gaterose build thread

[G.I.G.]

Great looking rig and great pics!

Southern Colorado is a great place to spend in the outdoors. The snowboarding, mountain biking, hiking, camping, 4-wheeling is all incredible.

That is quite the list of mods you've done as well. Your rig is coming together nicely! I wanted to find out what your thoughts were on the PIAA Extreme White backup bulbs on their own without the assistance of your roof lights. Did you notice a significant difference between the stock bulbs and the PIAA's? I replaced my factory headlight bulbs with PIAA's and noticed a slight improvement, but I'm not sure it was worth the money. I was considering the PIAA's or LED's for the reverse lights before I did any aftermarket mods because the factory reverse lights are pretty week on their own.

 

[gaterose]

Thanks for the compliments guys!

I wanted to find out what your thoughts were on the PIAA Extreme White backup bulbs on their own without the assistance of your roof lights. Did you notice a significant difference between the stock bulbs and the PIAA's?

It will probably be about the same as the difference you saw from the headlights. I'd recommend auxiliary lights, they're still not bright enough to keep me from wanting aux lights. As you can see in my last post I added another set of aux lights for when I remove my rack because the PIAA replacement alone wasn't enough.

I don't believe LEDs would be anymore helpful than the PIAAs, it's just too small and weak. Even the new backup lights I put on aren't enough so I'm going with something a little bigger. At least the size of the KC 26 series.

And I agree southern CO is great, I can't wait to go back. Was gonna go in May but I've heard it's just muddy and not as nice so I think I'm going to wait til August.

 

[97BlackAckCL]

Nice lookin truck, and I really love the bridge pics. Do you have any closer up pics of the fogs and corners? I've wanted to do that since I bought my runner

 

[gaterose]

Thanks a lot!

Here ya go, the first picture is to compare the brightness of the turn signal in the headlight with a chrome reflector to the one that is blacked out. They look equally bright to me.

 

[4Runners]

Oh my gosh! This build thread is amazing! The Kenwood Headunit is astonishing! Very nice. You make the 2wd 4runners proud!

BTW what camera are you shooting with and are you using a wide angle lens on your nature shots? I'm planning on taking a huge 4000 mile road trip with my 4runner and i'm torn between buying a new headunit or wide angle lense for my nikon d90.

 

[gaterose]

Oh my gosh! This build thread is amazing! The Kenwood Headunit is astonishing! Very nice. You make the 2wd 4runners proud!

BTW what camera are you shooting with and are you using a wide angle lens on your nature shots? I'm planning on taking a huge 4000 mile road trip with my 4runner and i'm torn between buying a new headunit or wide angle lense for my nikon d90.

Thanks a lot! I see so many great 4Runners and mods on here that I can't seem to quit... I have Stubbs Welding rock sliders going on this week and a brand x stealth rack coming in a couple of weeks.

I shoot a Nikon D40X; I actually bought it specifically for the first CO trip that is pictured in this thread. I went a year before with a P&S and came back wishing I'd taken a DSLR so I made sure I had one the next time.

I just use the 18-55mm Nikkor lens that came with it, and sometimes a 70-220mm Nikkor, right now. I really want to invest in a good wide angle but haven't yet. I'm looking at the Sigma 8-16mm since I've read some good reviews about it and the Nikkor wide angles are soooooo much. IIRC Outdoor Photographer (magazine) actually claims the Sigma is crisper than the Nikon wide angles. A friend of mine shoots a D90 with a couple of Sigma lenses and he seems pretty happy with the Sigmas.

As much as I like wide angle shots, unless you plan on taking A LOT of wide photos I'd get the radio. My 18-55 took some GREAT shots, the pics posted here aren't even the awesome nature shots (because I only included shots with the T4R here). Another friend (Autbond on here) recently got a wide angle for his Canon and it takes some awesome pics but it's not a very versatile lens and he seems a little disappointed about that. A good stereo (particularly something that plays ipod/flash drive so you're not switching CDs/radio stations or listening to the same thing the whole way) will make the trip a lot shorter...

