Thebrandon's 2000 SR5 4X4 Kayak Hauler Thread

[thebrandon]

Thebrandon's 2000 SR5 4X4 - AKA Bertha

This is Bertha. She takes me places and I appreciate that. This thread is to show what is done to Bertha, and some of the progression to where she sits today.

2000 SR5 V6 4runner with the factory e-locker in Sun Faded Red!

Current mods:

Engine
Volant "Cool Air" Intake

Wheels/Tires/Suspension/Brakes
Sonoran Steel 1.2
Total Chaos Upper Control Arms
Prothane steering rack bushings
Prothane front sway bar and end link bushings
Whiteline Poly Lower Control Arm Bushings
Pro Comp 7069 Alloy Wheels in 16x8, 12mm backspacing
Cooper S/T Maxx in 285/75/R16
Tundra 231mm Brake Upgrade

Armor
Fancy tube front bumper
Fancy tube rear bumper

Lights
Ebay 22" LED Light Bar
CBI ditch light brackets with eBay CREE LED Pod Lights

Sound
Pioneer ???? Deck
Polk front speakers

Bonus Stuff
Hella Horns
Cool fishing rod holder
60" Hi-lift
MV_50 air compressor
Toyota Hitch (not on, but available when I need it)

Future plans:
Exhaust
Under seat sub
Roll Bar
Sliders
Deck plate
Transmission cooler

1/17/2015

1/12/2015

1/4/2015.

Everything after this is not up to date, but shows a slight progression to what it is today among other things.

I go fishing a lot. A good majority of my fishing trips are from my kayak.

Here is my rod holder. I bring up to 6 rods with me on a fishing trip. This lives on top of my 4runner until I get a roll bar.

These are my horns. The factory horns are wimpy and soft. These are a bit bolder and louder, and have a nice red frame to boot.

Here are some random pictures.

Home sweet home!

My 4runner isn't too fancy, but it gets me just about anywhere I want to go. I don't have too many plans for it right now. I'm pretty happy with how it sits. It just needs a couple minor tweaks to make it just right for me.

 

[Fishwerks]

Truck looks really good! I like the tube bumpers.

 

[SantaCruzRunner]

love it :hatsoff:

 

[thebrandon]

Thank you! I really enjoy this truck. My front end will be going up a tiny bit higher in a short while I hope. My bilsteins are on the second to highest notch and I want to bring them up to level things out just a tiny bit. I should still have a tiny bit of rake once the front end comes up.

 

[99TX4runner]

Nice. Were did you get the front bumper from?

 

[4runnin83]

Looks great, very clean.

 

[thebrandon]

Nice. Were did you get the front bumper from?

It was custom made.

Thanks 4runnin!

 

[SCRunner12]

Nice 4runner and I love the color...Your bumpers are some of my favorite on the site though. Hopefully I can build some like that.

 

[Jasonazx]

Lookin good el brandio! When are we installing our coolers!!??

 

[thebrandon]

Good question! Forgot I had that cooler still. Maybe when your bumper shows up?

SCRunner, thanks! Yours has a brilliant color as well .

 

[BigFishAllDay]

You say you're a fisherman, but I don't see any fish????

 

[thebrandon]

Per bigfishes request, here are some fishing pictures lol.

Here's a small largemouth from Arivaca Lake in AZ.

Drop shotting at Arivaca Lake.

Catching smallmouth bass at the Black River in Arizona. You can see me in the distance off to the left.

This is from a water tank on the way to the Black River, and my first top water fish of the year. Deer were everywhere here and didn't seem to mind that we were fishing in their drinking water.

My three rod holder on, I also have a crate that goes on the back if I need to bring more. I can have up to 10 rods on my kayak at a time, but usually stick with 3-6.

 

[cesaryen711]

I like the tube bumpers.

 

[Nunyabiz]

Looks nice.
Kayak fishing is one of the reasons I bought my 4Runner as my old YJ Jeep was of course useless to haul my Kayak.

I think I am going to get a Bassyak trolling motor soon, will make it much more fishable in the wind.
This is my same kayak a Wilderness Systems Tarpon 120 Angler with a Bassyak motor installed.

BassYaks Tarpon 120 - YouTube

Welcome | Bassyaks

 

[BigFishAllDay]

Right on brandon,

Nice setup you've got there w/the Kayak. I've been eyeballing those things for a long time, but I do alot more river fishing than I do lake fishing. You must be pretty good/confident when it comes to maneuvering that thing. With all that gear on board, it would be a bummer if you capsized it.

Nice 4Runner, too! You've made some progress on that thing for sure. I saw your list included an under seat sub... I just added one of those to my rig, you can check it out toward the end of my build if you're interested in some ideas.

BTW, try not to post your pictures side by side..

It makes the window reeeeeeally WIDE.

When people type out a reply that is longer than the window...

You'll have to scroll across to the right to read it.

 

[thebrandon]

I think I fixed the pictures, didn't mean to put them side by side!!

I'll be checking your sub set up out right now!

I have a lot of fun on my kayak. You can go anywhere with it. It's made for the ocean, but I am on lakes most of the time with it. It's less than two feet wide so when you stand on it you have to watch yourself or it will throw you, and yes I do stand on it the majority of the time I am on it!

Nunyabiz, I really like those yaks and have been wanting to get one! I donn't think I could ever put a motor on my kayak though, I love paddeling!

Thanks for the comments!

 

[Nunyabiz]

Nunyabiz, I really like those yaks and have been wanting to get one! I donn't think I could ever put a motor on my kayak though, I love paddeling!

The motor wont prevent you from paddling, I enjoy paddling also.
But it will make it MUCH easier to fish in the wind, you can keep the kayak facing exactly where you want it, keep it from blowing away without using an anchor or having to constantly mess with a paddle.
You can also on a large fish keep the kayak facing the fish and put it in slow reverse so the fish doesn't pull you into cover.
Makes Kayak fishing much more enjoyable.

 

[BillIam]

@ Thebrandon what size tires are you running? i have been looking at the km2's in 235/85/17's on fj wheels for my rig, how do they ride with the 1.2 lift? can you compare them to anything else?

 

[thebrandon]

I do have a ruder on my yak so it makes it easy to hold position. Maybe I will have to reconsider a motor.

BillIam, tire size is 255/85/16, these are the only tires that have been on the vehicle with the lift. For mud terrains on a lifted vehicle the ride is very impressive. When ever people get rides in my truck they always point out how smooth the ride is, and my fiance prefers the runner over her car! It has a cadillac feel when going over bumps but still has enough control and response that gives a bit of confidence when you need it(I still have front and rear sways on too so keep that in mind). The only other tires that I have owned that I can compare these to would be super swampers which have a horrible ride 100% of the time no matter what, and some pro comp all terrains which had a decent ride but weren't aggressive enough for my taste.

 

[Hollis]

If you ever come to the Houston area on an excursion, hit me up, I will take you out Kayak fishing in the gulf for 50" bull reds, shark, black drum, speckled trout, etc.... Then we can play trucks.