YetiX Build and Adventure Thread

[YetiX]

It’s about time to start a build thread, so here goes . . .

A little bit about my background, I’m a Marine (0311 in the early 90’s), hunter, fisherman, outdoorsman, and father of Rhodesian Ridgebacks.

I rode “Adventure Bikes” and camped off them for years. On one of my first motorcycle trips, my daughter handed me her stuffed elephant Savanna and told me Savanna would keep me safe. Savanna has been on every adventure I’ve been on since then as my faithful travelling companion. She’ll pop up in pictures later.

When my neck issues finally became too much, I sold the KTM’s and bought a 4Runner. I spent 2 1/2 years building up my ultimate 2006 4Runner Sport Edition and camping all over southern California and Oregon. However, my daughter went to Colorado for college and needed a 4 wheel drive vehicle and I had been wanting something newer which got better mileage. If you’re curious about “Hank,” my build thread is located HERE.

Enter my 2020 Colorado Z71 Trail Runner. I bought it brand new on April 23, 2020. It is my first brand new truck and I’m really enjoying it. I didn’t even know about the Trail Runner package before I got to the dealer. I went planning on buying a Z71 with the Duramax, but the one I wanted was broken. The sales guy showed me my truck and told me about the Trail Runner package. Basically, you get the ZR2 sliders and skid plate(s) and tires (Wrangler Duraatracs) and the Bison grille. I realized it was a great deal and that I would only need to upgrade the suspension to have a trail ready truck.

Here it is the day I brought it home:

Here is how it looked as of January 23, 2021:

How it looked in October 2023:

And how it looks now in January of 2025:

MODIFICATIONS

Suspension
Fox 2.0 Coilovers set at 2.5" (front)
Fox 2.0 Shocks (rear) with 1" lift block

Wheels and Tires
AEV Bison wheels
BF Goodrich KO2 tires - 255/75/R17
NoLoss Valve Stem Caps

Armor/Recovery/Misc
ZR2 Skid Plate
AEV Bison transmission, transfer, exhaust crossover, and rear differential skid plates
White Knuckle Off Road sliders with rear step-plates
Datin Rear Shock Skids
ARB Single Compressor on a 589 Fab Mounting Plate

Lighting/Electrical
Baja Designs Squadron Sport fog lights
Baja Designs Squadron Pro ditch lights
Baja Designs S2 Sport chase light
Baja Designs S2 Sport rear camp light
Trigger 4 Plus Controller with switches mounted in a 3D printed holder
Diode Dynamics SL-1 LED Low Beams
Auxito LED Low Beams

Exterior
AEV Snorkel
Leer Shell/Topper
Go Fast Camper Platform Camper No. 2857
Wilco Hi-Clearance Hitchgate with the Frontrunner Flip Down Table with a Rigd cutting board and 1 gallon Rotopax for water
Custom Bed Tie-down Platform with Tool and Miscellany Drawers
MagnaFlow Overland cat-back exhaust
Baja Rack Camper Shell Standard Roof Basket
GM Fender Flares
Black COLORADO Emblems
Black Plastidipped rear Bow Tie
ARB 2000 Awning with LED Light Strip
Shovel
Maxsa Traction Boards
Overland Labs Hammock

Interior and Comms
Kenwood TM-V71A Dual Band Ham Radio (KM6WTD) with Diamond K400C NMO Antenna Mount
Expedition Essentials Colorado Powered Dash Mount (CPAM)
Customized Course Motorsports phone mount on CPAM
HomeLink rearview mirror
Rough Country speedometer corrector
Garmin InReach Mini2
Baofeng UV8R Dual Band Handheld
North Face small duffle on driver’s headrest with head lamp, flashlight, lighter, and spare sunglasses
Blue Ridge Overland Gear dump pouch on passenger’s headrest for trash
Rear seats removed and replaced with a custom dog platform for the Ridgebacks

Given that the truck is mostly done with only the GFC buildout to go, I’ll just hit the highlights of the truck build here. I’ve obviously done a lot to my truck in the 4+ years I’ve owned it but once I cover the big things I’ll just stick to the GFC and highlighting my adventures

[YetiX]

The next step was a BIG one. When I was building my 4Runner, I needed a sleeping platform with tie-down points and it needed to be low enough that our dogs, two Rhodesian Ridgebacks, would have plenty of head room. I saw a build thread on T4R.com in which the guy had built a low platform with slide outs under it. I realized I could do the same and have two 2" tall drawers under it for tools and other miscellaneous stuff like a spare pair of flip-flops. A friend welded up the frame out of 2x2 aluminum stock, we bolted it to the stock tie down points, and then I built a plywood platform for it. When I bought the Colorado, I knew I wanted something very similar for the bed.

