Yopar

iTrader: (2)

Very nice work on the truck and similar to the work I did on my '87. I didn't do the diff drop, but relaxed the torsion bars back to stock ride height in the front, to keep the CV angle stock. The rear sits a little high when the truck is empty, but settles down nicely when loaded. The OME shocks are awesome, love the ride they give! If I put a bumper w/winch on the front, I will probably have to tighten the torsion bars back up a little.

OutlawMike

I will get more info this weekend,

My speedo is off right now, but on Sunday my buddy took his stock '98 Runner out with me on the freeway. He drove at 65 miles per hour, my speedo was reading right around 72 and the RPM was about 2550 or so. Before, when I drove the rig in stock form at 65 miles per hour, the RPM was at 2300. I really do not notice any more engine noise than before and it drives good with the 5.29's in overdrive. If you drop it out of overdrive, it is definitely louder, but pulls the hills well.

Mike

OutlawMike

I never could have bought that thing new, but it showed up on the marketplace board here on Yotatech, so I picked it up. The thing is built like a brick house, a nice piece of work. It bolted right up to the factory mounts and one additional, un-used threaded hole in the bottom fo the frame rail. I had to drill out the relay rod to 5/8's thru, the TC idler arm does not use the taper. Since I had the front end tore apart anyway, it was no big deal to pop off the pitman and put the relay rod on the drill press.

It bolted right in, does not hit anything, and does not make any noise, so far so good. Now, I need to wheel the rig to see if it breaks, but, I think the frame would brake first, that thing is a monster. Plus it has the cool TC laser cut into the gusset, and that is worth at least the price of admission. Ha!!

Mike

A.Wilson013

when I saw the rotation inertia, I thought I was reading a write-up from one of my workers. I know what you mean about over thinking everything. Beautiful vehicle. I am a bit envious.

Alex

OutlawMike

I have the OME torsion bars in my garage waiting for an ARB bull bar. I'm willing to crank a little more lift into the front if the back does not settle out a bit more. The photos do not show it, but the ass end sits a bit high for my taste. You are correct about putting some weight in the rear and everything leveling out. Fun, fun, fun, so many possibilities, so little money.

Thank you for the compliment,

Mike

OutlawMike

Nice rig, I love these first gen Runners. I was in high school when they came out and always wanted one. Three years ago I had the funds together and found my rig, original owner, 125k miles on it. Very clean, interior was mint, the perfect rig. I am 6'4" and really wanted the auto for driving comfort and I was willing to deal with the V6. Then, six months later, it dropped the #6 Intake valve seat out of the head. So, instead of suspension/tires/gears I had to do a rebuild. Now I have a fresh motor in it and finally got started on the other stuff.

Is that the bikini top from Wab Fab? I have one in a box in my garage, it will be going on this weekend.

Mike

OutlawMike

Congratulations on making it through the program. You will never regret the investment. Did you take the EIT yet?

What are your plans after graduation? Looking back, I wish I had taken some time off. I went from graduation at Cal Poly SLO to working one week later. A month or two off would have been a better idea.

Good job,

Mike

Junkers88

Yes it is although it's no longer on the rig. Everytime I put the bikini top on it rains and since I do a lot of camping and sleep in the back of the runner I had to put the hard top back on.

Yopar

iTrader: (2)

I replaced the rear shackles with HD shackles/greasable bolts/poly bushings. I think they were 6" shackles but I forget who I got them from. Anyway, I re-drilled them to stock height (3.5"?) so the ass end would come down a little. The OME springs have settled a little, but not a lot. I spent $40 for 2 drill bits, one for the shackles and one for the 5/8" hole in the drag link for the TC arm.

OutlawMike

That is a good idea, rather than bringing the front up, bring the rear down a bit. Luckily I have a full machine shop at work, so I get all my drill bits there for "free", it always costs me beer, but that is how back scratching works.

Since I have the stock shackles to start with, I probably cannot go that route, as they are already short.

What is your opnion on the OME springs? They seem to be a quality product for a very reasonable price. But, made in Malaysia, makes me a little unsure.

Thanks,

Mike

Yopar

iTrader: (2)

I'm happy with the springs, they ride well and with a heavy load they ride even better. I had 3 people + 500lbs of tools and drove 3,000 miles last summer in the truck. With that weight in the rear, the truck was a little lower in the back.. maybe just under the level mark... I did notice that after the trip, and several outings on trails, the springs flexed around and broke in a bit, so they did settle down. I would say 1/2"-1" lower when empty is what I got after breaking them in like this. Maybe they will settle even more after another year of working them, lately I haven't been using the rig, since I'm working on my slant six mopar.

OutlawMike

Just a quick update.

I adjusted the exhaust crossover and was able to get enough clearance to fit in the front driveline, so, it is 4x4 again.

At the same time I put the sway bar in with the sway bar drop spacers, to clear the front diff, which has diff drop spacers on it.

I also cranked the front T-bars a bit to level the rig out. After the BJ spacer install the front was measuring 15 1/2" and 15 3/8" from the rim to the top of the wheel well. I cranked in 1/2" of additional lift on the T-bars. I did not notice any harsh ride type changes when I did it, and the truck now has .5 degree of rake to it, rather than the 1 degree of rake after the lift. If the rear settles out a bit I will back that 1/2" out. I was getting 1/8" of lift for each turn of the adjusting bolt on the T-bars.

I will get some pics this weekend.

Matt16

I love seeing well thought out builds. Like how you addressed the idler arm before ruining half a dozen first. Now all you need is lower transfer case gears and you're loaded for bear.

OutlawMike

That is on the list, but I think I will do armor next. I am trying to decide between the Trail Gear rear bumper or the Marlin Crawler rear bumper. For the front I will be putting an ARB Bull Bar on and some Stubbs rock sliders on the sides.

The problem I have with the lower gears, and I knew about this when I bought the rig, is that I have the automatic and it has the integrated transfer case. I will need to buy the Inchworm adapter and mod the trans to get a gear driven case in there. Even then, really no chance to do a doubler without frame crossmember mods, but 4.7 gears seem to do just fine with the gear reduction in the torque converter.

So many mods, so little money and time.

Thanks for the compliment,

Mike

mrddk92

I can't wait to do all of this. It will prob be a few months tho. For my bumpers I think ima get something from Sonoran Steel since they are only a few minutes from me. I really like the one that's on the little red pickup, I think they sold it a few months ago.

OutlawMike

Quick update on the Runner. Picked up an ARB Bull Bar and a Warn M8000 winch from 4 Wheel Parts on Monday. Bolted it in last night with my best friend. As a side note, 4 Wheel Parts has a pretty good price on the M8000 right now, $538.

The install went OK, there is another thread on the two issues I saw. The bumper is built like a brick house, and the look is very aggressive. Hopefully it performs as well as it looks.

The bumper:



Before:



During:





After:

stock as possible

any clue if the stock skid plate can be used with the bull bar?

mrddk92

So did you add the ome t-bars too? If so how are they?

OutlawMike

Yes it can, I put it on two nights ago. ARB put openings in the bracket that goes over the crossmember so that you could bolt it right up. No mods required, it just bolts right in.

OutlawMike

This weekend I plan on putting the OME bars in. I unboxed them last night and read through the FSM to see what it took to get them in. Should be a pretty quick bolt in. I will post up the results and my impression. After putting the Bull Bar on, I do notice that the front end is a little squishy, the bumper and the winch are definitely too much for the stock T-bars.