Build First LC, HZJ77 Build "Kengo"

[Blomdala]

Moab was a blast, tons of great people and beautiful scenery

The rear table worked great for some computer work I needed to do, and it was comfy in the truck for sleeping(no wind in there!)

 

[Blomdala]

The truck did awesome, no issues (as expected) and obviously got a lot of attention in a sea of 80s and 4Runners. I am however looking forward to getting the arb installed in the rear. Had one area where a locker would have helped me not need to use as much skinny pedal and runway lol

 

[Blomdala]

The ARB 24v compressor finally arrived, so it was time to get working on my setup. I want to have an air fitting under the side vent, and will put the compressor where the Jack is now. I’m sure it will be warm in there with use (though there is a vent) but it’s still way cooler than my engine bay.

 

[Blomdala]

I had to make a 2 piece mount to utilize the factory Jack holder mounts. The first piece mounts on the inner lower mount, and then the inner upper mount. It also has a nutsert for the 2nd piece.

The second piece is just a plate that I mounted the compressor to first, and then will bolt to the outer body mount, and to the nutsert.

 

[Blomdala]

I added a strip of silicone mat along the outside edge to protect the body a bit and reduce vibrations transferring. Over all I’m very happy with its fitment!

For wiring up the harness, luckily I have an auto so I tapped into the ECT power switch for the illumination and acc power wires needed. Quick and easy. The arb harness also was plenty long enough to go from the rear quarter under the carpet up to the center console area.

Because I am mounting the compressor inside, I was recommended to vent my locker solenoid outside so my truck won’t smell (as much lol). Although arb sells a kit, I always enjoy a home brew option when it saves some $, so I crabbed a few fittings from grainger for much less. These are 1/4” tubing push fittings, so it worked becuase I have left over 1/4 line from my air bags. The arb hose is 5mm and they didn’t have fittings that matched.

The utility opening is rough, I’m calling it a draft right now lol. I’ll get a nicer one made after working with this one.

 

[Blomdala]

I used the JIS fitting arb air chuck becuase it mounts lower than the NPT version. There is just enough space to have the face of it sit behind the vent, and the AN4 to NPT 90 to sit inside the door panel. Perfect size!

The vent is a little tricky, since it uses studs. I used some epoxy to mount a hinge to it and some magnets on the opposite side to hold it down. So far I really like it and makes things super convenient to air up! But I am making a V2 with a buddies shop that looks more refined ha.

I’ll get the panel and such back on hopefully in the next week when I’m back at the house. Need to finish attaching the vent line, and route the rear locker hose before I close it off.

 

[Musafir]

Hello,
If you decide to ditch the airbags i will take them off your hands.

Thank you

 

[Blomdala]

Finally got the air and electronics wrapped on for the rear locker. Had to pre bend the vent pipe so it didn’t add any extra areas to the connectors. I also routed the locker hose down to the diff area so it should be “plug and play” when I get the carrier installed ha!

All said and done it fits in there quite nicely

I also bought a compact GMRS radio becuase I’ve yet to have anyone else on HAM at an event to use it with. So I went with a basic kit for now as usually I can see the person I need to chat with. We will see how that changes in the future!

 

[Blomdala]

Next up was working on my “poor flate” kit. It’s a cool idea that makes things simpler, just steep for the real thing. I also am planning to reuse the gauge and valve assembly for my pressure testing of the ARB locker so a bit of a dual purpose here ha.

 

[Blomdala]

I had some rough cuts of left over radiant barrier from the shop to have a little privacy while sleeping in the truck. But they were cumbersome to keep up. Found some nice suction cups with threads on Amazon and got to trimming. Easy peasy to install through with the nut. Very happy with how it turned out. Now to finish the rest of them!

 

[Rigster]

I had some rough cuts of left over radiant barrier from the shop to have a little privacy while sleeping in the truck. But they were cumbersome to keep up. Found some nice suction cups with threads on Amazon and got to trimming. Easy peasy to install through with the nut. Very happy with how it turned out. Now to finish the rest of them!View attachment 3350254View attachment 3350255View attachment 3350256View attachment 3350257

Not sure why this just hit me now, but I love the color of your 77. So timeless. Maybe you finally washed it or something... lol. J/K! I need to pay more attention, but I can barely afford the attention I have!!

 

[Blomdala]

Not sure why this just hit me now, but I love the color of your 77. So timeless. Maybe you finally washed it or something... lol. J/K! I need to pay more attention, but I can barely afford the attention I have!!

Sometimes the lights hit is just right LOL. I appreciate it! It’s the nicest paint I’ve had on a vehicle, so I try to keep it clean ish haha.

 

[FJ73Texas]

I had some rough cuts of left over radiant barrier from the shop to have a little privacy while sleeping in the truck. But they were cumbersome to keep up. Found some nice suction cups with threads on Amazon and got to trimming. Easy peasy to install through with the nut. Very happy with how it turned out. Now to finish the rest of them!

Hey Andrew, I am curious if you have a direct link to those suction cups on Amazon. I have solar (or privacy in your case) shades that I got from Japan but the suction cups that came with them are not great.

 

[Blomdala]

Hey Andrew, I am curious if you have a direct link to those suction cups on Amazon. I have solar (or privacy in your case) shades that I got from Japan but the suction cups that came with them are not great.

Absolutely! Here is the link!
Suction cups
They are pretty soft which was a relief because they seem to stick well! Do you keep that solar shield in all windows but the front?

 

[Blomdala]

I’ve been working on getting adjustments figured out for the shocks, so I changed the rebound and was able to take the kids out to test that and a few other gear items. Man these things ride nice. Very controlled and a much smoother ride now!

I wasn’t able to test out my inflate/deflate setup since it was a short trip but hopefully this weekend at the 70 series meet up in Utah.

Also the guys I went with are FAR better photographers than I so I also reaped extra benefits ha!

 

[Blomdala]

Nothing technical, but the kids had a blast so a big win for me!

 

[FJ73Texas]

Absolutely! Here is the link!
Suction cups
They are pretty soft which was a relief because they seem to stick well! Do you keep that solar shield in all windows but the front?

Thank you for the link.

I probably shouldn't have called them solar shield as I have a feeling you are thinking about the screens where you can see out easily but not so much inside. Mine look more like the foil with black felt backing to block out sunlight. Exactly ike this (not my cruiser). I can't find any photos of when I had my own shades up at the moment.

You can see the super tiny black suction cups which came with mine also and they are horrible.

 

[Blomdala]

Thank you for the link.

I probably shouldn't have called them solar shield as I have a feeling you are thinking about the screens where you can see out easily but not so much inside. Mine look more like the foil with black felt backing to block out sunlight. Exactly ike this (not my cruiser). I can't find any photos of when I had my own shades up at the moment.

You can see the super tiny black suction cups which came with mine also and they are horrible.

View attachment 3352749

You're totally good, those are what I was imagining! A nicer version of mine LOL. These cups are a little larger, but I would think you could just use fewer of them and not have an issue!

I had ceramic tint installed on my windows before I left TX and it make a massive difference with the heat coming through the windows so that's why I only need them for sleeping.

 

[Musafir]

Are you going to upgrade the tires for Moab next year?

 

[Blomdala]

Are you going to upgrade the tires for Moab next year?

That is the plan (currently working on this). The tires do work OK, but Id like a little more aggressive tread as well as going to 35s. But I need to regear my tcase to make that happen. So I have a couple things to save for ha.