DESK TO GLORY TUNDRA HOUSE ON WHEELS

Text and images by Richard Giordano of Desk to Glory.

There are many reasons why long term international travelers generally shy away from aftermarket parts, but over the years we have found that there are just as many reasons to select a few high-quality components that will help us stay out longer, increase the overall durability of our vehicle, and allow us to maintain or repair our vehicle in the field – all with fewer spare parts on hand. In our case, we’re shipping our North American designed and built Tundra to Europe. From there we expect to find ourselves in Northern Africa and beyond. Sure, this Second Gen Tundra shares a plethora of parts with the venerable 200 Series Land Cruiser, but it does have plenty of proprietary components that may be harder to find overseas. Using a selection of TOTAL CHAOS Fabrication parts we’ve increased overall strength and performance of our suspension and made it easier to service worldwide at the same time.

REINFORCING KNOWN WEAK LINKS
When the factory suspension was removed we installed cam tab gussets and spindle gussets to increase the strength of the weak OEM pieces. The tall and skinny Tundra spindle is prone to bending under stress, so reinforcing them with TOTAL CHAOS spindle gussets was a no-brainer. As noted in Toyota Cam Tab Gussets: Do I Need Them?, cam tab gussets replace the weak factory plates that are vulnerable to deflection or shearing under high impacts. This can throw the alignment off and wear out tires prematurely.




TOTAL CHAOS cam tab gussets help ensure your vehicle retains its alignment specifications.



TOTAL CHAOS Cam Tab Gussets replace the weak factory alignment cam tab plates that bend during bottom outs or hard front impacts.


The intention when installing these pieces was not because we regularly abuse our home-on-wheels when traveling, but for those unforeseen instances when inadvertently hit a Mexican topé, monstrous pothole in Houston, or G-out in Morocco. If these instances occur, and all that’s necessary is to rearrange some things in the camper or field-align the truck, that’s a lot better than having to deal with a sheared off cam tab, or a bent spindle.

TOTAL CHAOS SERVICEABLE CONTROL ARMS
The second generation Tundra’s control arms are unique to the truck, so adding stronger and rebuildable TOTAL CHAOS upper and lower control arms made perfect sense instead of sourcing complete replacement OEM control arms. Urethane bushings reduce deflection, lower control arms retain sway bar mounts, and the upper control arm’s inherent design provides an additional one-inch of wheel travel when paired with longer shocks. This, combined with the ability to retain factory alignment specs when lifted, means that our heavily laden Tundra continues to perform well on and off-pavement.




TOTAL CHAOS Upper Control Arms are one of the first upgrades we recommend to any Toyota owner.



Factory lower control arms are not rebuildable. Why replace when you can upgrade?



Regular lubrication keeps the noise down, and the zerk fittings make this process super simple.


After installation and an alignment we marked each cam bolt with a paint pen. At a glance we can now see if anything has moved. There is still the potential for these bolts to rotate under very hard impacts, but with gussets and paint marks in place we can reset the alignment in the field.




TOTAL CHAOS UCAs can be paired with any brand coilover, assuming they have the appropriate amount of travel.



The sway bar provision on TOTAL CHAOS LCAs means you don’t have to make any compromises.


REPLACEMENT PARTS AND TOOLS
To ensure that we have the parts necessary to maintain the control arms when abroad we packed the following items in the truck:

• One-Inch Stainless Steel Uniball Replacement Kit #FK-REP KIT
• Aluminum Uniball Press Tool #96006-ALU
• Replacement Bushing Kit: Upper Control Arms #69000
• Upper and Lower Uniball Misalignment Spacers and Bolt

The sealed replacement parts take up minimal space in our Tundra.


Each of the upper/lower uniballs are the same, so instead of carrying four, we decided on two. We have found that the lower uniballs wear out sooner than the uppers (perhaps due to their lower location being abused by sand and salt, combined with being more difficult to access for regular cleaning), so once those need replacement, we’ll track down or make an order for a second kit. Bushings are unlikely to need replacement, but they’re lightweight and make for an easy swap if the uniballs are being replaced. In our case, the uppers have been installed longer than the lowers, so we have a full set of upper bushings on hand just in case.

We have seen TOTAL CHAOS equipped trucks around the world including Peru, Saudi Arabia and Iceland. If we require replacement or service parts there seems to be at least one specialty off-road shop in each region that has access to bushing kits and uniballs. Otherwise, it’s always nice to have an excuse to call Pat and kindly to ask him to ship some parts via DHL.




The current configuration was shaken down in Utah prior to being shipped to Europe.



This Tundra isn’t only our vehicle, it is our home!