Well, as it turned out, the aluminum frame from the 4Runner fit almost perfectly in the bed of the Colorado! I went up to my friend’s (same guy who welded up the frame) and we installed Nutserts in the bed to bolt the frame to.

A quick test-fit of the drawers and I went home to build the platform:

The idea of the drawers is to have every tool I need to work on the truck in the drawers. When I work on my truck, I usually use the tools in the truck to make sure I’m not missing anything. One nice thing was that I’ve only had to add a couple of tools for the Colorado. I do need to get an oil filter socket and I need to get a spark plug socket for this truck (assuming it’s not the same size as the 4Runner plugs.)

I had purchased a rubber bed mat and used that as a rough template for the plywood platform. I used two 1/2" sheets. On the bottom layer, the tie-down tracks are screwed through the plywood and into the aluminum frame for strength. Then I cut out the “holes” for the tracks in the top layer, screwed it to the bottom layer, and then glued down some exterior carpet I found at Home Depot. Then I made an additional small platform for the tailgate, giving me a 7’ flat platform for sleeping on. I also cut the front of the platform off and re-attached it with hinges so I have a relatively hidden storage compartment at the front of the bed.

The front “hidden” storage area:

And the finished platform:

Finally, to finish off the camping set up, I installed the TopperLift Nomad bed tent. It wasn’t perfectly installed at this point, but you can get the idea. A cool part is that the top half lives rolled up in the roof of the shell, the tent pole lives in the passenger side drawer, and the lower half of the tent lives under the fold-up front of the platform.

If I was going to do it again, I would use 3x3 aluminum and make the drawers just slightly taller. These work but 1" more height would be really, really nice.

[YetiX]

Along the line I did the typical things. Suspension (Fox 2.0), extra lights (Baja Designs), and a Wilco Hitchgate with a Frontrunner fold-down table that I got off Craigslist for $300. I also did a bunch of other smaller modifications which are detailed on the Colorado forum build thread LINK for those who care. The next big thing I did was a rear seat delete for our two Rhodesian Ridgebacks.

I would have loved to just bought the Goose Gear kit, but I don’t have that kind of budget and I enjoy building things. A friend sent me a template of the platform and I got to work. Started building the rear seat delete platform using the template my USMC friend made for me.

Following excellent directions from @Akicita , I cut the lids first, routed them, and then cut the platform and routed it. While it’s not perfect, it will certainly serve its purpose. I’m not going to be as fancy as Goose Gear so I just drilled holes to lift the lids out. Most of the time there will be a big dog bed on the platform anyways.

Lids

The one second from the left was the first one I did and learned I needed to slow down a bit so I didn’t burn the wood. Man, routers make a mess.

Then I used my jigsaw and cut the holes. It was very tricky because I used a 1 cm rabbet bit so I had to trace around the lids and then draw a new line 1 cm inside the lid size. I couldn’t think of a way to do it other than freehand so I did it that way and then “adjusted” as need with my sander.

And the finished deck:

First coat of Gorilla Sealant

I carpeted the dog deck using the same outdoor carpet I used for the platform in the bed.

There is soooo much storage under the platform. Now I can carry ALL the snacks!

After assembly:

Installed. The seats were still forward to make installation easier but there is more than enough room with the seats in their normal positions:

Look at all that storage space!!

The platform has worked great for transporting the Ridgebacks, especially on our long trips to Oregon and back.

[YetiX]

“Gotcha day!!”

So after wanting one for three years, I finally got a GFC. GFCs for Colorados are somewhat hard to find. My buddy @kevine001 found mine on Facebook Marketplace. I was even spec’d exactly as I would have done if I was custom ordering it: Front and rear windows, side doors, and grey tent. It had a couple of nice extras too including a Vrnclr loft, OSG memory foam pads for the mattress pieces, the UnderLand molle panel, and LED lights in the bed. I later learned this was Relentless Fabrications truck. I negotiated with the dude put a $500 deposit on it. He even agreed to drive down to me in San Diego from Orange County!!

