Builds Evolution of a Land Cruiser: My 80's build thread (9 Viewers)

[jcardona1]

RUBICON TRIP PART 1

First off, still have a ton of pics coming in the next few days. This is just 2 preview pics! Ran the Rubicon this weekend with a few buddies. It was one hell of a trip. The plan was to run the whole trail out to Lake Tahoe but we turned around after camping at Buck Island Lake. The 3rd gen 4runner had already broke 2 axles and had no more spares. He also lost the nut on his upper control arm. And popped a bead in the middle a steep uphill climb. It was a sign of things to come most likely. Continuing on would have meant even more trouble.

My rig made it through fine. But after running the Rubicon I realized a few things about my 80. My truck is way too low, especially the rear. Dragged the bumper almost over everything. I'm gonna have to bite the bullet and raise a bit more. Maybe some 5" springs, eventually leveled out with the 4WU 3 link up front.

I need better and stronger sliders. Landed real hard on a giant boulder. Slider bent, pushed up into the body and creased my rocker. Will have to cut these off and build a stronger set, one that also sticks out a bit more. The poor man's 3-link AKA hitch pin mod helps a bit with flex, but I trashed the bracket. Had to pound it back in place with a BFH to get the hitch pin back in.

I really really want/need tube doors on all 4 doors. Seems like I'm most prone to damage where the doors are. Tube doors would also help with visibility. I'm even thinking about a tube rear hatch. Would save a ton of weight too. For a second I had some crazy thoughts of chopping the top and just going out all trail rig that can still be driven on the street. The thought still hasn't left my mind.

Which brings me to next thought. This things are ridiculously heavy. Climbing some obstacles really shows just how fat and heavy these things are while watching my buddy's little mini trucks walk right up the Soup Bowl even after forgetting to engage his front lockers. Ridiculous. Which is why I thought about just cutting off the whole roof and make it into a crawler as much as it can be.

Tube doors and body protection will probably be my next project. Eventually I see myself running a full cage, something like this. Would really boost my confidence level while wheeling:

And 2 pics in the Little Sluice. Lots more to come

 

[jcardona1]

And here's my buddy's bad ass little Tacoma. After watching him walk up the Soup Bowl with the front unlocked, it makes me want to turn the 80 into an all out crawler. But much bigger. And heavier. And lower. With crappier gearing

 

[retrofive]

Sounds about like our last trip on the rubi. 3 trucks, and 2 were spit out pretty quickly and they were nicely built wheelers. We eventually all made it through after a parts run back into town.

 

[bobbynelson0730]

You know I had those same thoughts with my FJC after following some buggies through Hammerdown in JV. Chop it up, SAS the works. Then I realized it was still a fat pig and I'd feel bad rolling it over. That why I picked up the 80 for comfort and will build a little toy to get stupid.

 

[Booger weldz]

I look at the slee shortbus and try to deny that someday I'll be in a morph of that type. It's only a matter of time. Never kept the rear windows in 4runners from eventually getting smacked either.

Just don't go cutting to the point your miserable in the rain and snow. It's easy to get carried away with deconstruction tools!

I look at those gigantic sliding ragtops periodically too. Maybe We shoulda bought a 2wd 4door JK as a starting point, lol


So no 80 run on soup can??

 

[jcardona1]

Sounds about like our last trip on the rubi. 3 trucks, and 2 were spit out pretty quickly and they were nicely built wheelers. We eventually all made it through after a parts run back into town.

Impressive. Takes a ton of mental focus to run the trail in, out, back into town then back in again. Takes sooo long to go a few miles.

You know I had those same thoughts with my FJC after following some buggies through Hammerdown in JV. Chop it up, SAS the works. Then I realized it was still a fat pig and I'd feel bad rolling it over. That why I picked up the 80 for comfort and will build a little toy to get stupid.

Yeah definitely! Although chopping an 80 would make it really capable I think. Once you do that the thing really holding it back is the lack of gearing options. All these guys are running 4.70s and have like 4 shifters coming through the floor. They crawl effortlessly.

I look at the slee shortbus and try to deny that someday I'll be in a morph of that type. It's only a matter of time. Never kept the rear windows in 4runners from eventually getting smacked either.

Just don't go cutting to the point your miserable in the rain and snow. It's easy to get carried away with deconstruction tools!

I look at those gigantic sliding ragtops periodically too. Maybe We shoulda bought a 2wd 4door JK as a starting point, lol


So no 80 run on soup can??

