Builds Cincinnati LX Build and Adventure Thread (1 Viewer)

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One thing not specific to 100s, but that doesn't get much talk on this forum is stuff not directly attached to the truck. Things like recovery gear, tools, and medical stuff. I'm biased due to my background in healthcare, but a first aid kit (+ training to use it!) is I think the most important thing everyone should have on their travels.

I sourced this excellent backpack from Outer Limit Supply, which I've filled based on my own skills and medical equipment I've gathered over the years. I really like that the main pocket butterflies open, it's covered in MOLLE, and that it's easy to grab from any angle. Plus it's a backpack, so if you've got to carry it a ways to get to someone, it's much easier.

Inside that, I've got a redundant smaller pack from Adventure Medical Kits that I use for my backcountry hiking and other remote non-vehicle travel. Also stocked from empty to my liking, but both the backpack and smaller kit can be had pre-stocked (big discount on the pack if you're an Overland Bound member and it's HSA deductible).

Happy to talk more about what's in my kit for those interested. PM me for details.

Go out and get something, and maybe you'll save a life someday! Or at least be able to tape up someone's blisters...

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Built a homemade equivalent of the way overpriced RoadShower the other day. Used 4" ABS pipe and the requisite valves. I tried to keep the joints as minimal as possible to avoid leaks, but some spots still had to be siliconed to stop dripping under pressure. Technically ABS pipe isn't rated for any pressure at all, but having seen many examples online and using another truck's shower for a week once, it can easily handle 30+ PSI and results in great pressure for a brief shower or cleaning dishes.
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My version holds about 4 gallons and fills from the cleanout cap on top. The angle of the T at the end allows for filling the entirety of the tube without overflowing and without having to have a really tall 90* joint that would increase height even more, while at the same time making the spigot end as low as possible for complete draining.
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I used U-bolts to secure to the rack, don't have any pics up close of that currently. Wind noise is minimal, can occasionally hear water sloshing front to back at slow speeds. My neighbor decided to have some fun with his window chalk, but nobody's taken us up on the offer yet...
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So the factory switches for the quarter window or vent window or whatever you want to call them never made sense to me. You should push "outward" on the switches to open and "inward" to close, same motion as the windows themselves. I was going to settle for simply flipping the right switch upside down, but it ended up being a good bit more elaborate than that.

After pulling the switch, I realized Toyota annoyingly (smartly?) put special grooves in the dash and switch body to prevent putting them in the wrong way/on the wrong side. I didn't want to file down my dash panel, so I decided I'd flip the faceplate part itself while leaving the body in its original orientation. You can pop the faceplate off, and also pop the writing part off to keep that upright.

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Problem is that flipping the faceplate doesn't change what the switch itself does. It just makes the open/close labels wrong. So I got my multimeter out and figured out which pins do the actual motoring. After numerous failed attempts to pull the pins and swap 3 and 5, I simply cut them and put spades terminals on. Really upset I couldn't get the pins out, but I tried every manner of pin and screwdriver and couldn't get the damn things to release. I did put a nice puncture wound in the pad of my thumb...

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Viola! Switches make sense now!
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So the factory switches for the quarter window or vent window or whatever you want to call them never made sense to me. You should push "outward" on the switches to open and "inward" to close, same motion as the windows themselves. I was going to settle for simply flipping the right switch upside down, but it ended up being a good bit more elaborate than that.

After pulling the switch, I realized Toyota annoyingly (smartly?) put special grooves in the dash and switch body to prevent putting them in the wrong way/on the wrong side. I didn't want to file down my dash panel, so I decided I'd flip the faceplate part itself while leaving the body in its original orientation. You can pop the faceplate off, and also pop the writing part off to keep that upright.

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Problem is that flipping the faceplate doesn't change what the switch itself does. It just makes the open/close labels wrong. So I got my multimeter out and figured out which pins do the actual motoring. After numerous failed attempts to pull the pins and swap 3 and 5, I simply cut them and put spades terminals on. Really upset I couldn't get the pins out, but I tried every manner of pin and screwdriver and couldn't get the damn things to release. I did put a nice puncture wound in the pad of my thumb...

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Viola! Switches make sense now!
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That's awesome! Enjoyed reading through your build thread.
 
That's awesome! Enjoyed reading through your build thread.

Thanks, "build" is still a strong word, but it's slowly feeling more and more our own.

