slow, budget built '89 toyota pickup expedition rig

[xlcaferacer]

Have to ask, how are those 33x10.5s on your stock gearing? Tolerable?

I don't have the stock gearing anymore, I re-geared from 4.10 to 4.88 in the axles. This put me back to about where it was with stock gearing and stock sized tires. I have run this size on a stock geared truck in the past and it was tolerable in the flats but once you hit the hills and mountains 5th and 4th gear were not even options.

 

[xlcaferacer]

Quick up date of where I am at and what will happen with the truck in the near future. I bought a Trail-Gear 4.7 transfer case gear set from a fellow forum member. I also bought a used transmission and transfer case so that I could have everything built and ready to go when I swap transmissions. The problem I ran into was that the forward shift tranny and transfer case were from two different trucks and there were two different length shift rails used throughout the years. I did not know this. Of course my tranny and transfer case did not work together. I now needed new shift rails. I contacted a few Toyota wrecking yards about new/used shift rails and nobody got back to me, so I went with the new/better option: a Trail-Gear twin stick setup. With this kit I will have to cut into the floor board and open up the shifter hole about 4 1/2 inches to the rear but I will have the capability of running low range 2wheel drive. If you have ever driven a 4-cylinder Toyota you know how this can be a valuable thing. So up to this point; I rebuilt the transfer case using the new gears and now I get to pull it back apart in order to fit the twin stick set up. I also just ordered Trail-Gear's winch mount set up so that I can build a new front bumper. I am going to the 2015 FJ Summit in Ouray, CO in July so I better get cracking on getting these repairs and modifications done. I also just picked up a Coleman pull behind pop-up camper to replace the Wildernest. It is definitely not off-road capable but I did do a spring over conversion on it so that it rides somewhat level with the truck and can now at least go down dirt roads without dragging.
I will post again in a few weeks when the tranny and t-case are in the truck. Until then this is where I am at:
New T-case gears:

Twin stick:

Built T-case before Twin Stick conversion:

And my new to me 1991 dirt road worthy Coleman pop-up after the spring over suspension mods and the truck with my new/old topper that cost me a case of beer from my neighbor:

I will post again when I get the time to install my new stuff.

 

[OSV]

i have the tg twin stick setup, on a forward shift gearbox, i think that i had to pull a pin inside the case, in order to separate the stick functionality? tg instructions should cover it.

more on twin sticks, dual cases, gearing, etc., from bigmike at marlincrawler: http://www.yotatech.com/f116/v6-transmission-transfer-case-231669/

 

[lumpskie]

^That sounds reasonable. I'm running an Inchworm dual t-case setup on a Tacoma and I had to remove a ball detent to get independent functionality.

 

[djtc]

Glad to see the gears will be used! Enjoy!

 

[xlcaferacer]

Thanks again djtc for the deal on the gears. My wife is out of town next weekend so I will actually get some garage time and finally give the truck some love.

 

[xlcaferacer]

I used my time wisely while Wifey was out of town. I tore my t-case back apart and installed my twin stick setup. Since I had to convert my transmission from a forward shift style to a top shift style in order to run a twin stick I had to do a little floorboard modification. After everything was said and done I got it installed with my used transmission.
Haven't driven far but I can already see that the new low range gearing is going to be awesome! I can now walk faster than my truck!
In stock gearing my truck came from the factory with a crawl ratio (low range 4wheel drive) of about 37:1.
With my axle re-gear and stock gearing in the t -case my low range ratio was about 44:1. This worked O.K. on easy trails but with a 4-cylinder motor and 33's I needed deeper gearing on tougher trails to keep my truck in its peak torque output. To do this I needed a lower gear option.
With my axle re-gear and now the 4.7 transfer case gears my crawl ratio jumped up to about 90:1. This just doubled my low range gearing and gives me way more torque when needed.
I don't ever plan on getting rid of my simple to work on, gutless yet bulletproof 22RE 4cylinder because for me reliability is what matters. Besides, I don't mind going slow on the highway. I still average 17-20 mpg and I really get to take in the scenery.
The new gears will give me more usable power on the trail. I may now have to shift into high range more often or run down the trail in low range 3rd or 4th gear but the new found powerband excites me.
As an added bonus, with the twin stick I can now run in low-range 2wheel drive. This means that I can save my somewhat fragile ifs front end until I need it.

 

[xlcaferacer]

I know everyone like pics: even though they are not much, Here you go:
New clutch:

Before new hole for T-case shifters is cut:

After new hole:

Tranny, T-case, and shifters installed. Now I need to figure out how to cover up all the holes in the floor of the truck. Anyone that has done a forward shift to top shift tranny/t-case conversion please give me ideas.

