Xtremluck's 2012 SR5 Build Thread

[Xtremluck]

Been really bad about updating my build thread. After many years of use my aluminum RCI skid plates needed to be replaced. They did an amazing job and took severe abuse over the years. However, their biggest flaw reared it’s ugly head eventually. Using OEM frame welded nuts to mount the skids eventually made it impossible to remount the skids. Each welded nut eventually failed!

So I ordered a new set of aluminum skids from CBI that has a much more stout mounting system. They have been great so far.

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[Xtremluck]

After about 5 yrs of service my Pelfreybilt aluminum winch bumper starting showing it’s age. Some small cracks appeared near the winch tray. It’s likely from side winch pulls that I’ve done in the past. It was probably ok but given how much I winch I decided to start fresh with a new bumper so off it went.

I facelifted my 2012 truck when I bought the Pelfreybilt bumper and because of that a lot of the front bumper cover mounts were original. Not a problem for a full replacement like the Pelfreybilt but a problem for just about any other bumper option out there.

So I decided to buy a cheap bumper cover off of Amazon and paint it myself. I wouldn’t call it a pro finish but it does the job. Given how little of the bumper you actually use it wasn’t a big deal.

Here it is all mounted up and cut. I had to buy some additional OEM bumper mounting points to make this all work since I didn’t do that when I installed my old bumper.

Next step is to transfer the winch and lighting to the new bumper. It never ends….


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[Xtremluck]

Wow really behind on updating here. Finally finished installing the bumper and was happy with how it fit. I had to relocate the winch control pack but was able to find an easy mounting on a radiator support. Super easy install.

Over the next few months I’ve also been able to put the bumper to the test with several winch cycles and contact with rocks. It’s holding up like a champ.

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[Xtremluck]

After almost 6 years of heavy use I decided to replace my RCI aluminum skid plates with a set with a better mounting system. The RCI plates held up fine but they mounted on welded frame nuts which eventually failed from all the hits. CBI’s aluminum skids use better mounting points.

Posting this late but here they are after 1.5 years and a lot of rocky trails. I’ve impressed there hasn’t been a ton of deformation given how hard I beat these things up. A testament to the great engineering behind them.

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[Xtremluck]

Here’s a fun one. I’ve always hated the performance of our headlights but took the lazy way out by just dropping in HID bulbs and going my way. I finally decided to fix this properly by retrofitting a MLED 2.0 BI-LED projector.

Opening this headlight was a BIG pain.

The output quality is night and day better. Notice the even light distribution in the beam pattern.

Let the end results speak for themselves. Slight embellishment from my phone’s auto exposure of course.

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[comtn4x4]

Here’s a fun one. I’ve always hated the performance of our headlights but took the lazy way out by just dropping in HID bulbs and going my way. I finally decided to fix this properly by retrofitting a MLED 2.0 BI-LED projector.


Very nice! looks like a huge improvement. Wish I had considered this before I change out for Alpharex

 

[Xtremluck]

Here’s a fun one. I’ve always hated the performance of our headlights but took the lazy way out by just dropping in HID bulbs and going my way. I finally decided to fix this properly by retrofitting a MLED 2.0 BI-LED projector.


Very nice! looks like a huge improvement. Wish I had considered this before I change out for Alpharex

One of my favorite upgrades for sure. It was relatively easy as well. The only hard part of it was opening the headlights. If I could do it over again I would just cut them open.

 

[jdm-v35]

One of my favorite upgrades for sure. It was relatively easy as well. The only hard part of it was opening the headlights. If I could do it over again I would just cut them open.

How did you get them open?

I was going to retrofit GS350 projectors but could never get the housings open with a heatgun. I read that aftermarket versions like TYC are much easier to heat and open though.

 

[Xtremluck]

How did you get them open?

I was going to retrofit GS350 projectors but could never get the housings open with a heatgun. I read that aftermarket versions like TYC are much easier to heat and open though.

Put ‘em in the oven!

I actually accidentally melted one housing when it spent too much time in there. If I could do it over again I would have just taken a dremel cutting wheel and just cut open the housing and maybe plastic weld it back together to save time.

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[Xtremluck]

Documenting the addition of 35s and all the cutting and pounding I needed to do to get them to fit properly. I went with BFG KO2s since they are probably one of the lightest 35” options and slightly smaller than “full size” 35s

Here they are next to a brand new 285/70/17 Ridge Grappler.

Needed to do some pretty big trimming

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[Xtremluck]

Here is the final product, I think it looks relatively OEM.

We will see how it does on a technical trail this weekend.


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[jdm-v35]

Looks real good! I am debating 34's on the next go around and hopefully it doesnt take as much cutting/hammering to fit.

 

[comtn4x4]

That looks great! Do you happen to have some actual measurements for hose BFG's?

 

[Xtremluck]

Looks real good! I am debating 34's on the next go around and hopefully it doesnt take as much cutting/hammering to fit.

I think you will especially if you go into the world of negative offset and you are actually cycling through your suspension offroad. Toyota really didn't leave us with a ton of room there. I was actually hitting my inner fenders with 33s at full compression!

 

[Xtremluck]

That looks great! Do you happen to have some actual measurements for hose BFG's?

In that picture mounted on the wheel but not on the truck they stood at just about 34" tall. Mounted on the truck they are just a hair over 33.25". So again they are almost like a 34.5" tire.

 

[jdm-v35]

I think you will especially if you go into the world of negative offset and you are actually cycling through your suspension offroad. Toyota really didn't leave us with a ton of room there. I was actually hitting my inner fenders with 33s at full compression!

I'm currently running summit raptors with 33's and no rubbing with just a fender liner move, bumper trim and removing mud flaps. So hoppefully not much more would be needed for 34's on the next go around if I go that route. a BMC I am sure, but hopefully not much more than that.

 

[rochmpr]

You may need to do some more massaging in this area with a BFH. Also, spray all that after with a rubberized 3M product.

The cutting only hurt for the first few inches I bet.

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View attachment 400231

 

[Xtremluck]

You may need to do some more massaging in this area with a BFH. Also, spray all that after with a rubberized 3M product.

The cutting only hurt for the first few inches I bet.

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View attachment 400231

Yup, I will definitely need to hammer in the back of the fender well a bit. Going to be stretching out the suspension this weekend at Slickrock. So we shall see how it goes.

 

[rochmpr]

Yup, I will definitely need to hammer in the back of the fender well a bit. Going to be stretching out the suspension this weekend at Slickrock. So we shall see how it goes.

Have fun there. Should be a great weekend

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[Xtremluck]

Alright spending the last couple of weekends repairing the damage from my last trip. First up was fixing my bent passenger side steering knuckle.

Pulling them off wasn’t too bad it just took a few steps to get everything detached and out of the way.

Compared to a brand new one you can see how bad it was bent.

While pulling off the hub I was really impressed how good the bearings were still after 164,000 miles. I’ll need to replace them eventually but they are still in decent shape.

Ok here is everything all buttoned back up I added the brake dust shield on later.

I’m not going to gusset them for now because I’m wondering if it’s better to have them bend vs. some other part of the front suspension break in a similar situation. After all I was able to drive out easily from this incident and 200 miles home


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