My 2013 FJ

[Racerchef]

Only ARB sliders. What next?

[Patrolman]

Bumper and winch. :)

[RidgeRunner]

TRD? Rear locker and some meatier tires.

[Jackie]

Does it have skids?

[glacierpaul]

A healthy budget is always nice:lmao: Start with the above or check out our thread on what you should have with you in case of emergencies, great place to start.

[Rick]

Hi Lift;very invaluable tool;agree w/ all the other post

[Racerchef]

TRD? Rear locker and some meatier tires.
It has offroad package wit atrac, rear diff lock, crawl control.

Tire dilemma is size. I can't afford lift yet so size matters!

[Racerchef]

Does it have skids?
No skids!

[Rick]

I can't afford lift yet so size matters!get meatier 31's and tell her they're 40's:erm::D

[glacierpaul]

Donald, my Rubicon came with 32" tires and I am banging up my factory skids pretty good. I am looking into lifting at some point, but am glad to at least have some skids. Rick, your too funny!

[Chris]

If it was mine I'd gofor tires then lift. Don't underestimate what you have already, get out and enjoy!

[Rick]

Don't underestimate what you have already, get out and enjoy!couldnt agree more.Go have fun and get into situations that make you think"what should I have that this wouldnt happen" I had a lot of fun in my stock Ram before I got the Black one and sometimes more fun.

[Racerchef]

If it was mine I'd gofor tires then lift. Don't underestimate what you have already, get out and enjoy!

Any experience on what size tire will fit? Lots of mixed opinions on other forums.

[Rick]

Any experience on what size tire will fit?a buddy of mine had 32" that did great on his FJ

[The StRanger]

1st things 1st. Get a leveling kit,, Then upsize the tires..

[Jim]

It does have recovery hooks front and rear, yes? If not, those might be the first item (and can be low cost).

EDIT: If you don't have straps, consider buying one or two straps [20'] (and realize there is a difference between recovery and tow straps). Don't be concerned about having a winch right away - or a CB right away (though the CB is more useful and is higher on the list). About ANY CB is good - you don't need a fancy "high power" CB & Antenna as we're often close to each other on the trail (and power is regulated by the FCC anyway).

[RockyMtnHigh]

If it was mine I'd go for tires then lift.

x2

Below used to be mine, I did quite a bit with it just running BFG ATs in the stock size, before putting the lift on.
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj234/RockyMtnHigh_2008/WFTW%20July%2018/1.jpg (http://s273.photobucket.com/user/RockyMtnHigh_2008/media/WFTW%20July%2018/1.jpg.html)

After the tires, lift, you've got sliders, I would say skids (Budbuilt :D) and then a bumper and winch.

[Funrover]

For me I would get items like recovery points, recovery gear and skid protection. I did a lot in stock form in my Range Rover. You also learn to be a better driver when you have to be one first. Just my 2 cents.

[Aaron]

I can't believe there is any question here from the group. Protection is always first. Don't go anywhere that has rocks without skids and rails. You've spent too much money on your new baby. You can get towed off just about anything but put a hole in your tranny or central diff and your going to be towed home and will have a big bill. Hit your rockers with a rock and you or your passenger will be crawling out the other side of the car till you can afford the expensive body work its going to take to fix it. You can wheel 70% of CO trails with your stock rig, but like with other fun subjects, don't do it without protecting your sensitive bits. Lift, tires, lockers... that stuff is more fun to talk about and get done but no where near as important.

[Racerchef]

x2

Below used to be mine, I did quite a bit with it just running BFG ATs in the stock size, before putting the lift on.
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj234/RockyMtnHigh_2008/WFTW%20July%2018/1.jpg (http://s273.photobucket.com/user/RockyMtnHigh_2008/media/WFTW%20July%2018/1.jpg.html)

After the tires, lift, you've got sliders, I would say skids (Budbuilt :D) and then a bumper and winch.

would that stock tire size have been the 265/70/17.

[Racerchef]

For me I would get items like recovery points, recovery gear and skid protection. I did a lot in stock form in my Range Rover. You also learn to be a better driver when you have to be one first. Just my 2 cents.

Any recommendations on skid plates? Lots of choices it seems.

[Rick]

This is what my friend had....front to rear and they did well.....http://www.rasta4x4.com/ProductsByFamilyb1e5.html?Type=1#FJ%20cruiser2

[Funrover]

I am not sure who does the best for the FJ's. I will defer to those who own them to answer who makes the best skids.

[Chris]

Where's Rob? I don't recall what skids he has but he has a good story about their value from a Red Elephant run a few years back.

[Rob]

Where's Rob?

He's been landscaping all day. I have the Rasta aluminum alloy skids, which includes a gas tank skid. I don't thing Bud Built has a tank skid. The Rastas are much, much lighter than the Bud Builts and take a fair amount of abuse. Get the BBs only if you plan to do some serious rock banging and don't expect to ever hit your gas tank.

