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Dropping the skid and unbolting the swaybar from the KDSS brackets is the way to go for front shock install. It is way less time to undo those 8 bolts then try to fight against a big bar of spring steel and your LCA bushings. When I installed my Dobinsons a few weeks ago I disconnected from the brackets and just loosened the swaybar from the LCA. The new shocks went in easily.The rear went on like a charm, knocked out the whole thing in about an hour and a half, including the adjustable panhard and KDSS spacers.
The front was trickier, and the passenger side LCA put up more of a fight than I expected based on the Ironman install video. No idea as to what the underlying factors are here, but looking in the comments of that video and on their reviews for the kit, several others have run into this issue.
Driver side went on with relatively few issues, but when I got to the passenger side I couldn’t get the LCA low enough to accept the Ironman coilover. So against my better judgment I unbolted the sway bar from the pass side UCA.
Naturally I couldn’t get this back on with everything else connected after fighting it for an hour, so I ended up undoing the swaybar links, then mounting the ends to the LCAs, then jacking the middle of the bar into position on the end links.
IMO this is the preferable way to go about the install. If you’re encountering serious resistance on the pass side just unbolt the bar entirely, install suspension, then mount to LCAs, then reattach to the links.
On avg around 3.5” of ride height incl tires. I took measurements but they weren’t dialed in at all so this is +/- a good margin.How's the ride? How much ride height did you add?
Thanks — Amazon specialLooks good. What vinyl did you use for the chrome?
I understand the negatives of a RTT, but we love ours. And yes they are WAY better than ground tents. Much warmer and you're not having to get up off the floor. You just swing your legs out and stand up from a seated position. Easy-peasy.
Just a suggestion about the spare tire situation, if you're not doing any serious off roading and staying either on tarmac or well maintained fire roads, you should be fine with just a can or two of tire inflation sealant. Unless you're rock crawling or serious off roading, there should not be any issues of possibly shreding a tire where a can of inflate wouldn't work. And even if you did, if you're on the road, withing a short distance of a town you should be able to replace the tire pretty easily.
Also, do you have a compressor yet? A compressor comes in handy in case of a slow leaker.
Yeah, I know, I don't like that sealant material inside my tires either, but it's just a safety net.
Minor update — work and an oil burning 80 that’s taken up residence in my garage have kept me away from working on the GX other than washing and tinkering here and there.
However I woke up last week and realized I only have 3 months until a big trip out west to do sections of the Colorado and Wyoming BDRs and the truck is sorely unprepared to take these on at the moment. So parts ordering began and money was flying out of my wallet before I even knew what was happening.
Big ticket items on order:
- Victory Blitz front bumper
- RCI sliders
Still figuring out what winch I want to go with. Most likely something from the smittybilt range. For how often I’ll be in a scenario where I might need to winch this will do fine.
I also got in quite a bit of aluminum extrusion and connectors which will be the basis for a rear drawer system. I’m planning to build two identical boxes that can serve as a sleeping platform when the dog isn’t along for the ride, and stacked on top of each other when his crate is in the truck. Should be pretty neat.
Maintenance/tweaking to be done in the near future:
- Diff fluid
- Tcase fluid
- Chop front bumper to cut down on install time for when the victory bumper shows up
- Probably trim some of the rear bumper
- Retorque and check all suspension components replaced when I did the lift
Still need to figure out a roof storage solution. I don’t like the look of most roof racks out there for this truck, so will likely be going with the LFD crossbars. Midguard’s adventure bars look nice but as they’re designed for mounting a tent they only have three crossbars which won’t work for my needs.
Good bit to do on this thing in a short amount of time. Should be fun!
I’ll do a write up on it once I have some miles in. Looks like you’re from NC as well — happy to meet up once I get it installed so you can see the victory up closeLooking forward to your impressions on the Victory bumper. Been looking at that and the one from CBI. Sounds like you will be busy!
That would be great! In case you are not a member already, check out the local cruiser club; ONSC, based in the Raleigh area.I’ll do a write up on it once I have some miles in. Looks like you’re from NC as well — happy to meet up once I get it installed so you can see the victory up close
A coupe of suggestions:Minor update — work and an oil burning 80 that’s taken up residence in my garage have kept me away from working on the GX other than washing and tinkering here and there.
