[thezentree]

That 220V sticker is scary...


Are you still happy with those Corbeaus? I've been eyeing a set of the Sport recliners for mine, but have never sat in any, and have no idea how well they fit in a 3rd gen.

[TonyB66]

Originally Posted by thezentree

That 220V sticker is scary...


Are you still happy with those Corbeaus? I've been eyeing a set of the Sport recliners for mine, but have never sat in any, and have no idea how well they fit in a 3rd gen.

Agreed on that 220 outlet. I have not investigated, but I think just that one greyish Romex cable is going to it. If so, it's thin, looks like 14/2. I found some goofy stuff in this house over the years. I showed by dad, he thought it best to decommission it... The good news is that our dryer is on the floor above, about 8 feet over. We use nat gas, yet there is 220 there, at least there is such an outlet.

To your question, still happy with the Corbeau Moab seats. It might be worth noting that I'm not a big or heavy guy, probably 145 pounds. My wife is smaller, lighter. I suppose it's possible they might not offer enough support for some, but not sure.

As noted when I purchased/installed them, I wanted manual seats. In an ideal world, I'd prefer non-power doors (locks and windows) and to lose the climate control. I like bullet-proof stuff reliability. I personally like how they look and feel. Given what I sold the front seats for, the net cost was 328 bucks. Pretty dang good, I feel. I also I like that they are 22 pounds lighter than what I removed... Also, these are easy to install.

Check for any race shops around you as they often have seats on the floor, and if they have these, or others of interest, given them a try. I have their Forza seats in my MINI Cooper S, and really like them.

On a side note, after a THD run last night to pick-up some hardware for a house project, I drove a bit longer, and when I returned home the UG blue displayed this:



The cat monitor is ready, all four complete! Leaving for the smog shop and will be there when they open at 9:30 am. What a pain-in-the-butt this has been...

The 4Runner will be a tailgater today for a college football game. The game is at night though...

[TonyB66]

I almost forgot how long it has been, but the 4Runner finally reached a state of smog "readiness"! That was a day or so after the previous post. It passed smog the day after. I'll make time to install that new front O2 sensor soon. I'll keep the current one should it ever be needed....

I finally made some time on getting power to the rear center console. Not much though, but everything fits and I got a first coat of paint on the outlet cover. Here drying in front of the fireplace.



Will do a second coat tomorrow...

I should have it installed and working by this weekend. The kids are anxious to try it out.

I decided to put the ham radio antenna in the space between the moonroof and rack.





After some discussion, I plan to mount it to the rack's front crossmember.



Since the rack utilizes t-slots, I'll likely make use of this, or something like it...

Bed Rail CB Mount



This will be much sturdier than thin roof sheetmetal. And I won't need a ground plane with this 40" dual band antenna.

Diamond Antenna Dual-Band Mobile Antennas NR770HBNMO - Free Shipping on Most Orders Over $99 at DX Engineering

Just below that area is the dome light, so I believe I can make the hole, route the coax without dropping the headliner. We shall see...

Speaking with Diamond, probably tomorrow, and hopefully I'll have a better idea how I will tackle this project.

Earlier I mentioned that I finally got a welder, a Hobart 210 MVP. I need 220 in the garage though, I got some 8/2 Romex (no photo) and the outlet.



Under the house I went, and it was a pain. Uncomfortable working down there. I had decommissioned a 220 line under the kitchen that was for a down-draft grill. I connected the new 8/2 in that j box and ran it into the garage....



I confirmed on the meter that I have 220! More like 245... For my notes here, breakers 2B/4B operate this outlet.

I remembered that I had this under the deck. I figured that it would serve as my welding cart.



The rust, while it looks bad, was easily removed. No really good photos, but here's one.



I already had some welding items, but I have since ordered more.



This just came today.



Decided that I want the welder on the bottom shelf, but elevated and angled upward. I made use of scrap 2x4s and plywood.







I guess I threw away an old hinge, but 3 bucks I bought a new one for the back...



I believe this will work well.



I had the perfect length of rusty angle iron to serve as a stop.





I'll clean it up and paint it later...

I'm not going to paint this welding cart yet, certainly not the top surface as that will likely be the welding "table" for now. Not good to weld on a painted surface. Once I figure-out what I'm going to do for a welding table, then I'll paint the cart, and vice. I think I'll go with two 40 cu/ft gas cylinders, which are short enough to fit under the table top, secured to the two supports opposite the welder.

This came a couple days back.



I think I'll find a way to secure it in this area.



I hit the max for images in a post, so I'll continue with a couple more...