 

[4Runners]

Thanks a lot! I see so many great 4Runners and mods on here that I can't seem to quit... I have Stubbs Welding rock sliders going on this week and a Gobi stealth rack coming in a couple of weeks.

I shoot a Nikon D40X; I actually bought it specifically for the first CO trip that is pictured in this thread. I went a year before with a P&S and came back wishing I'd taken a DSLR so I made sure I had one the next time.

I just use the 18-55mm Nikkor lens that came with it, and sometimes a 70-220mm Nikkor, right now. I really want to invest in a good wide angle but haven't yet. I'm looking at the Sigma 8-16mm since I've read some good reviews about it and the Nikkor wide angles are soooooo much. IIRC Outdoor Photographer (magazine) actually claims the Sigma is crisper than the Nikon wide angles. A friend of mine shoots a D90 with a couple of Sigma lenses and he seems pretty happy with the Sigmas.

As much as I like wide angle shots, unless you plan on taking A LOT of wide photos I'd get the radio. My 18-55 took some GREAT shots, the pics posted here aren't even the awesome nature shots (because I only included shots with the T4R here). Another friend (Autbond on here) recently got a wide angle for his Canon and it takes some awesome pics but it's not a very versatile lens and he seems a little disappointed about that. A good stereo (particularly something that plays ipod/flash drive so you're not switching CDs/radio stations or listening to the same thing the whole way) will make the trip a lot shorter...

Thanks for the quick reply. Yeah i've had my fair experience with wide angle lenses with my d90. The sigma 8-16mm you are looking at is actually a fish-eyed lens, so i wouldn't get that.

The widest lens you can get is the Sigma 10-20mm, which i purchased from a camera store but returned it the next day due to the softness of the image on the edges of the frame.

The Tokina 11-16mm is THE BEST third party wide angle lens you can get on the market. I used it for my trip last summer to Glacier National Park in Montana (but had to sell it because i needed the money for something else :cry2: ). It is very wide and produces crisp images. Tokina makes the best third party brand lenses for nikon. Some even say the 11-16mm outperforms the nikon 12-24mm. If the 11-16mm is too expensive then get the older Tokina 12-24mm. It is also very very good.

Tamron is another company that makes third party lenses for nikon, but i'd steer clear from them.

I now and have always shot with the nikon kit lens (18-105mm) and it has always done well in sports and landscape, but if you check out my thread here about the trip i'm gonna take in august: http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-gen-t4rs/90074-4runner-has-150-000-miles-want-take-4-000-mile-trip.html you will see why i would want the lens again!

 

[gaterose]

Thanks for the quick reply. Yeah i've had my fair experience with wide angle lenses with my d90. The sigma 8-16mm you are looking at is actually a fish-eyed lens, so i wouldn't get that.

The widest lens you can get is the Sigma 10-20mm, which i purchased from a camera store but returned it the next day due to the softness of the image on the edges of the frame.

The Tokina 11-16mm is THE BEST third party wide angle lens you can get on the market. I used it for my trip last summer to Glacier National Park in Montana (but had to sell it because i needed the money for something else :cry2: ). It is very wide and produces crisp images. Tokina makes the best third party brand lenses for nikon. Some even say the 11-16mm outperforms the nikon 12-24mm. If the 11-16mm is too expensive then get the older Tokina 12-24mm. It is also very very good.

Tamron is another company that makes third party lenses for nikon, but i'd steer clear from them.

I now and have always shot with the nikon kit lens (18-105mm) and it has always done well in sports and landscape, but if you check out my thread here about the trip i'm gonna take in august: http://www.toyota-4runner.org/4th-gen-t4rs/90074-4runner-has-150-000-miles-want-take-4-000-mile-trip.html you will see why i would want the lens again!

No problem, but are you sure about that sigma being a fisheye? because according to the sigma website it's just a wide angle. It's a pretty new lens I believe, the OP magazine article about it was recent and I thought they said that it was new when they reviewed it.

I have actually been looking at the Tokina lens you're talking about but I haven't heard much about Tokina. I'm pretty new to photographry, just got my D40X in August and have only just recently started trying to upgrade and learn more about it.

