OutdoorX4 Magazine 100 Series Family Overlander Build

[Michael]

@fledwell Hey there! It's GREAT to see the OutdoorX4 build thread on the site, and reaffirms how close we are in philosophy in overlanding.

I love the build requirements, which basically pointed to Toyota It doesn't matter what you drive, but your particular requirements made toyota well suited.

I really look forward to following your build and hope to see more soon. Maybe we could do an OB feature on the build.

Looking forward to further updates and contributing to OX4.

More soon!

M

 

[fledwell]

Thanks!  I started Phase Two this past weekend and will get that portion up this week.  Stay tuned and yes, would be happy to do an OB feature.  

 

[fledwell]

Picking things up since Phase One completed, we have started Phase Two and this portion of the build focuses on some of the interior-specific overland items such as fridge/freezer, drawers, external mods including bumpers, roof rack, and more.

We started Phase Two with an easy, but VERY beneficial install, of a TemboTusk Standard Front Pull Slide w/Cutting Board Attachment (http://tembotusk.flyingcart.com/index.php?p=home). The install was done on a custom drawer we had sourced from TemboTusk approximately 3.5 years ago for our previous vehicle but had never installed the fridge slide. Installation took about 10-15 minutes and we were left with a highly functional piece of overland equipment, seen here:

 

[fledwell]

Once the TemboTusk Slide was installed, we moved to another simple but functional item: Gamiviti Antenna Mount for our CB Radio. Again, the install was easy and we chose to place the CB antenna up front, close to the regular antenna. Installation required drilling one hole and then attaching the Gamiviti Antenna Mount using a hex allen wrench bolt.

 

[fledwell]

The next step was, admittedly, one of our favorite items of the entire build: a custom Gamiviti 100 Series Expo Roof Rack. If you're not familiar with Gamiviti, the owner (Tim Nakari) has a fantastic reputation for building high quality products specific to the Toyota Land Cruiser. Our Marketing Coordinator, Stan Wright, had recommended Tim highly and after trading a number of emails with ideas of how we wanted the roof rack to function (particularly when it comes to mounting a James Baroud roof top tent, incorporation of light tabs all around for plenty of lighting while at basecamp, and awning attachment points) all in a low-profile design, Tim and his team built a rack we are VERY happy with.

The install wasn't difficult but took about two hours, starting with removal of the OEM rack/crossbar and all attachments as well as the OEM bolt covers.

 

[fledwell]

Once the OEM rack/crossbars were removed, it was time to install the new Gamiviti mount attachments. The setup came with a set of eight mounting towers (four on each side of the truck). The OEM configuration calls for a total of six mounting towers (three on each side) and we originally planned for an additional tower on each side to provide extra support. However, after evaluating this we decided that three on each side would meet our needs so we began the installation of the new mount towers onto the truck.

 

[fledwell]

Now that the Gamiviti Mount Towers were in place, it was just a matter of placing the rack onto the truck. Here's a shot of the rack prior to installation onto the Land Cruiser:

 

[fledwell]

Here are a few shots once we mounted the roof rack onto the truck. We really dig the low-profile design and are VERY pleased with how it turned out. Please note these photos don't do this rack justice. It truly is awesome!

 

[fledwell]

From the front:

 

[fledwell]

From the side:

 

[fledwell]

Top of the rack:

 

[expeditionnorth]

read about your rig in this months issue, very impressive to say the least

 

[fledwell]

The ARB Sahara Bumper arrived recently and we had been itching to get it installed and mounted. This portion of the build actually started about 1.5 weeks ago but was put on halt as our Editor took a break for four days to attempt an overland journey along the Kokopelli Trail from Fruita to Moab. Unfortunately, that journey was cut short due to terrible weather that resulted in only completing about 40% of the trail before having to turn back.

But alas, back to the build! The first shot is what the front of the 100 Series looked like BEFORE getting started on the bumper. Apologies for the glare in the photo.

 

[fledwell]

Getting the OEM bumper off was super easy and took maybe ten minutes.

 

[fledwell]

Here's a shot of the new ARB Sahara Bumper prior to installation:

 

[fledwell]

The bumper installation wasn't particularly difficult; however, it was very time consuming. With the help of one other person, it still took us the better part of 6-8 hours to get through the entire process. In this photo, we had just gotten the mount assembly installed and bolted to the frame.

 

[fledwell]

Once we got the mount assembly in place, we realized we were going to have to go ahead and install the Ramsey Patriot 9500 UT winch w/synthetic line we had sourced from Ramsey Winch. For those who aren't as familiar with Ramsey as you may be with other manufacturers, we chose the Ramsey because of its quiet, semi-automatic clutch, its wireless keyfob capability, and its pulling capability. This is an impressive winch that's also Made in the USA! Details can be found here:

http://www.ramsey.com/en-us/applications/off-road/patriot-9500-ut

http://www.quadratec.com/products/92142_002_07.htm

 

[fledwell]

Now that the winch was in place, the last step was to get the bumper mounted to the mount assembly. If you have an ARB bumper, you know it's heavy and bulky but that's the price to have quality protection when you're on the trail. If you look closely at the close-up photo above of the winch, you'll notice three bolt-in holes on the left and right side of the mount assembly. Those are the holes that align with the inside of the bumper that are used for mounting. Believe me when I say this was probably the hardest part of the install for us. It took FOREVER to get these things bolted and tightened in place.

Once mounted, it was time to get the Factor 55 Hawse Fairlead and Factor 55 Flatlink E installed and in place. The only real complaint I have about the ARB bumper is that it was designed for use with a roller fairlead. Word on the street is a space is/has been developed to fill the recessed space in the bumper to allow for easy installation of a Hawse fairlead which is what you want when running synthetic winch line. In our case, we wound up using two Hawse fairleads to provide enough space in the recessed bumper area to not only allow a more flush appearance for the Factor 55 Flatlink E but also, from a safety perspective, push the Factor 55 Hawse fairlead closer to the front of the bumper so that in the event of needing to winch from the side, the synthetic winch line can't rub against the inside of the bumper, causing it to fray.

Here are a few close-up shots of the Factor 55 Hawse fairlead, then Flatlink E, after getting them installed.

 

[fledwell]

Once complete, the last few steps to finalize the bumper install was to get our set of ARB 7" Intensity LED lamps installed on the bumper, install the rubber buffers, and then install the hoop.

At first, we had decided NOT to install the hoop but after placing it on top of the bumper and seeing how it compliments the grille, we decided to install it and keep it as it is (rather than Plastidip it black/silver). Also note the wife had a lot of input on this.

The lights were easy to install, requiring about ten minutes to mount each light to its supplied mounting bracket, then bolting it to the bumper. Wiring the lights takes more time (approx. 60-90 minutes) and that portion will be featured separately as part of the dual battery setup we have planned.

Here are a few shots of this portion of the install. The first shot is with the lights mounted to the bumper, the second is of our Editor getting everything all tightened up, and the last shot is the end result. We like how it turned out.

 

[fledwell]

Yesterday, after returning from the 10th Lone Star Toyota Jamboree in Gilmer, Texas (which was a fantastic event BTW and had a chance to finally meet Woody of IH8MUD fame), I installed our Slee Dual Battery Tray and replaced the main battery with an Optima YellowTop. The second battery is an Optima RedTop that will be used to power the Engel MT-45 fridge/freezer, external lighting, and small electronic accessories.

Here are a few pics: