Builds chap79's Build Thread (1 Viewer)

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chap79

Wheel. Break. Fix. Repeat.
SILVER Star
Joined
Mar 20, 2009
Threads
96
Messages
3,126
Location
Partlow, VA
As it sits 10Oct2018

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Current mods (compiled and simplified)

Suspension
  • Slinky Long Travel 75mm Heavy Duty Lift Springs
  • ICON 2.0 Shocks, 3-5" lift
  • Land Tank caster correction plates
  • Slee front and rear adjustable panhard rods
  • Slee SS brake lines
  • 2" extended front bump stops
  • 3" extended front bump stops
  • 2.5" front and 2" rear sway bar drop brackets
  • Trail-Tailor adjustable rear lower control arms
  • LCP sway bar disconnect
Tires/Wheels
  • 37x12.50r17 Cooper ST Maxx
  • Level 8 Strike 6 17x9 -12 offset
Armor/Recovery
  • Bump It Offroad front tube bumper
  • DC Fabrication dual swing out rear bumper
  • Custom Rock Sliders
  • Bent Motor Sports Skid Plates
  • Warn M8000
  • Snatch block
  • 7/8 D-ring shackles
  • 3/4 D-ring shackles
  • Mxxtrax
  • Hi-Lift
  • 15' Tree saver
  • 20' Master Pull kinetic recovery rope
  • 20' 30k tow strap
Electrical
  • Blue Sea Systems ML-ACR 12V DC 500A Automatic Charging Relay with Manual Control (dual battery control)
  • Photoman bracket w/ 150AMP alternator, 200amp ANL inline fuse
  • Military battery terminals
  • (2) Blue Sea 12-circuit fuse blocks (one in engine bay and the other in passenger rear quarter panel)
  • (2) 27F batteries
  • Garmin navigation with Bluetooth backup camera
  • Falcon Zero dash-cam
  • Kenwood TM-V71A dual band ham radio
  • Uniden 520XL CB radio
  • Front 20" bumper LED light bar
  • Dual 4" LED light pods on rear bumper
  • (6) 12v AUX sockets
  • (2) 2-port USB sockets
  • LED interior lighting
  • 7-pin trailer wiring
Other things of note
  • Rear Aussie Locker
  • Wits End CV front drive shaft
  • Wits End useless Cubby Insert
  • (2) heated car seat cushions for winter
  • Cabela's low back trail seat covers
  • Custom extended rear drive shaft
  • Derale 13263 Dual Pass Aluminum Heat Sink Power Steering Cooler
  • TMS Snorkel
  • Indel B 50qt Truck Frig
  • OBA - Puma 12v 3/4HP 1.5 gallon air compressor
  • (2) Wavian Nato fuel cans
  • (2) Scepter military water cans
  • (2) 2.5 lb Kiddie Mariner fire extinguishers
For a comprehensive list of everything see post 343


***

I've been addicted to 4x4s ever since I was a little kid. Camping, exploring, hunting, and fishing are some of my best childhood memories. My first 4x4 was a 1979 Ford F150 short bed. Then on to a 1972 Jeep CJ5. There's still a special place in my heart for those old CJs. I've also had an '86 1/2 Nissan hard body pickup, another '72 CJ5, '95 4Runner, 98 Tacoma, '96 LC, '00 4Runner, '04 GX470, and the current '97 LX450. In other words I'm always wrenching on some 4x4 and my obsession is never satisfied.

Some pics for my own historical purposes.
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Enter my '97 LX450. 147,000, no lockers, but immaculately clean. Paint was in pretty good shape, both fronts seats had new leather, no stains on the carpet. Running the VIN on the Lexus site revealed that the first 100k had all been dealer serviced. This was the starting block I was looking for for my next build.

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I had simple plans for this truck since my last 80 series had snow balled quickly. This one was going to get an ARB bumper, M8000 winch, OME 850/860 springs, 285s, and my ham/CB setup. That was all. A simple rig for getting off the beaten path and to 90% of the places I would ever want to go. As soon as I got it home the running boards were off and tossed on the side of the house and the center caps on the shelf in the garage. Next stop was to Discount tire to get some new shoes put on it. 285/75r16 Yokohama Geolandar A/T-S. I really like these tires.

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The ARB bumper and lift went on that weekend. I had already ordered them knowing that I was buying this truck. Having been down the lifted 80 series path before I opted for caster plates over bushings. I prefer a more positive steering feel.

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Next came the Mud induced obsessive baselining :bang:. Actually this is something I've always budgeted for when purchasing a used vehicle. Brakes, hoses, belts, fluids, plugs, wires, cap & rotor, PCV, etc...

LSPV corrosion
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oil pump o-ring
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plugs, cap, rotor, dizzy o-ring, and hi-lift rebuild
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fuel pump sock
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After about a year of battling my work schedule, baselining the truck on the weekend, and the occasional trip it was time to drive to NorCal to visit family.

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And then THIS happened! My brother owns a fabrication shop and I got a little family appreciation.
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I honestly never planned for a rear tire carrier because I know how this goes. Being resigned to keep the spare underneath and retain the tow hitch limits you to a 285. Getting the spare on the back of the truck opens up the door to move on up.
 
