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Thread: Corax's '88 Runner

  1. #41

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    I like driving fast on dirt roads. The occasional gasp from my wife when I kick the rear end loose is like music to my ears. But with the fiberglass fenders (and no fender liner) I get tired of hearing all the rocks dinging off my doors and rocker panels (this old steel doesn't need help with chips and rust). Since I started winter driving this truck again, I also got tired pretty quickly of slush freezing my door seals. So after 5 years of fiberglass fenders it was time to finally make some front mudflaps that extend into the wheel well to protect the door seals and rockers.

    After I made a pattern with some cardboard, I picked up a single huge $15 mudflap from a truck stop. This thing nearly extended from one side in the cargo area to the other and is big enough for both guards with plenty to spare.


    I traced out the pattern and made sure it fit properly. Then I flipped the pattern and repeated for the other side, keeping the thicker edge towards the outside. Note how it will extend pretty far up into the wheel well to protect the door from anything coming off the tires.


    There's a flat surface in the fender well, that if you laid a straight edge on, lines up nicely with the edge of the fender (so without bending, the mudflap will "snug up" to the fender edge). I traced this area out as well as where I wanted the bottom 2 bolts attached, and used my trusty Harbor Freight hole punch to make some screw holes.


    Then I pushed the mudflap into place and traced the holes to be drilled for my NutSerts ($15 tool from HF). Here are the nutserts installed after drilling the appropriate sized holes. I painted the edges before install and put a tiny dab of black RTV to seal things up before expanding the nutsert. These install like a pop-rivet, but allow me to use machine screws to bolt the mudflaps in place.
    *NOTE* if you use nutserts be sure the nutsert fits snugly into the hole before expanding it, don't drill the hole bigger than you have to

    another view - in this one you can barely see the inner bottom nutsert on the other side of the body seam, this was a factory hole and fit a 1/4" nutsert perfectly


    a few stainless steel machine screws later and I'm done. With any luck, no more frozen doors and cleaner rocker panels are in my future. I still have to put a small screw eye in the bottom to pull it back and away from the tire a bit (think rally-style), but that's for another day.



    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  2. #42

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    I finally got tired or putting grease on the front steering stops every other month and picked up a set of these steering stop caps off of ebay.
    Total was ~$25 with shipping, but now I can forget about ever having to worry about that damn noise from the front with the wheel at full lock.

    This is what I got a few days after placing my order:


    It even had instructions on the inside of the flap


    install took ~5 minutes with a few gentle taps of a hammer, these are NOT going to come off on their own


    *note* the kit says it's for '89-95, but all IFS 4WD Toyotas from '86-'95 should be able to use these, mine is an '88
    If you own a 1989 through 1995 Toyota 4x4 pickup (...and maybe even a 2-wheel drive, please check picture above to confirm you have the same style of suspension) or ‘89-95 Toyota 4Runner, or any model of T-100 pickup, you probably have heard the metal on metal creeking noise when you have turned the wheel all the way to one side to the other. This is probably because the cheap plastic bushings on the steering stops are weak flimsy plastic and have worn or broken off and now you have metal on metal rubbing (the metal on metal grinding sound is god-awful).... So I bought four stock new ones from the Toyota dealership (at the time they were ~$4 each for a total of $16... Now they are $7.64 each at the Pueblo Dealership) only to have them break off/wear through within less than a month! So I decided to make my own…I have had a set on my pickup for about 3-4 years now and no more creaking!

    To install:

    1) I recommend that you grind down or smooth out any rough edges on the curved metal surface (car side) that the steering stop bolt (wheel side) comes in contact with (this will help prolong the life of any plastic steering stop). If it is smooth, don't worry about this step. Remove any or all of the old plastic bushing on the steering stop bolt.

    2) Secondly, turn the steering wheel all the way to the left and install the stop on the Front-Left and Rear-Right bolt. Use more medium hammer strokes rather than fewer heavy strokes. The stops have a recessed area (unlike OEM parts) to lock the stop in place. Then turn the wheel all the way to the right and install the stop on the Front-Right and Rear-Left bolt

    NOTE: Because these stops are slightly larger than stock they might increase the turning radius slightly... but not too much. OEM is about 1/16" thick, these are about 1/4" thick. Compare this to the gap distance between the stop and metal plate...it is negligiable.

