Builds GCRad1's 1992 ADV80 LAND CRUISER (3 Viewers)

[GCRad1]

BB500 2018 DAY 2 Continued:

Sometimes you just get lucky! As my crew was traversing the desert, these images magically appeared "on film" with ZERO edits! Right place, right time, right light, right speed of the shutter. How it turned out so blue is something I've sorta' noticed the camera does in curtain conditions, nothing I've been able to duplicate in a controlled way, but partly, that is the fun of photography.

It was especially this type of fun, shooting film back in the day as you never knew what you really had until your film came back from processing. Shooting digitally I will check my viewfinder afterwards as little as I can. I try to shoot a minimum number of frames because big weekends like this still results a lot of images to sort and pick though. So when I come across these images, I am proud of them and they reflect everything that my brain remembers in person, minus the audio, smell and touch of the snow on my face. And that cold chill in the air!

Funny how our rigs bring about such an odd-ball group of friends that all click and work together as a team. This is one of those moments where I am proud to be apart of this team and super stoked to capture such moments. We all will have our memory of this day, all with our own perspective.

 

[GCRad1]

BB500 2018 DAY 2 Continued:

With our without these images, these memories will be with me, with us, forever! My life has been a wild one! This kid from Alabama, out here hanging in the desert with this crew, driving my 1992 Toyota Land Cruiser - AKA The ADV80! I am one lucky dawg! This was never in "my plans," I've just been on the "ride of life" with all it's ups and downs and believe me, I've had all sorts of downs! But these up moments are to cherish and negate out the downs! It's weird to look back on these images, now three years later, and I remember having these same emotional feelings then...

 

[GCRad1]

BB500 2018 DAY 2 Continued:

Yes, it's hard to believe myself, but the crew decided to push on and out of the desert into the town of, I think, Beatty, Nevada. No one really liked the idea of setting up camp in the middle of the snow. Personally between you and I, I was a little bummed! But I am the one with the "hard shell tent" as my 80-Series is set up as such, tent on wheels! If only it was as lightweight as my REI Passage II tent! hehehe

We decided to re-fuel while the station is open and there was no one in here before we rolled in. BB500 TAKE-OVER!

T-H-I-R-S-T-Y! THE ONLY FUEL CAN TO RUN!

Knocked down 559-miles since my trip has started from the doorstep! Our trip should have 500-dirts miles under us by the end of tomorrow! One more day in the desert - what will it bring?!??!

For tonight, I opt to stay in my hard-shell-80-Series-tent while the others opted for the hotel rooms. They are lucky I didn't drive to the outskirts of the desert for the night.... but I do want to make sure to stay with the group for tomorrows adventures, so I chose the back lot of the hotel... you know, to keep an eye out on all our rigs.

Tomorrow starts: BB500 2018 DAY 1, 2, 3 Continued: !!!

 

[GCRad1]

BB500 2018 DAY 3 !!!

THE END!
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JK JK JK JK JK JK JK JK!!!!
I'm 300-miles from home, it's early AM and there is no way I am driving tarmac all the way back!

THIS IS MORE LIKE IT!!! PS: Where did all the snow go! Seriously, not a snow-scratch of evidence!

I dig this little rock-bridge-connector! We are on some old-old path through the desert!

Into the canyon we go! I love this section we are about to run! I call it our "cowboy canyon!"

 

[GCRad1]

BB500 2018 DAY 3 - Continued!!!

It's a rare moment to be out in front of our trail leader, but during one of the "heard'em-gather-stops" I knew where we would be going on this leg, so I jumped out and caught a frozen moment of time of Dan leading the pack!

There he goes! Believe it or not, but there is a full on-board air compressor and welding machine nestled up in this rig! Well sorted - well equipped - desert veteran!

Younder de'crew - mix bag of fruits I tell ya!

The desert is magically awesome from the visually "spectative" standpoint. It's not flat, only those few moments that it is, and while visually alluring it will physically harm you if you do not look after yourself. At risk just becomes second nature after you've acclimated a while.

 

[GCRad1]

BB500 2018 DAY 3 - Continued!!!