Popped in some Depo clear corners, which feel like they have a decent build quality and overall good fitment. Gotta use those chrome bulbs...no egg-yolks here.
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Upgraded to LED reverse lights too. Big difference and an easy job for anyone not wanting to throw some big-time backup lights on.
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In other news, a flash flood came through and filled up our garage and part of our basement for about an hour. The Rock didn't care.

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Hitting up the vendors around here lately. Got @CruiserGarage's ScanGuage mount and AC drain extension installed along with @LandCruiserPhil's mud flap eliminators painted and mounted. Used a Rustoleum bedliner rattle can which was a pain to spray (didn't want to leave the can no matter how much I shook) but looks good and seems solid in the end.

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It took some research, but the factory crossbars do in fact have a T-slot for mounting accessories, in my case some RockyMounts bike racks. What isn't so obvious is that you have to dissemble pretty much the entire rack to take the cross bars off to be able to slide anything into that T-slot.

So my roof looked like this for a bit during the multi-hour process of adding what should have been two simple bike mounts. I think @cruzerDave should go with this look on his truck. Very Land Shark...

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Ultimately I got the T-slots accessible, drilled and trimmed the rubber insert to allow for the mounting plates to snug up flush, and remounted everything. Then I proceeded to load her up, probably well beyond capacity, with two bikes, a kayak, and my roof shower.

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Took a short trip down to KY for a couple days of camping. The roof setup did great, but I still want to upgrade. We got soaked the first night while setting up, so now after a couple days the truck smells like a locker room...working on that issue. Also, my new Depo clear corners got a little toasted by my chrome bulbs, both of which burnt out already. Not sure if it was the moisture, or just crappy bulb quality. Different brand on order to find out...

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I threw a few coats of Plastidip on my badges and grille last night. The color is "Brass Monkey" and while it's more brown than I thought, I think I like it. The truck is Riverrock Green, which is of course way more gray than green. My wife, who has far better taste than I do, says it looks good. Can't decide how to leave the grille...full plastidip, or uncover the chrome surround, Lexus emblem, or both. Opinions please!

Plan to do the wheels at some point as well. Currently spraying the black front bumper inserts next to the fog lights as well as the antenna base. Just experimenting to see what it all looks like as this is my first time using Plastidip. Seems to work really well though. I did use one coat of "glossifier" on everything so far for a more satin rather than matte finish.


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Well, we had a real adventure last weekend. Went back down to the Daniel Boone Backcountry Byway with a new friend in his 4Runner. Had a great time on the first day crossing some streams, and going through deeper mud than I thought possible on my all-season tires. Set up camp after dark and drank a beer called "Broke and Broke Down" from 50West Brewing (delicious, by the way). That was an omen...

On the second day we hit some more trails, and that's when things got interesting. I tore the sidewall of a tire, no surprise I guess given what I was running. Swapped it out and less than half a mile later tore another sidewall. So we limped to a flat spot and patched up the first tire, which had a smaller tear. It held air and got me out of there! A number of stops to repatch and refill later, we made it home 100 miles.
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So I got my new shoes today. 285/75/16 BFG KO2 and they're great. Can't wait to get back out and try again.

The truck also got a final name while we were out there. Had been calling it "The Rock" since it's Riverrock Green, but now it's officially "Dwayne" just like The Rock is called by his mother.

So here's Dwayne in his new hiking boots:
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I also beat the up some under bits on the trail. Rear bumper took a solid hit. Thank god for @LandCruiserPhil's mud flap replacements, or I'd have no rear bumper at all. Straightened this mess out and it's all bolted back together solid now:
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Secondary pan is toast too. In the market for some skids...
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I threw a few coats of Plastidip on my badges and grille last night. The color is "Brass Monkey" and while it's more brown than I thought, I think I like it. The truck is Riverrock Green, which is of course way more gray than green. My wife, who has far better taste than I do, says it looks good. Can't decide how to leave the grille...full plastidip, or uncover the chrome surround, Lexus emblem, or both. Opinions please!

Plan to do the wheels at some point as well. Currently spraying the black front bumper inserts next to the fog lights as well as the antenna base. Just experimenting to see what it all looks like as this is my first time using Plastidip. Seems to work really well though. I did use one coat of "glossifier" on everything so far for a more satin rather than matte finish.