    Also NOTE: If you do happen to wear through the stop, simply take some pliers and rotate the stop to a new, non-worn area, on all four bolts.
    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  3. #43

    rear deck light and switches

    Awhile ago I did the 4crawler Deck Light mod so that the rear cargo lights can be used without the parking lights being on. I also previously used 2 single sections of flexible LED ribbon to light up the cargo area as the original light which never was very useful.

    So now I wanted to consolidate the controls and add a rear "patio" light to illuminate the area immediately behind the 4runner. I didn't want a huge bright light since I like to stay as dim and low key as possible while camping, and a dimmer light won't kill my night vision as much. Besides, if I want to light up a big area I can just turn on the reverse lights. I also wanted the switches up higher, out of sight and easy to find in the dark so I don't have to fumble around as much to find them if I'm sleeping in the back.

    Here's one of the Deck Lights that I installed awhile ago


    I was using the factory deck light switch in the rear for awhile, but things tend to get piled up and block its access. This is how I'm going to wire it using a SPDT switch


    I build a switch panel using some spare aluminum sheet that I had laying around. After measuring and drilling the panel I traced it onto the rear fiberglass shell so I knew what I had to cut. I made sure there was a decent size lip for the panel to sit against.


    The panel with switches installed - the switch guards are just $.75 double nutted J-hooks that I found at some big box home improvement store.


    I fished all the wiring I needed up through the "D" pillar along with 3 extra 14 gauge wires for future use. Since I don't need the illumination for the PW switch, the connector had 2 extra spots in it that I was able to use for the deck lights. Every wire is running through a connector so the shell can be taken off later without having to figure how to hook up a bunch of single unmarked wires. Here's the PW connector before I connected the wires:


    The toggle switches I got use a screw through an eyelet on the end of the wire so nothing should ever come disconnected. I ran power for the patio light from the "common" pole of the SPDT switch through another toggle - the patio light can never be on just by itself, the deck lights have to be on. Here you can see the cheap riced out LED driving light that I decided to use, it should light up the tailgate area perfectly and is mounted up in the rear spoiler.


    switch panel installed

    and the layout
    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  4. #44

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    I don't claim to have figured this one out on my own, I heard about from a guy that did this on his lifted, long travel early 80's Celica. I haven't, however, seen anyone else write it up so it's worth a few minutes to spread the word about a $20 polyurethane engine mount. It's an Energy Suspension GM transmission mount, part number 3.1108 (R or G for red or black). Before I ordered one I measured the stock 22RE engine mount and found it nearly identical. While I don't have a 22RE in my truck anymore I did reuse the 22RE mounts, so this will work on any 22R or 22RE. This might also work for other applications, so hear are the measurements so you can see if it will fit.


    Note the interlock that will prevent the mount from pulling completely apart if the polyurethane fails. Only the center hole is needed and the supplied bolt is just about the same size as the stud on the factory rubber mount.


    Installation is pretty simple, here's the package I got in the mail. It should be noted that there's a flat piece of anodized metal with 2 holes that comes with it, this needs to go under the mount to line everything up a bit better and provides some kind of preload to the bushing.


    I only replaced the driver side mount since this is the one that's under tension, and most likely to tear, when driving forward. 2 bolts (14mm wrench) to the mount pad and 1 nut (17mm) on the engine bracket is all that's holding the old one in. Of course, the engine has to be jacked up a bit to get the old one out, but the new one goes in much easier since there's no stud that has to go through the engine bracket. Also, I heard that the corners of the mount ears might have to be filed down to sit on the factory pad, but I didn't have to file anything to get all the holes to line up. The bolt for the center hole of the engine bracket comes with the Energy Suspension piece along with the appropriate lock and flat washer. If you want, you can use the stock metal cover over top of the mount, but polyurethane is oil and gas resistant so it's not necessary.



