A Kid's Tundra

Hello everyone,
I am 15 years old working on my grandfather’s truck he passed to me.

How it sits now at 190,000:


Current Mods:
•Power stop brake rotors
•OEM drum brake shoes and cylinders
•three stage paint correction and Ethos ceramic coating
•Herculiner roll on bedliner
•Gunmetal 4runner TRD Pro wheels with 245/75/17 Goodyears
•Bilstein 5100s on OME 2885 coils with Alcan custom leaf springs



Future Mods:
•bed cover
•regear/LSD

 

@2006 Tundra AC That thing is mint! Congrats!

 

Not much? Looks nice to me. It sure beats what I had when I was 15.

 

That's a great looking truck. Seems like your grandfather instilled the same values of care and maintenance.

 

Thanks guys. I plan on keeping this thing forever.

 

Alcan Leaf springs have just been ordered. 1 inch over stock with 200 pounds over stock weight. Now I need 1stGenOffroad to come back in stock.

 

The Tundra has a few sections on the roof where the clear is starting to fade. I have some spray on clear coat coming in next week. I will wet sand, spray clear, then polish. After that I will do a three stage paint correction across the whole body and then apply graphene ceramic coating from Ethos. I will post up some pictures when I am done.

 

I popped the fender flares off before I polished. He looks a little naked but is clean as can be. Parked him in the garage until the clear coat comes in for the roof.

 

Very nice shape. Are those factory or aftermarket fender flares?

 

They are aftermarket. I have had them a little longer than a year and are holding up well.

Here is the link:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/253616902577?fits=Year:2006|Model:Tundra|Make:Toyota

 

Finished painting. I used Duplicolor paint and Spraymax 2k clear coat.
Process: Sanded down clear coat with 400, 600, then 800 grit paper. Painted and spray clear. Let it set up a couple days then sanded with 800, 1000, and 1500 grit and then a three stage paint correction. It turned out well. I at least stopped it from spreading to the rest of the roof.

Before:


Sanded:


After:

 

Nice work!

 

Got Bilstein 5100s with OME 2885 coils the other day from 1stgenoffroad. Also came with SPC uca and Suspension Maxx extended sway bar links.
I still need:
Alcan leaf springs
Lower control arm bushings
Lbjs
Tie rods
Steering rack and sway bar bushings

 

Finally got the suspension done last weekend. OME 2885 springs with Bilstein 5100s and SPC uppers. Alcan leafs built to 1 inch with 150 pounds over stock. Got about 3 inches up front and 1.5 in the rear. Sits almost dead level now and rides great. Also replaced sway bar links, steering rack bushings, and lbjs (oem). I turn 16 in two months and I am ready to start driving this thing around!


I took this picture right after I finished so it has a squat because it is not settled.



Does anyone have any advice about regearing if I went up to 32 inch tires? Would I need to regear? What about 33s?

 

I have 32's on my tundra right now and I haven't noticed a huge power sap. and my mileage really didn't go down. .5 mpg at the worst. from what I hear 33's are when you want to start thinking about it, and 35's you definitely would need to seriously consider it. But I don't, I get light headed just thinking about how much it would cost. Not to mention the fact that you either spend days making sure everything is shimmed right our you empty your bank account getting a shop to do it. great excuse for lockers though. I'd rather spend all that money on a standalone and a supercharger. but that my 2 cents. Truck is looking good my guy.

 

Thanks for the info. I am looking into a regear with a Detroit True Trac thrown in. Its 2WD so its cheaper to regear and a locker/LSD would make it more capable. I want a supercharger baadd but that is still a few more mowing jobs down the road.

 

Oh well in that case I think I hear 35's calling your name. I've been working for 4 years now and I still am no where close to the supercharger dream.

 

Drivers license.

 

Congrats young man. Nice truck you have there. Be safe behind the wheel

 

Fantastic work! When I was 16 I didn't even HAVE a vehicle yet, much less the desire to work on it. You'll go far in life.

 

Love this.

SPP

 

Sharp looking Gen 1 Rig, young man, definitely taking pride in your ride.... Looks killer and watching your build. Congrats, stay safe.

 

Very cool! That Tundra looks great and will serve you well. Exciting to see the future you have for it.

 

Great story, great truck, and great work. Most 16 y/o can't figure out how to start a truck let alone fix and maintain it.
Keep it up! Drive safe.

 

Great job young man! Keep up the good work and be safe driving that nice rig.

 

Congrats man. I remember that day almost three years ago. There is nothing like that first drive by yourself.

 

I just sold my old 4600s that I took off during the suspension refresh. The guy I sold it to tried to buy my truck too. He was driving a 2003 with 425k miles and he has never had any problems. He said it is the best truck he has ever owned. It's cool to see just how durable these trucks are.

 

I picked these wheels up yesterday. This guy bought them for his 4runner and never installed them. Only one box was open. I need some new tires now. I haven't decided on what brand or type but I think I like the size 255/75/17 which is a 32 inch.

 

When I turned 16 in 1992, my first ride was a rusted out 1978 Chevy Nova. You're doing quite alright there OP, keep it up.

 

Awesome Keep it up