Builds Rocklander Build (1 Viewer)

[Oakleyguy]

Might as well cut that factory arm open and verify!

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

Might as well cut that factory arm open and verify!

I really want to, but I'm think hard about putting the stock ones back on.

But I know the weight of .120 and .188 by foot. And knowing that the SPCs are .188, it's makes me really think the stock are also.

But you are right, the only way to know is to cut it up.

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

Nitrogen shock adjustment

More of a public service announcement. If you feel that your preload is perfect, and your compression and rebound are equal, but you keep feeling your truck bounce differently from left to right, you may have an uneven charge if nitrogen from the factory or from a shock rebuild.

From my small experience, I've setup a lot of nitrogen filled shocks in my life. From primary, to secondary, and bump stops. I've never had all shocks for a vehicle show up and be all perfectly the same. So I won't fault this particular set of BPs.

So step one, get to your Schrader valve on you shocks. Having a resi does make it easier as you can unbolt it from the frame and move it to an easier spot.

Up next, disregard the "do not open" warning and unscrew the protective cap and attach a proper shock gauge. Now the pressure will fill the hose and give a lower reading. This particular hose loses about 12 psi. But even then a BP is supposed to be charged to 290 psi and that means the front right was reading about 18 psi low. WHICH IS HUGE! No wonder I was feeling uneven rebound while going down the highway.

Next charge the shock up past your required charge level.

Then you can slowly bring the charge down to exactly where you need it. Unscrew the fitting on the end that designed to allow for zero nitrogen to escape, leaving a perfect charge level.

Now obsiously you never need to do maintenance for the nitrogen in a shock, but if it's not where it needs to be, ride will never be as good as it could.

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

Thanks hurricane Irma for the long weekend to the Blue Ridge Mountains. And thanks Toyota for knowing that 2 year old don't really care much about beautiful scenery, I do love that DVD player for while I have really little ones.

 

[NLScooby]

Even when they are not so little - it still comes in handy as a peacemaker....as in it makes traveling on boring interstates more "peaceful" for the parents!

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

Found a picture of my truck on Expedition Portal, and wouldn’t you know, it didn’t look like that about 12 hours later. Sold the RTT and awning.

 

[indycole]

Found a picture of my truck on Expedition Portal, and wouldn’t you know, it didn’t look like that about 12 hours later. Sold the RTT and awning.
View attachment 1553145

I saw that and thought it may have been yours. What's the new tent/shelter plan?

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

I saw that and thought it may have been yours. What's the new tent/shelter plan?

Well, trying to constantly prioritizing the fastest one man set up I can do while staying warm and having a good mattress for 4 people.

I’ll probably be getting an Oztent Jet tent F25, with more Exped MegaMats, and Nemo Concerto bags. Then instead of actually packing the pads and bags away, I’ll just quickly stuff them in either a Front Runner roof bag or an RTIC 100L water.

That should be a little quicker pack away than a book style RTT, and only a little slower than set up.

We’ll see. This is why I have my opinions the way I do, I keep testing a lot of different setups, but very few products I feel ever are perfect and could always be better. And I say, “why settle?”

 

[indycole]

Yeah, I hear ya. I actually haven't put the James Baroud tent back up post-Moab/Ouray. For whatever reason I really noticed the weight up top. In the meantime, we've been using a Kodiak Canvas Flexbow VX and I'm pretty impressed with the quality. I originally sought out the Springbar but the lead time was several months. The Kodiak tent is super spacious and takes less than five minutes to set up aside from staking it down. The stakes are absolutely required for the structure and there are like 14 of them. In soft ground I simply stake it down while my wife sets up the rest of the tent. However, it can be a challenge when there's thick rock scattered about.

The Exped MegaMats are superb though I find they take up more volume than I'd like. I picked up some Nemo Nomad Insulated pads that are the same inflated size but the stored size is about 1/3. Will be testing those out on the next trip.

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

Yeah, I hear ya. I actually haven't put the James Baroud tent back up post-Moab/Ouray. For whatever reason I really noticed the weight up top. In the meantime, we've been using a Kodiak Canvas Flexbow VX and I'm pretty impressed with the quality. I originally sought out the Springbar but the lead time was several months. The Kodiak tent is super spacious and takes less than five minutes to set up aside from staking it down. The stakes are absolutely required for the structure and there are like 14 of them. In soft ground I simply stake it down while my wife sets up the rest of the tent. However, it can be a challenge when there's thick rock scattered about.

The Exped MegaMats are superb though I find they take up more volume than I'd like. I picked up some Nemo Nomad Insulated pads that are the same inflated size but the stored size is about 1/3. Will be testing those out on the next trip.

Very cool. Yeah, I think we are on the same thinking about RTTs. They have their places, they definitely epitomize the adventure rig, but they have their quirks.

It’s intersting you mentioned the Kodiak tent with staking. My last Oz tent was the JV, which was a good looking tent, kinda like a RTT. It briefed well, but it wasn’t self supporting. This Jet tent is self supporting so I wouldn't need a stake at all if the ground was too hard (keeping wind in check). That was the reason I tried a RTT, too hard of ground, but then I though maybe the ground tent wasn’t the issue, but getting one that didn’t need stakes could be the way to go?