Keep in mind that it has been at least 6 years since I have dropped a tranny and done a clutch. I am by no means an expert. I have a tiny single car garage that doesn't even allow me to pull my truck in all the way if I want to work on it, never the less open the truck doors all the way on both sides. I have been a ski lift mechanic in the past and am a pretty mechanically inclined individual, but new projects are new projects. If you don't do it every day it is going to be a learning experience. The fun of doing a project is in the learning of how things work. Most people on forums that give advice come across as somebody that knows everything about everything. I don't! I am not afraid to admit that.

On the same note, I feel that a lot of the mechanics out there today figure out things as they go, especially the new guys. There is nothing wrong with that, as you have to learn about stuff somewhere. But if you have some tools and some time wouldn't you rather learn about how your truck works and do the work yourself?

I live in a small town and when I met my wife (then girlfriend) she took her car in for repairs. I ended up re-fixing half of the stuff that these guys did.
I guess my point is that if it is possible for someone else to do the work, you can too. If you have the time and want to learn, then do it yourself. Get a good manual, start on smaller projects and work your way up to the bigger stuff as your tools and experience permit.

Too many people build their trucks with their checkbooks. If you have a basic idea of how your truck works, then you are better off when it comes time to fix it in the backcountry. I will still be slower at fixing my rig than a trained mechanic that does it every day; but, by doing all the work on my truck myself I feel that I can at least get myself off of the trail if need be. I have been working on my stuff since I was a teenager (because I had no money to take it somewhere). I am not a master fabricator, mechanic, or anything else. I get frustrated working on my stuff. I just want to learn and know how things work so that I can fix them if I have to.

Sorry for the long post. I just want people to know that I was frustrated with this project. I didn't have the tools that a shop has (no air, a tranny jack that didn't work properly, etc.). I put in a transmission and transfer case from different era trucks. But this is a hobby and I learned a lot from the project. If you want to learn how your rig works then work on it. If you get stumped ask questions to those that you know or the suppliers that you got the parts from. Fixing or modifying your truck is not as easy as the magazines make it seem. Most importantly; when you get frustrated, step back and think about things. Oh, and have fun.

Sorry again for the long post. Just want to encourage others to work on their stuff.

 

[seanpistol]

I totally agree. It's hard to respect anyone that builds anything with their checkbook. Do it yourself, learn about it and learn from it. Then you have a good idea what's going on when something breaks and need to think quickly and creatively. This has always been one of my favorite builds on the forum! Jealous of those 4.70 transfer case gears!

 

[xlcaferacer]

Thanks for following and appreciating this thread seanpistol!

 

[OSV]

congrats on getting the gears in, that's a solid accomplishment.

the p.o. of my '86 sas 4runner put in dual cases, and he hacked the tunnel all up... driving it like that was a nightmare, fumes and dust in the cab, etc.

i got a piece of thin sheet metal from the hardware store, and cut it to fit, based on a cardboard template that i made... drilled holes and screwed it down to the tunnel with sheet metal screws.

i had to cut the factory shift boot in half and re-fit it, must have been the wrong boot, but covering most of the tunnel hole with that sheet metal gave me a place to screw the boots down to.

figuring out a console is going to be a problem.

 

[Carolina82]

Nice build, I plan on doing a similar setup on my 1st gen 4runner. Really like your post about doing everything yourself, I've learned a lot the same way.

 

[jschumacher]

This is what I came up with to seal the floor board holes. I used the old transfer case shift boot as my new tranny shift boot and an old street sign to cover the rest of the hole. I bought a Trail-Gear twin stick boot kit to cover the t-case. Here's the final product:

I also had a Trail-Gear winch plate that I have been meaning to do something with. Since I was going to the FJ Summit 2015 I decided I needed a little "trail bling" in order to look good and fit in with the fancy new rigs. It's not done yet but it will work for now.
2" square stock and the T-G winch plate and a few hours in the garage and this is what I came up with :

Built the afternoon before I left for the Summit.
The FJ Summit was super fun. The new/used tranny worked great and the new transfer case and gears worked awesome. My truck is finally getting somewhere.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[xlcaferacer]

Sorry, first time using taps talk and that last post signed me in with an old account that I didn't know existed. Anyway, here is another view of the front bumper pre-bracing:
And here it is in my welding sawhorses:

Oh, and I didn't include an interior shot of the twin stick boots installed so here it is:

I also built a mount for my hi lift jack and added it to my swing out:


And here's Ruby on my pre run trip of Imogene pass pre summit. (I lead a couple trails while I was there).

And finally, a group pic of the rigs that I lead over Black Bear pass:

Last but not least; a short video of my now slow truck in the empty lot across from my house after I got the t-case installed (forgive the narrative as this was the video I sent my wife after the truck came out of the garage):https://vimeo.com/134576461



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[vicali]

Awesome work, lol slowest ghost ride ever..