Builds PalmoftheWild 100 Series Build (1 Viewer)

[PalmoftheWild]

Hello All,

My name is Craig and I'm new to the forum/overlanding world. I'm documenting my build and adventures on instagram, PalmoftheWild. My friend, Nate Day, (somedayadventure) has inspired me to pursue my dream of owning a beast of an adventure vehicle.

My wife and I have been known to drive 26 hours to visit a new place on a whim. Now we have two kids and still enjoy getting outside as much as possible. Recently we purchased this garage kept, kid taxi of a 2004 Land Cruiser. I’m building this thing from stock to family overlanding machine.

I love chasing the horizon with my son; finding new trails and new adventures. He’s also into building things and helping me with the rig. I’ll be documenting my build and adventures on here and instagram. I'll be updating this post with links on my build progress as they come along.

Time to find another hill to climb and adventure to tackle...

 

[bucfl]

Wow, some good pron pics you got there!

 

[Colorado kid]

What kind of wheels? The truck is a beaut

 

[Somebodyelse5]

Awesome pictures! Rig looks great! good luck in SoCal though, such a pita to get outside there. permits. laws. traffic. I lived there for a few years and my cruiser hardly saw dirt... back in AZ now, I have my old "camp fire permit" framed, and the cruiser gets to play in the dirt a whole lot If you find yourself adventuring in AZ, give me a shout.

 

[PalmoftheWild]

Awesome pictures! Rig looks great! good luck in SoCal though, such a pita to get outside there. permits. laws. traffic. I lived there for a few years and my cruiser hardly saw dirt... back in AZ now, I have my old "camp fire permit" framed, and the cruiser gets to play in the dirt a whole lot If you find yourself adventuring in AZ, give me a shout.

Seriously! CA can be a real grind sometimes! I'm planning a trip through AZ for early Fall. I'll definitely hit you up, always good to have people in other states to run a trail with! I run up this hill behind my house when I get bored and need to get outside. I'm waiting for the local Sheriff to be waiting for me to come down some day.

 

[PalmoftheWild]

So I got my dream rig home on a Sunday afternoon. Right away I was eager to make some changes and get this thing trail ready. But first, the loud squeal I was hearing had to be addressed. I tackled myself, despite not being the most mechanically savvy dude on planet earth. *Insert ass kicking emjoi here*

Whoever serviced the mommy mobile last had crossed threaded two of the five lugs on the first wheel, resulting in snapping one in half and about two hours of extra work to get the wheel off. Unfortunately, this pattern maintained itself for all four wheels. Two trips to the auto parts store, $40 dollars later, and after pressing in 11 new lugs, I was finally able to address the noise.

The front pads had worn to the metal leaving a nice score in the rotors. The rear pads looked like a chisel and a hammer had been taken to the edges before install. Off to the auto parts store again. Vented and slotted rotors installed, one seized caliper rebuilt, elbow grease and we have a driveable rig. Up next, new shoes all around!

 

[Somebodyelse5]

Seriously! CA can be a real grind sometimes! I'm planning a trip through AZ for early Fall. I'll definitely hit you up, always good to have people in other states to run a trail with! I run up this hill behind my house when I get bored and need to get outside. I'm waiting for the local Sheriff to be waiting for me to come down some day.

Definitely let me know. Got plans on where yet? Sedona is amazing if you haven't been yet, lots of fun to be had in flagstaff too.

 

[PalmoftheWild]

Definitely let me know. Got plans on where yet? Sedona is amazing if you haven't been yet, lots of fun to be had in flagstaff too.

I went to Sedona years ago, before having an adventure rig. It is definitely on the top of my list for destinations. It’s beautiful

 

[KraziAzn]

sub! great looking great! awesome pictures

 

[PalmoftheWild]

So there I was, all alone on a dark and stormy night. The pass was an insurmountable obstacle of rock and slippery slopes. Just me and my UZJ100. Actually, I was on a trail near my house at noon and I made it to the top just fine. But, as I worked my way up the hill I relied heavily on avoiding the rockier technical sections of the trail. I noticed the engine and transmission were having to work extra hard through the slippery sections. So, I pushed to the edge of the trail and made it to the top. Thus began my search, “What is the best all terrain tire on the market?” After hours of forum searching, research and careful consideration it was clear, BF Goodrich KO2’s were the best tires around.