[TonyB66]

This arrived today.





I'll report back when I finish-up that dual outlet on the back side of the center console...

[phattyduck]

Originally Posted by TonyB66

I'll clean it up and paint it later...

You're supposed to weld your welding cart together as your first project!

-Charlie

[Joelzy]

Originally Posted by phattyduck

You're supposed to weld your welding cart together as your first project!

-Charlie

i have to agree, wood stand for a welder is sacrilege
Great work as always Tony! gonna have to steal a few more ideas from you

[TonyB66]

Originally Posted by phattyduck

You're supposed to weld your welding cart together as your first project!

-Charlie

Originally Posted by Joelzy

i have to agree, wood stand for a welder is sacrilege
Great work as always Tony! gonna have to steal a few more ideas from you

Thanks guys. Oh, the thought crossed my mind alright. I saw several who had done so, welded-up carts. Seems like a right of passage type of thing. I gave it some serious thought.

However, also on my "list" was to dig-out that cart under the deck and find a use for it, or put it on Craigslist. Well, I found a use... I admit, being so time-strapped lately was a factor too.

That said, I will weld a least a couple items to this cart! A gun/torch holder and some type of horizontal rod to suspend items, like clamps. I'll be sure to share here to hopefully restore any lost credibility!

A second coat of paint for that dual outlet cover in about an hour away...

Got off the phone with Diamond Antenna earlier. Their 770 antennas require a 3/8" hole, even their NMO mount, which is typically 3/4". So, with that CB bracket having a 5/8" hole, I'll fab something from some 3/16" angle iron, maybe 1/4" aluminum...

Just found and ordered 12 inch piece of 2x2 aluminum angle, 1/4 thick.

Think I'll mount the bracket and antenna on the far left or driver's side rack's front cross member, then route the coax into the interior above the rear door, under the gasket, notching some space for the coax to slip through. I haven't looked yet, but that would seem to work.

[fourfive]

Originally Posted by TonyB66

I almost forgot how long it has been, but the 4Runner finally reached a state of smog "readiness"! That was a day or so after the previous post. It passed smog the day after. I'll make time to install that new front O2 sensor soon. I'll keep the current one should it ever be needed....

I finally made some time on getting power to the rear center console. Not much though, but everything fits and I got a first coat of paint on the outlet cover. Here drying in front of the fireplace.

Will do a second coat tomorrow...

Green light for emissions readiness is a great feeling. Been there a few times before. Is there a reason you wait so long between coats of paint?

Originally Posted by TonyB66

Thanks guys. Oh, the thought crossed my mind alright. I saw several who had done so, welded-up carts. Seems like a right of passage type of thing. I gave it some serious thought.

That said, I will weld a least a couple items to this cart! A gun/torch holder and some type of horizontal rod to suspend items, like clamps. I'll be sure to share here to hopefully restore any lost credibility!

Learning how to weld is on my list but haven't gotten around too it yet so I can't make jokes. I can relate to the lack of time issue. No credibility lost but the ball busting about the cart was pretty funny. That cart was a cool find though, I would totally use that thing if I welded.

[TonyB66]

Originally Posted by fourfive

Green light for emissions readiness is a great feeling. Been there a few times before. Is there a reason you wait so long between coats of paint?

Learning how to weld is on my list but haven't gotten around too it yet so I can't make jokes. I can relate to the lack of time issue. No credibility lost but the ball busting about the cart was pretty funny. That cart was a cool find though, I would totally use that thing if I welded.

I was pretty dang excited alright when the UltraGauge showed it was finally ready for smog. What a major pain that was driving, and that being the sole purpose. I did more driving in two weeks than I'd do in a few months!

Ball-busting, it's all good, and I find it funny too. I welded a couple times when I was 20 something, and honestly don't remember much. I sold that old welder though a few years back. It was outside in a shed, had a dead rat in it, covered in rat piss and crap too. It was 110v, and I knew someday I'd get back into welding, and go with 220...

I don't see all that much with the respect to welding projects on the 4Runner, at least not at this moment, but plenty on a trailer though.

https://www.toyota-4runner.org/3034568-post42.html

Second coat of paint is on, and it's back drying by the fireplace again. No particular need to wait a day though. Between being busy and it raining quite a bit here lately, today there was some sunshine and warmth (mid 60's, ok for paint).

I ordered the Diamond 770 dual band antenna and decided to get the motorized Diamond mount so I can move it up/down from within.