Everything could not have worked out better. The day before, I got a message from a very nice young lady who wanted a shell for her truck. I arranged for her to arrive at 10 and we easily swapped the shell onto her truck. 30 minutes later, the guy showed up with the GFC on his MONSTER Bison. I think the tires are 37"!!

Anyways, we just laid two 2x4s between the trucks and slid the GFC onto my truck. With 5 guys it was easy peasy chicken squeezy. Boom. Got the interior and third brake lights hooked up and threw the mandatory stickers on the rear window. I cannot wait to go camping in it!!

The GFC on his truck

And on my truck

And the mandatory stickers

[YetiX]

The next day was project day. To be able to close the tent from the ground, I repurposed a quick-disconnect rifle sling and base and an old dog leash (I stole the idea from GFC) . Works perfectly:

I added RGB LED lights in the tent. They’re really cool and can be made just about any color, strobe, whatever. I’ll probably only use them in red, white and green, but fun

I added levels to help get the truck as level as possible for camping:

And lastly, I repurposed the Reflectix that was in the side window of my camper shell and made a rear window privacy screen for when I’m camping. It’s held on with Velcro so I can still use my rear window when driving, but have privacy when I camping

[YetiX]

The next weekend, I took the GFC out for my first camping trip. Kept it local and went up to Laguna Mountain Campground. Brown Santa delivered some goodies during the week so I threw them in the truck to install in camp. Got everything set up and built the Kilos Gear Grand Peak Hi-Back chair I won at the Land Rover raffle and made a camp fire.

I enjoyed a nice campfire and some boil in the bag, read for a while and hit the rack.

Man it was cold. I had my 20 degree bag and three blankets and still needed to throw some handwarmers in my bag. But once I did, Zzzzzzzzzz
Woke up to a clear and windy morning:

Yeah, I was really roughing it
I made some coffee and boil-in-the-bag Sausage Gravy with Biscuits. The Lonerock water pump is pretty nifty, attaches right on the Roto Pax

Added the JDE step too. It makes it a lot easier to get into the tent, especially when I’m wearing socks.

I also got his drip rails:

I was going to camp the next night too, but the weather called for rain all evening turning to snow during the night. Didn’t sound fun so I came home to the pups

So now we’re all caught up! I’ll be heading out next weekend for some fun and shenanigans in the high desert.

[YetiX]

Now that I’m caught up, the question is: what to do next? I have thoughts on this.

Currently, when I camp I keep the fridge and battery on the platform in the cab of the truck. I have a Plano box that I keep all my camping gear in. The sleeping gear lives full-time in the Vrnclr loft. I just have to load whatever other gear I need into the truck and I go. I was using a Gazelle tent with an Exped bed but don’t need those any more. Here’s a typical camping weekend set up for me. The Plano box is on the left in the bed:

So here are my thoughts…

Scenario One: build a bench or two, move the fridge and battery to the bed and put solar on the roof.
Pros: Built in seating in the bed for getting dressed, hanging out, etc. An easier step up into the tent. I like to build shit. Solar is always set up. I really like seeing how people have their campers set up to make camping easy.
Cons: Makes it harder to do truck stuff. Maybe having the fridge in the bed will cause it to take more battery to use more power in hot or cold extremes? I might need to beef up the rear suspension to accommodate the weight. More weight in the bed during daily commuting although I would not keep the fridge, battery, and camping gear in the truck when I wasn’t camping so that could be negligible.

Scenario Two: Build a bench that I would put my camping gear under but nothing else.
Pros: Lightweight. Built in seating in the bed for getting dressed, hanging out, etc. An easier step up into the tent.
Cons: Makes it harder to do truck stuff although I could figure out a way to make it removeable. No solar set up so I’d have to do the portable panels like I am now.

Scenario Three: Do nothing and keep camping the way I am with a box of camping gear and the fridge and battery in the cab on the platform and portable solar panels.
Pros: Light weight and no suspension changes. Able to do truck stuff.
Cons: More set up for trips. Doing the portable solar panels means I can’t charge the battery if I’m not around because I don’t want my panels getting stolen.

[BenP]

Love the thread! Nice work on the rear seat delete platform!

[RGESPO]

Wow. Great set up! Wish I knew about that TopperLift Nomad bed tent when I had my truck cap, but have some friends I’ll let know. Also gonna check out that Lonerock water pump! I did a road trip out to Montana from the East coast to put a GoFast Camper on my 2020 Chevy Silverado with Duramax in June of 2024. Love it.