    I took if for a drive and didn't notice any engine vibrations from the stiffer mount, but then again my inline 6 is a pretty smooth running engine.
    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  5. #45

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    I was bored and reading build threads the other day when I stumbled across these pics of a bar across the rear side windows. I sent the truck's owner a PM asking about them and this was his reply:
    Quote Originally Posted by DunnaRunner
    The bar is actually a Toyota part, it was mainly in the Surf's of that time, they are held in place with a screw at each end, and where your hook inside between the rear window and the sliding window, remove that hook, and that is the forward mount, and where the screw goes into the rear section the is a small hole already in the canopy. That is the rear mount for this bar. It is a very sturdy mount believe it or not. Where Toyota have put the screws it is very strong, I have used it for carrying ropes and hanging clothes on trips and even used it to hang camping lights. The heaviest thing that has been tied to them is a 25ltr jerry can for drinking water. I tied the handles of the jerry can to the rails to stop them from falling over when we went camping a few times, and they have never pulled out yet.
    So cool, I can make something like that and gain a little bit of utility in the process. Take off the front coat hanger thing, whatever this is . . .

    . . . and pull the tiny little plug out for the rear screw with a flat blade screwdriver (I never even noticed this before)


    I bought some 1/2" conduit, cut two 31" lengths and hammered the ends flat on a piece of concrete with my ball peen hammer. 3/4" conduit will be too wide to fit between the raised lip in the front mount, so stick with 1/2."

    Make sure the flat sections at the end are on the same plane, not that one flat is twisted a bit from the other or they won't sit flush against the mounting surface - a pair of channel lock pliers can twist them back into alignment if needed. I also had to mark and clearance the tube a little bit for the front of the window frame (behind the roll bar).


    The mounting holes on my 4runner are 30.25" apart, so holes were drilled in the appropriate spots. A bit of Rustoleum Hammered paint and they were mounted. The front screw is #10 x 1/2" long, I used the screw that was originally up front in the rear hole.

    I added another bar to the top of both rear side windows using (2) #10x1/2" screws at each end. They're surprisingly sturdy and I don't expect 'em to ever pull out - I can rock the truck on its suspension by pushing/pulling on these without any movement from them.



    The reason for the top bar is so I can mount a piece wire closet shelf between the two to attach MOLLE/PALS bags. As long as the wires are 1" center-to-center these bags will attach easily and securely.


    Finished product with the thick vertical wires bent over for mounting. I temporarily mounted it with wire ties, but it seems secure enough as is. If it comes loose, hose clamps would be the simple solution.


    I may try to find some wire shelf with thicker horizontal wires or more verticals. The wires on the long span bend a bit easily, although the MOLLE/PALS gear, when properly strung up, will distribute the weight to each wire its attached to. The other problem has to do with stringing up the MOLLE/PALS gear with the wire shelf install on the shell - there's not really enough room to work. I think if I can find thicker gauge shelf, I might break out the welder and make the piece bolt on so the gear bags can be strung up and then the panel bolted on.
    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  6. #46

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    Got a few more minor projects finished lately. I installed dual power outlets in the back - these are fed by 10 gauge wire from the battery and are "constant hot"


    I also moved the grab handle from the driver rear to the driver front and put my Mag-Lite where the grab handle used to be (another 4Crawler inspired mod). One of the original grab handle screw holes were used on each clip with a hole drilled for the 2nd hole - I've hit bumps at speed that put my spine through the top of my head and the light stayed in place so I'm not worried about it coming loose very easily.


    While I was back there I finally mounted my extinguisher to the roll bar. 2" u-bolts kept me from having to drill through the bar and will keep the extinguisher from ever coming loose on its own.


    When I replaced the transmission a few weeks ago I broke both sway-bar end links. I can tell the difference in cornering and without them there's a lot more tire squeal. Since this is my DD and I like to drive fast whenever I can, Energy Suspension 9.8118 end links are the same size and work perfectly.


    I realized at the Oregon Trail Rally that it'd be nice to have my comm's speaker up high instead of in front of the center console. A short length of 1" aluminum angle and a few minutes with my Dremel gave me the solution. I'll probably end up buying another speaker and having one side for the CB and one side for the Ham radio - the sound is much better with them up there.