 

[4Runners]

No problem, but are you sure about that sigma being a fisheye? because according to the sigma website it's just a wide angle. It's a pretty new lens I believe, the OP magazine article about it was recent and I thought they said that it was new when they reviewed it.

I have actually been looking at the Tokina lens you're talking about but I haven't heard much about Tokina. I'm pretty new to photographry, just got my D40X in August and have only just recently started trying to upgrade and learn more about it.

oops. never mind. That sigma 8-16mm is not a fish-eyed lens. I was thinking of a different one. That sigma came out in February 2010 so it is very new and actually got decent reviews, but the Nikon 10-24mm for $100 more than that sigma out performs it, and the Tokina 11-16mm also outperforms the sigma. Best way to see which lens is for you is to test them out if you can, or buy them from somewhere with a good return policy in case you dont like it. But woah! 8mm is soooo wide that it really distorts the wide angle look!

by the way...where i'm going on this trip is gonna be very dark at night and i just finished installing a hunter grille guard not long ago that comes with two pre-drilled holes to mount some lights. i really liked the way your roof rack lights looked (KC 26 Long Range lamps) and was thinking of just buying several of those to put on the guard. Will those be powerful enough? Did you find a good thread that explained how to install those lights? Or would the PiAAs you got be better. I like the roof rack light idea you have, but i only have the regular roof rack unless there's a light mounting rack piece i can add to the existing rack (if there is such thing)

 

[gaterose]

Yes the Nikon is only $100 more MSRP, but the reason I was looking at the Sigma was because it can be found a good bit cheaper while I can't seem to find much price break on the Nikon. Unfortunately there aren't any camera shops with things in stock where I am so I can't go test lenses.

The KCs are good but I'd recommened some PIAA (or other brand) driving lights that are 6" those KCs throw a long thin beam. They work well for spot but didn't light up the road on their own very much, I need the PIAA driving lights on too to get good coverage. And I just installed them from previous experience but there are threads all over the net with good writeups of lighting installs.

The only way that I've seen to mount lights to the factory rack is to drill holes through the crossbars.

btw I've made the trip from Tuscaloosa, AL to South Fork, CO and back twice now in the 4runner (and I plan on doing it again in August), once with 125K and once with 140K so I'm sure you'll be fine. That's not quite as far but close and the first time I went through Dallas on the way out and St. Louis on the the way back so that puts it a little closer to your distance. Just watch those Texas cops! hahaha

 

[kosan]

I like Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8.

I'd probably would only rent the fisheye lens as a fun lens. Couldn't imagine using that as a daily and wouldn't want to pay for it using it sporadically.

 

[4Runners]

Yes the Nikon is only $100 more MSRP, but the reason I was looking at the Sigma was because it can be found a good bit cheaper while I can't seem to find much price break on the Nikon. Unfortunately there aren't any camera shops with things in stock where I am so I can't go test lenses.

The KCs are good but I'd recommened some PIAA (or other brand) driving lights that are 6" those KCs throw a long thin beam. They work well for spot but didn't light up the road on their own very much, I need the PIAA driving lights on too to get good coverage. And I just installed them from previous experience but there are threads all over the net with good writeups of lighting installs.

The only way that I've seen to mount lights to the factory rack is to drill holes through the crossbars.

btw I've made the trip from Tuscaloosa, AL to South Fork, CO and back twice now in the 4runner (and I plan on doing it again in August), once with 125K and once with 140K so I'm sure you'll be fine. That's not quite as far but close and the first time I went through Dallas on the way out and St. Louis on the the way back so that puts it a little closer to your distance. Just watch those Texas cops! hahaha

oh, well if you can find a good deal on the sigma then by all means get it! It's not a bad lens at all!

As far as lights go, i was looking at these hella lights for the front grille: Amazon.com: Hella 008284811 Ff75 Driving Lamp Kit: Automotive I heard many good things about these lights.

