Florida Vince's build thread (so far, more to come) ...

[Florida Vince]

OK, I know this is not an Antman type build yet, but with 150 miles on her we have done a few "add ons" to make her our own. We have more planned to make her even more kick a$$ than she already is, so keep tuning in.

BTW Antman, both my wife and I grew up in the Bel Air / Fallston areas, graduated from Fallston and Bel Air high schools and watched Cal Ripken play high school ball at Aberdeen (I even have his authenticated fielding glove from his varsity team at Aberdeen).

I wish we could join you guys on some of your outings but we are now 900 miles away in Central Florida (but we really miss the area). Maybe we'll plan on making the trip up for one in the future.

Ok, lets get started ...

5/8/13 ...

We added 15% Llumar ceramic tint up front, 50% ceramic on rears, Air Blue on windshield and sunroof, 5" 15% strip up front.







Then replaced the amber DRL's with Sylvania whites (they are white, pic doesn't do them justice).



Then debadged.



Replaced the 31" antenna with a 15".



Plasti Dipped the rear "4RUNNER" chrome, center caps on the rims and Florida Gators license plate frame. Added a hitch receiver cover to keep out the junk.





Added factory cross bars and some 28" Dakine rack pads for my upcoming kayak.



Installed (2) 7" Samsung Galaxy Tab 2's - one for navigation / bluetooth audio to the head unit up front and one for rear seat entertainment for the three kids. Both work like a champ!

The front one is held in place with a Pro Clip air vent mount and the rear with a headrest mount found on Amazon. We paired the rear tablet with a single TDK Kleer transmitter and three TDK WR700 Kleer wireless headphones for the kiddos.





Both Toyotas fit into the garage, although it's a little snug in there. We still have some room to move around so it's all good..



We absolutely love the T4R and have a sunroof visor, hood protector, 5100's all around to level it out, a roof basket and Antmans rear bumper cup holder mod coming up in the next month. I can see why people are so passionate about these 4Runners!

More to come and thanks for looking!

 

[Casturtroy]

Looks great FV. I thought about plasti dipping the rear chrome exactly like yours last weekend. The lights underneath and backup camera gave me a little bit of a pause (just learned about plasti drip). I did plasti the front chrome, leaving the Toyota symbol chrome. Looks great (was nervous, but it was as easy as everyone said). Gonna tackle the back this weekend.

Can't wait to see more pics. Go Gators.

 

[Antman]

Nice start! Can't wait to see the progress.
[MENTION=48772]Jesse1983[/MENTION] - Can you get this build thread in the sticky please?

 

[mr47930]

Care to elaborate on how you went about the debadge process? I know there are a few ways folks go about doing it, just wanted to see how you personally did it. My only problem is that my 4R is a 2010 so im scared the badges are stuck on a little more tightly than a new 4R.

PS- I grew up in Perryville, right across the Susky from you guys. Moved down to Southern MD a few years ago for work, going back to visit the parents this weekend though!

 

[Florida Vince]

Looks great FV. I thought about plasti dipping the rear chrome exactly like yours last weekend. The lights underneath and backup camera gave me a little bit of a pause (just learned about plasti drip). I did plasti the front chrome, leaving the Toyota symbol chrome. Looks great (was nervous, but it was as easy as everyone said). Gonna tackle the back this weekend.

Can't wait to see more pics. Go Gators.

Thanks everyone!

Casturtroy - It took 2x to do the plasti dip right. I found out on the second try that wax paper slides easily behind the chrome trim piece (but not all the way) and doesnt adhear to the plasti dip as much. Also, blue painters tape works better than standard masking tape when doing some of the tighter areas, giving better finished lines.

Be sure to put 4-5 coats on it after masking off the area around it pretty good. If some gets on your paint, dont worry as it will rub off pretty easily. Also, spray the entire trim piece including the "4RUNNER" letters. After 4-5 coats, just carefully peel the plasti dip from the letters and finish around the edges with a couple of toothpicks.

