Project Saving Silverman

StretchASU said:
21 Spline should hold up fine if you don’t drive it like the buggy 😂. I made stock 21spl duals last for a while doing dumb shit. Just made sure any time it got western to push the clutch in before any kind of traction caught.
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This is where I’ve landed with it too. I was willing to spend a few hundred dollars to upgrade to 23 splines for extra peace of mind, especially since I was pulling it apart anyway for a full reseal. But it’s gonna cost more to upgrade it than I have into the whole setup, including the crossmember and driveshaft parts that came with it. Pass. For now.
 
This is not a build update. I will put together a post with an actual update on progress when time and energy allows. But for now, I just needed a motivation booster, and figured I’d give “you people” a sneak peek 👀

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StretchASU said:
Needs a giant Coors light sticker on the hood.
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After consuming copious amounts of silver bullets in the shop while working on this thing over the past year, I finally understand the context behind this comment…Colorado’s finest beverage container compliments the color scheme of this rig perfectly! @StretchASU you, sir, are a visionary with a well-trained eye and highly refined taste for vehicles and cold snacks.

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Kickdeez said:
After consuming copious amounts of silver bullets in the shop while working on this thing over the past year, I finally understand the context behind this comment…Colorado’s finest beverage container compliments the color scheme of this rig perfectly! @StretchASU you, sir, are a visionary with a well-trained eye and highly refined taste for vehicles and cold snacks.

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Guess I need to paint my jeep natty light colors 😂😂😂
 
Kickdeez said:
After consuming copious amounts of silver bullets in the shop while working on this thing over the past year, I finally understand the context behind this comment…Colorado’s finest beverage container compliments the color scheme of this rig perfectly! @StretchASU you, sir, are a visionary with a well-trained eye and highly refined taste for vehicles and cold snacks.

View attachment 455852
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You could fit a whole 24 ouncer in that wheel gap!
 
Shreddinlettuce said:
You could fit a whole 24 ouncer in that wheel gap!
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It's going to sit a few inches taller. It is currently on jack stands a few inches lower than the centerline of the wheels. I'd love for the final ride height to be where it is. The reality is that it can be challenging to get these things to sit that low on leaf springs, ride halfway decent and keep from cutting up the fenders. It's doable...just extra time and effort that I'm not willing to put forth right now. I know that the suspension will work great and ride plenty smooth (for what it is) the way I've set it up. And I think it will still look good at final ride height.
 
I've been very unmotivated to update this build thread with actual build updates. I have been pretty motivated in the shop lately, though. Not much readily apparent progress since the last pic. But, a lot has gone into getting it to where it is. Still a long way to go, but progress is progress.

The front axle and suspension are 99% buttoned up. Still need to make brake lines and bump stops, and bolt up the shocks. But the front is ready enough for me to work my way towards wrapping up the rear.

I have a new dual case crossmember on the way, somewhere between Nevada and NC at the moment. The one I snagged with the dual cases "fits" my 4Runner, but not quite right. I *believe* it is actually for a 1st gen pickup. Instead of doing a bunch of figuring and fabbing, I decided to just pay that man his money and order the correct crossmember for this truck. Once the new crossmember is in, my drivetrain should be situated in the correct-er spot. That will then allow me to re-set my rear pinion angle, tack the perches on, mock up and tack in the shock mounts, and then pull the rear axle for welding out the axle and frame mounts. Then I'll get the rear axle cleaned, painted, permanently installed, and fully assembled, along with a kinda trick custom rear brake setup (more to come on this soon-ish).

That should about wrap up the suspension/axle portion of this build. Then I can move onto other things. I spent a little time working on the front bumper while I've been waiting on the crossmember. It's ready to be cleaned up, painted and permanently installed. Below is the remaining to-do list (big ticket items) floating around in my head:

New motor - Buy fresh long block, install, new accessories, repair wiring as needed
Driveshafts - Measure and send off existing driveshafts to be re-tubed, then install
New fuel tank/cell - Haven't figured out what direction I'm gonna go here yet. Had to remove the factory tank due to passenger offset rear diff. I would really like to keep fuel outside of the cab, preferably tucked up under the rear where the spare tire carrier was. For this reason I have been considering a F-150 tank swap. But, from what the innernet says, there are some challenges associated with this swap, including routing the filler tube and getting the sending unit to read properly on the factory gauge cluster. The other (easier) option is to do a fuel cell in the rear cargo area. More thinking and figuring to do here before I'm ready to go one way or the other.
Rear bumper and sliders - Buy and install: 1st Gen 4runner Rear Bumper and Sliders
Interior - Install new carpet and reinstall seats, belts, etc. Probably modify the existing center console or figure out a new center console.
Electrical - New interior and exterior LED lighting. New radio and speakers throughout. Most likely going to be installing a pair of 12's that have been sitting in my shop since I took them out of my 3rd gen 4runner 15ish years ago bc :rockon:

That's all the energy I have for now. I'll post some progress pics at some point.
 
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