TOTAL CHAOS FABRICATION PARTS INSTALLED

• Upper Control Arms – Urethane Bushing Pivot Uniball UCA #87500
• Expedition Series Lower Control Arms #87555-R
• Spindle Gussets #59699
• Lower Control Arm Cam Tab Gussets #59870
• Rear Leaf Spring ¾” Lift Shackles #49704

 

That flatbed setup looks great. I remember when they had a GFC

 

Here are a few more pics of Richard and Ashley's build:


Some @Baja Designs lights

 

Awesome setup!

 

We will be sharing some more pics today including some travel pics and inside pics of the rig. Stay tuned

They have a great setup

 

Unreal. Can't wait to follow along.

 

Some interior pics of the camper when Desk to Glory got it:

 

Such a badass build!

 

There Rig is dialed!

Best,
Bill

Bill Sonevongxay | Forum Sales & Support 
Email: Bill@bajadesigns.com Phone: (760)560-2252

 

Definitely!

 

Very nice Tundra!

When lower control arm bushings need to be greased via the zerk fittings, do you have to loosen the cam bolts to do so? If so, does that require an alignment afterward?

 

You do not have to loosen the Lower Control Arm bolt. Here is a quick video regarding greasing the LCA bushings

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4wLDoFuANQ

 

Thanks for the info!

 

That is absolutely fabulous.

 

Very nice, I dig it

 

Some travel photos and info from @Desktoglory and @Desktoglory_ash

" Wandering the dark maze of alleys through the Marrakesh souks is such a treat for the senses. Start walking and then choose your own adventure. Left will take you towards the spices and right will take you to the lamps — or is it a right to the leather goods? Regardless, you’ll find something new around every corner.
Scooters are buzzing past constantly — deftly missing you by mere inches (more room would only increase risk to pedestrians on the other side of the street). "

 

Great pics! Would be great to get out of the country some day

 

Sorry, the nerd in me can’t help it.

 

Not sure what I love more, the photos or the writing... great work and detail!

 

"A stop in Marrakesh wouldn’t be complete without a stop at the Jemaa El-Fna night market.
Of all the places we ate, Mohamed’s little stand serving spiced tea and a scoop of ginger cake was by far the most memorable. I don’t think Mohamed ever stopped smiling the entire time we were there — I didn’t either after the first sip of that tea! "






https://www.instagram.com/desktoglory/


-Team TC
info@chaosfab.com

 

We’d recommend it! Certainly a great experience

All good! Cheers

They do a great job with their content!

 

" Stacking rocks to level the camper is commonplace around here. — in . "

 

""Oil change day in Marrakesh!
I like to keep a handful of OEM filters with me, but finding a decent place to have the service done is a bit of a crapshoot. Regardless, I try and be “helpful” and micromanage the process if I’m a little sus.
“A 5mm allen key will be useful to take the access cover off the skid plate.”
“Here’s a 14mm wrench.”
“Here’s a new drain plug gasket.”
“Here’s a 64mm oil filter wrench.”
“Here’s a new Toyota filter.”
“Here’s some oil to lube up the o-ring.”
“Oh, I’ll snug that oil filter housing up for you.”
The mechanics in Morocco don’t seem to mind me hovering, and if they do they’re far too polite to say otherwise.""

 

Follow their adventures on social media! https://www.instagram.com/desktoglory/

 

" A little preview of our last-minute 1000 kilometer route from Assa, through Samara, and eventually to Boujdour.
Beyond grateful that let us tag along on his recce trip. "

 

Nice. Air down.

 

Definitely! Everyone has a preference, and it depends on the application, but it does help in the soft sand

 

" I’ll be honest, this is a great route to take if you want to get well off the beaten track. In four days we saw but two vehicles, one military 70 Series and a Land Rover with a camel riding in the back. Normal stuff.
The first section was just over 400 kilometers and meandered south-west from Assa to Samara. Upon reaching Samara we had our passports checked at a police roadblock, “Welcome to the Sahara”. We topped up (and we mean TOPPED UP) on fuel for the trucks as well as fuel tank had about 1/3 tank remaining whereas the stock tank certainly would have been empty. The subsidized fuel was a welcome change when filling the 46-gallon tank.
One thing the Lagunas Route didn’t have was a history of a recent conflict (1975 to 1991 between the RMA, Mauritanian armed forces, and the Polisario) that left thousands of land mines and explosive ordnance in the region. Don’t tell our moms about that part.
Soooo… we stayed on the tracks and the known route that has run in the past and enjoyed a quiet handful of days in the desert with Mark and @streakyuae on a route we wouldn’t have likely run on our own.
Once again, another reason to say “yes” when you get an invite. "

 

" As our final days in Morocco come to a close we knew we were missing something important. We needed to learn how to make a proper tagine.
Mutual friends put us us in touch with and we soon found ourselves squeezing into the Tundra-width gate of his family home. We spent a few days there where his sister Aicha taught us how to make lemon chicken tagine (in their sand cave no less). Still full from evening feasts, at breakfast she fed us all of @authentic.moroccan.homestay.
Oh yeah, their goat Somaya is a real character! "