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160K views 480 replies 52 participants last post by  victorhakes7 
#1 · (Edited)


MY BACKGROUND
I always wanted an FJ since I saw a Voodoo Blue when they first came out. Just thought they were neat looking vehicles but I wasn’t aware of their off-road capabilities. Fast forward a few years and I was in a place financially to buy one. I had been lurking in and learning from this forum for a year during my search. I finally pulled the trigger and purchased my new to me FJ Cruiser on July 18, 2015. I ended up with an Iceberg because my wife liked this color the best. It's my first off road vehicle and it's been a blast to mod, daily drive and take it off the beaten path. Daily life takes up most of my time including work, my wife and my young daughter but as a weekend warrior I do all the modifications myself and get out there when I can. Thanks for following along.

STARTING POINT:
This was the day I bought it: July 2015




SPECS: 2013 Iceberg 4x4 AT stock, bought used from Carmax with about 20k on the odometer with the convenience package and most importantly the Rear diff locker. Originally a WA state vehicle.

BUILD TIMELINE PICS:


CURRENT:


I decided to name my FJ "Ghost" from Game of Thrones. "Ghost" is one of six direwolf pups that are found by the children of House Stark. He is adopted and raised by Jon Snow. Ghost is an albino with white fur and red eyes. Though he was the runt of the litter when he was born, he quickly grew to be as big as the rest of his siblings.




BUILD LIST

BUMPERS/ARMOR:

  • Trailworx front bumper
  • JTA Metalworks rear swingout bumper
  • RCI Metalworks steel skids- Front, transmission, transfer case, rear diff
  • OPOR Rear LCA front mount skid
  • FJ toyman rear lower shock skid
  • Pure FJ rock sliders

LIGHTS:

  • Baja Designs S1 (spot) x 2 in FJ grill
  • Baja Designs S1 (wide cornering amber) x 2 in front bumper
  • 5" 18W EBay special CREE LED flood flush mount x 2 (rear bumper)

WINCH/RECOVERY:

  • Comeup Seal Gen2 9.5 winch-synthetic line
  • Factor 55 Prolink
  • Ellis Precision aluminum hawse fairlead
  • Krazy Beaver shovel
  • Iconic's rear recovery points
  • Maxtrax
  • Mean Mother exhaust/air jack
  • Southeast Overland Kinetic Recovery Rope: 7/8" x 30'
  • ARB treesaver strap

EXTERIOR:

  • Off-road Garage Snorkel
  • Rhino Rack Pioneer Platform Roof Rack/Backbone (84”x49”)
  • Dirty Deeds Hi tuck tailpipe[/URL]
  • Blackout grill (Duplicolor bumper and trim paint)
  • Trail Teams Blackout mirrors
  • Black Tundra door handles

INTERIOR:



UNDER THE HOOD:


ELECTRICAL MODS:

  • In-cabin Winch kill switch via PAC-500 amp solenoid

[*]DIY Dual Battery System


[*]Bussmann RTMR relay/fuse distribution module

  • Bussmann CB185-80amp circuit breaker
  • Shrockworks (lzalusky) power distribution module mount
  • Blue Sea Systems 5025 ST blade fuse block
[/LIST][/INDENT]

COMMUNICATIONS:

  • All-pro CB antenna Bandi mount
  • 3' firestick CB antenna (black)
  • Midland 75-822 CB radio

SUSPENSION:


TIRES/WHEELS:

CAMPING/OVERLANDING GEAR:


MAINTENANCE:

  • Engine Oil: Mobile 1 Synthetic 0W20 6.4Qt/ OEM oil filter every 5K miles
  • Transmission Flush: Toyota WS ATF every 50K miles
  • Gear oil (front diff, transfer case, rear diff): Redline Severe Gear Oil 75w90 every 30K miles
  • 5 tire rotation every 5K miles
TRAILS AND PICS:
 
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#282 · (Edited)
DIY rear fold down storage rack in progress....

Based off of a couple of YouTube videos of the Modern Survival Tactics design. Still have to mount it to the rear door



YouTube links: (credit goes to these guys)

Modern Survival Tactics https://youtu.be/s0GsnKTJyCg
k1ngazteca https://youtu.be/l4SYymA_OoY
 
#283 · (Edited)
Rear fold down storage rack is complete. I made a couple changes compared to the video. I used vinyl coated 3/32 steel wire rope (32 cents per foot) instead of paracord to hold the table up and instead of an L bracket to secure the top of the wire, I reused my rear cargo hooks from the FJ which makes it more flush










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#289 ·
@Iconic_ thanks man. wish I had your fab skills.
@Joabmc you are too kind, loving the GX build. I am still looking for one with low mileage to build
@debFJVT thanks, but it's far from perfect, wishing I was at summit right now with the rest of the FJ gang but I am waiting on a special delivery :wink
@jamesepoop thanks brother but long travel I don't have, you inspire me...
 