My 80 on Soup can? HA! There's no way I'd get past the first ledge. I'd end up teetering back n forth on the belly.

Right after the Granite Bowl there's a really steep hill with a rock that sticks out, my buddy said it's called the "Window Grabber" or some crap like that. I was SOOOO close to taking out my rear windows. You could actually see shattered glass all along that hill.

I want to start with tube doors and a tube hatch with cargo netting. See how I like that. Down the road I envision cutting the 80 like a 1st gen 4Runner. Won't mess with the overall length, but I really like the idea of cutting the roof off after the B pillars then adding ragtop all the way back like this:

 

[bobbynelson0730]

I think you answered your own question with the teetering off the ledge comment. Problem really isn't just the gearing. It's the damn size of the thing. Chop it up, throw an Atlas in and some 40's and you'll still have problems following those 1st gens. Mine already had the 3:1 gears installed, and now with the 5.29's it really goes at a nice speed down our grade (~45degree). Almost as slow as my previous 4.7 case and 3.73's in the FJC.

 

[AMMO]

RUBICON TRIP PART 1

First off, still have a ton of pics coming in the next few days. This is just 2 preview pics! Ran the Rubicon this weekend with a few buddies. It was one hell of a trip. The plan was to run the whole trail out to Lake Tahoe but we turned around after camping at Buck Island Lake. The 3rd gen 4runner had already broke 2 axles and had no more spares. He also lost the nut on his upper control arm. And popped a bead in the middle a steep uphill climb. It was a sign of things to come most likely. Continuing on would have meant even more trouble.

My rig made it through fine. But after running the Rubicon I realized a few things about my 80. My truck is way too low, especially the rear. Dragged the bumper almost over everything. I'm gonna have to bite the bullet and raise a bit more. Maybe some 5" springs, eventually leveled out with the 4WU 3 link up front.

I need better and stronger sliders. Landed real hard on a giant boulder. Slider bent, pushed up into the body and creased my rocker. Will have to cut these off and build a stronger set, one that also sticks out a bit more. The poor man's 3-link AKA hitch pin mod helps a bit with flex, but I trashed the bracket. Had to pound it back in place with a BFH to get the hitch pin back in.

I really really want/need tube doors on all 4 doors. Seems like I'm most prone to damage where the doors are. Tube doors would also help with visibility. I'm even thinking about a tube rear hatch. Would save a ton of weight too. For a second I had some crazy thoughts of chopping the top and just going out all trail rig that can still be driven on the street. The thought still hasn't left my mind.

Which brings me to next thought. This things are ridiculously heavy. Climbing some obstacles really shows just how fat and heavy these things are while watching my buddy's little mini trucks walk right up the Soup Bowl even after forgetting to engage his front lockers. Ridiculous. Which is why I thought about just cutting off the whole roof and make it into a crawler as much as it can be.

Tube doors and body protection will probably be my next project. Eventually I see myself running a full cage, something like this. Would really boost my confidence level while wheeling:

And 2 pics in the Little Sluice. Lots more to come

Dang what size tires is that 1st runner running? Those are some fat swampers!

Also how does your buddy like those TG beadloc's?

 

[1973Guppie]

you do know there are bypasses on the con, right? IMO, you are using the wrong vehicle to do what you want to do. Others will disagree but oh well. I had an fj40 that was sprung over, orion and crawled 100:1, it was great for the con and other hardcore trails. Problem was it was not so great for long distance family travel, camping, etc.

If you really want to go that route I would build yourself up an fj40 or a minitruck. Great aftermarket support and you will be able to go anywhere with it. Just depends on what you want to do with your truck.

The rubicon is really not that hard if you take most of the bypasses. I plan to take my 80 through there eventually with 33's. My point is to let others know to not be discouraged to do the con if they want to do it in an 80. With enough good spotting, etc and you can get a near stock vehicle through.

 

[warezdog]

What gears are you running now Jose?

 

[jcardona1]

I think you answered your own question with the teetering off the ledge comment. Problem really isn't just the gearing. It's the damn size of the thing. Chop it up, throw an Atlas in and some 40's and you'll still have problems following those 1st gens. Mine already had the 3:1 gears installed, and now with the 5.29's it really goes at a nice speed down our grade (~45degree). Almost as slow as my previous 4.7 case and 3.73's in the FJC.