    The piece of angle is just sandwiched between the rearview and the roof
    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  7. #47

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    I'm not a "big stereo" person and see no need for the people next to me to hear what I'm listening to, but with the rear storage box and everything crammed in on the sides, the rear speakers were getting pretty muffled. I was just about to start in on building a thin plywood speaker box to sandwich the rear roll bar and move the speakers higher when I decided to (gasp) SEARCH, and found a thread on another forum that gave me some ideas. So instead of the plywood, I decided to hit up my favorite big box store for some plumbing supplies. This is what I'm going to build off of - it's a 6" floor drain grate. The inner diameter is 5 3/8" and the outer flange diameter is 6 3/4" so a 6.5" speaker should fit perfect.


    grill cut out and ready for a speaker


    All of the mounts are some form of 90 degree bracket. The rear and front bottom use one side of a 2" u-bolt to attach to the roll bar. The upper front uses the back side of the upper shoulder belt attachment. The speaker magnet is flush with the end of the 6" drain grate. Because there's not much room behind that and the trim, I'm leaving it as a "free air" speaker. The marine speakers I picked up have 2 sets of mounting holes, 1 set is on a smaller diameter than the other and this set matched the pipe wall itself. So I carefully predrilled the mounting holes and ran the 1.5" screws down the pipe wall (no sharp screw tips sticking out).








    there's less than 1/8" between the hi-lift and the speaker grill, but it fits


    The rear's sound better but not quite as loud as before since they're just running off the head unit. So now I'm wondering if I should have pulled the mini-amplifiers off of the original speakers and connected them to the new speakers. BTW, the head unit is pushing 52W max to these speakers (speakers rated @ 30W nominal, 160W max)
    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  8. #48

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    I figure it was time for a new project and with some of the organizations I'm trying to get involved with a winch bumper is in order. I modeled the base of it off Robinhood4x4's bumper build - I really dig his multi-mount functionality. That takes care of the center part / winch mount, I still had to decide on what I want to do with the wings. Excuse the poor google Sketch Up renderings, but this is what I started with in my mind. I could have easily built another tube bumper, something like this

    and mocked up to a 2nd gen pickup since I couldn't find a pre-made 4runner model (ignore the factory bumper)


    Or I was thinking of making a tube bumper and then fiberglassing between the tubes to make front storage compartments. The finished product would look something like this, the lateral lines off the center section would be tube - the 2 lowest tubes being 1.5" and the 2 upper ones just 1"

    I couldn't get the planes to fill in on the bumper quite right, but hopefully this'll give some kind of idea what it'd look like covered


    I decided against the front storage idea partly because I started to realize the compartments would be small and difficult to seal - I could see the PNW turning them into a mold & mildew experiment.

    This is where I started. I picked up a 1/4 plate remnant and made the center part of the bumper. Here it is all laid out and ready to get cut


    After a few hours with the Sawzall, grinder and HF Welder (just to tack it together). I took it to work and use their welder to burn the final welds in - every gusset and plate is welded on both sides. I also added the center gussets once the receiver box was fully welded in. I'll also add mounting bolts in the center of the crossmember (which is already reinforced with Front Range Offroad's 1/4" plate frame brace
    )

    Here's the center section all finished up. I decided to angle the inner gussets to help with any side loads I might generate. Luckily, the receiver cradle only tightened up about 1/32" after I was done welding so there was minimal grinding needed to get the receiver tube to slide in again.




    A little bit more progress. The main bars were bent and tacked into place well enough to transport it into work so I can finish weld them (and heat bend the far passenger side about 1" up to match the other side).


    BTW, I also figured out a simple solution for the "dimples" that my HF bender leaves in pipe. Here's an example from my old bumper - see the dimple just above the turn signal?


