Love the utilitarian cargo area! Is the carpet glued down or can I get it out withthout hacking it to pieces? Did you have someone spray it for you?

What kind of bumper is that? I like it a lot!

@lewisp They're made by T.A.G.

http://www.tacticalarmorgroup.com/

Thanks!! Yeah, it seems I'm a late arrival to the party. I'm really happy with LED DRL's. They are Hella's and are pretty bright. Could almost be headlights.




UFO Mode:


Carpet just pulls out. There is some insulation/padding material under the carpet that sticks in a few places. A quick touch of the wire wheel drill bit and it was gone. I picked up a gallon of bed liner from autoparts store (Duplicolor, blue label), and an undercoating spray gun ($9) from Harbor Freight. Mask off anything within a mile you don't want lined and spray it with 90psi. No complaints after several years.

Yessir. I have been happy with the bumpers. I reworked them a bit. Changed the front hoop and repositioned the spare tire hanger so it fits higher and tighter to the lines of the tailgate. But no issues. From what I understand, others have not been so lucky with TAG. I guess you can find bad reviews for any company if you look around enough. Just do your homework. Fortunately, there are lots of great choices.

Wandered over here from the 5th gen section. Awesome rig...and NICE WHEELS!

Ha! Thanks! Yeah man. You have great taste in wheels.
Your truck looks great. Excited to see what you guys do with the new 5th Gens.

Since the company (Tag) who made my bumpers has more negative feedback than good, I frequently take the liberty to sure them up. So far no issues but I am a firm believer in action, rather than reaction. The 35" spare is heavy and I can see it oscillate or vibrate off-road, or even over bumps on road. Not long after I got the rear bumper I cut off the spare tire mounting plate and remounted it much tighter to the body and angled it. Basically trying to copy the angle of @AddictedOffroad bumpers. (just buy his) I also welded some gussets to the plate to give it more contact surface.
I have had some gussets laying around for a few years. I was originally going to incorporate these into my slider fab, but ended up keeping the sliders low profile and tucked in close to the truck. So these would not have been visible and I thought they were too cool to waste.

They are pretty much just for looks but they may add a little stability.





Burned in and repainted. I will see if it helps on some speedy sections of fire service roads. The gussets really are not visible unless the swing out is open. A small detail that probably only I will notice as I sit in my tailgate with a beer. I guess they were destined to be hidden.

Next weekend's project:

Light Racing UCA's
I'm still waiting on a few other items (limit straps, new cv's, etc) so I only have to tear into the front end 1x and get 1 alignment. Also I need to do some push-ups and psych myself up with some death metal prior to tackling my rusty UBJ's. Will take pics.

Nice, Steve... It's the small touches that make these rigs "ours". Do you have any pics from when you re-worked your tire carrier to sit closer to the rig? I'd be interested in seeing those because I'm doing some brainstorming on re-working my CBI carrier.

Those UCA's have been on my list for a long time... I miss my caster.

Nice work, really like the hood and web metal work! I bet those amps have more power than our 3.4's

Thanks! Ha! Yeah, the Alpine amps have a little blue led light on them and at night you can see it glowing from under the seat. I tell people it is a Flux Capacitor. Thanks again!

Thanks Nick! I dug up a few pics but don't have too many. This is how it looked when I picked it up. I knew right away I would be changing it.

I don't mind customizing to my likes. In hindsight I should have been more detailed when I ordered the bumper. This was my first bumper purchase, and as with everything, a learning experience.
I cut off the mounting plate (sorry no pics of that). I shortened about 6" of the 2x2 square tube and played with the angle to match the body line. With the plate cut off, I simply rested the tire on the stubby 2x2, angled the tire to match the body line, then scribed a cut line onto the tube.

I left a little bit of room in case I end up with different rims, wider tires, and to make sure it doesn't contact the tailgate with vibration, or while closing.

I later went back and added some additional gussets between the plate and tube. I cut out these little biscuits from 1/4" plate

Welded them top and bottom of mount:

Hopefully that helps. I am much happier with it now, and it is much more solid than before.

Nice job on the tire carrier!

What hood louvers did you buy? I'm looking to get ride of a couple dents in my hood and I think this could be a great option.

Thanks!
I used these:
Size Medium Powder-Coated Semi-Gloss Black Hi-Flowâ„¢ | Hood Louvers | RunCool | Hood Vents For Your Vehicle -Hood Louvers | RunCool | Hood Vents For Your Vehicle -
They seem kinda pricey now. I don't remember paying $179 :/ but I did this mod back in '05 or '06. I might of, and mentally blocked it out for my own sanity. But I love em. Finish is still perfect, no fade etc.
At the time I debated about these or 1 rectangular shaped vent mounted front and center ala fj's & hummer.
I bet I measured 50x and mocked them up with tape before making the cuts. I left the hood supports/frame in tact and drilled a few pin holes in the hood frame under the vents so water wouldn't collect. No issues. Never regretted this mod.

Nicely built rig man! I really like how you tied in the signal lights below the headlights!

I quit going to YT a long time ago too.... too many internet tough guys over there! lol!

Thanks for the link. May be something I consider a little later down the line.

I really like those lights under ur headlights how did you do that, and what did you use???