I do have to have 3 of the 4 mattresses stay below 30” wide to fit in the Jet tent. Since I already have a few year old MegaMat 30” wide, I will let the wife sleep in that one. Then get a 25” wide for me and 20” wides for the kids. I got one Exped SynMat Mega 12 to test, they are almost the comfort of megamat but pack up to a 1/3 the size like the Nemo Nomad. I would of got a Nomad if they come in something thinner than 30” wide. I’m all about the “complete system” so trying to keep the tent big enough for 4 people, but small enough to easily find a flat spot to fit it, then dictates my pad widths.

Time will tell. Let me know how your set up works, I love options, as I’m always search for the best.

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

I've realized I haven't been staying up on this thread much. Lots of armor added, a lot of thing where choose not to be added. Still two main things to go. But a lot of wheeling in the middle. I will try to do a better job of documenting how these products are working for me, because you guys sure have helped me.

So I decided to take my niece and nephew wheeling outside St. Louis. This trail had about 7" thick ice over it... it held, till I was half way over, then I crashed through. Aannnddddd that's why I put real armor under and on the sides of my 200. No issues, I just backed up, and drove back in to break the ice up like 10 times. Eventually got through it.

 

[NLScooby]

Rob,
Thank you for contributing so much to this forum in such a short period of time! Your real-world experience is invaluable and your help (on the phone, via email, and in person) is truly generous.

Have a great New Years and Keep on Truckin’!

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

My 200 is awesome, but as some know, the first owners were hard on the interior. Scratches and wear galor.

Half of my steering pad emblem was white because the chrome was scratch off. I tried a chime pen but... yea it looked very unfinished.

So I taped around the edges to protect the pad.

The emblem is not glued, but held in place with tabs. Simply pry up and cut the tabs off.

This is what it looks like when cut off the pad if you want to paint your emblem also.

I thought for a few days about color. I could of made it the same silver as the existing trim in the truck. Or the flat black like the buttons. Or chrome again. But ended up think a lot about flow of colors and some other, future changes I’ll make, and came up with this. I mixed some stuff together to make “Taco black chrome” and after as much sanding as the little emblem could handle (see the gouges in the left corner, what did the previous owner do in this truck?)

Then a prep, adhesion promoters, and 4 very light coats. I came up with this. It’s not black, it’s not grey, it’s got some brown and metallic undertones. I think it work well in the 2008-2011 beige interiors as that steering pad is not black, it’s a dark brown.

Lastly I need to decide if I want to add a little gloss to the emblem or not. What do you guys think. Keep it or add a tad of gloss?

 

[Markuson]

Lastly I need to decide if I want to add a little gloss to the emblem or not. What do you guys think. Keep it or add a tad of gloss?

I like it as you've done it. Doesn't attract attention to flaws, where the silver stuff did, I think.

Trying to imagine how the HECK that owner drove to scratch up center emblem on the steering wheel. Weird...

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

I like it as you've done it.

My question is...how the HECK did that owner drive...that he scratched up the center emblem on the steering wheel???
That is maybe the least-touched spot in the cockpit! So weird...

Thanks as always Mark. I'll let it fully dry and glue it on tomorrow.

I also have a scratched up wood console and shifter plate and chew marks on the cup holder lid. Then there was the whole goo stuff I found under the second row seat. Ughh.

So i've got an idea for the wood and will be playing with that next. Then I'm turning my carpet black. At that point, the whole truck will be "purged" of all previous owner.

This is what I'm going for with the new wood color.

 

[Willy beamin]

I’m curious and like where youre headed with the interior wood details idea. Id gloss over that newly painted toyota hat seeing how youre looking for feedback. Either which way nice work

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

I realized that I never posted on my build thread my current armor.

BudBuilt front 1/4” aluminum skid, 3/16” stainless steel engine, transmission, and transfer case skids, 1/4” aluminum fuel tank skid. 1/4” shock and control arm skids. .120 DOM rock sliders with kicker, full fill plate with dimple die down powder coated 40% semi-gloss.

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

My BP-51s were the first batch of them available in the country a couple years ago. They never really “clunked” so I wasn’t worried about getting updated ones. Then this winter I found that they didn’t handle the cold well. All 4 shocks blew their oil. Covering the entire fender wells. I thought I was loosing engine oil at first, but nope, shock fluid.

To easy, called ARB, sent them pictures, all new ones arrived. I understand that products might have issues, it’s how the company handles it that makes the product, as well as the company shine in my eyes. So good on ARB.

 

[Taco2Cruiser]

Finalized my paints to convert the floor from tan to black.

The left is the stock plastic. (Side note, previous owner decided to butcher the second row because of a spilt slushy, it’s clear they had no idea how to disassemble and didn’t even have the seats bolted down with all the bolts. All fixed now and safe)

The center panel is stock, originally tan, and I painted it black.

The right panel is from a 2018 interior that comes black.

In person, it is dead on. The process continues.

Oh and my custom Drifta drawer is in the Pacific Ocean right now. I can’t wait to finally be super organized while wheeling and camping.

 

[Roy Park]

That’s some skill. Any time I paint I start with overspray and end with drips. Hahaha.