Dear Diary

11/12/2015

Dear Diary,

Today I'm catching up with stuff I posted on T4R.org...

Day 1:



Won't be doing much outside of small, or cosmetic till I get some miles under it and know that it's going to be sticking around. First things first...I don't like red + silver or red + chrome. Not very visually appealing to me. Plastic-y silver in general just looks cheap. So....that's a cheap, easy, quick fix.

Started with derping the the front valance and emblem:



While that was going on and curing, went ahead and swapped for some more appropriate shoes:



And also starting to mock up a bike rack for the inside...:

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Front valance turned out alright:



Now the rear. I've never removed a bumper before...or any part of a vehicle other than a radio.

 

What are you doing in here

 

I like this forum more than T4R.org. Especially the software. T4R.org seems to have a high rate of "assholes".

Rear valance done!

And somehow managed to shear a bolt. Zip tie to the rescue.

 

I like the software and layout here. T4R.org is slow and outdated

 

Dustin,

Sorry, total newb here. "Derping"...I take it you painted the emblem and valances. May I ask what you used and if "derping" refers to materials or the changes you made?

Thanks for being patient,

B

 

Good ol' Plasti Dip. $6 at Lowe's...or Amazon, Home Depot, etc. Doesn't require prep, is easily removed (that's what I hear, at least), and has a nice matte finish that I prefer.

 

Last of the dippin. Roof rack and rear logos.

Strangely enough, the rack rails are left and right specific, with the only noticeable difference being the location of the bolts, which differs by no more than a few millimeters.

 

Not stoked with the results, but good enough for now. The racks look good, however. Pic tomorrow.

 

Looks good to me. Would be interested to learn how you take off things like the logo and letters. I'm sure it's not hard, but I don't believe I would have a clue how to do it without scratching the hell out of the finish. I like what you're doing here.

 

you don't take off the letters and logo. just mask off the letters and logo and plasti dip over them. search plasti dip and youtube.

 

Done with the Plastidip for a while.

Next purchase will be either 5100s or a roof rack.

 

So in the photo above, where everything is laid out on the cardboard, what are those letters and logo? Not sure what you mean "just mask off"...will do the youtube thing. Thanks for being patient with me.

 

i pulled everything off. next time I'm just gonna mask it. I hate the process of cutting tape and trying to reapply letters square. They might be square, but I'll forever now swear that one is off.

 

See those 2 smudges. Been bugging the crap out of me since day one. I know I said I was done dipping, but two chickens in a bucket...

End result - I can now look down and not cringe. Finish kinda matches the Softex.

 

I'm behind...

Finished up the homemade/ rigged up interior rack and the wife's bike fits pretty well.



Moved USB port from center console over to the glovebox this weekend. Now I'm wanting to figure out how to run a longer iPod cable from that port up to the center console. Figure it's easy enough to route one, but hiding it and keep it clean might be a little more difficult. In my head, the Lightning connector will pop out by the rear window switch. And thinking about it now, I could probably drill the console right there, and use a grommet for a Di2 wire.

 

new wheels mounted up

 

Installed the Eibach 620lb springs as well as 5100s up front set at 0. Wanted to try and get rid of the soft, boat-like handling on highways. Pretty happy with the results so far.

Looks nose up with my bike on there, so I think I'll likely add 2 of the 10mm OME trim spacers. The numbers are pretty close to level at the wheel well with my bike rack on, but no bike. Measured using a plumb bob and straightedge:

FD - 36.375 (3/8)
FP - 36.75 (6/8)
RD - 36.5 (4/8)
RP - 36.875 (7/8)

Removing the rack brings up the rear 1/8 to 3/16".

So 55lbs over the back is good for about 3mm of sag.

Really wish there was a 1" coil for the rear that had a slightly higher spring rate.

Before:



After:

 

Well, it's not an electricians wet dream, but after moving the USB port from the center console to the glovebox, I still didn't have a setup like I wanted. So, a 6' Lightning cable, a drill, a few zip ties, and a few grommets later, I've got an iPhone hook up that charges and allows access to the music on my phone. No more relying on Bluetooth. Best of all, it tucks away nicely.

 

I'm slacking!

Sealed the deal on the BajaRack and got it installed. Need to do some tweaking with centering, and getting some sort of bumper under the front so it doesn't kill the paint. Other than that, though...all is dandy.



Canvasback from a fellow on T4R.org. This thing is a little nicer than I was expecting. The fit is pretty precise. I approve.