LowellWatt's "Don't Do Any of This" Build & Bullshit Thread

lowellwatt

What if diabetes has a knife?
Joined
Apr 29, 2020
Messages
35
Location
Brunswick, MD
I'm going to be doing a lot of dumb shit this year preparing for Moab in the fall, so I figured I'd start a build thread to keep track. Pic below is pretty much how it sits right now, here's the current list of stuff on the '02:

King 2.5 extended travel w/ 650lb springs in front
SPC UCA's
Toytec Superflex w/ 4th gen/FJC 5100's in back
SS rear sway bar brackets
1" Toytec body lift
Energy body mount and rack bushings
Durobumps front and rear
eimkeith PCK
Tom Wood's rear shaft
4.88s from Low Range
elocker swap
1" diff drop from wherever
B&M trans cooler in series with radiator
4xInnovations front armor and sliders
Smittybilt 9.5K XRC w/ synth line
Coastal Offroad rear armor
RCI front skid
Homemade 7 gauge steel drivetrain skid
Tundra brakes w/ DBA rotors
KO2's in 285/75r16
Pro Comp 7069's
Uniden 505XL CB
???
PROFIT

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I have a pile of stuff waiting to get done but it's been too cold here to spend any time in the garage. Still have to build the rear swingout and all that. I debated wether or not to even do a thread, only because I'm much of a consumer than a contributor when it comes to 4Runner stuff; I pretty much learn everything from you guys and hack it onto my rig. Hopefully somebody will get something of value out of this, possibly what not to do, or revel in my agony. This is my DD until I buy a shitbox to ferry parts around with. Enjoi!
 

lowellwatt

What if diabetes has a knife?
Joined
Apr 29, 2020
Messages
35
Location
Brunswick, MD
Heading up to Rausch Creek tomorrow so I figured I’d post a couple pictures of the hack job drivetrain skid I run, complete with snotty flux core welds. I made little house for the transfer case to give it some room in case I come down on something hard, wow what a sentence that was. The whole one-piece thing is convenient and sucks at the same time. Gonna have to modify it for the crap I’m doing this summer

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lowellwatt

What if diabetes has a knife?
Joined
Apr 29, 2020
Messages
35
Location
Brunswick, MD
That's gotta be one heavy bitch being all one piece.
Yeah I have to walk it across the garage like a fat toddler

I use one of those $99 Habor Freight transmission jacks to maneuver it into place and it saves a lot of time. That jack was also great for replacing the rear axle and front diff
 

kasnerd

Danny's Red Headed Step Child
Joined
Aug 15, 2019
Messages
4,791
Yeah I have to walk it across the garage like a fat toddler

I use one of those $99 Habor Freight transmission jacks to maneuver it into place and it saves a lot of time. That jack was also great for replacing the rear axle and front diff
harbor freight table lift without the handle attached is my jam.
 

lowellwatt

What if diabetes has a knife?
Joined
Apr 29, 2020
Messages
35
Location
Brunswick, MD
So, Rausch sucked. There was still a shitload of snow on the ground and it wound up just being a long recovery day for everyone in the group. I wound up missing my stepdaughter's birthday party, thankfully she's a teenager and gives no shits
IMG_3102.jpg


Anyway, fast forward a few weeks, the chonky 35's have arrived and I needed to make the tubs for no rubs. I know the Yokes are the meme tire right now, but I figure if they can take first at KOH then they'll work for the dumb shit I do. It took a while to hunt down a set in stock, most places would say they're in stock, and once I placed the order, they'd tell me they're backordered with no ETA.

IMG_3120.jpg

Pretty standard tub job, nerve-wracking because I don't know what the hell I'm doing, but everything seems to be holding together. I'm using flux core so I had to dial the voltage down to nothing and find a wire speed that let me do quick tacks without punching a giant hole. That factory sound deadener really smells like ass when it's lit up.

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I didn't want the fender and flare to look like it was hacked up, so I tried my best to contour it along the existing lines. I think it looks decent for what it is. I also wanted to try to keep mud and bullshit out of the flare and door jamb so I cut up the fender liner and stuffed it in the void. I'll post another update once I get the tires mounted, we're running Potts Mountain in a couple weeks, trying to give myself a chance at not sucking.

