My 94 Runna!

[rcp916]

Thanks again for the warm welcome. So this is gonna be my build thread. I picked this runner up back in November for 2k. It's a 94 sr5 22re manual trans.

This will more than likely be a slow build but here's the plan.

So far I've sas'd it using a Sky front crossmember and a homemade RUF pack using 5 leaves from a combo from a 85 & 90 Toyota leaf pack.

Specs will be
Sas 5.29 open front
5.29 rear with ARB
Dual T-cases using an AA doubler with an old Marlin Crawler 21 spline 4.0 gear set I had
Sky's crossover high steer
Chevy 63's in the rear
Rancho 5000 series shocks all around
RaDesigns triple sticks because I'm too in love with my Tuffy center console and don't want to lose the cup holders! Hahaha!

I'll be doing all the work myself in my driveway! So again this will be a slow build Nothing extreme,

This is a budget build too! If your patient enough you can build a rig cheap off Craigslist as long as you know what your looking for. So far I'm invested in this Runner including purchase price is $5100 but that number will probably decrease because I have extra parts to sell off. I've had more expensive dirt bikes before so this is awesome for me and the family.

 

[rcp916]

This is the day I bought it. It's so shiny and new looking!! I couldn't pass it up! The deal on it was the guy thought the motor was bad but it just needed a T-chain kit. Also the front suspension was FUBAR it was missing the driver side axle shaft and the pass was all blown up. So it was 2wheel drive!

 

[rcp916]

here's a shot right before I pulled it in the driveway for the sas. You can see I'm missing the half shafts.

 

[rcp916]

fast forward SAS delete. When I get in the work mode I rarely stop to take photos but i'll try in the future. It's kinda cool to have your truck documented on its progression.

 

[rcp916]

I need a better camera! I moved the axle 3" forward so I had to move the steering box forward too. I modified a Marlin Crawler IFS reinforcement plate on the frame rail to move the ifs box forward and had some tube that fit perfectly around the steering shaft for a 1" extension.

 

[rcp916]

here's where Im at today back on stands with the rear out ready to hang the chevy leafs.

 

[Thurlo76]

ok im not a fan of 2nd gens that much but i personally think yours is the best looking 2nd gen ive seen on here. plus it has a 22re i think that is what puts it over the top. love the flairs, love the amount of lift for the tires, everything is just so clean, and its just all around a great truck. looking forward to the rest of this build.

 

[rcp916]

Thanks man, yeah I really wanted a first Gen but the ones I looked at were either trashed or way out of my price range. As far as lift go's it might even be a tad lower before I'm done, that's still up for further tweaking. I'm running 35 km2's and for rock crawling too high of a lift is pointless, I'll leave that for the "Mall Crawlers".

I think I'm gonna wheel the crap out of this truck and one day restore a first gen for a "Grocery Getter". I'm in NorCal and my local trails within 1.5 hours from my driveway includes, Rubicon,Fordyce,Barret Lake.

 

[rcp916]

Picked up another New to me goodie today! A solid axle from a 85 yota with old school cross over steering 5.29's with an ARB!!!! $700 Yeah it looks ugly but the housing is straight and I bench tested the ARB and No leaks and work great!!! Wahoo

I plan on putting the third in my Runner. Another Craigslist pick in the bag. All i need now is to rework the two drivelines after I install the duals and buy my triple sticks! Then we're ready for summer camping trips!!!!

I plan on rebuilding this axle with an open set of 4.88's,IFS wheel hubs,LC vented rotors and then off to the classifieds section. It will look 100x's better when finished.

 

[rcp916]

I got some progress done on the rear Chevy leaf swap today. Here's some pics of the RuffStuff frenched leaf spring hangers. I blasted some holes in the tops of them with the Plasma so I can Rosette weld them for a more solid mount. Also I marked a line 3/4" from the side so I can weld some reference tabs to the tops of them. The tabs act as an indexing guide so I can clamp them to the frame with C-clamps prior to welding.

