doublecab prelander

so i had stared a couple other threads for specific mods, but decided the truck itself will progress and to just start and stick with this thread.
general theme was a 4x tundra that can seat more than 2 comfortably and be able to cruise around deserts and mountains.
previous vehicle was a ranger i built as a kid. full cage, long travel, Ca legal v8 swap, 9" axle, it was a fun learning project for sure, but ultimately financially unfeasible.
so i knew this build would be more comfort than race.
but still able to drive offroad a good clip. almost the raptor of tundras with camping related mods. i used to race motocross but now i have more fun riding natural terrain with my friends, so theres a lot of moto camp trips that happen.

and sorry to disappoint but dont hold your breath on seeing any suspension mods in the near future. ive been keeping it smaller scale in the mods.
the plan for the front is an ESB tundra/tacoma 4x long travel kit, with 90s 4x spindles and adapted tundra rotors and calipers, comes as +3.5,4.5,5.5 variants. ive only programmed the 5.5 version so far for mike. theres no cv bond at drop which is usualy an issue for most 4x long travel setups, and theres zero measurable bumbsteer. that makes it an esb kit. along with a lot of caster gain.
a neat possibility is doing the reverse of the solid axle guys. their solid axle uses the same hub, with a different wms as the 90s ifs 4x pick ups. they steal ifs hub and it offsets their solid axle +1" per side and run bigger tires. i would like to run the +5.5 kit, cycle those numbers, then instep my trackwidth -2" total with solid axle hubs. and also i guess somehow you also can run manual locking hubs. a friend did it to his taco.
for the rear, another friend who has the esb proto 4.5 kit already installed, has an under the bed canti setup for the rear, and i think its coupled with the deaver c27 spring under leafs, but not positive. but i wil probably have a copy of that eventually.

anyways, ill try to post updates.
first chunk will be rock sliders.
second, roof racks.
cheers

 

so these sliders are pretty neat, because theyre the only totally bolt-on version, no drilling.if you buy a set, you will see how i managed that.
the large J channel sheet acts a bug frame patch and stiffener. the front of the fram is full box with big cross members, coming under the cab it changes to C channel, and near the rear door, it sleeves with the rear C channel for about 30" so its effectively double thickness, so the weakest part is right under the front doors. this plate spans from the boxed section to the sleeved rear. in fact that 4pk cluster of rivets is the sleeve.
the tubes are 1.5"sq 0.120wall, 2"sq 0.188wall and 1.75"round 0.120wall. overall weight is around 85lb ea. secured with 10 grade-8 1/2" bolts per side.

 

these racks have been a back burner project for almost 2yrs now so i decided to just finish it up.
a motivating factor was being able to mount solar panels on the shell.
what sucks is nobody makes this style rack for our trucks, and the people that do make it, make it in a weak fashion.
these are very strong because the inside rail is 1" steel angle, and when bolted every 12-18" is very rigid. and its also keep the alumunum plate in its own plane and very strong.
the 2 parts make the whole very rigid.
i just got everything back from powdercoat. as soon as it stops raining, ill get on installing this stuff!
cab will have threadsert added to rain gutter, since its 4x sheetmetal thick, and about 0.25thick.
shell with be through bolt. the inside rail of the shell, the feet got rubber pads glued on, and will be silicon beneath the rubber upon install. pads were cut front some waste blanks from a work job, otherwise would be a nicer fit, but good enough.

the cab line is actually very hard to match. early protos were made from this cheap backer wood sheet to get a good visual.