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IMG_3128.jpg
 

4runner DOA

Hold my beer
Staff member
Joined
Oct 2, 2018
Messages
15,882
Location
OC
So, Rausch sucked. There was still a shitload of snow on the ground and it wound up just being a long recovery day for everyone in the group. I wound up missing my stepdaughter's birthday party, thankfully she's a teenager and gives no shits
View attachment 35219


Anyway, fast forward a few weeks, the chonky 35's have arrived and I needed to make the tubs for no rubs. I know the Yokes are the meme tire right now, but I figure if they can take first at KOH then they'll work for the dumb shit I do. It took a while to hunt down a set in stock, most places would say they're in stock, and once I placed the order, they'd tell me they're backordered with no ETA.

View attachment 35220

Pretty standard tub job, nerve-wracking because I don't know what the hell I'm doing, but everything seems to be holding together. I'm using flux core so I had to dial the voltage down to nothing and find a wire speed that let me do quick tacks without punching a giant hole. That factory sound deadener really smells like ass when it's lit up.

View attachment 35221

I didn't want the fender and flare to look like it was hacked up, so I tried my best to contour it along the existing lines. I think it looks decent for what it is. I also wanted to try to keep mud and bullshit out of the flare and door jamb so I cut up the fender liner and stuffed it in the void. I'll post another update once I get the tires mounted, we're running Potts Mountain in a couple weeks, trying to give myself a chance at not sucking.

View attachment 35222
View attachment 35223

Always amazes me when people do a good job. Me? Function over form. Shits hacked up, looks like shit, but it works. :rofl:

Either way, I appreciate a good job because I wish I had the skill to do it that well..
 

lowellwatt

What if diabetes has a knife?
Joined
Apr 29, 2020
Messages
35
Location
Brunswick, MD
Always amazes me when people do a good job. Me? Function over form. Shits hacked up, looks like shit, but it works. :rofl:

Either way, I appreciate a good job because I wish I had the skill to do it that well..
Appreciate the compliment, the fender and flare cuts would eat at me unless they were decent... Shit, they may not work at all, I guess if they get torn up I'll just get a set of McNeils and call it a day
 

lowellwatt

What if diabetes has a knife?
Joined
Apr 29, 2020
Messages
35
Location
Brunswick, MD
Got the Yokes on today, tub seems to be good but I'm getting all the frame rub at full lock. I have to replace the LCA bushings and when I do I'll set the SPCs to G and see if it nets me a little more clearance, otherwise I may have to sell out and consider spacers. It's a last resort but since this is my DD I'll have a small cow rubbing the frame every time I need to make a tight corner.

These tires are not much louder than the KO2's, if anything it's just a different tone.

35s feel pretty good with the 4.88s but I noticed the trans temps climbing on account of the extra meat. Meat brings the heat apparently. I'll pay closer attention wheeling and on long grades during the summer to see how that plays out.

IMG_3138.jpg

Nice tub job. Glad to see another East Coaster on here.

LITERALLY DOZENS OF US

Gotta represent the right coast!
 
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Joined
Oct 20, 2020
Messages
62
Age
24
Location
Texas
I'm sure this has been answered 100 times but I have never come across it. When tubbing how do you know the insulator is on fire? Can you see it from the inside or do you use multiple patches from the outside to keep an eye on it? I figure ill be doing it eventually and never understood that aspect. I cant decide if I should send it with the cheapo welder I have now or wait till I buy a nicer one to run with gas and some thinner wire.
 

lowellwatt

What if diabetes has a knife?
Joined
Apr 29, 2020
Messages
35
Location
Brunswick, MD
I'm sure this has been answered 100 times but I have never come across it. When tubbing how do you know the insulator is on fire? Can you see it from the inside or do you use multiple patches from the outside to keep an eye on it? I figure ill be doing it eventually and never understood that aspect. I cant decide if I should send it with the cheapo welder I have now or wait till I buy a nicer one to run with gas and some thinner wire.

it’s pretty easy to tell, if you can’t see the glow of it burning then you can see the black smoke. I welded two separate pieces from the outside and only had issues with the insulator on the inside catching fire. You can blow through the seam and put it out. I also had a fiberglass blanket stuffed inside the foot well to protect the wiring and carpet, so I wasn’t really worried. I cleared as much of deadener on the outside as I could with a wire wheel on a grinder. I knocked it out with the Harbor Freight Titanium 125 with .030 wire, so it’s doable with a cheap welder but I’d definitely recommend something you can dial in the speed and voltage (as opposed to the really cheap ones where voltage and speed are just high and low switches). It’s a little puckering making those cuts and welds the first time, but at that point you’re all in so you have to figure it out.
 