#291 ·
@Iconic_ thanks man. wish I had your fab skills.


@Joabmc you are too kind, loving the GX build. I am still looking for one with low mileage to build


@debFJVT thanks, but it's far from perfect, wishing I was at summit right now with the rest of the FJ gang but I am waiting on a special delivery :wink


@jamesepoop thanks brother but long travel I don't have, you inspire me...


It’s mainly 4Runners. I’m sure they’ll change the name of the summit soon


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#292 ·
You’ve done a lot in 3 years! Looks great!


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#296 · (Edited)
Picked up these beautiful wheels today

FN Overlander Spec B (bronze)



Weight: 29.5lbs
17x8.5"
ET -6MM
4.5" BACKSPACING
6X139.7
106MM Toyota hub centric

Dustin (owner/operator of FN wheels) was great to deal with. He even gave me a free T-shirt.

Also bought TRD center caps from Toyota

 
#302 · (Edited)
Getting a little more organized

Snapsafe underbed gun safe (large)...it just so happens the dimensions (40”x22”x6”) worked out for the FJ rear cargo area and this thing is heavy duty (100lbs). It’s suppose to be a safe afterall. Using it to store tools and recovery gear.







The front factory tie downs were removed and the safe is bolted down with these holes. The back is secured with turnbuckles to the factory tie downs



DFG offroad Dometic Fridge slide on order
https://www.dfgoffroad.com/fridge-slide/14-dfg-offroad-fridge-slide-for-dometic-cfx-35-40.html

 
#303 ·
Getting a little more organized

Snapsafe underbed gun safe (large)...it just so happens the dimensions worked out for the FJ rear cargo area and this thing is heavy duty (100lbs). Using it to store tools and recovery gear.





Wow! I love it! It's the perfect size I want. I mainly want to carry spare parts and tools and don't want a drawer too tall. Was planning to build my own but now saw this. How does the top feel? Can you put much weight on top of it? Does it flex much?
 
#309 ·
Baby Mod in progress...getting a little a crowded in here.

The stork is delivering a little princess to us in a couple of weeks. It turns out as others have said on this forum, the best place to put the baby seat is in the middle...whew, I don’t have to trade the FJ in for a 4Runner now. It doesn’t compromise me or my wife’s seat position and I am tall enough to bend over and secure and release the baby carrier from outside. A win-win situation





 
#313 ·
Congratulations to you two!
 
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#312 · (Edited)
DFG Off-road fridge slide



DFG Off-road fridge slide installed this evening. I just bolted it to the snapsafe. I had to remove the Dometic handles because it wouldn’t fit depth wise. Replaced the dometic fridge handles with these cargo tie downs in order to be more flush. Seems to be pretty sturdy without any rattling. It locks in and slides smoothly. I need to figure something out for the handles so I can secure the fridge to the slide.






















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#343 ·
I took your model and built on it, I caught the sale on safe and grabbed one. I installed it to the far right losing my 110 plug (who cares I don’t use it anyway) so I could still access the jack panel because that’s where my compressor wiring and plumbing is. Only hiccup was I sport a large 52 qt fridge so I needed the larger tilting slideout, well I can make the slide fit but unfortunately the seat won’t allow my 52qt with the increased height so that was a waste of $400 :mecry:.
Great build dude. :blueblob:
 
#314 ·
I have the old Engel and there are mounts for it that you put in place of the handles. They are "L" shaped pieces of metal that screw on in place of the handles and they have a hole in the other end to let the hook from a strap slip in and then you hook the other end to the tray you are mounting to and tighten it down. They are about maybe 3/4" wide and the tab for the strap sticks out maybe 1". The tab could probably be bent down a fair amount after the strap hook is attached to get it out of the way.
 
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#322 ·
@Loganbeere and @HeisKai are you using anything as a divider for the drawers yet? The carpet floor in yours is nice but I'm trying to figure out how to fit stuff in my drawer. I found a plastic tote that is the perfect dimensions to put in my drawer, but for the other half I really like the idea of using 5.11/LAPG/molle type bags to store stuff. This is my temporary setup with the blanket as a spacer.

Drawer Room Furniture
 
#324 ·
@Loganbeere and @HeisKai are you using anything as a divider for the drawers yet? The carpet floor in yours is nice but I'm trying to figure out how to fit stuff in my drawer. I found a plastic tote that is the perfect dimensions to put in my drawer, but for the other half I really like the idea of using 5.11/LAPG/molle type bags to store stuff. This is my temporary setup with the blanket as a spacer.

View attachment 1050978
You could make a insert and water jet out holes so things fit were you want and they stay in place
 
#327 ·
CONGRATULATIONS My friend!!!!!!!!!!
 
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