Diamond Antenna Dual-Band Mobile Antennas NR770HB - Free Shipping on Most Orders Over $99 at DX Engineering

Diamond Antenna K9000 Series Mobile Motor Drive Mounts K9000LRM - Free Shipping on Most Orders Over $99 at DX Engineering

With that, I canceled the order for the aluminum angle. Not sure yet how I'll secure the motorized mount to the Sherpa rack, but I'll find a way once I have it here in my hands...

The gap is not all that wide at the top of rear doors.



I have some LMR-400 coax here that I had planned to use, but at 0.4" in diameter, not in that gap...

I'm back to thinking through the roof skin. I used something like this in a solar application for a cargo container at our previous canyon home.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/...V3CB533C&psc=1



If so, I'm thinking above or very near the dome light. I'd run the coax through one with the larger gland, and power through the other port, using the smaller gland. This would afford me the option to add lights up there someday too...

[TonyB66]

Work was somewhat slow today, so I found some time to get back on the project to get power on the backside of the center console. After some soldering, crimping heat shrink and wire routing, it was time for final fitment...



Each works.



It's tight, and this is what I needed to do to the back to make them fit.



Snapped into place...



Cupholders open just fine.



Not easy to tell, but with the cupholder open, there's still access to the two USB ports.



I took-out the 300 watt pure sine wave inverter, plugged it into the 12 volt 25A cigarette lighter outlet, and it works. Finally done. Kids happy too.

Before I began clean-up, I went into the kitchen, washed my hands and rubbed a Cornish game hen I bought on a whim over the weekend...

I found this in the shed a few days back and decided to fire it up. I had deep-fried turkeys quite a bit before in peanut oil, but decided to go infrared at some point.





After the cleaning-up the 4Runner and the tools put away, the bird was about done.



Felt like a dinner from my bachelor days... Damn good.



Got something else in the mail today. It was in another thread where Tim reminded me to get one of these. I had one before, and forgot to replace it. Thanks Tim.







Out-of-the-box 65% charged.



Might tackle the ham radio antenna next. While sitting on the rear seat today, looking upward, I now think that the moonroof's sliding cover will likely pose problems for the proposed antenna cable routing in that location. I'll investigate further...

[TonyB66]

Before I forget, while I was working on getting power into the back of center console, I began thinking about a center console replacement. There are some neat options out there. Not sure what might come of it, but I started a thread to see if this has been done before in our 3rd gens...

Aftermarket Center Console Options?

With respect to ham radio antenna placement and my thought of going through the roof skin in the dome light spot, that does not look promising.



I see why so many others ran coaxial and electrical through the rear hatch.



A Sharpie is about .5" as I recall. The coax I plan to use a tad over .4" so that will likely be the path. With that, I would mount the antenna in the rear, driver's side. As I recall, there are fewer antenna incidents when mounted on the driver's side. Also, since I plan to mount the radio under the driver's seat, it would be a shorter run to have the antenna on the same side...

The Kenwood TM-V71A has a detachable face. I think I can use some cat 5 or 6 to locate it where I want. With that, I think I will remove these inclinometers.



I can then put this there instead. I think it can look quite good there and be easily accessible and visible too.



For those who have or had kids, you might remember padding furniture, edges and corners. I was more of fan of a simpler approach of just padding the head though! Regardless, I found this recently, and the color looks good in the 4Runner.



Even though it's not easy to bang one's head on the rack, I'm sure it's possible, especially if there were a collision. So, I cut a piece of that material and used some 100% silicone.



I started the engine and turned-up the heater to help it cure faster. Happy with how it turned-out...



While I had the inside toasty warm I decide to lay down a thick bead of 100% silicone around that rear storage space opening. This should help make for a nice seal when the cover is snugged-up. There are apt to be some fumes from the aux fuel tank, but given that the storage space is open down there, this likely is not needed, at least not for that purpose. Should I get into a pretty deep water crossing this will help a lot. That said, this spot is about 32" high, at least with the rear not packed with gear. If I'm in water that deep, I'll likely have more pressing concerns...



Almost a week back I sold the intake silencer tube getting me to $1,620 in factory parts sold:

$400 - Leather Front Seats

$50 - Factory Stereo & Amp

$75 - Cargo Privacy Cover

$50 - Skid Plates (2)

$150 - Rear Bumper

$25 - Spare Tire Crank

$200 - Front Bumper

$50 - Roof rack cross members

$50 - Front bumper carrier

$75 - Trailer hitch

$100 - Front shocks

$350 - Wheels/tires

$25 – Front brakes

$20 - Intake silencer tube

Getting to $2k looks possible, but not easy...