MountainTan

I have no idea what I am doing.
Joined
May 4, 2019
Messages
137
Location
Virginia
Got the Yokes on today, tub seems to be good but I'm getting all the frame rub at full lock. I have to replace the LCA bushings and when I do I'll set the SPCs to G and see if it nets me a little more clearance, otherwise I may have to sell out and consider spacers. It's a last resort but since this is my DD I'll have a small cow rubbing the frame every time I need to make a tight corner.

These tires are not much louder than the KO2's, if anything it's just a different tone.

35s feel pretty good with the 4.88s but I noticed the trans temps climbing on account of the extra meat. Meat brings the heat apparently. I'll pay closer attention wheeling and on long grades during the summer to see how that plays out.

View attachment 35444



LITERALLY DOZENS OF US

Gotta represent the right coast!

Do they make a trans cooler you could use?
 

lowellwatt

What if diabetes has a knife?
Joined
Apr 29, 2020
Messages
35
Location
Brunswick, MD
Do they make a trans cooler you could use?

I’m running a B&M strapped to the AC condenser, so temps aren’t bad but they‘d probably be cruddy without it

What kinda trans temps are you seeing with the 35s? I saw you have a B&M in series with the radiator.
Seems to be sitting somewhere between 135-150. Did some light wheeling and it peaked at 195. Definitely tolerable since I think normal op temp is around 190. I’m interested to know what kind of temps people are seeing on 35s with a radiator bypass
 

lowellwatt

What if diabetes has a knife?
Joined
Apr 29, 2020
Messages
35
Location
Brunswick, MD
In an effort to rid myself of frame rub, I got a set of 1" spacers from Kerbal Space Program. They're not hub-centric but I'm running lug-centric wheels so it shouldn't be a problem.
IMG_3163.jpg

I mocked them up and turned full lock, it does clear the frame, but it looks like I might be fighting the body mount under compression. The rub is one thing but I don't want the body mount to start shredding a brand new tire. I didn't have time to take out the coilover and test it but with the wheel offset I'm not sure the 1" spacer will work. I know there's people with frame rub that just leave it alone but I'm not those people, and it will haunt me until I fix it.
IMG_3164.jpg

I also discovered that my bumper mounts are a little tweaked, probably thanks to shock loading the winch a month or two ago going up a steep incline. I bought some 1/4" mounting plates from 4xInnovations but I have yet to get the motivation to open that bag of cats. I've winched since then and haven't seen/felt/heard any problems so it'll be fine until it's not.
IMG_3162.jpg

Next thing on the list, along with about 14 other things, is limit straps. After wheeling on Saturday with the 35s, maybe it's the increased unsprung weight, but it seems like I'm topping out a lot more than I was on the 33s. I put through an order to our buddy @eimkeith for the LCA reinforcement kit and got some straps and stuff on the way.
 
Joined
Nov 8, 2020
Messages
37
Age
26
Location
Bozeman, MT
Would you consider notching your frame? I wanna say it's surprising there isn't a better solution by now, but damn, tires that meaty are gonna call for creativity no matter what.
 

lowellwatt

What if diabetes has a knife?
Joined
Apr 29, 2020
Messages
35
Location
Brunswick, MD
Would you consider notching your frame? I wanna say it's surprising there isn't a better solution by now, but damn, tires that meaty are gonna call for creativity no matter what.
I’m more inclined the chop the body mount if it comes down to it, I’d like to keep the frame intact as much as I can on account of ‘tegridy. Once I get the coil out and cycle it I’ll know for sure if the body mount chop is a viable option. I have a feeling there’s a magic offset amount that I’m not going to find with the current wheels I have and the spacers on the market. Theoretically I could use plate spacers for smaller increments but I’d likely want longer studs to keep as much thread on the lugs as possible. If I had time to kill I’d stack fender washers on the studs until I reached offset nirvana, and then measure the stack to see what size spacer I’d need. This is becoming a bigger headache than I’d anticipated but OMG THURTY FAVES
 