 

Any plans on reg cab/access cab versions? Those are probably the nicest sliders I’ve seen on these trucks

 

i got inspired looking at how creative people have got with bed boxes, and tailoring them for camping. so rather than start saving foor suspension, i began pursuing this avenue since it would be more enjoyed.
if anyones curious i can post some measurement notes, and Amazon parts.
so i want to eventually make something out of metal that will be a structure, and bolt down with the bed bolts. but instead of turning this into a bigger project i though i would build a 'temporary' wood setup.
right now stock suspensions means slow speed, so thats fine.
the cross bar inserts give you something like 7" under the bar to play with, which adds up to a lot of stuff out of the way, but also can always be with you.
mines full, with 10x10 canopy, pop up table, chairs, straps, 12v oven, tool box, tire pump, and other odd stuff. but its all out of the way under the platform.
at the front, i wanted to add 10gal or so of water. found a 10gal tank on amazon, bpa free, kitchen made, with a 12v pump, 3gpm 50psi. tank is 9" high i believe. so this was the tallest object i wanted to hide under the platform. 100w solar panel on roof runs to a 30amp pwm charge controller to a 100amp-hr agm batt. batt then can supply my switchpanel with breakers to power accessories. also a 500w inverter is installed. batt is protected by a 100a breaker with a manual open. lighting is from led car underglow kits, like $20 amazon, color change, kinda more fun than just white. and i just bought 1/2" wide scratchy side velcrow and butted the two adhesive tapes together, and now have velcrow led light strips. and also the strip on the shell door is amazing since the tailgate is often a workbench.
il have to get more pics tomorrow since i dont have current pics.

 

nah, unless i downgrade to an accesscab. which crossed my mind, and use the difference to fund the long travel haha.
mostly i just cant leave stuff alone and end up modding things in some way. sometimes people are interested enough im able to sell a few things. but im not like trying to fabricate parts to make money.
but thanks man, i appreciate it!

 

oh well, i tried. lol if i had access to a press brake still and a water jet id take the project on. but i dont have any of that stuff anymore now that my fathers ex employer closed the doors 3 years ago

 

Just in case no one chimes in on these, The roof rack and rails are badass! I have contemplated welding up some sliders for mine, but I doubt they will turn out as nicely as yours. When are you fabing up your own high clearance bumpers?

 

The frames are pretty similar, AC and DC, some stuff is just spread a little different laterally. Some holes arent there on the Ac that are on the DC so maybe a few holes you have to mark and drill for bolts. But it is possible! Theyre also pretty labor intensive. Sold like 4sets of DC sliders before i figured its a time waste.

 

Thanks man! hoping to get the shell rack on today.
As far as bumpers, Ive got some pictures saved for inspiration!

 

kinda rushed the bed stuff to get it functional for some trips. So im in the slow process of cleaning it up, like running wires nicer, that switchpanel will be mounted up and away with the monitor. But overall it works great. and it wasnt too pricey on parts, all things considered. and it was just fun coming up with ideas, like the led strips, so cheap but so useful. 2 48" on the rear window, 2 60" on velcrow inside and a 36" on a magnet strip.
If any of this looks like a fun project, go for it!

 

Are the LEDs purple, or is it just the way the camera catches them?

 

I have a remote with like 8 color options, and a little battery monitor with amp draw,
purple seems to be the brightest for only 1.5A, pure white goes up to like 2.2a(with not being much brighter), red is like 0.5a which is nice.

 

only problem is that the sideplates are bigger than what the waterjet is set up for. Our bath is 2x4ft.
Its a massive pain but i can run the jet above the bath (now dirt water is blasting every where, bc usually submerged and below the 4 surrounding walls) and run long peices of material, do half the cut profile, cut a reference hole to index from, move the material after cut1 is done, reference the index and finish 2nd half of the cut.

To make more i would probably sub the work out. Which means now its more expensive, and im not making the money on that aspect. the crossbars you buy, theyre just Tslot from 80/20. Ide only be making the inside steel rails.

Ill say that the chances of me making more arent zero!