It's Sunday and making our long dirt way home... Everyone has that feeling... Let's stay longer... How do we make it keep going... then.... a technical foul. We have a little breakdown. I don't even remember the issue, not a major-major one, but a little time consuming. So I go for a walk...

Do you see me there? Over there... >>>

 

[GCRad1]

BB500 2018 DAY 3 - Continued!!!

Isn't this what it's all about... hanging with your friends, safety in camaraderie and community.

But with a moments hike up the incline - SOLITUDE! Walk on over the hill and you ARE ALONE! The desert!

For this scenic view, for some of us, we know what is next... For our new two track tourers, they have no idea as we are we are about to embark on!

We are going where here???...!!!

Just a fun technical canyon section in the middle of "flat desert!"

 

[GCRad1]

BB500 2018 DAY 3 - Continued!!!

Out of the canyon and back to the "flats"...

Well sorted housing and recreational two wheeled vehicle!

This little valley, the donkeys are usually around here somewhere!

 

[GCRad1]

BB500 2018 DAY 3 - Continued!!!

At the upper right of the previous photo sit this little hut. I've yet to visit the spot. It'd as though we are saving this stop for another time.

Going back a little while, due to shooting both DSLR images and cellphone images, so I am not following one "time line of images... Anyhow, setting the scene image here, one of our rigs caught a punctured tire, it a very rappley-sandy-rocky wash."Rapple" you know... medium size rocks all strewn about making for a very rappley surface. Not quite rocky... not just crushed sand or even river rock, although river rock beds can be "rappley!"

Stock jack was just "pushing" it's way through the rocks, so we had to pull out another jack and that was laid across to 4X4 bits.

But we had to employ the stock jack back into use as we could not lift the body high enough to pull the suspension up in order to mount the spare tire. We made more stable base for the stock jack in order to get the lift needed. Even the simplest of task calls for a little creativity in the desert!

 

[GCRad1]

BB500 2018 DAY 3 - Continued!!!

Another "watch-the-crew-cross-the-desert" episode and too, I like to run in the fresh air. And I can play a little catch-up and test out my ICON Vehicle Dynamics shocks / ICON Vehicle Dynamics 3" springs.

And these 315/75R16 Falken Wild Peak AT3W's are AWESOME!!! They give me a lot of confidence in the most remote area - DEATH VALLEY!!!

Into another canyon!

And into these fun little sections... !!!

THE ADV80 doing what the ADV80 does!!!

 

[GCRad1]

BB500 2018 DAY 3 - Continued!!!

These canyon water-worn rocks are awesome!

Looks like a good enough mid-morning snack regroup spot!

And soon after, we are off again.

 

[GCRad1]

BB500 2018 DAY 3 - Continued!!!
Just when you think you are done with the canyons, you find yourself in another! The thing I think ofter about while out in this wild desert are the days of covered wagon travel and how many times they travel through here either attempting to find their way west or prospecting.

Turning a wagon around in these canyons would be painstaking! Repairs would be excruciating and wood is super scarce if they had to repair a wheel! The things we take for granted with our modern machines!

Now we have these modern wheels made of steel with rubber tires! I particularly like my Falken brand, Wild Peak AT3 model of all-terrain tires mounted on aluminum FN Wheels! Crazy to think that the wagons had the "soft" on the inside as the wood was soft compared to the metal band strip that would oven be on the outside of the as can be seen in these Hansen wagon wheels.

Soon we would wind our way through the canyon walls to a visually different landscape. The terrain is always changing and it is apparent how much water has shaped and continues to change the landscape. But sometimes you will see formations of rock that makes you wonder... How hot was that during the formation process to bend and shape such shapes in the earth?!

The ADV80 Toyota "Covered Wagon" has been and continues to be CHAMP! The 3FE engine just keeps on working away at pulling the the ol' 80-Series along these rough and rugged trails. I think it has to be a little respite for the FJ80 when we get to these crushed rock water ways. But too, these can be a strain as well if you get out of the compressed two-track.

Nick of Loose and Lost and I are awestruck with this canyon and fall behind the heard for some photo ops! You like to think that we will be back through here on another trip, but you never know...

