[dragonwingstoy]

im new to this forum here, i own a 1980 toyota 4x4 truck. it has about a 5 inch suspension lift on it(not sure of exact since it was that way when i got it) right now im only running 33 12.50 mud tires on it but i may step up to 35's later on. my most major mod to it which is still a work in progress is a walkthrough conversion. i have 2 bucket seats from a chevy astro bolted facing forward in between the rear wheel wells, and my rollbar reversed in the back to protect my kids and give a place to bolt up the seat belts to, there is no roof for the back section yet since i havent decided if i want to put on a camper top or just custom make a softtop for it.
the motor is a work in progress as well since i blew a connecting rod through the old block the first day i had it. the newer block im working on is a 22r block bored .30 over with matching pistons.
well i think thats about it for now:
ill post some pics shortly, since they are too big to attach, and my image hosting site seems to be down again!!, as soon as i can get the truck outta my cramped garage i can get some better pics of it

 

[CDNVITZ]

Sounds kwel.... :thumbsup: Can't wait to see some pics!

BTW ...... Welcome & enjoy your stay at Toyotanation!






-Rick

 

[Fresco Bob]

welcome to TN

toyota trucks are the bomb! i didn't know they made them that early, thats pretty tight tho, rear seats in a truck with a roll cage for the kiddies, way to be man, keep it up

 

[dragonwingstoy]

thanks for the warm welcome guys, still having problems with my image hosting site, so im not sure when i will be able to post some pics, is there a gallery section on this site?
hey bob yeah they made the trucks since i believe the mid 70's, and its not a full rollcage yet but i am planning on at least running some more steel tubing from the rollbar to the cab later on.

 

[dragonwingstoy]

hey image site is finally back up so here are some pics for you guys,
heres what i started with

and heres what it looks like now

heres the rear astro seats bolted down

and heres a rear view of it

heres the motor i blew, it was a jegs alluminum block with a piss poor rebuild on it

and lastly heres the newer 22r block im working on(bright isnt it lol) didnt realize hot rod green would be as bright as it was

hopefully all these come out tell me what you think guys.
later eric

 

[Fresco Bob]

thats pretty cool man, are you gonna do some kind of custom soft top for it, just incase it starts raining?

 

[dragonwingstoy]

actually i hadnt decided if im gonna make a soft top for it or put a highrise campertop on it, if i can fina a camper top cheap enough i will put 1 on, dont want to have to spend much for 1 since i have to cut up the front of it

 

[alltrac165]

hehe, you're making a 4Runner. Cool. I say a hard top, quieter for the kids and easier to secure. Keep a roll bar right behind the cab too for better front passenger protection. I had a 78 Hilux that I made into a convertable. The biggest surprise to me was how rediculously flexible the chassis got after I cut the roof off. Cornered like hell after that. If I parked on a surface that wasn't very flat, I couldn't even close the doors. You might want to see about doing a frame mount cage to stiffen things up a bit since you just removed the rear wall of the cab. Can't wait to see it when you're done.

 

[dragonwingstoy]

yeah making a 4 runner lol, i dont think they even made 1 back then did they? im actually gonna be running a rollcage up to the front and have it run into the cab later on when funds become a little more available, hving a hell of a time right now coming up with the money to finish my motor for it. and i have had some definate experience on chassis flex after you take the roof off of something that should have 1, the thing that you will see after a cpl of pics of my truck was my topless astrovan project that i ended up junking, comically enough if i hadnt been a dambass and cut the roof off of it i would have never ended getting the toy since that was my muddrunner before the top came off, was only running 31's on that though and it was a 2wd so i know ill be able to go through alot more stuff when my toy is done.
the doors on my toy working right im not too worried about though since they dont already anyways the pass side will barely open and only from the inside, and the drivers side is a hillbilly special with a damn sliding deadbolt as your doorlatch. i know once warm weather comes around next year the doors are gonna be coming off and they wont go back on till the cold season again.it wont be any real smooth finish too it since this is mainly my offroad vehicle but it will still look halfway decent though.

heres a couple of side views of the truck i took before i dragged it into the garage.

and this one is my hairbrained idea for a tricked out astro after i dragged it outta the garage to put the truck in

 

[alltrac165]

lol, that astrovan rules....I don't even know what to say....:lol:
Is that a cemetary in the back ground?

 

[ToyotaMan1281]

nice ride man. welcome to TN

 

[Hamsterman]

nice work on the cars bro, throw some 24"s on that astro and you will get even more looks :thumbup:

 

[dragonwingstoy]

u know i always get the cemetary comment every time i take a pic in that direction lol, yeah i got about a 30 acre cemetary right across the street from me, whats left of the astro is on its way to the junkyard as soon as i get around to calling someone to come get it, its just the body now i pulled off all the running gear and whatnot off it

 

[alltrac165]

^heh, halloween party at your house

 

[dragonwingstoy]

well heres an update of my progress, i finished the walkthrough metalwork part and threw a lousy piece indoor outdoor carpet over it 4 now took some pics but realized i forgot to lean the seats back forward to get a good look at it but u can get the basic idea

and this is the front of it i put an astro front bumper on it that i had laying around. there was no bumper on it when i got it so i needed 1 and since there was a bunch of extra metal welded to reinforce the front a stock bumper wasnt gonna fit anymore. also i modified the grill to put the 2 kc 100watt driving lights in it

 

[Castis]

nice job on the truck... love the lime green block...

 

[dragonwingstoy]

thanks castice, finally started working on the lime, honed the cylinders the other day and got the pistons in and the crank almost bolted up, then i can start getting the top end taken care of

 

[dragonwingstoy]

well other than a timing chain issue the block has been relatively hassle free on getting stuff bolted up, learned a valuable lession though dont try to use a 20r timing chain on a 22r block since a 22r is almost a 1/4 inch shorter and im guessing that those tension rails? are set up different as well, went ahead and dropped the motor into the truck today since i can just as easily do the timing chain while it is in since the rad is out right now. so i still need to get a timing chain kit, and a carb and i should be ready to go, or maybe i could figure out a way to modify my intake to use my holly 4bbl lol doubtful!

 

[dna59]

That astro reminds me of the convertible PT cruiser. One big ass tub.

 

[dragonwingstoy]

this truck is FOR SALE , i have more up to date info in the buy sell trade section a reasonable cash offer is what will get you the truck