 

few rack pics and the next mini project.
I added a patio mister line to my ez-up with a quick attach. I read that they only use like 1-2gal/hr but its more like 3+, but the cool factor (literal&figurative) is worth it haha.
Too add to that, i wanted a 12v fan.
I was disappointed when only finding very small personal fans. Until i thought, radiator fan!
Amazon, 12" fan 1700cfm 6amp for $20.
And to vary speed, i got a 30amp pwm that ive used for other projects before $10. Ive literally lit some pwms on fire for some engineering projects so just go big. Fan will have a aluminum guard ill waterjet out. Will sit on an arm that has it acting as a pull by the window, and swing out and act as a push.

 

Those roof racks turned out really nice. Great work sir!

 

Much appreciated!
just taking a bit more time on each step than i did with the prerunner, which felt like i was always running late to work and scrambling to build stuff haha.

 

Can these be made to fit a 2002 regular cab Tundra?

 

@Rex Kramer
I get asked so much about single and access cabs, i would assume single cab long bed and the access cabs are the exact same frame,
Unfortunately the DC is just a bit different, rivets and holes are just spaced different laterally.
I really should just try to make a set for your guys tundras since you outnumber the DC guys 10x or more haha. I did notice some holes i used werent there on your frames, so ya may have to drill a couple holes.

 

Looks good! That is mucho attention to detail. I’d be interested in one for my AC, but would like the front scoop to go straight across or do a single concave following the Tundra lines vs. the batwing style with the two points.

 

@Professional Hand Model
That would be an easy change for the visor and i can also cut a custom logo or lettering if desired.
The rain gutter on the DC are just under 48", and i was suprised the AC is narrower on the roof, but same inside, and looking down the side at my DC and a friends AC, the sheetmetal and windows above windowline ide eyeball at 10deg off vert where the DC is maybe 5deg, and thats where it narrows up, so just cut your cross bars down. I got all mine from 8020(?) on Amazon.
Ide likely do a wood test panel and see how i like the roofline arc on the AC.
The only bummer is i wished the visor was a bit further forward had a bit more overhang, but the railgutter starts to diverge from parallel mid-front door to meet up with a wide windsheild.

Best part is theres no whistle at speed!
My dad lumber rack is loud at 40mph, this you hear a little wind disturbance at 80 or so but no whistling!

 

Careful, hes gonna want a silhouette of "Thing" from the Addam's Family

 

Good info on the wind noise as that was a question I had. Noise would kill the idea for me. The visor/scoop probably eliminates/reduces the noise.

 

@Professional Hand Model
I could maybe try to cut some various style wood visors and test, i bet they hold up to 60mph haha

 

Yea access cab and reg are totally different from The double.
But there are also some small differences from reg to access cab.



if you do ever produce reg cab sliders... I’m in the market! Lol

 

@empty lord
Good to know, thanks!

 

Cool build. I'm a sucker for DIY.

 

Updates from hiatus, sold the 06 to get @suueet's 04

Meticulous records. Good guy, good owner. Leather, heated seats, whole bit, is super nice.
My 06 paint was going, little bed rust, just enough problems i didnt wanna deal with.

The one bummer is the power and mpg.
05 06 vvti and 4spd fucking murders the 04 nonvvti 3spd. In fact, to drive this point home, i have 2 friends with DC's one an 04 one 06, both on 35s, the 04 is supercharged trd longtube headers, about every hop up part, and the stock 06 fuxking smokes the supercharged 04!
And my mpg when from 13-14 city 16-17fwy to fuxking 12. 12mpg everywhere.
But i still really like the truck! Cant thank Scott enough for giving me a heads up on him sellig his and i will take good care of her.

Well here she is.
Basically swapped all the mods from the blue one to white one.
And since i knew i would sell the blue one someday, i didnt do the fun little mods.
So i also did a complete led conversion inside&out. Map lights, flipdown mirrors, glovebox, license plate, everything, even blue led gage cluster.
BA exhaust.
BA injectors.
Lexus gx460 brake setup. (Hmu for machining!)

Next up is an airbag setup bc even with an HD leaf pack, she still ass heavy with all the stuff i keep in the back.

 

This one definitely took a turn. Thanks for confirming that I made the right decisions going with vvti.