The lighter weight of the Rastas is a bonus, considering I've added a fair amount of weight with a winch bumper and winch, not to mention all the gear I carry on the trail.

If you go with a 285 tire, you'll need either a lift or a body mount chop, or both. I did both.

[Patrolman]

There was some discussion on tires. I am a 4Runner guy rather than FJ, but I run a 32. I used to have 33's, but the 32 has been a nice mix of highway and offroad with only 1" of lift on the 4Runner.

[Racerchef]

He's been landscaping all day. I have the Rasta aluminum alloy skids, which includes a gas tank skid. I don't thing Bud Built has a tank skid. The Rastas are much, much lighter than the Bud Builts and take a fair amount of abuse. Get the BBs only if you plan to do some serious rock banging and don't expect to ever hit your gas tank.

The lighter weight of the Rastas is a bonus, considering I've added a fair amount of weight with a winch bumper and winch, not to mention all the gear I carry on the trail.

If you go with a 285 tire, you'll need either a lift or a body mount chop, or both. I did both.

yeah that's what I thought about 285's. lots of mixed answers out there. Kind of sucks.

[Java]

Rob has the ACOS spacers, I liked them a lot when I saw them, might be worth a look.

[RockyMtnHigh]

would that stock tire size have been the 265/70/17.

That sounds about right, it's been awhile though.

Budbuilt does offer a gas tank skid:
http://www.budbuilt.com/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=8&category_id=2&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=170

Do you need one? I guess that's a matter of what you plan on doing and how far you begin to push your limits or the vehicle's limits. Starting off, new to it, if you're smart and take your time and learn what the vehicle is capable of doing I would say it's not needed right away, I never got one. That goes for the skids too, addressing Aaron's post, I assume you're not one of these trustafarian types with a huge bank roll and are wanting to progress into it on a budget, the way most of us do which is the reason I backed Chris's suggestion on tires first. Without a good bite on the trail, skids or not you're going to slip off stuff and bang the sh!t out of everything and if you bought Rasta skids, good luck with that.

Now before I go any further, there's nothing wrong with Rasta skids, as pointed out they are lighter and offer a decent amount of protection, but because of their lighter properties they are not made for constant abuse. In my opinion, they are suited for the skilled operator that knows what he/she is doing and has a good/trusted spotter and needs that extra assurance in case they make a bad judgment call a couple of times. Besides Rob, I have known others who have them and this was the case with them too, they were awesome to watch, they knew where and where not to put their tires.

Me, I went with the Buds...when into it I was mediocre at best, they'll taking a good beating. Not that I recommend it, but you can lift the entire FJ off the ground with a set of Buds and not dent or warp them in the process. That in itself is what I wanted, because as I mentioned on my good days I was alright, bad days I was dragging my ass off stuff constantly...lighter wouldn't have done me a lot of good, heavy as f*** is what I needed which is probably the reason I picked up a fly rod instead. After you've beat the sh!t out of them, you can pull them off and beat them back into shape too (can't do that too well with aluminum).

Nope, I stand by my recommendation for the larger ticket items, tires, lift, sliders (you already have), skids and then bumper. Recovery gear is a little less expensive, some where between tires and lift you should have that in your rig, along with a good first aid kit and the knowledge how to use it (sh!t happens sometimes).

[xaza]

I may be a little biased today but I have to agree to get some protection on your rig first.

[glacierpaul]

I may be a little biased today but I have to agree to get some protection on your rig first.

Yep, check out the shot of me hung up on that rock on Red Elephant, I am glad I have skids.

[Rob]

Rasta skids, as pointed out they are lighter and offer a decent amount of protection, but because of their lighter properties they are not made for constant abuse. In my opinion, they are suited for the skilled operator that knows what he/she is doing

Have you met me, Jock. :lmao:

Didn't know BB had a gas tank skid. I'm pretty sure they didn't five years ago when I was shopping for skids.

[RockyMtnHigh]

Have you met me, Jock. :lmao:

Yeah, what can I say, I was trying to be nice. Of course, driving as slow as you do, it's kind of hard to screw something up! :lmao:

[Rob]

driving as slow as you do

I drive slowly so I don't get lost. :erm:

[RockyMtnHigh]

I drive slowly so I don't get lost. :erm:

Yeah, that works well for you! :rolleyes:

[Rob]

Yeah, that works well for you!

:lmao: So you got what I was trying to say.

[Jackie]

I drive slowly so I don't get lost.

And then there's that...:rolleyes: !!!

[Rob]

And the there's that.

Huh? :lmao:

[Jackie]

Typo fixed... and a lot of people here know what I'm talking about...!!! :lmao: