Kurtis T4R Build Thread

[Kurtis]

Update:

I've been running around with out sway bars on the truck. I got used to the body roll but now it is just annoying. I've been wanting disconnect end links for a while. I looked around online but didn't find much and what I did find, I didn't like. I found this: LarsDennert.com It took a little bit to find the special items but most of the stuff can be had for cheap at Home Depot or Lowe's. For the Heim Joints (AKA Johnny Joints, Rose Joints, Rod End Bearing, Spherical Rod End Bearing, what ever you called them on the farm) can be found on eBay. But good luck finding it anywhere else. If you insist on buying locally (which I really try to do) check tractor supply stores, go kart supplies, and sometimes farm stores... But good luck with that. The only store I could get the bushings from was a small local store and they had to order them; only took a day. The big Auto places couldn't get them. I spent maybe $40 on this so far.

Here's the parts:


I went to weld the Carriage Bolt to the Heim Joint and my welder stopped working. I opened it up and found the boo boo it had from the last time it caught on fire.... I figured the ground was just loose...again...


I did some troubleshooting and determined the transformer was also faulty. Knowing there was nothing I could do, I cussed for a few and moved on to another project that needed to be done.

The credit goes to [MENTION=69236]PNWRunner[/MENTION] for this one. http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/122041-how-wiper-fluid-resivoir-reloction.html With all the bugs up here, it didn't take long for me to dis-like not having washer fluid. I have to say this is one of the easiest mods I've mod done. It's almost like the reservoir was designed for this and exactly this.


I was worried about the reservoir blocking the deckplate.


But found you can just install if from the inside. It won't be as air tight because of the gasket but it will definitely work for any kind of water crossing.


After I finished the washer reservoir I went to the web wheelin' machine to, well, web wheel. Knowing my welder was dieing and I needed a welder with more potential, I'd been stalking craigslist for a while now. It just happened to be today that I found me a MillerMatic 210 in near perfect condition with a owned bottle. I got permission from COMNAVHOUSEPAC and we drove down to get it today. He only used it a few times. It is IMMACULATE. I can't wait to use it.

 

[Kurtis]

And a finished project...



The truck handles much much better now. It is very easy and quick to install or remove the end links. This is by far the best way I have seen it done. I did take the drill to the inside of the top bushings. The I.D. is 7/16" and it's a bear to get it on/off the 1/2" carriage bolt. I barely took anything off the inside. It helped just enough to facilitate removing them by hand.

I just finished the break-in mileage for the diffs so now I need to change the diff oil. I am really liking the 5.29s in the truck. Yeah, it does run a little higher RPM on the highway but it's really nice for the hills around here and should help out a bunch when wheeling.

Btw....The new welder is amazing.

 

[Dirtyfingers]

Read your thread today while sitting on the ship, very nice. You have a lot of info here. I'm thinking about getting 35s but want to keep my 16 inch wheels would you be able to recommend any wheels? I need black to go along with my future paint job.

 

[Kurtis]

Read your thread today while sitting on the ship, very nice. You have a lot of info here. I'm thinking about getting 35s but want to keep my 16 inch wheels would you be able to recommend any wheels? I need black to go along with my future paint job.

SCS has some of the nicest looking wheels I've seen. If you want to wheel your truck and you are worried about rock rash, then Mickey Thompson classics is a decent choice and they come in black. If you bang up the ring you can replace it for cheap. [MENTION=91297]Kraze[/MENTION] runs them on his truck but they're not in black.

Also keep in mind that if you are going to run 16's it may or may not interfere with doing the tundra brake upgraded at a later point. You may not care about tundra brakes right now but it's nice to keep your options open for later.

 

[Kraze]

I am pretty fond of my MT Classic locks, mostly for the reason Kurtis already mentioned. While the simulated bead lock isn't functional as an actual bead lock, it does a damn good job of protecting the wheel from rocks. Mine are pretty chewed up, but I could always replace them if I wanted the wheels to look nice. Also, the 4" back spacing will help out with running 35s and being able to avoid spacers (I don't have spacers, and barely rub on the frame at full lock, and don't really rub when flexing, but I do have Camburg UCAs and my fenders have definitely seen some pounding--plus I'm running KM2s, which I've heard run a little small). And I've read that they will clear the 231mm Tundra brakes.

SCS also has some awesome wheels, and I think they're coming out with one that has 3.5" back spacing, which would be awesome for running 35s. And I think I saw before that they will clear the Tundra brakes too.

Between those two, really it comes down to what you think looks the best, and then pricing, of course.

 

[Dirtyfingers]

SCS has some of the nicest looking wheels I've seen. If you want to wheel your truck and you are worried about rock rash, then Mickey Thompson classics is a decent choice and they come in black. If you bang up the ring you can replace it for cheap. [MENTION=91297]Kraze[/MENTION] runs them on his truck but they're not in black.

Also keep in mind that if you are going to run 16's it may or may not interfere with doing the tundra brake upgraded at a later point. You may not care about tundra brakes right now but it's nice to keep your options open for later.

Alright maybe I'll upgrade then because I am planning on getting the whole tundra front end. And thanks for the advice.

 

[Jon]

I fixed mine too by just leaving it off. The passenger lower nut came off some time ago and just now noticed it. Somehow the threads kept it from just popping out. I could not get a new nut back on because the threads were so damaged so I decide to run no sways again.

After crossing the country and running no sways for two yrs I have to come to the conclusion that the front sway installed make the truck a lot more stable BUT wears the outside of the tires if you are in twisty country.

My outsides are so worn down now since I've had the front sway bar back in. You can feel the nobs in the turn with the sway installed. It leans the weight to the outside of the tire more with it installed, I think. That's better handling.
:lalala:
Just my thoughts. I can handle it fine with no sways on the road. Now she's not eating up tires and flexes a lot more.

 

[Kurtis]

I fixed mine too by just leaving it off. The passenger lower nut came off some time ago and just now noticed it. Somehow the threads kept it from just popping out. I could not get a new nut back on because the threads were so damaged so I decide to run no sways again.

After crossing the country and running no sways for two yrs I have to come to the conclusion that the front sway installed make the truck a lot more stable BUT wears the outside of the tires if you are in twisty country.

My outsides are so worn down now since I've had the front sway bar back in. You can feel the nobs in the turn with the sway installed. It leans the weight to the outside of the tire more with it installed, I think. That's better handling.
:lalala:
Just my thoughts. I can handle it fine with no sways on the road. Now she's not eating up tires and flexes a lot more.

That's a good observation with your tires. My previous end links kept falling off too and end up destroying the threads and making the mounting hole larger. I had to drill out the hole for the new links anyway. These end links are in there pretty good and I used more Lock-tite than I normally would. I don't think they're going any where. With disconnect links I can still pull them off pretty quick when I go wheeling, so I still get all the flex. If I ever have to do any emergency procedures or driving, I don't want the truck to flop on it's side. It could me driving, or my wife. While I don't want my tires to wear abnormally, I don't think it's worth the 4Runner being that unstable. I will have to take it easy in the twist and turns to help with the wear. But, for now I will keep the quick disco links.

 

[Kurtis]

Been busy today. Did the diff oil change. The oil looks good for break-in mileage.

Got started on the much needed sliders. The welder is working great. I am still getting used to it but I am getting much better at it. I didn't intentionally steal [MENTION=67615]Dirtco[/MENTION]'s design. It just came out that way. But it is a good design.

I decided when we built my bumper that I wanted to build square sliders. I think square over round tube of the same wall thickness is stronger. That's not fact. Just my opinion. There is charts out there that say square tube is stronger than round tube but we will just say "IMO" for now. I think square sliders also go with a plate bumper over round tube.

Driver side is almost finished. I still need to build the passenger side. I used 3/16" wall 2x2 for the legs and 4x4" 1/4" frame plates. I also used 1 1/2" 3/16" flat bar on the inside of the slider for the same reason Dirtco did. The slider is about 59 1/2" long and has plenty of clearance for both front and rear tires. I did gusset the top of the legs with 1/4" plate.

I painted it with bedliner. Again, it can easily be touched up. I don't believe in coating with 4 types of primer and all that jazz. It's just going to get eaten up anyway.




My welds are getting better.






The slider has a 1/8" of up travel when I jack up the truck. My floor jack is dead so the ol' bottle jack had to do.

 

[Bandit Runner]

Sliders look good. What is the 1.5" flat bar for?

Question about diff oil: When you changed yours after the break-in period, was the oil a silvery metalic color? Mine was, so I was just wondering if that was normal.

 

[Kurtis]

Sliders look good. What is the 1.5" flat bar for?

Question about diff oil: When you changed yours after the break-in period, was the oil a silvery metalic color? Mine was, so I was just wondering if that was normal.

I used the flat bar to keep mud and crap from being flung on to the side of the truck. As for the oil color, yes it is normal. The color may be silver-ish or even close to black. It's just the ring and pinion taking off a very fine layer of metal on the teeth. Completely normal. As long as you don't have chunks in it, you are good to go.