 

[GCRad1]

BB500 2018 DAY 3 - Continued!!!

Death Valley is massive and shows signs of how massive water can flow through here. I would like to see it at capacity, but I would not want to deal with it as it get through it!

I will just carry on and be thankful for our dry passage!

Obviously there has been some serious work put into this built up dirt road that traverses the crusty lakebed.

It's not long before we are across and heading back up another "wash" road that feeds down to the dry lake bed.

One of the rigs is needing a little service so we hitch our cover wagons at the hitching post.

 

[91FJ80FD]

GcRad1, how is the rig doing these day? Just found the thread! AWESOME JOB!

 

[GCRad1]

GcRad1, how is the rig doing these day? Just found the thread! AWESOME JOB!

Hey 91FJ80FD!

Thank you for creepin' through the ADV80's thread!

The rig has sitting for the past six months.. I've done a little wheeling here in Colorado Springs, but I've been super focus on getting the house sorted (1-year without a proper kitchen) was almost finished, the flooring that was professionally installed, has now gone wrong! Thus, everything is coming out and getting redone! So, between work and house work, my adventures have been far few too little on four wheels!

Current status of ADV80:
1] Dash is completely out - getting to the heater core. Did a Colorado WINTER with NO HEATER and that is a NO GO! Not doing that again!
2] New power steering pump is sitting in the office floor.
3] Band New CDL Mechanical switch is sitting in the tool box!

So yeah, a few things to catch up on within this thread, and the actual rig.
For the most "live" events happening with the ADV80, the Instagram page is most current: https://www.instagram.com/theadv80/

Rig is at 328,000-miles and I want to take the 3FE all the way to 400,000!

 

[GCRad1]

Just dropping this in here...

Did a little Colab-thingy: 80-Series Visor Clip (Pair) Billet Aluminum Black Anodize ADV80 Colab
While driving across Death Valley in early 2015, I noticed his 80-Series aka The ADV80 visor clip had cracked. No, I did not simply replace it with a genuine Toyota replacement Holder, Visor (LIGHT SABLE, TRIM4 74348-60010-06) or (LIGHT GRAY, TRIM1 74348-60010-03). Heck, back then, I think they were on eternal backorder!
But I did have an idea… It only took me 8-years to realize it in metal. Read the whole story here:
80-Series Visor Clip Billet Aluminum Black Ano ADV80 Colab - https://redlinelandcruisers.com/shop/80series/3f-e-1991-1992-80-series/80-series-visor-clip-rl1179/

 

[Outsane]

Cool!

 

[GCRad1]

Hey 91FJ80FD!

Thank you for creepin' through the ADV80's thread!

The rig has sitting for the past six months.. I've done a little wheeling here in Colorado Springs, but I've been super focus on getting the house sorted (1-year without a proper kitchen) was almost finished, the flooring that was professionally installed, has now gone wrong! Thus, everything is coming out and getting redone! So, between work and house work, my adventures have been far few too little on four wheels!

Current status of ADV80:
1] Dash is completely out - getting to the heater core. Did a Colorado WINTER with NO HEATER and that is a NO GO! Not doing that again!
2] New power steering pump is sitting in the office floor.
3] Band New CDL Mechanical switch is sitting in the tool box!

So yeah, a few things to catch up on within this thread, and the actual rig.
For the most "live" events happening with the ADV80, the Instagram page is most current: https://www.instagram.com/theadv80/

Rig is at 328,000-miles and I want to take the 3FE all the way to 400,000!

 

[GCRad1]

Does anyone know if there is an aftermarket option for the '91-'92 Front Sway Bar Mount - BUSHING: 48815-60050 ???

Yes, I know the oil is softening these to the point of premature rapid degradation because 3FE! Yes, the old 3FE is leaking oil like crazy (rust prevention). I'm just trying to limp this puppy to 400,000! Currently at 330,06, so I hope some poly bushing will work, and I have enough oil leaking that they will never SQEAK!

 

[ryaneddy16]

Can you use fj60 sway bar bushings?