I thought I might add a pic of my favorite measuring tape! I been using this brand tape for 2 years now and LOVE IT. It's as if I had an extra hand.:fro: If there's a tool section in this forum then it probably belongs in there.

 

[jirehn]

Really Nice Truck, Welcome most in this forum dude, Thanks for posting this photos.

 

[rcp916]

As most of you know, the rear suspension of the 2nd Gen's come from the factory with a 4-link. So that being said,it's a little bit more difficult to set up for the ever so popular Chevy 63 leaf swap. I probably spent 3 hours or more cutting and sanding off all the link mounts and bracketry that was on the frame just to get to the point I'm at now.

On other Toyota trucks that I have owned and done the swap to,it was a breeze to convert over to Chevies because you were able to use the stock leaf spring hanger as a reference point to measure off of prior to welding the new hanger on.

This pic show's the square hole that's on the rear portion of the frame in the middle of the rear wheel well. I used this whole as a reference to measure where I wanted the center of my axle to be. I measured back 1/2" and then from there I clamped a 2' level plumb on the line and measured 37 3/4" forward from that point and scribed a line on the frame.

The 37 3/4" is the measurement from the center of the Chevy leaf spring pin to the Eyelet mounting hole, plus the length of the frenched spring hanger from the very most front facing edge (where it tapers down)to the center of the mounting hole on the hanger itself. 31.5"+6.25"= 37.75" Mounting the hanger where I did, looks like its going to kick back my axle and move my tire back about 3" in the wheel well. Which I think is going to end up being a good thing. Having that extra space will give me options for larger tires in the future! Plus it's a lot easier to cut away the rear of the body for tire clearance than the front part by the door.

For now I just have everything tacked in and still need to figure out where I want to place the shackle hanger. Who knows, it might not fit and I might have to cut it all out and start over tomorrow!!!!! :bigok:

 

[T?@\7]

Welcome & again sick 2nd gen! I really really like the aesthetics of all white suv with black wheels. If I repaint my 1g ill go either white or silver with the body. But yeah sick thread, nice truck & GNAR-KILL!!

 

[rcp916]

Thanks man, I really like it too I'm not sure how much longer it's gonna look so good though! I'm gonna try to keep as nice looking as possible

 

[rcp916]

Cut away the rear part of the body today. Im pretty happy with it.

 

[SV_Dude]

It's coming along very nice! Good job!

 

[rcp916]

My first selectable locker ever!!! I'm pretty jazzed about having an ARB. All my other trucks were either welded spiders or Detroit lockers and man does that wipe out tires! Now all I gotta do is put everything together. I can't wait to go wheeling!

 

[GonOvr]

Do you think you could take a pic of the cut area looking up at it? Im getting ready to do the same thing and wanted to get an idea of the filler pieces im gonna need. Also what are your plans for the tailgate, since it hangs lower than your cut?

Looks great by the way!

 

[rcp916]

Yeah I'll post a pic this afternoon. I'm planning on building a tire carrier bumper that wraps around the sides out of square tube. Not exactly sure what the dimensions will be yet, I know the sides will be larger than the rear but I just haven't hashed that out yet. The reason I chose to cut that area out was the stock bumpers hang too low and whatever bumper I make I'll be sure to have it at least 6 inches higher than stock hugging the body. Also where I have my tire placed in the wheel well when the tire up-travels it would have hit the bumper.

I also need to figure out how to re size my pics. I'm uploading them from my iPhone and it always loads them too big!

 

[rcp916]

Well It's not done but I had to drive it today. I finished the rear Chevy swap but now it leans to the left and I don't know why!!!! I still need to cap the underside of the quarter panels build the bumper and mount the rear shocks. I figured I'm just gonna wheel the crap out of it and hope it settles!

The more I look at it though the more it drives me crazy!!!!! I guess that's what you get when you run RUF and some old Chevy springs.