View attachment 3366545
However I woke up last week and realized I only have 3 months until a big trip out west to do sections of the Colorado and Wyoming BDRs and the truck is sorely unprepared to take these on at the moment. So parts ordering began and money was flying out of my wallet before I even knew what was happening.
Big ticket items on order:
- Victory Blitz front bumper
- RCI sliders
Still figuring out what winch I want to go with. Most likely something from the smittybilt range. For how often I’ll be in a scenario where I might need to winch this will do fine.
I also got in quite a bit of aluminum extrusion and connectors which will be the basis for a rear drawer system. I’m planning to build two identical boxes that can serve as a sleeping platform when the dog isn’t along for the ride, and stacked on top of each other when his crate is in the truck. Should be pretty neat.
Maintenance/tweaking to be done in the near future:
- Diff fluid
- Tcase fluid
- Chop front bumper to cut down on install time for when the victory bumper shows up
- Probably trim some of the rear bumper
- Retorque and check all suspension components replaced when I did the lift
Still need to figure out a roof storage solution. I don’t like the look of most roof racks out there for this truck, so will likely be going with the LFD crossbars. Midguard’s adventure bars look nice but as they’re designed for mounting a tent they only have three crossbars which won’t work for my needs.
Good bit to do on this thing in a short amount of time. Should be fun!
Are you on the GFC Forum?Had some time to do some tweaking on the GX this weekend.
Wrapped the chrome door handles and molding in gloss black. Originally was going to have these painted but glad I didn’t — this was cheaper and I’m not in love with the black on dark blue for these pieces but it’s much better than the chrome.
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The wrap job is a solid 10 footer and I don’t have high hopes for how this will hold up over time but I paid $40 for a 6x10 roll of vinyl which will last me a long time so I have plenty to redo it with if need be.
Eventually the door handles will be swapped for the 2020+ versions that eliminate the chrome strip, and I’ll remove the door moldings and have the holes welded and resprayed, but that’s a long way off.
Also installed LED’s
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Much brighter, will see if the color temp ends up being too harsh.
In other news I have a pretty long trip out west lined up for September, which means I need to get a few things done by then:
— Bumper (victory blitz)
— Winch (tbd)
— Sliders (RCI)
— rack and rtt
— figure out a spare tire solution that does not involve spending $4k for a rear bumper
Don’t love the idea of the rooftop tent, but my fiancée is coming with me and sleeping two people in the back of the GX with two weeks worth of gear isn’t going to be feasible. Ground tent is also out.
With that in mind, the only rtt I’ll consider is the GFC superlite for two reasons; first it’s only 80lbs so impact to COG is minimized. Second, it’s fairly low profile and sets up easily.
Unfortunately GFC no longer makes the superlite, and their timeline on returning it to production is uncertain. If anyone knows of one for sale please shout.
My second dilemma is carrying a spare. Roof rack is out, and I don’t love any of the current bumper options for the GX. Kaymar imo is the best but I still don’t love it, so paying the price for one is also out.
Will more than likely end up having something done custom.
Thanks. Deciding on wheels always takes me forever so I was really stoked on how they turned out.Are you on the GFC Forum?
RiG'd tiregate?
And subtle flex 1 of 1 direct mount for the GFC RTT. I would say it wouldn't be hard to replicate the outcome mounting wise.
Also your wheel choice is money.
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A coupe of suggestions:
- Love this winch: Amazon product ASIN B00K150VAI It's water proof AND already has synthetic line. So far has been an outstanding winch every time I've used it.
- ABSOLUTELY get skid plates and protect your underbelly!!! This should be before bumpers, sliders, winch and almost anything else. Even on mild trails, they can be heavily rutted or an unexpected rock garden and I've seen more than once someone slide a tire into a rut and bang their underside. After wheels and tires, I feel this is the next most important mod. You don't have to go stupid heavy duty, but cover all the basics.
^The OEM skids on the front are better than people think, but a full length fuel tank skid and a skid for the transmission/transfer case are pretty cheap insurance if you go anywhere rocky