I say leave it, I think it looks good as is!
 
Love this thread, you're doing great work just making this LX your own! One quick observation: be careful with the placement of the shower, the spigot is pretty close to the body and I've found that these trucks flex enough when on trails/dirt roads that you don't want it to rub on your nice paint.

Keep up the great work!!
 
Love this thread, you're doing great work just making this LX your own! One quick observation: be careful with the placement of the shower, the spigot is pretty close to the body and I've found that these trucks flex enough when on trails/dirt roads that you don't want it to rub on your nice paint.

Keep up the great work!!

Thanks for the complements. The spigot thankfully can’t twist enough to get to the car, though the pipe itself could. I’ve built a decent gap adding a spacer since I posted those photos, maybe ¾” or so. Plus my paint is getting less nice by the day going down these narrow wooded Midwest trails, haha.
 
Hey! I'm up in Columbus, OH. Moved up there 2 years ago from Cincy where I spent about 5 years (Hyde Park & OTR). Been following your thread since the beginning, especially your trips through the Daniel Boone Backcountry Byway...that's on our list of places we'd like to take our '02 LX. Thank you for content, especially that emergency gear. What happened to you on the trail was actually my biggest concern going off-road since i'm still riding the stock Defenders. Similar to yours, 2 of mine are new and 2 are basically new, so i haven't been able to justify upgrading. I know this has been discussed ad nauseam, but how do you find the KO2's on the highway for comfort/road noise versus defenders? I ask because our vehicles are pretty much the same year and miles. I daily mine about 40 miles on the highway each day and love the quiet, peaceful ride. I have toyed with the idea of picking up a set of tundra takeoffs for some A/T or M/T's, but wonder if the KO2's would be fine since realistically i'm on paved road 99% of the time and don't love the idea of having 2 sets of wheels taking up space.
 
Hey! I'm up in Columbus, OH. Moved up there 2 years ago from Cincy where I spent about 5 years (Hyde Park & OTR). Been following your thread since the beginning, especially your trips through the Daniel Boone Backcountry Byway...that's on our list of places we'd like to take our '02 LX. Thank you for content, especially that emergency gear. What happened to you on the trail was actually my biggest concern going off-road since i'm still riding the stock Defenders. Similar to yours, 2 of mine are new and 2 are basically new, so i haven't been able to justify upgrading. I know this has been discussed ad nauseam, but how do you find the KO2's on the highway for comfort/road noise versus defenders? I ask because our vehicles are pretty much the same year and miles. I daily mine about 40 miles on the highway each day and love the quiet, peaceful ride. I have toyed with the idea of picking up a set of tundra takeoffs for some A/T or M/T's, but wonder if the KO2's would be fine since realistically i'm on paved road 99% of the time and don't love the idea of having 2 sets of wheels taking up space.

Sorry, just getting back from a trip and seeing your post. Took the truck to Michigan and back (highway only) and the KO2s I think are the perfect tire. They have maybe a fraction more road noise than the Defenders, and I mean just a fraction, but the wind noise is louder by far at 70mph anyway driving a tank like this through the air. Obviously MPG drops 1-2 due to larger and heavier tires, but I'll take that trade for not having to swap wheels/tires. Based on the muddy stuff I got through on the DBBB with the Defenders, I should think A/Ts would be more than enough for 99% of the off and on-roading you want to do.
 
Finally broke open the boxes of @cruzerDave's amazing Reef Drawers. So excited for some quality storage!

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I'm in Cincinnati as well and recently picked up a 99 LC 100 with 160 K. I bought it from a buddy who had owned it since 2003. Your looks in better condition, especially from a rust perspective, but I had to jump at a deal that was too good to pass up. Because he couldn't remember when the timing belt was done, and I saw no indication of it having been done, I went ahead and did it over that last few weekends. While I was in there I did the water pump and every pulley as well as the alternator and power steering pump. I also have a 2000 tundra, so I've done all of this before. First start was yesterday and she fired right up. My wife commented that you could barely hear it running it was so smooth. My short term plan is to slowly go thru the mechanical s and use it as a daily driver. Longer term I'll mix is some mods with the intent of doing some offroad and camping. We spend a lot of time in northern Michigan where the vehicle is well suited.

By the way, I have defenders on the truck and it's the best all season tire I've owned. They are quiet (I do a lot of highway driving) and wear like iron.
 

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