Crazydubman's 97 limited runner build

[crazydubman]

Thats great Bohab.

I'm really happy with the way the runner is turning out. Just about done with what i had envisioned when I bought it last year.

True it is never technically done but I will be content with it and it will serve its current purpose once the geared and locked diffs are out of my garage and under the runner.

Everything is functional and has a reason to be so. I think for the most part it is fairly subtle for how capable it is, as most of the built 3rd gens are in the grand scheme of things, in the offroad community.

 

[crazydubman]

Couple shots of the additional stop for the carrier. There is absolutely no movement now. Supper happy with how solid it is.





And a shot of the new license plate holder with mounts for the LED's.



Side plating is getting welded up tomorrow. They have everything cut and dimpled. Just need to stitch it into place so I can paint it and have the bumper ready to weld to the frame on Monday or Tuesday.

 

[crazydubman]

Sides are plated now. They are keeping the carrier over the weekend to get the plates make up for that along with the antenna mounts.

I need to get the sides painted because on Monday the bumper will be welded to the frame and I will no longer be able to access the backside.

Here is a few pictures of the sides.







Enjoy.

 

[NateMob]

Beefy! Purpose built man, got to love it.

 

[crazydubman]

Carrier is finally finished. Just needs some paint and wiring to be complete. Really happy with how it turned out. Super solid now with it welded to the frame.

 

[cdrewferd]

Looks great.

 

[BigFishAllDay]

The tire carrier turned out every bit as well as I expected!

I particularly like the setup where the carrier meets the D/S of the bumper. Those two notches/pegs should do a great job of keeping that side of the carrier tight and secure on the vertical axis. It's definitely one of the more well thought out setups I've seen, as most swingouts tend to skimp on securing the tire carrier against movement on at least one axis... your covers all three. Very nice! :thumb3:

 

[crazydubman]

The tire carrier turned out every bit as well as I expected!

I particularly like the setup where the carrier meets the D/S of the bumper. Those two notches/pegs should do a great job of keeping that side of the carrier tight and secure on the vertical axis. It's definitely one of the more well thought out setups I've seen, as most swingouts tend to skimp on securing the tire carrier against movement on at least one axis... your covers all three. Very nice! :thumb3:

Thanks BigFish.

They originally had the one at the bottom and while it was pretty solid, it still had enough movement to have tire top of the carrier rotate back and hit the factory licence plate tub. It wouldn't hit on normal driving but I knew that with potential runs through mojave or pismo, that the carrier would definitely get a work out and I knew it needed more. Now with the upper stop, I can grab a hold of the top of the tire and give it hell front to back and it doesn't budge. Plus with the addition of the frame tie in's on the sides, there is absolutely no movement at all now. I will get some pictures of the tie ins and the frame stitches underneath along the factory bumper mount when I have a chance.

Getting married tomorrow so, as you can imagine, I have a lot on my plate for the next few days.

 

[JWaldz]

That's pretty nice man. It turned out great. Does it make the rear of your truck a little more bouncy now? I drive this one interstate every day to get to/from work and there's about a 3 miles section where it's real bumpy. I hate it b/c it makes the tire back there bounce which in turn bounces my rear around. Not a lot but enough that it's very annoying.

 

[crazydubman]

That's pretty nice man. It turned out great. Does it make the rear of your truck a little more bouncy now? I drive this one interstate every day to get to/from work and there's about a 3 miles section where it's real bumpy. I hate it b/c it makes the tire back there bounce which in turn bounces my rear around. Not a lot but enough that it's very annoying.

It really isn't bad at all. the 861 springs really help with keeping the ride plush and the SAW's keep them in check. The tire is completely solid on the back and doesn't move at all on the carrier. I'm sure that helps with keeping things stable back there. Also, im not sure if your carrier is the same or not, but my tire is sucked up against 3 tubes with the lug nuts so there is no deflection or ability to shake or bounce on the carrier itself.

 

[JWaldz]

Well, the tire isn't the only thing bouncing.. It's the whole swing arm. It shakes over bumps and like i said about bouncy roads. With the 35" tire sticking out and being very heavy it causes the whole arm to bounce in turn bounding the rear of the truck. I think it might be time for some new coils as these OME 891's might be too stiff and not absorbing the bounce like they should. I've had them for a good while now.

 

[crazydubman]

Well, the tire isn't the only thing bouncing.. It's the whole swing arm. It shakes over bumps and like i said about bouncy roads. With the 35" tire sticking out and being very heavy it causes the whole arm to bounce in turn bounding the rear of the truck. I think it might be time for some new coils as these OME 891's might be too stiff and not absorbing the bounce like they should. I've had them for a good while now.

I would highly consider the 861's if you haven't already. They are an amazing spring set. They are plush but very supportive of additional weight. I have loaded up a complete drum to drum rear Dana 60 into the back of mine with my storage shelving and I don't think the rear dropped more than maybe 1.5".

With my spare on the back (Probably heavier than your setup with the bead lock... 112lbs) my carrier doesn't budge. I could jump up and down on it and there would be barely any deflection if any.