Worked perfectly and I didnt have to remove the letters. Hope that helps!

 

[Florida Vince]

Care to elaborate on how you went about the debadge process? I know there are a few ways folks go about doing it, just wanted to see how you personally did it. My only problem is that my 4R is a 2010 so im scared the badges are stuck on a little more tightly than a new 4R.

PS- I grew up in Perryville, right across the Susky from you guys. Moved down to Southern MD a few years ago for work, going back to visit the parents this weekend though!

Whats worked for me is using a hair dryer to mildly heat up the logo's adheasive and some waxed dental floss to seperate the logo from the 4R. I use a slow back and forth motion with the floss and have my wife heat it and lift it up as I go.

Be careful using credit cards and the like as you can leave surface scratches after the logo has been removed. After its removed, use some automotive bug and tar remover to remove the residue.

Hope that helps and good luck!

BTW mr47930 - Man I miss the Susky and it's stripers! I was raised in Harford county, lived in OC for 8 years and have been in east central Florida now for 15. Every time I visit the area its like coming home again.

MD has the most genuinly nicest people around if you ask me. If you could do me a favor, please send me down some pit beef sami's and crab chips if you could - nothing beats them!

 

[mr47930]

Thanks for the advice! Im going back and forth between just plasti dipping the badges and removing them. Id like to make at least 1 payment on her before I scratch anything up. Keep us updated on your future mods!

MMMmm Herr's Old Bay Crab Chips op2:

 

[Ttn333]

looking good! How sturdy is the proclip mount? Does the tablet bounce a bit on bumps? Thanks

 

[Casturtroy]

Thanks for the advice! Im going back and forth between just plasti dipping the badges and removing them. Id like to make at least 1 payment on her before I scratch anything up. Keep us updated on your future mods!

MMMmm Herr's Old Bay Crab Chips op2:

Be careful (not with the plasti drip, with the bug that comes along). I thought the same thing. I figured I'd just read a bit and loom around. I had mine 3 weeks and bit the bullet and plasti dripped the front. That was 2 weeks ago. Since then, I've had new speaker and a built in sub installed, spidertrax put on, and am scheduled for the 2.5 daystar lift. Build threads will get you every time.

 

[Casturtroy]

What kind of idiot calls it plasti "drip"? :bolt:
Guess my mind was reverting to my first application of the plastidip.

 

[mr47930]

Just debadged mine after work..took about 45 minutes being careful not to scratch the paint. No hair dryer, probably would have been much quicker with one but the waxed floss trick worked perfectly. Used bug and tar remover and then a quick polish and re-wax of the area makes it look like it was never there.

 

[Florida Vince]

looking good! How sturdy is the proclip mount? Does the tablet bounce a bit on bumps? Thanks

Ttn333, the Pro Clip mount works perfectly. It doesn't move at all, no rattling or vibrating. It does swivel up, down, left to right with a little effort and can be mounted even closer to the dash if you do not want the swivel feature. For @ $90 it was a great choice!

I put up some (better) close up pics for you to see. Hope they help.

 

[Florida Vince]

Just debadged mine after work..took about 45 minutes being careful not to scratch the paint. No hair dryer, probably would have been much quicker with one but the waxed floss trick worked perfectly. Used bug and tar remover and then a quick polish and re-wax of the area makes it look like it was never there.

Mr47930, glad the waxed floss worked out for ya! So, whats next on the list?

 

[Avalanche]

Great pictures, Florida Vince! I was wondering how you got that tablet mount on there. Good stuff.

Removing badges: There are a lot of great youtube.com videos showing the hairdryer/dental floss/fishing line method. I highly encourage people to check them out.

 

[mr47930]

Mr47930, glad the waxed floss worked out for ya! So, whats next on the list?

For the time being I think it will strictly be cosmetic stuff..plan on tinting the front sides and spraying anything shiny with plasti dip. What brand antenna is that you put on? I see a lot of folks using the stubby ones but I think I would lose to much reception with the really short ones.