So that trip you took to Colorado was almost 3,000 miles round trip then? Going through St Louis made your return a bit longer, but yeah i've driven all over texas and our state troopers are tough! (although the speed limit near El Paso is 80 mph and there's talk about making all our state highways 80mph!) It's nice to see another high mileage 4runner making these long trips without any problems. I was just gonna get all my fluids topped off and tires rotated before i left. I checked the hoses and everything else seems fine! I'm glad the V6 has a timing chain instead of a belt, i didn't feel like replacing that right now!

 

[MICA4R]

Awesome rims man!

Iron Gunmetal Glimmer Powdercoated Sport Edition Wheels[/CENTER]

Your rims look sick!

Where did you get this done and how much does it cost?

I would love to get this look on my ride!

Are they durable with rocks/tire changes?

Thanks in advance!

 

[gaterose]

Your rims look sick!

Where did you get this done and how much does it cost?

I would love to get this look on my ride!

Are they durable with rocks/tire changes?

Thanks in advance!

Thanks a lot!

I had them coated by a local guy for $350, he was originally going to do it for $250 but that color required a clear coat, it was $100/coat + $50 prep. Any powder coater can do (although the price may be different). The name of the color is "Iron Gun Metal Glimmer" and available from powder365.com which is where I think most PCers get their powder.

They're durable (so far) against everything that's been throw at them but I know if I was driving in and scraping them on rocks off road they'd scratch up (but so will anything else). Originally I was scared to put regular weights on them but did and it seems to be fine so far. I haven't changed tires but have rotated & balanced plenty. I'm fairly certain most black wheels are just powder coated, so this is no different from that.

 

[MICA4R]

Lugz

Thanks a lot!

I had them coated by a local guy for $350, he was originally going to do it for $250 but that color required a clear coat, it was $100/coat + $50 prep. Any powder coater can do (although the price may be different). The name of the color is "Iron Gun Metal Glimmer" and available from powder365.com which is where I think most PCers get their powder.

They're durable (so far) against everything that's been throw at them but I know if I was driving in and scraping them on rocks off road they'd scratch up (but so will anything else). Originally I was scared to put regular weights on them but did and it seems to be fine so far. I haven't changed tires but have rotated & balanced plenty. I'm fairly certain most black wheels are just powder coated, so this is no different from that.

Thanks... Question, did you use stock lugs, color them or swap em out?

 

[gaterose]

My lugs are still chrome, I searched for black lugs but couldn't find any that worked with the OEM wheels.

I didn't think it would be worth it to coat the lugs because I think the impact wrench will scratch most of that paint or powder off very quickly.

 

[MICA4R]

:thumb3:

 

[MICA4R]

My lugs are still chrome, I searched for black lugs but couldn't find any that worked with the OEM wheels.

I didn't think it would be worth it to coat the lugs because I think the impact wrench will scratch most of that paint or powder off very quickly.

sorry for all the questions, your hub covers match also and looks like they are TRD red also. how did you get that done?

 

[gaterose]

In some pictures the Toyota emblem is red, in a few it's black but now it is gone.

This was actually a bit of an ordeal and I can't believe I forgot about it.. If you have Sport wheels the centercap is half aluminum half plastic. My powder coater managed to get mine hot, then drop them (deforming them) so I had to order a second set...

The safest thing to do is remove the aluminum cover from the plastic (with a pair of needle nose pliers you can bend back to tabs that hold it on, and drill or cut the plastic rivets holding the emblem on) and just coat the aluminum. I painted the plastic black, could've left it silver probably (so little of it shows that it's hard to tell).

Because my emblems were ruined (from being dropped) I had to scour the net for the right size emblems and order them from Israel (4wks to ship!!). They were gold, so I sprayed them red.

I got tired of the red so changed it to black but didn't do a good job so I finally removed the emblems and haven't wanted to deal with finding another set. There are also a ton of TRD wheel cap stickers on eBay but I didn't really like any of them.

Luckily the aftermarket centercaps I got from eBay were blank so they didn't have the 3 holes to be covered up like stock caps (if you don't use an emblem, the holes are covered if you have an emblem)

 

[TheycallmeDOC]

Was it a PITA to black out the housings in the fogs/turns? I've done my headlights, just wanted to know if you ran into any problems or have any specific tips for those. I haven't found to many people with that mod, i think it looks stellar!