Manny's Vicarious Adventures

Dirtier

 

Matt can have his original post for his build, but the rest of his sand box belongs to us now!

 

Some un-official "mods" that I use when cold weather hunting:

Keen light weight waterproof/ -40 degree boots w/RedFeather 30" inchers
Ditto
Lil' Fiskars, sharp as hell
ToyTec ARB camp chair, Bullet proof, only $50
Ditto
Ditto

 

Got bored so i plasti-dipped my white PIAA fog light covers. Build is pretty much on hiatus for anything serious until spring. I'll probably plasti-dip my license plates if I get too bored.

 

I left out that I get a little lazy during winter. Other than the occasional show shoeing weekends, it's pretty much NFL, NCAA football, and killing brewski's. (oh, and saving up $ for more goodies)

 

Nice truck Matt! I've got some ideas churning after reading thru the build... just need some cash now

 

Thanks. We have the same problem. The money tree needs to bear more fruit. I'm blaming it on climate change or stupidity: (China and India are excused from Obama's "world greening effort". The worst polluters on the planet. All is good. If we could only fix the climate, no more terrorists.

 

I think there is a Toyota Prius Dealership in that picture somewhere. This pic is apparently not far from where they process the heavy metals used in the Prius batteries to help make it "green".

 

Update on my OME set up 4 months later. I'm very satisfied so far. Some people have mentioned a hard/stiff ride with the OME coil overs. I was fortunate that I live 30 minutes from ToyTec. I was able to drive up to their front door , literally. After the ToyTec guru's looked at my Tundra, it was determined that the best route to go was with the heavy duty coils for the 4.6L for the best ride. I had the Ranch Hand grille guard which was about 110 lbs plus the weight differential between the 5.7L & the 4.6L to compensate for. Both coil overs were $635 assembled +tax. I paid another $400+ for install which included alignment by @LOTSOFTOYS and Jace's acute knowledge, (there was a stripped bolt issue ). Turns out that ToyTec knows what they are doing. I am not experiencing any too stiff/soft issues with the OME's. I couldn't be any happier with the setup. I take my truck to some pretty fracked up places. (Be more than happy to show you.) The difference is amazing compared to the TRD coil overs that I upgraded via Sean. I do know that the OME shocks are unique in the sense that they are 3 stage valved. Not as good as rebuildable remote reservoir shocks of course. If you are on a budget and want a decent upgrade without paying up the nose, the OME's are very decent mid-range value with proper setup. The OME setup is not a bad way to go. IMHO. The rear OME NitroChargers have also made a difference over the rear TRD Bilsteins by far. I may consider a remote reservoir setup for the rear at some point. I might want to mention that the new ToyTec Boss rear shocks were available at the time I purchased my OME rears. ToyTec still recommended me to go with the matching rear OME's. Price was not a factor since the OME rears cost the same as the new Boss rear shocks. I also mentioned that at some point I wanted to upgrade my rear springs. "Should I go with Deavers or ARB Dakars?" Once again the ToyTec guys said to go with the Dakars, only because the Dakars would truly complement what I already have. I will do the Dakar spring upgrade and at the same time get the SPC uca's to finish everything off this spring. Jace will do that too.

 

Once you get the Dakars and ucas, your truck will be set up

 

Everything will come from ToyTec. Dakars are about $530 and if I remember right the SPC's are about $550. I'll push for a 10% discount from ToyTec since I build them up a lot here, for good reason. (Oh, and Stevenson West T.Com discount , heh heh)

 

Was 60 degrees today so I decided to detail my Tundra, mainly to get rid of the Mag Chloride (MgCl2) that is used here to de-ice roads. Mag Chloride is not near as bad as salt (NaCl). Both are halides and very soluble in water. MgCl2 is not near as bad as salt but you still need to get it off your truck asap before corrosion kicks in. I wanted to point out some issues that I have with my Weather Tech liners. I forgot to take before pics but I'll try to explain my miss-givings with them.

As you can see, WTechs are designed to drain off any excess liquid out the door sill which is fine if it is just water. If you happen to live in cold climates were salt/MgCl2 is used, it can easily be brought in by your shoes/boots. This "could" be problematic over time. (As in eating away metal.) I'm not sure how long the WTechs have been in my truck but looked brand new when I bought my Tundra a year and a half ago. I wish I would have taken a before pic before I cleaned the crud off. You couldn't see "Tundra" on the door sill protectors with the white crusty MgCl2 that had built up over only a week or so with the "melt off".
This shot was taken after I wiped a bunch of crud off that had drained off the liners. Was actually pretty nasty looking. I just happened to take a gander at this area and realized that this could be an issue, especially if you never look there. Salt could easily corrode the metal over time. That's why I prefer a floor mat that traps liquid over a "liner" that doesn't. IMHO. The excess actually drains all the way out over the door sill and down below onto the side of the truck and onto my steps. This is only an observation. May not be a big deal for most of you but is to me. My Tundra was well taken care of before I got it and I intend to do the same thing.

Today was the "I hate chrome day"
Came out good. Not bad for an 07. Did an overall look around and found no leaks. Valve covers, oil pan, transmission pan, water pump seals good to go. Nothing abnormal underneath either.

 

I forgot about the scuff plates. Good point.

 

Picked up a pair nifty magnetic leds at Walmart this morning for $4.97. The magnets appear to be strong enough and they came with lithium batteries. I suppose if you are a real cheap skate you could buy several pairs and do a poor mans light (lite) bar. Oh, wait..... Rock lights too!!!! :

 

matluth, you're costing me a fortune. Great idea on the under-hood lights. I'm all over that.

 

Update: Pics of my aftermarket installer with almost 1year (on Feb 23) of experience and a convenient place to store the lights until you need them:

 

Super Bowl is starting with the USMC/NAVY F-18 Super Hornets Blue Angel fly by. All is good!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OOOOOOOOOOOHHHHH Rah!!!!!!!!! #1 Offense Vs #1 Defense : 9-2 for the #1Defense in the
Super Bowl. Not too late to change your bet. Go Bronks!!! (Cam won't be easy to stop. If Bronks can't stop him ???????????

 

Figures that Toyota's Super Bowl commercial is a Prius with dudes and they stop at an organic market. WTF?

 

They should've done one with the Tacoma and Tundra. It didn't seem like there were many good SB commercials this year, or at least none that touched the "God Made a Farmer" commercial from a few years ago.

 

monkeypuppybaby. sheesh At least Lady Gagme nailed the national anthem. That performance by her was not bad at all.

 

Nice. Do you happen to have any brand or model info for those? I looked on Walmart's site and could not find anything similar.

 

You know, I tossed out the blister pack they came in. I'll stop by Walmart after work tomorrow and pick a a couple more pairs and post a pic for you.

 

Awesome. I spent a ridiculous amount of time trying to find something comparable.