If your getting movement of the swing arm itself, have you checked the spindle bearings? Are the bearings preloaded enough? How is your latch working out?

 

[crazydubman]

Here is a shot of the backside of the swing out.

 

[BigFishAllDay]

Getting married tomorrow so, as you can imagine, I have a lot on my plate for the next few days.

Congratulations!!! Take some time to savor the moment, otherwise it will all be a blur when you look back on the day. I wish you a long and happy marriage, sir!

Well, the tire isn't the only thing bouncing.. It's the whole swing arm. It shakes over bumps and like i said about bouncy roads. With the 35" tire sticking out and being very heavy it causes the whole arm to bounce in turn bounding the rear of the truck. I think it might be time for some new coils as these OME 891's might be too stiff and not absorbing the bounce like they should. I've had them for a good while now.

Mine does the same thing with just a 33" tire and Hi-Lift. The problem is that CBI's swing out design is just kinda lousy.. there is very little support on the vertical axis at the latch side of the swing out, and the latch mechanism focuses all the force on very small spot on the drivers side. Combine that with 1.5-2 feet of leveraged steel with a lot of tire on it, and ta-da... New coils aren't going to do squat for you, mine does it even with 861's. I'll be driving down the highway, catch a pavement/asphalt joint, and the tire carrier gets to jiggling around back there and I can feel it all through the back end of the rig.

Every time I stare at mine, I want to cut it all apart and rebuild from scratch. Someday. Soon.

If your getting movement of the swing arm itself, have you checked the spindle bearings? Are the bearings preloaded enough? How is your latch working out?

Good thinking, but also not the problem. CBI's design doesn't use bearings on the spindle, there are just two oil impregnated brass bushings. That, and the latch mechanism is essentially just a big bolt that you screw in to hold the swing away tight to the bumper. It has very little support at the latch end for all the weight.

Hence, my admiration for your setup.

 

[Dirtyfingers]

Room for one more poster? Haha very nice rig, read about your Pickup, bittersweet indeed, looks like I might have to come join you in your offroading escapades. After I get my Runner built that is!

 

[crazydubman]

Room for one more poster? Haha very nice rig, read about your Pickup, bittersweet indeed, looks like I might have to come join you in your offroading escapades. After I get my Runner built that is!

Sounds good man. Thanks for the compliments.

 

[crazydubman]

Well its been a while since I have updated this thread. With the wedding and honeymoon, im been slammed and haven't been able to do much until now.

UPDATE:
The new diffs are finally installed.

Thanks Bryan "LINY4Runner" for your front diff with the 4.88's and Trutrac. Looking forward to putting the extra traction to good use.

And thanks to ECGS for the rear 4.88 geared E locker.

Install went pretty smooth. In the process of breaking in the new rears now so Can't go wheelin for another couple of weeks. I will be heading up to Folsom Lake this weekend for a camping trip so I should be able to get some easy miles on them to finish off the break in.

Then if its still on, hopefully get a chance to run part of the rubicon the weekend after. If Rob "downpour11" gets the kinks worked out of his rig.

Finally got the Ham and CB radio antennas mounted to the swing out. Still need to get extensions for the cables so I can hook them back up to the radios.

Only suspension related parts that I still have waiting are swapping out the upper links in the rear with my 1.5" .250 wall heimed ones.

Need to decide on a back up flood light for the carrier and some perimeter lights for the roof rack. I'm considering the 6" leds from ToyTec as a viable option for the cost and size. Just need to verify whether there is room between the tubing on the sides of the rack to tuck them nicely between. Don't want the lights sticking out.

Either those or the Maxxima PLB-630's which are 3 LED work lights but I have a feeling those are more of a spot than a flood.

Any thoughts or opinions?

 

[Kraze]

I have two 6" Blitz Pro lights from Toytec on either side and on the rear of my roof rack. I can definitely recommend them. I was pleasantly surprised at the light output of them, especially for the price. If they'll tuck into the rack, I say go with that option.

 

[crazydubman]

I have two 6" Blitz Pro lights from Toytec on either side and on the rear of my roof rack. I can definitely recommend them. I was pleasantly surprised at the light output of them, especially for the price. If they'll tuck into the rack, I say go with that option.

Thanks for the response Kraze.

Any chance you can take some shots of the output of these? Not facing the light but of the spread and distance. Trying to gauge the coverage they would give. Also are they 2" tall including the bracket or is the bracket extra?

 

[Kraze]

Thanks for the response Kraze.

Any chance you can take some shots of the output of these? Not facing the light but of the spread and distance. Trying to gauge the coverage they would give. Also are they 2" tall including the bracket or is the bracket extra?

The 2" must be including the bracket. The light itself is a little under 1.75" tall. The way mine are mounted, they don't add to the height at all.

You can kind of see here how mine are mounted:

And if I remember correctly, Bandit Runner mounted his up without the bracket at all.

I don't have any output shots currently. I've been meaning to get some, but I don't know how they would turn out on a cell phone camera. Right now the lights are off because the rack is going to powder coating, but I'll see what I can do when I get the rack back.