    The fix was simple - I got a threaded pipe nipple big enough to fit over the 1.5" sch 40, cut in in half length wise and placed between the pipe and rollers. Now when I'm bending, the pressure isn't localized and there are no more dimples


    One more project down and mostly finished - I still want to bend up some headlight guards out of 1" pipe, but that can wait awhile. The white paint is Rustoleum oil based white metal primer, after it dries for a few days it'll get a healthy coat of black oil based paint. And yes, I need to make a stop by Fastenal for some 12mm x 1.25 bolts to fill the other mounting holes.


    As with any project, it evolved and changed a bit while it was being put together. For example, once I get a winch, removal will have to be from the front - I don't think there's enough space between the top hoop and the grill to lift it straight up, so I had to change the top hoop a bit to make sure there was enough room to slide the winch forward.


    I also decided to attach the top hoop to the lower lateral tube instead of the main tube. This allowed me to lean it forward a bit more than if it was welded to the main tube.


    I didn't primer the lower half of the lateral tube because I need to heat it up to get the bolt holes at the bottom to line up again (welding the hoop onto the lower tube caused it to shift a little. BTW, like the parking light? That was just radiant heat from the tube when I heated it up to fine tune the bend. By the time I saw what was happening it was already too late.


    After a few months, I finally got around to bending up the headlight guards.


    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  9. #49

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    I finished it (more-or-less) about 10 months ago, which is why I'm just quoting the posts that I made elsewhere.

    I've been thinking about this project for a little while now. I just don't have anywhere to mount my Yaesu FT2800 2M Ham and I don't use 70cm enough to justify buying a new radio with a remote mount head yet - my eventual plan is to upgrade to an FT8900 or FT8800 which is slightly smaller and should fit the frame I'm building now. A few months ago I found this console on Dept of the Interior and that got the gears turning (BTW, their application list is HUGE - don't know if they export though)


    This is my starting point, wall shelf track cut and tacked to the profile of my headliner (excuse the poor stitch job on the panoramic). It's a structural shape and will be fine supporting the minimal loads I plan to use it for.


    The front mount is getting sandwiched between the rear view and the roof. The rear is where I had a problem. Pulling the interior light out and feeling around, I realized there is a metal channel at the back of the roof nearly 2.5" wide. This would suffice with the help of some RivNuts. So I measured and drilled holes . . .


    . . . before popping in a few 1/4" RivNuts. The ones I got from the local Grainger are Stainless and were a lot harder to put in place than the cheapie aluminum ones - I have no doubt they will not pull out of the sheet metal


    BTW, for cheap 2" wide x 1/8" thick (12ga) flat stock, check out the lumber tie straps at the big box home improvement stores - I got this 36" piece for less than $10


    I got it bolted up, but far from finished, today.
    Front sandwiched between the rearview and the roof:


    Rear needs some slight "fine-tuning" to get the rest of the bolts in + I'm going to run 2 scraps of channel back onto the plate for reinforcement:


    Overall, for now:
    I got the radio brackets made and welded on today. Amazingly enough, all the holes were in the correct spots and the radio bolted right up after it was tacked onto the frame (out of vehicle, NOT using my radio as a jig while welding). My head is still fairly far away from the radio, I would really have to try to smack my head against it. In an accident, as long as the seat belt locks like it should, I'll have plenty of room.

    I also drilled a bunch of other holes in the mounting bracket to adjust the angle of the radio. I plan on getting thumb screw type bolts so I just have to remove one from each side and move the radio to the angle I want - probably face it down a bit more if I'm expecting more use.



    For the trim so far I'm thinking of leaving the side of the radio completely exposed so I can get to the adjustment - just running an acute triangle from the very front of the frame to the above the radio face.

    I'm also not sure what else I want to mount up there, so suggestions are welcome. Probably a small "project box" with my lightbar switches. I'm thinking 2 low amp 12V power outlets piggybacked off the radio power circuit would be useful. I'd also like some map lights that I can aim (preferably something I can find at the Pick N Pull for cheap), maybe something like this


    or this from the older Fords
    [img width=800 height=600]http://www.allfordmustangs.com/forums/attachments/2-3l-talk/55257d1226600361-map-light-rarity-question-maplightfront.jpg[/img]
    I found a bit more inspiration on which direction I might take next, but I can't find any info on the company that built these. I kinda dig the fold-down compartment in the last pic.





