Best solution for camping with a kid under the age of 2.5 is an extra whiskey before bed.
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Hi, what are the brands / models of your lights in the front bumper? Looks great. Thanks
@cs808 the fog lights are Baja Designs Squadron Sport and the light bar is an OZ USA light bar, although I’m not sure I’d recommend the light bar since I do have water inside the light now so not sure of the quality of it.
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do you recommend the bed stiffeners?
@Wachs I’ve had them installed prior to getting my camper when I still had my bed rack and roof top tent so I don’t have any experience with them not on the truck. I’ve never noticed any bed separation prior or after installing them. Not sure it’s as much of an issue with Tundras as it is with smaller trucks like Tacoma’s but I get the concept behind them. I also like the peace of mind knowing there’s a little extra support back there just in case. I would recommend them just for that fact, and they’re not a super expensive mod.
Awesome! what brand did you go with?
I went with Rago Fabrication since you can usually get them on some sort of sale
Anyone running bed stiffeners on their first-gen tundra?
Ok…I have to ask as I have admired your take on the the camper utilization. Do you miss the floor space of the old build? Being able to have a “bench” on top of the drawer with a place for your feet below? I get the extra drawer space for the little one for sure, but a 58 my “little one” is 30!
I am wondering if I will enjoy the space more if I’m on the road hunting and need a space to hunker down without popping the top.
Just wondering your thoughts.
THX…
@thoganco
The original purpose of having some open space in the floor of my camper was so I could transport my mountain bikes inside the camper. I did not have a hitch or rack that would work with my tire swing out so I was able to get by with fitting a bike inside the camper. That was nice for security and easy transport but I got tired of having all the dirt and mud from my bike getting inside of my camper floor. I finally added a second hitch receiver to the swing arm of my bumper so that solved my bike rack issue. The other main reason I ended up building the dual drawer was I’m not a fan of all my gear just thrown into the bed. I may be a bit OCD but I prefer to have a “home” for things and not have to constantly pull things in and out of the bed of the truck just to get into the camper. We only ever used the truck bed with the camper not opened once for a short lunch break out of the cold on a trip so that wasn’t a big deal for us to lose that ability.
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Got it…and thanks. Your comment about “short lunch break out of the cold” is a bit of the affirmation I was looking for. In my hunting, I can see doing exactly that. I appreciate your OCD, as when it comes to packing and such I am the same.
I am looking into some lightweight composite material for my build. Something like the panels that the sleeping deck is made of. I found that with coolers full of a successful hunt, I am very close to maxing out my payload.
THX
@thoganco
Weight distribution was another thing that I started to think about. When I had just the one drawer on the passenger side I felt like I was overloading that one side. With the fridge, battery, and drawer full of gear I couldn’t compensate for all that weight on the other side with the rest of my camping gear. Who knows if it was really an issue or would cause any mechanical issues over time but I wanted to distribute the weight out across the entire width of the bed more.
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That’s a fair thought though…I will keep that in the back of my mind.
@WVTRDPro, did you powder coat black the nfab aluminum skid plate? Tried to notice from the pics but can’t quite tell. Also, if you have additional armor underneath does the skid plate interfere? Your truck inspired me to go with the nfab mrds…now waiting for arrival! Thanks
@cs808 the skid plate is black but I just used some automotive spray paint so I could easily touch it up. I have the TRD Pro skid plate as well and although they dont require any cutting or trimming of either plate, I had to place the NFab skid on top of the TRD skid which made bolting it on a little difficult since you have to press on it while bolting it on. I’ve seen others be able to situate it in front of the TRD skid but I wasn’t able to do that and still bolt it on. I can take a pic to better explain if needed. I appreciate the kind words, I’ve certainly liked the NFab bumper. My only wish was that it could somehow accommodate a winch, but I guess then it wouldn’t be as low profile and close to the truck.
@WVTRDPro, thank you, makes sense. The current version of the bumper comes with a raw aluminum skid, so was curious… If wouldn’t be too much trouble, I would appreciate a picture to see the intersection of the plates. I have an SR5, so I am debating between RCI and the OEM trd pro setups for the undercarriage protection. I prefer not spending as much for the RCI or adding additional weight, but willing if needed. Curious what you would choose if you have the option of either? I’m building the truck to do challenging terrain only occasionally, such as Top of the World in Moab, but I don’t plan to do that level of terrain often. Mostly using the truck for short one or two night trips on easy terrain.
@cs808 here are some better pics of where the two skid plates meet.
The TRD Pro skid plate, although it is aluminum, it is still pretty thick and weighs a fair amount. I’m not sure of exact comparison to the steel ones RCI offers. As far as how much protection you actually need, I’m kind of in the same boat as you. We use our truck for long trips out west and do a good amount of offroad trails. We’ve done White Rim in Canyonlands, a handful of trails in Ouray, etc. So far the skids have been plenty and we’ve never really had any major impacts. The only other skids I have for now are front LCA skids and one on the rear diff.
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A few small upgrades from recently.
Added the @jedgar step. I could easily use 2-3 more of them now. Well made and very functional.
Also added some CoachBuilder +1 shackles. Wanted them not so much for any lift but just for the stiffness they provide. Definitely felt an improvement after install. Still wanting to bump up my RXT leaf pack to option 3 though.
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