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Now that Pandora's box was sitting on the table in front of me begging to be peeked inside some changes had to happen to the LX. First was building some sliders. It's nice to have access to a full metal shop from time to time. Even though I have one in the family, metal work is not something I do often enough to remotely consider myself a pro. I have the upmost appreciation to those that do this for a living. Welding on the floor on your back is not for the faint hearted. Or for those that burn easily ;).

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With the extra weight now in the rear of the truck I replaced the OME 860s with 863s. I also made some sway bar drop brackets to ease the angles and some brackets for the LSPV and the parking brake. These were all made in my garage using a bench vise, drill press, sawzall, an angle grinder, and most importantly a tape measure. Don't think you need a bunch of fancy equipment to fab up some parts.

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I've been addicted to 4x4s ever since I was a little kid. Camping, exploring, hunting, and fishing are some of my best childhood memories. My first 4x4 was a 1979 Ford F150 short bed. Then on to a 1972 Jeep CJ5. There's still a special place in my heart for those old CJs. I've also had an '86 1/2 Nissan hard body pickup, another '72 CJ5, '95 4Runner, 98 Tacoma, '96 LC, '00 4Runner, '04 GX470, and the current '97 LX450. In other words I'm always wrenching on some 4x4 and my obsession is never satisfied.

Some pics for my own historical purposes.
View attachment 1446956 View attachment 1446962 View attachment 1446979 View attachment 1446989

PT Cruiser and Land Cruiser should never be owned by the same individual :flipoff2:
 
Ex-wife's car. Hence the appropriate thread tags :D
 
All had been going pretty good with the truck. No problems. We had been wheeling it on a pretty regular basis last year (summer 2016),

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and then one morning while driving to work:

Hit and Run
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Fast forward...

I got a decent payout for the repairs from insurance and opted to fix the truck myself :hillbilly:.
Spent the fall and winter ordering parts. Love the Black Friday deals you can get at Just Differentials.

4:88's are what I choose for the path I'm taking with my build. Aussie Locker for the rear diff and complete front rebuild kit from Marlin Crawler.
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New tires were needed to match the new gear set. 37x12.50 Cooper S/T Maxx on Level 8 "Strike 6" 17x9 wheels.
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Ordered a new front bumper from Mike at Bump It Off Road. This thing is really stout and provides great approach angles.
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Finally, as she sits today.
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There's lots of other little things that I've done but I don't want to cross post a bunch. I'm hoping that starting this thread will allow me to keep track on my mods on a more regular basis and serve as a historical record if I ever choose to sell :rolleyes:.
 
After one of my last trips to Anza Borrego my CEL popped with a P0401. I tried the cheap route first by just taking off the intake and cleaning it. I also decided to replace my leaking valve cover gasket while I was at it.

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Unfortunately my intake was not clogged when I cleaned it and the CEL came back on after about 40 miles. So I ordered a new modulator (25870-66011) and vacuum switching valve (25701-66011) to install.

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The rear bolt can be accessed from underneath the truck using a 12mm socket on 30" of extensions.
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Also while under the truck I noticed that my lower rear shock bolts have seen better days. Looks like there's still enough there to get it off with a 17mm socket.
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Thanks for the share...
My P0401 needed the modulator and the VSV.
How are you liking those ST Maxx tires?
 
Thanks for the share...
My P0401 needed the modulator and the VSV.
How are you liking those ST Maxx tires?
So far so good. I've had the STT's in the past and they wore fairly well for about the first 35k. The S/T Maxx have been on the truck now since November. Other then the 4" screw one picked up I haven't had and problems. They're fairly quiet on the road, did really well in muddy washes, and have stuck to the rocks good. I do a 5 tire rotation every other month so I'll be curious how long they last. They do take a bit of weight per tire to balance, but that's generally normal on tires this large.
 
They threw mud everywhere.

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I've been on the fence lately about my lift. Given the 37's I really don't have "enough" lift without either going to larger springs of busting out the sawzall, angle grinder, and cut off wheels :hillbilly:. So after a conversation @baldilocks and a call to @cruiseroutfit i decided to pull the trigger on some 4" springs.

I've been fairly happy with my front spring rates (850) so I decided to try the OME 3051's. Same spring rate at the heavies but in a 4" lift. The rear on the other hand I have been wanting more out of. Wheeling in the desert requires a lot of fuel and water reserves to be carried. Add to that the rear bumper and carrier, 37" tire and wheel, parts, tools, recovery gear, camping gear, food, firewood, and everything else I felt the rear handles like a 70's Cadillac.

For the rear I opted to try the OME 3052's. 4" lift spring with the same rating as the OME 864 extra heavy springs.

Knowing that the extra height is going to shift the axles I placed an order with Slee for adjustable panhards. I also ordered another set of the longer Fox shocks.

Now I'm just waiting for all the parts to arrive to start putting it together. It's like I'm 7 years old waiting for Christmas morning.
 
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I learned that my ST Maxx's sometimes like to pick up large gravel pieces, and then dislodge them while going fast 5 minutes later down the road without warning and scare the $h1t out of me with a loud bang to the wheel well. Less scary now that ive figured out the noise but still causes some anxiety waiting to see if its going to happen!

Anyways...beautiful 80, nice work!
 
You have been very busy in an good way. Let us know how you like the springs. I decided to go back to my 850j's because the 5" comps are too stiff for the weight of my 80. I will make a metal tech style spacer for on top of the J's to match the Slee 4" springs in the rear. Will run with this while I wait to see what new products hit the market over the next year or two.
 

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