I originally went with another brand and found them to lack true performance. After the dismal performance running up the hill I knew I needed better tires. They were so bad I went back to stock wheels and road tires! So when I had the chance to work with BF Goodrich and put these KO2’s on my truck I was stoked! Discount Tire killed it and came through with overnight delivery. My KO2’s were on my porch!

I loaded them up, ran to Discount Tire and had them mounted in under an hour! The service was unreal. My Landcruiser looked amazing! These things were sick! After admiring my new shoes, it was time to put these tires to the test. Back up the hill I went. I smashed straight through the toughest part of the hill with ease! No slippage, no bouncing, NOTHING! It was bliss.

 

[KraziAzn]

Is it lifted? I can see what it looks like OME shocks in the rear. Love the color combo!

 

[PalmoftheWild]

Is it lifted? I can see what it looks like OME shocks in the rear. Love the color combo!

Yea it’s lifted 2.5 inches on OME heavy lift of shocks, Coils, and torsion bars. The ride is so smooth still and versatile!

 

[TXSunDevil]

You are living the dream brother. Good stuff

 

[joseywales]

That sits a lot higher in the rear than mine does with OME mediums... unless you’re vertically challenged?

 

[Somebodyelse5]

That sits a lot higher in the rear than mine does with OME mediums... unless you’re vertically challenged?

That's mainly the point of the heavier spring rate... takes more weight to compress the spring. He probably doesn't have a full load which means it sits higher in the back than an equally weighted truck with lighter spring rate.

 

[PalmoftheWild]

That sits a lot higher in the rear than mine does with OME mediums... unless you’re vertically challenged?

Lol!!! This is true. I, uhhhh am a tad short. Ha! 5’6. But the heavy springs aren’t compressed hardly at all. No rear bumper yet, fridge in the back wasn’t loaded, drawer system isn’t installed, etc. once it’s loaded up, it’ll sit lower.

 

[joseywales]

That's mainly the point of the heavier spring rate... takes more weight to compress the spring. He probably doesn't have a full load which means it sits higher in the back than an equally weighted truck with lighter spring rate.

Umm, yeah, I know. I was making a lightly veiled height joke at Palms expense. At least he got it! It’s looking good though PotW.

Anybody planning for bumper, tire carrier, drawers and fridge full time should be using heavy rate. I’m happy with mediums since I don’t camp out of my 100. I have my truck camper for that.

 

[PalmoftheWild]

Umm, yeah, I know. I was making a lightly veiled height joke at Palms expense. At least he got it! It’s looking good though PotW.

Anybody planning for bumper, tire carrier, drawers and fridge full time should be using heavy rate. I’m happy with mediums since I don’t camp out of my 100. I have my truck camper for that.

Awesome. What kind of truck and camper. I originally thought I wanted a cab over setup but then this rig came a long. My goal is to take my four year old out for a week or two at a time and be pretty self sufficient.

 

[Somebodyelse5]

Umm, yeah, I know. I was making a lightly veiled height joke at Palms expense. At least he got it! It’s looking good though PotW.

Anybody planning for bumper, tire carrier, drawers and fridge full time should be using heavy rate. I’m happy with mediums since I don’t camp out of my 100. I have my truck camper for that.

I guess I just don't think stature jokes are funny nobody get's to choose their height... make fun of someone who drives a prius, or got a pony tattoo, or put 24" rims on their cruiser

 

[joseywales]

I guess I just don't think stature jokes are funny nobody get's to choose their height... make fun of someone who drives a prius, or got a pony tattoo, or put 24" rims on their cruiser

Well, I’m basically hairless (except for my back), have a beer gut and am turning 50 this year. I didn’t choose any of that either, so fire away!