lowellwatt

What if diabetes has a knife?
Joined
Apr 29, 2020
Messages
35
Location
Brunswick, MD
Preparing for Potts Mountain, I bought a cheap ass universal wireless winch control on Amazon for like $18. There's no room in the 4xi bumper for the control box, so I when I installed it I had to relocate it to the engine bay and extend the control wires. This meant popping the hood to hook up the wired remote every time which was dumb. I (sort of) have a background in audio so I recognized the Smittybilt XRC 5-pin remote plugs were the same used for DMX (RIP) cable, which is used to control stage lighting, and lately high-end architectural building and landscape lighting. I tried to wire the wireless receiver to a female DMX cable but it didn't work. I later figured out the shit I spliced was correct, however I would have needed to jump from the positive lug inside the solenoid to one of the pins on the male DMX plug. Before I realized that, I just decided to squeeze the receiver inside the control box and do all the splicing in there. I added a waterproof toggle (rubber dong) in line with the wireless receiver, a kill switch I guess, to prevent dipshits (immediate family) from playing with the wireless remotes and either draining the battery or doing serious damage.
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Ran Potts on Saturday, and bent a rear LCA doing stuff I shouldn't have been doing. Also sheared grease zerk off the driveshaft. Relatively mild considering one of the XJ's with us bent his drag link and exploded a u-joint. I will say that the tires made a huge difference on this trail; I was able to get over some things that I had to winch over last time I was there on the 33" KO2's.

FUCK
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SHIT (it looks like it needs to go to the bathroom)
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ASS
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We didn't get off the mountain until about 11pm. After some unsuccessful attempts to get the XJ moving we realized we need a new drag link.Luckily we got stuck at the top o' the mountain, so we were able to make some phonecalls and track down a drag link 2 hours away. We were not able to find a replacement axle shaft though, so he was RWD the rest of the way out.


With how easy my LCA got bent, I was certain I would be able to hammer that shit out. False: it's also a big ass piece of steel. I flipped it upside-down and re-installed it, then put a bottle jack under the kink to see if the weight of the rig would get it back to normal, but it just lifted the entire ass end into the air. I left it as is and was able to drive the 4 hours back home and track down a replacement link the next day. I changed it out in a gas station parking lot got a lot of weird looks from people that hate fun.

Other shit to report: frame rub needs to get solved ASAP, hopefully doing the LCA bushings and SPC adjustment this weekend. Limit straps need to go on before I grenade the stacks in the Kings. Found I'm rubbing the Coastal rear bumper when flexed out. I already have adjustable uppers to correct the pinion angle but adjustable lowers might be on deck to pull the axle forward a bit. Just one more thing to throw money at.
 

lowellwatt

What if diabetes has a knife?
Joined
Apr 29, 2020
Messages
35
Location
Brunswick, MD
In the words of Aaron Lewis, "it's been awhyyyyyyle"

I've been ass busy with work and little shit lately and haven't been able to keep this updated. Wheeled Potts again a couple weeks ago and fucked some shit up. Bent ITR, tore off some flares and creased a door panel, and possibly blew up something in the front diff. I didn't notice the diff issue until we started down the road off the mountain and got up to 30mph+. Scraping, clunking, etc. Driver CV was solid but I could move the shaft of the passenger CV in and out of the end cups, so I swapped it for a new one at a gas station. It helped but the sound was still there at speed. I was worried that I maybe fried the bearings at the end of the ADD tube and/or carrier side, thinking that maybe the CV stub was putting pressure on the bearing at an angle due to the lift. Other scenario in my head was a busted intermediate shaft in the ADD tube. So I pulled both CVs when I got home and removed the center shafts, and plugged the diff and hubs so I could get around without worrying about doing more damage. I pulled the diff last weekend to get started on the air locker, and just based on what I can see and feel poking around the openings, it doesn't seem like there's anything wrong inside the diff itself. I guess it's possible both CVs took a shit while I was wheeling, as they've been DD'd on the lifted rig for about 2 years... Wild.
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Unrelated, I rebuilt the Tundra calipers and they feel a lot better. Old boots looked like 10lbs of shit in a 5lb bag. Surprisingly none of the pistons were scored from dirt, but I bought new ones and replaced them anyway to be safe.

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Still doing Moab/road trip prep, so I need to take care of a bunch of small things in the next month or so. Rear axle bearings, ARB in the front, fab a compressor mount for said ARB, install that, some interior crap, maybe the front bumper frame plates if I have time. I'll try to update this more often as we get closer to liftoff
 
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