Yeah for sure. These fat pigs will never be as nimble as those small trucks. And good to know about the 3:1 gears. That's on my to-do list also. Most likely do it when I convert to part time.

Dang what size tires is that 1st runner running? Those are some fat swampers!

Also how does your buddy like those TG beadloc's?

No idea, found that pic on Pirate and saved it to my phone since it looks so bad ass! As for the TG beadlocks, he really likes them, no issues so far. I like them too. I think they'd look great on an 80. Maybe one day

you do know there are bypasses on the con, right? IMO, you are using the wrong vehicle to do what you want to do. Others will disagree but oh well. I had an fj40 that was sprung over, orion and crawled 100:1, it was great for the con and other hardcore trails. Problem was it was not so great for long distance family travel, camping, etc.

If you really want to go that route I would build yourself up an fj40 or a minitruck. Great aftermarket support and you will be able to go anywhere with it. Just depends on what you want to do with your truck.

The rubicon is really not that hard if you take most of the bypasses. I plan to take my 80 through there eventually with 33's. My point is to let others know to not be discouraged to do the con if they want to do it in an 80. With enough good spotting, etc and you can get a near stock vehicle through.

True, but where's the fun in that?! If you have to take every bypass then you're not really doing the Rubicon Even in my rig on 37s I took a few bypasses. There's some really massive boulders along that trail and no way I could have followed the little Toyotas. I'd like to make the 80 as capable as it can be in its current platform. Tube doors don't really take anything away from the 80. Chopped and bobbed is a different story though. And that probably won't happen for a long time, if ever.

What gears are you running now Jose?

I'm on 5.29s (Nitros)

 

[1973Guppie]

I gotta disagree, the con is not about the biggest and baddest obstacles, it is about the history of the trail and being out there and having a good time with family and friends.....

 

[jhamby]

One thing to think about is how all of that reduced weight will affect your ride quality and height. When I threw on lift springs, I gained 3"+ of lift and the stiffest ride known to man. As I've added interior storage, rack, and a rear bumper, things have settled back down a little and the ride is improving.

Removing the doors and rear hatch might give you an extra .5"-1" of clearance, and might also stiffen things up closer to the point of jarring your teeth out.

 

[jcardona1]

I gotta disagree, the con is not about the biggest and baddest obstacles, it is about the history of the trail and being out there and having a good time with family and friends.....

That's how I view every outing. Whether it's fire roads and a camping trip or long days of technical rock crawling

One thing to think about is how all of that reduced weight will affect your ride quality and height. When I threw on lift springs, I gained 3"+ of lift and the stiffest ride known to man. As I've added interior storage, rack, and a rear bumper, things have settled back down a little and the ride is improving.

Removing the doors and rear hatch might give you an extra .5"-1" of clearance, and might also stiffen things up closer to the point of jarring your teeth out.

Yeah it'll be tough to find the balance. Right now I'm definitely not happy with it. Rides fine on the road but on the trail the springs/shocks are way too mushy. Any movement seems to send the body in an endless rocking motion. Could also be due to old components, no idea how old these shocks/springs are. Removing the doors for the trail might be enough to stiffen things up a bit.

 

[jcardona1]

Video of the fat whale going through the Little Sluice

 

[1973Guppie]

not sure what you are complaining about? from the video it looks like you did just fine. Some marlin TC gears would help.

 

[jcardona1]

not sure what you are complaining about? from the video it looks like you did just fine. Some marlin TC gears would help.

Wasn't complaining, just stating the things I've observed about an 80 in the rocks. Which is factual and well known, not just my opinion. Marlin gears are on my wishlist though!

 

[musthave]

Your videos and pictures are always cool to see & watch!

 

[UnderDawg]

No Jose is right. Its bouncing all over the place. What springs you running vato? Maybe their just worn out, you wheel the shiz out of that pig.

 

[jcardona1]

No Jose is right. Its bouncing all over the place. What springs you running vato? Maybe their just worn out, you wheel the shiz out of that pig.

That's what they're for right? And yeah, I'm pretty sure the springs are a big reason of why I'm unhappy. I was told by a PO that another PO told him it had the FOR lift. It has the Bilsteins and FOR brackets so I'm going with that. They must be really old and tired by now as it feels really mushy on the trails.

The front will be addressed with 4WU's kit, the rear will need new springs and shocks. Kinda thinking of the 5" OME Comp coils. Still not sure though.