[TonyB66]

Had some time between meetings today to work on the faceplate mount for the ham radio. I removed the inclinometers and found the sunglass holder that I removed, and although I damaged it a little during removal, it still fits.



I was happy to learn that the rear of the radio's faceplate fits quite nicely in the sunglass holder.





With a Dremel cutting wheel, it was fast work to create the correct size opening.



I needed to make a notch on one side.



Pretty happy with the fitment and it will be easy to read and access.



While it's wedged-in pretty tight, I'll create a backing plate with velcro to secure it...

I received the ethernet coupler today and 12' of cat 6 cable, and that does indeed work on the faceplate.



I will next attempt to route this cable from under dash, up into the A-pillar, then along the top of the windshield, under the headliner, then out into that sunglass holder.

[TonyB66]

With maybe an hour a day, progress has been slow on the ham radio set-up...

As one might have noticed, I had mangled one of the mount holes in the sunglass holder. I used some J-B Weld to reform it.



Removed the nail after a few minutes, long enough to shape the hole.



Decided to silicone the radio's faceplate. There's a positive stop on it going further inward, so the silicone is meant to keep it from dislodging. It won't be going anywhere...





The Diamond antenna and motorized mount arrived.





From my Sherpa rack I have an extra cross member and I decided to start experimenting with the provided antenna bracket.



It would work, but I will indeed get and use a 2x2 angle , 1/4" think aluminum. Less than 5 bucks at the local metal yard. I'll use a couple ss carriage bolts which work great in the t-slot.



As noted earlier, I'll route the coax through the rather large gap atop the rear hatch. I'll then direct it downward, and I think I'll get into the interior behind driver side rear tail light.



Not sure yet if I'll make use of the existing hole and grommet, but I'm leaning toward making a new one just for the .4" coax. If so, I'll use one of these...



Hilitchi 30 Piece Nylon Plastic Waterproof Adjustable 3.5-13mm Cable Glands Joints Cable Gland - PG7, PG9, PG11, PG13.5, PG16 - - Amazon.com

Not ham radio-related, but electrical, I decided to keep the 300 watt pure sine wave inverter under the front passenger seat. It fits really well there. The only way in/out is from the side, with the door open.



The power-in plug is easily accessible from the rear of that seat.



A dark photo, connected to the 25A outlet...



The flush mount rotating extension cords are really cool. Here's a 2-footer that I'll leave connected, ready to go.



Several times I've driven somewhere, needing my laptop fully charged when I arrive. This will get used.

Also, I finally got a windshield sun shade. I had been using one from my wife with some Asian cartoon character.

No photo of it in-place, but it fits well and it's easy and fast to set-up and put away. I'll likely keep it behind me in the driver seat pocket. Here it is fitting, just barely, in the driver side door where I keep a pocket knife and multi-tool too...



Amazon.com: Windshield Sun Shade Image 2-4 Guidance-Size Chart for Car SUV Trucks Minivan Automotive Sunshades Keeps Your Vehicle Cool Heat Shield Shade: Automotive

Started this thread for feedback...

3rd Gen Windshield Sun Shade?

[TonyB66]

I initially thought I could feed the ethernet cable from under the dash and up the A-pillar without removing the trim. Nope. Pretty tight for such a cable. Here are a couple coat hangers directed downward with the aim to pull the ethernet through...



I then realized that I can easily remove the A-pillar cover. I didn't think so initially. With that gone, the ethernet was pretty easily pulled through. It was tight though.



I'm still trying to figure-out the cleanest, best way to get the cable over to the rear view mirror, sunglass holder area. Here I have it fed through the sun visor hole, which won't work as shown.



I'll give it some more thought. Open to ideas...

[TonyB66]

Got the routing figured-out. I drilled a 5/16" hole, then used a Dremel and file to create a notch for the cable to fit in the sun visor hole.



The Diamond motorized antenna mount comes with a hokey up/down switch.



I spent some time looking for a DPDT center off momentary switch, something I can mount up on or around the sunglass holder / radio faceplate. Then, I saw this sitting on the back seat...



Hmmm... The factory moonroof rocker switch looks to be a DPDT center off one.



I had decommissioned the moonroof some time back and I'll never operate it again. I plan to use the switch instead to power the ham radio antenna up and down. Heck, even the wording on the lens is ideal: tilting forward will be down, tilting rearward will be up. Where it says "slide", I'll likely put ham radio antenna there instead...

If anyone has a wiring diagram for the moonroof, namely this switch, please let me know. I'm pretty sure I saw one here at one point.