are capable of hauling.

Materials so far for just the bumper itself are sitting at under $200. The receiver material is about $20 on Amazon, and the D-ring mounts I use are Ballistic mounts, they're normally about $24.

But then there's the tire carrier parts :coffeedrink: (had to buy a lot of extra 2x2 for the swingout, that made things pricier by a little)

dual sheer spindle - $90ish
latch - $12 (De Sta Co style, just not branded)
mounting plate - $30

Still dialing in exactly how I want the latch to work, I like to incorporate double redundancies with stuff like this, on my XJ I had face-mounted hinge and latch, both were double-sheer and the latch used both a 1" pin and a toggle clamp, so if the toggle got bumped off or broken, I wasn't SOL. I want to do something similar on this, it'll probably be lighter duty, more akin to a hood pin, simply preventing accidental opening on the highway or something.

Here's how I did the swingout latch on the XJ, it worked beautifully.
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The original intention of the swingout for the XJ was a low-budget-materials-on-hand swing out hitch for a bike rack. I realized halfway through that I both had the material and it was sturdy enough to carry a tire, so it turned into this. I ended up really enjoying having the bike rack attached to the swingout, one less stupid process to deal with getting into the back, so I'll be doing similar with the truck once I get my bed rack fabbed up.
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Anywho, got a little more done to the design, elongated the side bevel to give it a cleaner look, as well as tweaked the detail on the sliders immediately behind the tires.
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I picked up steel today, so I might be able to start working on this on Saturday or my days off next week. I'll have to trim some of the bed sheetmetal before I can start, though.
 

Kole

Adventurer
If you're going to be hanging a heavy bumper, tire and bike rack off the back of a tacoma you need to ad some frame plates. I'm sure you know this already but just in case you didn't, be sure to get some. They are cheap insurance and can be had from many different fab co's.

CBI has the cheapest that I know of for pre made. Or you can make your own. But for $69 i'd rather pay for some haha.

http://www.cbioffroadfab.com/products/1st-gen-toyota-tacoma-products/1st-gen-tacoma-frame-plates
 

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