Grille It Up
No truck build would be complete without a new grille, and the T-REX X-Metal Series is exactly what we were looking for. Installing a new grille is a delicate process, because (at least in our case) you have to cut out the old stock grille, but keep the housing itself. Luckily, with a little preparation and the right tools, we were able to accomplish the job with relative ease. As I said, it’s a little tricky, because you end up cutting off more than you think, because the X-Metal grille is a little bigger and heavier than the stock one, and it has to fit just so. On our truck, there are also a couple of side vents that required extensive cutting to make the requisite side panels fit. All in all, though, it only took a couple of hours and the results speak for themselves. There’s seriously no quicker way to change the look of your truck, and this T-REX’s grille is a great addition to this old beast.
Skin A Kat
One of the last things we did ended up being one the most striking, and might be the favorite upgrade of Brad Anderson, the truck’s owner. He knew from almost the beginning of the build that he wanted to redo the seats with a kit from Katzkin. Katzkin makes some of the best leather seat covering on the market, so we knew we’d be in for a treat. The kit provided a much-needed face-lift not only to the seats, but to the front and rear consoles between the seats as well. The truck’s color scheme has had black gradually become more prominent over the course of the build, so we chose a combination theme for the seats. Black is the predominant color, but gray is still prominently displayed and it makes for a fantastic look. The kit was installed by the fine folks at Custom Auto, mere blocks away from our offices in Idaho Falls, ID. They did a bang-up job and we couldn’t be more impressed.
Tie Me Down
The final addition to this build is one custom-tailored to the trucks’ theme. We’re going to be using the truck to haul all manner of dirt toys (natch), but knowing Brad, riding dirt bikes will probably take up the lion’s share of his time. To help keep his bikes secure, we mounted a horizontal E-track at the front of the bed, which will afford multiple points of attachment to keep things secure in the bed. But the coolest part of it all is the set of Johnson Built Products moto wheel chocks that are specifically designed for the E-track. These click in securely to the track and stand vertically at the front of the bed, ready to accept the front tire of the dirt bike. Normally, people use tie-downs to just crank down the front suspensions of the bike so there’s no play or movement in the bike as you’re in transit. The problem is that is really bad for the bike’s shocks. These wheel chocks keep the bike in an upright position, and you only need a minimal amount of down force from your tie-downs to keep it place. It’s a great solution.
So did everything come together? Exceptionally well. We borrowed a 28-foot Trails West RPM Gooseneck trailer from Ryan Harris, our publisher, and loaded it up with bikes, ATVs, and side-by-sides to see how well we could pull it around. Apparently we did our homework because it pulled like a dream. We can’t wait to keep putting this thing through its paces, but at this point we’d have to say that Project Dirt Toy is a resounding success.