brianjwilson
Some sort of lost...
Just as I figured, I'll be working on the dates for the NW overland rally.
Another Tacoma Build (Brian's 2015 DCLB)
- Thread starter brianjwilson
- Start date
DVexile
Adventurer
Once you've got them on and have had some time to try them out I'm really, really, really interested in how effective you find the clickers on the ICONs.
Keep up the great build! I was dead for two years after our daughter was born, impressed you can do anything at all right now!
Keep up the great build! I was dead for two years after our daughter was born, impressed you can do anything at all right now!
brianjwilson
Some sort of lost...
Hah! Like I said I get VERY little done lately.
I finally installed them this evening, after an exhausting day with my daughter. It was a little bit of a process because the lower shock mounts had to be ground down a bit. The rod end is slightly too big. Had to dig around and find my angle grinder and paint.
Somehow I nailed the shock length, even though I ordered before I had springs or bump stops or anything.
I had the use a bottle jack to push the axle down about 1/4" to get the lower bolt in the shock. There shouldn't be any danger of over extending the shock. No spacers required on the superbumps, they would have to compress to 3/4" for the shock to bottom out. Best of all, at unloaded ride height there is 5.25" of shaft showing, of the 10.3" of travel. Right in the middle of the stroke.
The wheelers brake lines are a little tight at full droop. I shoved about 3/8" of washers under the axle brake line bracket and tweaked the bracket to point up slightly. I may get a longer bolt and move the bracket up an inch just to be safe.
Gained a bit of droop!
Here is a picture of the taller timbrens that I'll use with the camper, with the spring compressed to ride height. There is about 1" of travel before the timbren touches the frame, and these are supposed to compress 3-1/8".
Hopefully I get a chance to play soon. They rode fine on the way to the grocery store! haha
I finally installed them this evening, after an exhausting day with my daughter. It was a little bit of a process because the lower shock mounts had to be ground down a bit. The rod end is slightly too big. Had to dig around and find my angle grinder and paint.
Somehow I nailed the shock length, even though I ordered before I had springs or bump stops or anything.
I had the use a bottle jack to push the axle down about 1/4" to get the lower bolt in the shock. There shouldn't be any danger of over extending the shock. No spacers required on the superbumps, they would have to compress to 3/4" for the shock to bottom out. Best of all, at unloaded ride height there is 5.25" of shaft showing, of the 10.3" of travel. Right in the middle of the stroke.
The wheelers brake lines are a little tight at full droop. I shoved about 3/8" of washers under the axle brake line bracket and tweaked the bracket to point up slightly. I may get a longer bolt and move the bracket up an inch just to be safe.
Gained a bit of droop!
Here is a picture of the taller timbrens that I'll use with the camper, with the spring compressed to ride height. There is about 1" of travel before the timbren touches the frame, and these are supposed to compress 3-1/8".
Hopefully I get a chance to play soon. They rode fine on the way to the grocery store! haha
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Adventurous
Explorer
Totally drool worthy. Looks awesome!
Super Doody
Explorer
Nice rig!! I went through a similar vehicle journey due to the birth of my daughter. My taco wasn't as nice as your jeep thought but it was nicely built and fun drive. I now have a dcab tundra and FWC Hawk with side dinette.
brianjwilson
Some sort of lost...
I figured I'd update again. Unfortunately not much new though. Between my daughter's birthday, my birthday, wife's birthday, Mother's Day, a bunch of house projects, and a sick baby every day during the week, I didn't get to do anything with the truck in my 12 days home.
I tried to get out to the sand dunes and it just didn't happen. However I have felt what seemed like the rear bottoming out (not hard) a few times but with no contact on the rear super bumps. I believe the large upper overload is prevent further travel.
Since I have all pro heavy duty sliders on the way and will be running two batteries behind the back seat, I think I will install the OME add a leaf and remove the upper overload. I don't really want the higher spring rate but with the added weight it should be ok anyway. And with the upper overload removed I should be able to compress the spring pack more. I also need to install front brake lines, make a ton of battery cables, order batteries and Blue sea ACR, paint and install sliders, extend breather tubes etc. Hopefully I can find some free time when I'm home next month!
I tried to get out to the sand dunes and it just didn't happen. However I have felt what seemed like the rear bottoming out (not hard) a few times but with no contact on the rear super bumps. I believe the large upper overload is prevent further travel.
Since I have all pro heavy duty sliders on the way and will be running two batteries behind the back seat, I think I will install the OME add a leaf and remove the upper overload. I don't really want the higher spring rate but with the added weight it should be ok anyway. And with the upper overload removed I should be able to compress the spring pack more. I also need to install front brake lines, make a ton of battery cables, order batteries and Blue sea ACR, paint and install sliders, extend breather tubes etc. Hopefully I can find some free time when I'm home next month!
darkjedi351
Observer
what's the part number for your rear icon shocks?
brianjwilson
Some sort of lost...
The part number in my emails from wheelers off road is 57806CP, measuring 15.85" x 26.18". Verify that first! It looks like it's a variant of the 2.5" shock for a 6" lift. I don't know what the letters at the end represent. But they did say it was an existing part number so it wasn't a custom shock, just custom valving. Brad at Icon helped me come up with the part number, as wheelers off road initially requested a custom length ($$$).