    The frame is done, so the next step is to bridge the spaces with MDF and then fiberglass over it all. The big flat bits on the left are the radio mounts the short diagonal parts near there are the switch panel mounts. The trapezoid thing on the right is for light/soft/small object storage - it's getting MDF on the front, rear, and bottom with a bungee mesh on both sides.

    When it's upside down, it kinda looks like a big remote control car or mini rat-rod frame
    Using 1/8" MDF, I "sewed" panels onto the frame. Screws would have shown through the 'glass and I figured nylon thread will soak up the resin and not show on the final product. Since the switch panel comes right to the top of the radio face, I decided not to have the power outlets (for plug in gooseneck map lights, etc) in the panel itself - anything I plugged in would get in the way of the 2M radio. So I welded on 2 more small panels to side mount the power outlets.

    I still need to drill the holes for the shock cord mesh that will keep things in the small storage area and make a hole to recess my remote CB speaker, but otherwise I think it's finally ready for 'glass. From the switch panel forward (to the left in the pic) will probably just stay as painted metal while the rest will get covered in 'glass cloth - maybe just 3-4 layers and following the contour of the frame to give me recessed areas for future mounting options. So far, my total cost is less than $20 - I expect it might hit $30 after I buy some fiberglass cloth & resin

    I think my problem was that I was trying to use pieces of cloth that were too big - if you've ever played with fiberglass cloth you know how easily small piece fray and come apart. That, and years ago I got some sage advice from a trusted body guy, "At some point you gotta stop *%&#ing with it or you'll just make it worse." So I used a razor to cut off the parts that didn't stick to the frame and laid down strips of cloth over the bare parts. The cloth and resin stuck to the MDF boards just fine. It still wasn't adhering to the metal quite how I wanted, so I put a piece of tissue over the cloth and set a piece of wood on top to hold it down. The tissue will soak up some of the resin, but should be easy enough to tear or lightly sand off once dry. A friend also told me that doing this outside (~50 degrees, no work shop) probably didn't help much.

    Anyway, I got the frame all covered and somewhat finished - I'm going to live with it for a few weeks before I string up the shock cord. This isn't going to be the final color - it's just some cheap paint I threw on to see how wavy the fiberglass really is - final color is going to be a flat or matte grey like my dash. If I had it to do over, it would be much easier to fiberglass, and the results would be prettier, with mdf on both sides of the metal frame.


    So here's "good enough for now" - eventually I'll drill the holes to zig zag some shock cord across the small storage area. The plate above my Yaesu still needs to be drilled for the lightbar switches, and you can see the power outlets that I might use for goose-neck map lights on either side.




    I also have this in mind to keep the mic cord from swinging around. I already tested it out just haven't mounted it, when I pull on the mic the cord falls right out of the holder. If you need to know where I got this little plastic gem . . . it's a piece that has to be removed from an ES300 window regulator before install (holds a wire spool in place).
    finished and mounted the switch plate. The red LED toggle powers the light bar switches - that way I have some kind of visual letting me know I may have flashing lights on my roof. The 2 top toggles are the white take-down and alley lights. Yellow cap is the amber rotators, red is amber/red front and rear flashers and the green cap is for the stage closing green rotators.

    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

  10. #50

    Re: Corax's '88 Runner

    Cadillac 4 note horn install to replace the weak factory horn. If you've never heard the Caddy horns check this link out (kinda sounds like a train):
    It's a Truck, It's a Train, It's a Cadillac Eldorado! 1985 Biarritz

    I picked up a set at the local Pick-N-Pull from a Buick Park Avenue that had all 4 notes - A, C, D and F notes are marked on the horn by the opening - and can say they are definitely larger and louder than the stock ones.


    Here they are mounted, they barely fit behind the grill - to mount them I just used a bolt through one of the holes in the bracket and cut the excess bracket off. I have them wired with a 20 amp fuse on a relay (blew the 10amp fuse I used originally). Another indication of how powerful these are: when I first tested them my wrenches vibrated right off the radiator support

    Keith '88 4runner SR5 Garage Thread

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