I'm going to go through each item one at a time and try and elaborate in some decent detail.
6- Toyo 285/16/75 Open Country MT
So I am well aware of the weight concerns regarding the Toyo Open Country MT. I'm not going to enter into that debate here because I am not smart enough to understand the sprung vs. unsprung debate and more importantly I really don't care.
the reality is this. In the last year I have run 3 sets of tires on my 80.
Maxxis Bighorn 315s,
The Bridgestone Revo 285s and now the
Toyo Open Country MTs. I bought the Maxxis for Moab and other rock crawling trips. I ran the Revo's as my daily drivers and for exploration through the deserts of Utah. I love the Maxxis but I only had 4 and didn't want to run a 35 for the trip. The Revo is a great road tire and I have been pleasantly surprised with the off road performance, including a trip to Baja in March. So much so I was ready to purchase a 6th until I came across the Toyos. I'll be honest up front. They were a sponsorship but I will be very candid about their performance. Like most owners I like them. They have handled the weight just fine, the slick wet roads, the mountainous mud and soft beach sand. Have they performed better than any other Mud terrain. i'm not sure. Over the course of my off road experience I have run Dunlop, Goodyear MT's (back in the mid 90s) MTRs, the Maxxis, BFG Mud and All Terrain, Swampers (bias and radial) Revos and now the Toyos.The most surprising thing about the Toyos is how quiet they are on road. Second only to the Revo in my experience. They have 15k miles on them most of which have been winding 2 lane mountain and costal roads and a couple thousand miles of dirt and gravel. They are holding up very well. Like I said, I can't say,since i've never even aired down, that they are a far better Mud tire than others i've owned. however, the road manners are excellent and i've been extremely happy with them so far.
OME 804 4inch Competition Springs front and rear
OME N73L and N74L shocks
I love them. not too much more to say than that. okay maybe a few more words. I ran the J's front and rear with spacers up front. I liked the set up and it rode nice but after bouncing off a huge (hidden under a tumbleweed) rock I bent a front spring and had to replace them. I had ridden in Racerdave's 97 80 with comp springs and decided to go that route. I was a bit concerned about having them in the rear in a fairly light weight truck. the stiff ride and tendency to unload on desecents was a concern. the truck had a tricky ride to it at high speed on dirt roads. Road manners were great with this set up but off road rallying the rear had a tendency to drift too much and occasionally roll more than the stiff front end. I made the descision to swap out the rear Js and keep my truck heavy most of the time for around town. It was the right one. They handle my current load well, with just a bit of sag but the ride is nice and plush. i want to say perfect. I will add a caveat however.
Racerdave and I have very similar trucks except he has 5 in verus my 4 but i think they have the same load rating. last spring we did Behind the Rocks in Moab. On white knuckle hill we each had a different experience. I had my rear bumper, spare and drawers in my truck. he was running a stock rear bumper. it is a major drop and my truck didn't not want to unload nearly as much as his. The difference may be minimal but his vulnerablity on that obstacle was far greater than man. So if you think about running comps make sure you plan to carry weight all the time. Compared to J's and spacers however the ride and travel is far more consistent and predictable. i tend to drive fairly fast on dirt roads and the current setup is made to rally. It is the best solid front axle set up i have driven at speed.
oh and i need to include a pic or two with the 35s...
Adjustable Panhards and rear upper control arms
Rear lower control arms from Rock Logic (you can see the arms in this post)
Caster correction plates
Tundra Double Cardon front driveline
yes they are inevitable when you start getting taller. I managed to blow out an OME caster bushing so plates were and easy progression from there. control arms were done locally in Utah by a buggy builder known as Rock Logic. with all the links adjusted to the proper lengths and angles the handling is very neutral and all drivetrain vibration is gone.