I did have to grind the lower shock mounts out just a touch, fyi. May be typical with the larger rod ends.
brianjwilson
Some sort of lost...
I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to find time to work on the next round of stuff...
Adventurous
Explorer
I've heard of a dual battery system, but not a triple battery system. Whatcha got up your sleeve?
brianjwilson
Some sort of lost...
Trying to make my truck even slower!
Two batteries will be for the camper, isolated from the starter battery with the blue sea ACR. I'm going to mount them in the truck, rather than the very back of the camper on the driver's side. Better weight distribution, shorter wire run from the alternator for better bulk charge, etc. With the kid's car seat it is really a pain to access the storage behind the seat anyway, so I'll be stuffing them after seeing Cam-shaft's solution (he built the tray for me and sourced most of the parts). It also frees up some valuable and easily accessible storage in the camper.
I still need to source misc hardware, additional small wiring and terminals and some other odds and ends. As well as install the OME add a leafs and remove the top overload. I have a feeling I'll be wishing for 700lb coils up front after I get everything together too. Oops
Two batteries will be for the camper, isolated from the starter battery with the blue sea ACR. I'm going to mount them in the truck, rather than the very back of the camper on the driver's side. Better weight distribution, shorter wire run from the alternator for better bulk charge, etc. With the kid's car seat it is really a pain to access the storage behind the seat anyway, so I'll be stuffing them after seeing Cam-shaft's solution (he built the tray for me and sourced most of the parts). It also frees up some valuable and easily accessible storage in the camper.
I still need to source misc hardware, additional small wiring and terminals and some other odds and ends. As well as install the OME add a leafs and remove the top overload. I have a feeling I'll be wishing for 700lb coils up front after I get everything together too. Oops
brianjwilson
Some sort of lost...
I managed to get a couple things done this weekend, not as productive as I hoped but at least I got some things done!
After some time with scotch brite and acetone.
Rustoleum primer
Rustoleum semi gloss black
Seems I got lucky with the warm weather. First paint project I've done where I didn't have drips. But I underestimated the mess I could make with 7 cans. Anyway, out to cure this morning and make room for the next project.
I disassembled the OME leaf springs. The large upper overload wasn't allowing the last 3" of compression in the shocks. On large fast bumps I could feel the overload make contact and the superbump never touched the frame. So I removed the upper overload, and added the OME add a leaf. Overall height seems just slightly taller. I expect it to settle some, and sit lower once the sliders and extra batteries are installed.
Before
After
Hopefully this allows me to get a couple more inches of compression to the shock.
After some time with scotch brite and acetone.
Rustoleum primer
Rustoleum semi gloss black
Seems I got lucky with the warm weather. First paint project I've done where I didn't have drips. But I underestimated the mess I could make with 7 cans. Anyway, out to cure this morning and make room for the next project.
I disassembled the OME leaf springs. The large upper overload wasn't allowing the last 3" of compression in the shocks. On large fast bumps I could feel the overload make contact and the superbump never touched the frame. So I removed the upper overload, and added the OME add a leaf. Overall height seems just slightly taller. I expect it to settle some, and sit lower once the sliders and extra batteries are installed.
Before
After
Hopefully this allows me to get a couple more inches of compression to the shock.
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Thanks for the write-up Brian, I've been following it since day one. I'm an old Toyota 4x4 truck guy (started my obsession in the 80's before Toyota named their trucks :sombrero
and now I'm looking to get back into it. A Tacoma is a logical choice and with the type of stuff we'd like to do, a DCLB makes the most sense. Great job so far! Can't wait to see what's next.
What type of camper? We are thinking a FWC (Fleet) which is why I wanted the long bed. For our uses, the truck will be our "car" so the back seat of the DC is a necessity. All of my wheeling trucks so far have had relatively short wheelbases so I'm a bit hesitant to get such a long truck. But, we aren't running the Rubicon anymore so I guess my worry is for nothing. Keep the updates coming!
and now I'm looking to get back into it. A Tacoma is a logical choice and with the type of stuff we'd like to do, a DCLB makes the most sense. Great job so far! Can't wait to see what's next. What type of camper? We are thinking a FWC (Fleet) which is why I wanted the long bed. For our uses, the truck will be our "car" so the back seat of the DC is a necessity. All of my wheeling trucks so far have had relatively short wheelbases so I'm a bit hesitant to get such a long truck. But, we aren't running the Rubicon anymore so I guess my worry is for nothing. Keep the updates coming!
brianjwilson
Some sort of lost...
Thanks for the write-up Brian, I've been following it since day one. I'm an old Toyota 4x4 truck guy (started my obsession in the 80's before Toyota named their trucks :sombrero
What type of camper? We are thinking a FWC (Fleet) which is why I wanted the long bed. For our uses, the truck will be our "car" so the back seat of the DC is a necessity. All of my wheeling trucks so far have had relatively short wheelbases so I'm a bit hesitant to get such a long truck. But, we aren't running the Rubicon anymore so I guess my worry is for nothing. Keep the updates coming!
Thanks. I'm (impatiently) waiting for a FWC fleet that I ordered in the beginning of March. I need the rear seat for my daughter, and the truck is my daily driver when I'm home (about 40% of the time). We'll see how the long wheel base works out, I don't think it is too bad so far.