Enthusiast I
- 874
- First Name
- Chuck
- Last Name
- Mason
- Member #
-
23222
- Service Branch
- Navy - ISCS retired
So I am diving into the Forums. I consider myself a beginner with some experience. I am gong to start with describing my rig, how I came to its configuration, and the lessons I have learned and will break things up over multiple posts.
I live in Northern Virginia and have a 2016 Toyota 4Runner and a 2016 Turtleback expedition trailer. So far I have been as far west as Las Vegas via Durango, the north rim of the Grand Canyon, and Sedona Arizona on one trip and to Flagstaff Arizona for last years Overland Expo. I have not been able to do much weekend exploring in the east due to full time work, that has now changed due to my retirement. I am looking to start engaging with the East coast community.
So my SUV - The first thing I did was add a roof rack. Lots of reading and some conversations with Johnathan Hansen the founder of Overland Expo resulted in a partial Front Runner rack. To that I have added Expedition Essentials 4 board MaxTrax holder with 4 MaxTrax, Roam 95 liter box with Roam case holder, and a Front Runner GMRS antenna mount, and the Front Runner HiLift Jack holder and my Hilift Jack. I went with the partial roof rack as my mantra for the whole build out of the 4Runner is to watch the gross weight. The partial helps keep me from overloading the rack and shifting the center of gravity too much. No lights on the rack, it sits too far back on the roof to be of any value.
The second mantra I follow is PACE planning. Primary, Alternate, Contingency, and Emergency. The High Lift Jack is my ACE part of PACE for Jacks. Four MaxTraxs are all four components of PACE for both traction boards and when doubled up bridging.
The next thing I did was a 2 inch suspension upgrade with shocks, springs, and upper control arms up front. I changed over to ATs and went with new rims in black aluminum. Those tires have worn out and I am now on a set of Falkenburgs, at least I think that is the name. The rim and tire selection process is still a mystery to me which caused me loose a tire one day. Turns out I had the OEM lug nuts on the new rims and they were the wrong type. You would think the dealer would know that. I lost the right front tire at about 10 MPH when coming to a stop on the way to the 2019 Overland Expo East. Luckily the insurance company covered the 5K of front end repair. Now I check lug nut torque each time I get tires rotated. I now have a torque wrench mounted to the Rago Fabrication mollie panel on the back windows of the runner.
I will continue my buildout in the next post.
Have a fun day and live life as best you can
I live in Northern Virginia and have a 2016 Toyota 4Runner and a 2016 Turtleback expedition trailer. So far I have been as far west as Las Vegas via Durango, the north rim of the Grand Canyon, and Sedona Arizona on one trip and to Flagstaff Arizona for last years Overland Expo. I have not been able to do much weekend exploring in the east due to full time work, that has now changed due to my retirement. I am looking to start engaging with the East coast community.
So my SUV - The first thing I did was add a roof rack. Lots of reading and some conversations with Johnathan Hansen the founder of Overland Expo resulted in a partial Front Runner rack. To that I have added Expedition Essentials 4 board MaxTrax holder with 4 MaxTrax, Roam 95 liter box with Roam case holder, and a Front Runner GMRS antenna mount, and the Front Runner HiLift Jack holder and my Hilift Jack. I went with the partial roof rack as my mantra for the whole build out of the 4Runner is to watch the gross weight. The partial helps keep me from overloading the rack and shifting the center of gravity too much. No lights on the rack, it sits too far back on the roof to be of any value.
The second mantra I follow is PACE planning. Primary, Alternate, Contingency, and Emergency. The High Lift Jack is my ACE part of PACE for Jacks. Four MaxTraxs are all four components of PACE for both traction boards and when doubled up bridging.
The next thing I did was a 2 inch suspension upgrade with shocks, springs, and upper control arms up front. I changed over to ATs and went with new rims in black aluminum. Those tires have worn out and I am now on a set of Falkenburgs, at least I think that is the name. The rim and tire selection process is still a mystery to me which caused me loose a tire one day. Turns out I had the OEM lug nuts on the new rims and they were the wrong type. You would think the dealer would know that. I lost the right front tire at about 10 MPH when coming to a stop on the way to the 2019 Overland Expo East. Luckily the insurance company covered the 5K of front end repair. Now I check lug nut torque each time I get tires rotated. I now have a torque wrench mounted to the Rago Fabrication mollie panel on the back windows of the runner.
I will continue my buildout in the next post.
Have a fun day and live life as best you can