 

[Kurtis]

Passenger slider is done. Skids are back on. Ignore the neighbor's junk yard. I don't mind it since he is never there and pretty much uses the house as storage.

 

[Kurtis]

With everything buttoned up on the truck, we went wheeling today. We really needed to really check everything out and see how well everything works together.

For you local folks: We went to Walker Valley ORV Park. We haven't been there since we sold the '94 pick up in December of 2011. It's been at least 3 years since we have been here. I am not a fan of playing in the mud and Walker Valley is normally a mud pit with lots and lots of trees. It's been very dry up here for the last couple weeks so the trails were extremely dusty. It was nice because, again, I hate mud. With Reiter Pit (I mean: Reiter Foothills ORV Area) closing in 2009 Walker Valley has been flooded with offroaders. The trails have really taken a beating since I was here last. We ran up Upper Mainline, Humps and Bumps, down EZ Valley Connector and Timber Tamer. We only ran into 2 rigs. A Cherokee and a 2nd Gen 4Runner. Because it was so dry I only had to lock the rear diff twice and never touched the front. There really isn't that many trails here for 4x4. Out of 30 (I think) miles there's only about 4 miles of trails. Maps can be found here:Trail Maps (I'd post it on here but it either massive or too small to use.)




Enough with the words! On with the pictures. Not too many good photos. I was busy driving on the good obstacles.







Checking rear clearance:


I only extended the bump stops 1 inch. My plan was to avoid extending them but I can't move the inner fender without some serious work and I just don't feel up to that right now.


I still need to solve some clearance issues up front. I'm still rubbing a little at the right compression and the right angle. I'm think I just going to use a BFH this time. I also rub on the frame at full lock but there isn't anything I can do about that.

 

[slowpoke99]

looked like fun! i have yet to make the trip up there but i'm planning to after the hunting season. i'm down in spanaway/graham area so we spend most of our time at elbe hills or evans creek with the occasional trip to tuhuya. we'll have to plan a trip with the other locals on here. sounds like a good time!!!

 

[Diesel_Dog]

The slider has a 1/8" of up travel when I jack up the truck. My floor jack is dead so the ol' bottle jack had to do.

Question about the sliders: 3 legs? Are they far enough out for a highlift jack to jack the truck up?

Thinking of building some soon.

Thanks

 

[Kurtis]

Question about the sliders: 3 legs? Are they far enough out for a highlift jack to jack the truck up?

Thinking of building some soon.

Thanks

Yup, three legs. They do stick out far enough for a Hi-Lift. They stick out about 1 foot. I don't have a Hi-Lift right now because I just haven't got around to buying one. I'll get one someday.

 

[Diesel_Dog]

Yup, three legs. They do stick out far enough for a Hi-Lift. They stick out about 1 foot. I don't have a Hi-Lift right now because I just haven't got around to buying one. I'll get one someday.

Good stuff. 3 legs 10 inches long for me.

Thanks for the reply. Sweet looking buggy!

 

[Dirtyfingers]

I got a question on your trimming. I'm going to be going with 315s as I've said. I want to know how you figured the back spacing and if its a good idea when I get the lift tires and ect mounted up to chalk the tires and flex out all corners of the suspension and cut where the chalk is left..

 

[Kurtis]

I got a question on your trimming. I'm going to be going with 315s as I've said. I want to know how you figured the back spacing and if its a good idea when I get the lift tires and ect mounted up to chalk the tires and flex out all corners of the suspension and cut where the chalk is left..

The wheels are about 4.5" back spacing. My biggest issue was going to be clearing the UCAs. I used 1.25" wheel spacers to make that happen. To figure that out I went to this thread: http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-gen-t4rs/108367-official-3rd-gen-4runners-35s-pic-thread.html and basically looked for trucks with similar set ups. Most were running 1.25" wheel spacers. I kind of just figured I would either need a wheel with a backspacing of 3.25"(not going to happen), wheel spacers, or aftermarket UCA(on the to do list anyway). I rub on the frame at full lock but the wheel spacers also help a little with this.

Once I got the tires and wheels on I did this on each corner.

You won't need chalk. You should be able to see where it will hit. It will be pretty obvious. I still need to fix some clearance issues on the front. No matter how you jack up the wheel, there is no comparison for just plan old wheeling the truck and finding those rub spots. I only have a 1" body lift so it's a lot of work to make things clear, but well worth it. It will take time to make sure it will all clear.

 

[Dirtyfingers]

I see, makes perfect sense. Seeing your build thread makes me more and more anxious to get back to the states haha. As far as the body lift goes, I have a bumper that I neglected to order to be compatable with the body lift, I guess I'm going to have to weld it on?