Just a little Bigger (1 Viewer)

[texdoc77]

Hello,

This is my first post here and wanted to introduce myself. I have a relatively long history of off roading, but a more recent history of rebuilding older rigs. I had a Jeep Cherokee in college and various 4 wheel drive vehicles throughout the years. About 15 years ago we began going to wheel in the mountains of Colorado and places in central Texas where we could. I have had a couple of side by sides, but last year I bought a suzuki samurai and began to rebuild it. As many of you know they are capable little machines, little being the key word. We took it for an overlanding adventure on the Alpine Loop recently and it had room enough for everthing my wife and I needed, except for our kids. So I will be building a 1995 TLC here over the next few months. My first order of business will be to baseline the vehicle and then get into other forms of maintenance. It is possible this vehicle might be utilized for a long term overlanding adventure for our family and thus reliability will be key. After that off road modifications such as front and rear bumper and suspension will get done.

With all of that said I know there are some members on here who help with OEM parts for the rebuild, CDan and Beno come to mind. The last posts I saw with this info were several years old so I wanted to see who was currently doing that kind of thing if anyone.

Look forward to getting to know a new community.

SC

 

[truthdetector]

The easiest way to identify the parts needed for your rig is to plug your VIN into this website. Great interactive parts diagrams, many with pictures.

https://partsouq.com

In some cases, it and another website called Amayama are the only places to get certain parts, but if you're just doing a baseline, you should be good to actually source the parts from your favorite U.S. dealership that will ship to you. I use Marietta Toyota (discount off MSRP, no sales tax, free shipping on orders >$75), but there are several others I've seen other members talk about that are similar.

 

[CharlieS]

Welcome. Those Samurais are awesomely capable. Good luck on your build. CDan and Beno are around, but I don't know if either of them still sell parts and have mud prices like they used to. I usually buy Toyota parts from online dealers that have good prices - for me either Boch or Olathe (Boch is closer, so I get stuff faster). Partssouk and Amamya are good sources too. That doesn't get you access to the expertise of CDan or Beno, so I do a lot more searching for part numbers and digging through posts. I like Cruiser Outfitters for things that I don't need to be Toyota (my tie rod ends don't care if they are 555 or in a red box, for example). There are still plenty of great, mostly smaller, vendors catering to the Land Cruiser. I've spent too much money with Slee, White Knuckle Offroad, Trail Tailor, Bellfab, and so forth. Also, lots of good stuff out of Australia that we don't generally get but the shipping can be pricy - with good exchange rates, it is an option.

 

[texdoc77]

Ah OK, that is good info thank you both, I will check out partsouq and amayama. Here is a pic of the Samurai going over Imogene Pass at just over 13K. This was a carbureted machine and a 1.3L engine with way more payload on it than should have been. I was a very proud papa!

Also is doing a build thread a thing on here? Does anyone care at this point? I like doing them, but was not sure where I might put that.

 

[CharlieS]

I think you just start a thread and tag is as a build. I've never done a build thread myself, but read lots of them.

Like this example:

 

[Comet]

Cruiser Outfitters (Curt and friends) is a great resource. There are subpar vendors out there (search on mud for the thread) that sound great but really suck. Classifieds on MUD can be a good option for the suspension and bumpers as people seem to swap out bits and pieces long before it is worn out. If it has been done, it’s posted somewhere on MUD. Google search and tag MUD to get more accurate results.

Edit: check out the clubhouse section for a group near you. Attend a meeting or thirty and participate in the events.

 

[SoTexCruiserDoc]

And let us know if you need connecting with some Human Resources in central/south Texas. There are some really good and capable folks around.

 

[texdoc77]

And let us know if you need connecting with some Human Resources in central/south Texas. There are some really good and capable folks around.

Yes I would very much like to know if there are any particular mechanics/outfitters you use.

 

[SoTexCruiserDoc]

Many knowledgeable, talented guys around, but I think most look to Cody as the Man (@cwwfj60 )

And yes, build threads are still a thing. The better they are, the better they are and the better the encyclopedia of MUD gets…

Maybe you want to visit “The Barn” at Jimmy’s (near Canyon Lake) one weekend and make some connections.
@CenTXFJ60

What the hell is goin on in Jimmy's Barn

I think Jim's (@CenTXFJ60) Barn needs it's own thread to keep his Frankenstein build thread a little more focused. His Barn has become a bit of a local hangout for the San Antonio area's FJ60 guys. There's alway cool things happening in the shop. Today we got together with a new guy...

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[BILT4ME]

Yes I would very much like to know if there are any particular mechanics/outfitters you use.

There's also a crazy guy in or around the Austin area. @arcteryx

 

[texdoc77]

Thanks to all. Is there a thread where you can see what specific mods look like on the trucks. Would that be just looking through the registry. Not sure exactly how to do a search for that.

 

[SoTexCruiserDoc]

Not really. Best way to search MUD is to use google (and sometimes include “MUD”).

 

[BILT4ME]

Thanks to all. Is there a thread where you can see what specific mods look like on the trucks. Would that be just looking through the registry. Not sure exactly how to do a search for that.

Just throw it out there in a search and see what pops up.

So if you want to see what wheel look like, do a search for "wheels on 80 series" or "wheels". if you want front bumpers, enter "front bumpers".

If you type in "headlights" you might get some things other than actual headlights.

 

[texdoc77]

Just throw it out there in a search and see what pops up.

So if you want to see what wheel look like, do a search for "wheels on 80 series" or "wheels". if you want front bumpers, enter "front bumpers".

If you type in "headlights" you might get some things other than actual headlights.

that's pretty funny! I do use the google "site" trick when searching, seems to work pretty well. Would love to do that within the 80's tech forum so if anyone knows how to do that it would be helpful. At any rate appreciate all the initial help and suggestions.

 

[truthdetector]

I do use the google "site" trick when searching

This is the way.

I usually add "80 series" to help focus the search to the right forum and site:ih8mud.com at the end.

If you want to find out about oil pump cover screws:

80 series oil pump cover screw site:ih8mud.com - Google Search

 

[texdoc77]

Perfect thank you that makes sense as well, funny how that happens

 

[Drift Monkey]

I'm also in Central TX, partner.

Ever head out to Stillwater Ranch? I need to take mine on a shakedown at Hidden Falls again, but it's been too damn hot!

 

[texdoc77]

I'm also in Central TX, partner.

Ever head out to Stillwater Ranch? I need to take mine on a shakedown at Hidden Falls again, but it's been too damn hot!

I have not. We typically wheel on our own land which is usually enough to "test-n-tune". Then we head out to the San Juan Mountains in Colorado (Alpine Loop) and run that. I have been to Hidden Falls before and had a great time. I would be open to SWR, though our crew is more into mountain passes than technical rock crawling.

 

[Drift Monkey]

I have not. We typically wheel on our own land which is usually enough to "test-n-tune". Then we head out to the San Juan Mountains in Colorado (Alpine Loop) and run that. I have been to Hidden Falls before and had a great time. I would be open to SWR, though our crew is more into mountain passes than technical rock crawling.

Alpine Loop is beautiful and I love the San Juans. Took my 4Runner up there a couple years ago…I need to get back there - mine will definitely need gears first.

I guess me and my crew love the rocks. SWR is really tough/technical in many spots but it also offers some beautiful Hill Country views that are much different than HF.

 

[SoTexCruiserDoc]

Put on your radar: Solid Axle Summit (8th event next summer)

Great event, if you can get signed up in time! Love having new folks part of it!