making a tundra more "hunt worthy"

[huntsd]

I’ll second rock sliders especially if you’re on tight trails. The longer turn radius of a full sized truck makes it easy to turn into a boulder so I had mine built so the stick out from the rocker panel if I need to pivot on a rock. It’s saved me far more than they cost.

As for tires I’ve done some serious business with Toyo open country at3 E rated and lockers. Our elk camp has some of the slickest roads I’ve ever seen requiring most to use chains. Ives run the whole 2hr stretch in the worst conditions sans chains with that setup.

Thanks all. Sliders are the things that are like steps right?

 

[TreeDog]

I’d start with quality tires, traction boards, shovel, tow strap, jump box, tire plugs, full size spare and air compressor.

This will do 99% of what you want, based on what you said your use case is. For that 1% you're probably better off hiking. Only thing I would add to the list is chains. I have an '18 setup for the same purpose and it's been great. Stock except for tires. May add a bumper, but that's more because I hit a deer than anything else.

 

[bowhnt]

I love my decked box in my tundra. Keeps my backseat clutter free


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[alexnelon]

Rock sliders

Mickey Thompson Baja Boss AT's (you can fit 33s on stock suspension without rubbing)

Chains, a traction board or two, and a compressor so you can air down and back up, tire plugs and patches, full size spare

A heftier brush guard

Beyond that you're really adding comfort and aesthetics more than capability. If you don't already have the 38 gallon tank I would get one though.

 

[Blurry1]

Sliders are like running boards but steel and protect the rocker panels when going over taller rocks etc.

 

[bascott1]

Bilstein 6112 coilovers at setting 1.9”. Will hold 295/70/18 on stock wheels. Not much you can’t do with this setup.

 

[jj9526pewpew]

Check into rock gaurds for the rocker panels to help protect it from the trails

 

[huntsd]

Second the skid plate and rear differential breather relocation.

I personally would look at better coilovers that provide 2” of lift in the front. If you go more than 2” you’ll need to replace the upper control arms with an aftermarket.

You can’t chain up the fronts without a different offset rim/wheel spacers. If you do a spacer get something like Bora or Spidertrax that are hub centric.

Traction boards are awesome.

275/70R18 is really good size that doesn’t screw up gear ratios. You can go up to 285/75R18 and probably not have to make modifications.

If you do a winch, be mindful of the weight you are tacking on with bumper and winch and factor this into your payload. This is a half ton without a lot of payload to begin with.

What is the benefit of diff breathers? Help with pressure?

 

[AndrewMT34]

I also have a 2017 Tundra. I've built it out over the past 8 years to be my ideal western hunting/fishing truck. None of the mods (except skid plates IMO) I've done are "critical" to going hunting, but they definitely offers some ease of mind and comfort. Plus, I really enjoy the researching and wrenching of installing the mods. The truck has gotten me everywhere I want to go.

I do wish I had the longer bed tho, the 5.5ft bed gets quite cramped on longer trips, as you can see in some of the photos

It has:

3" coilover lift and heavy duty leaf springs
decked system
rear tire carrier + full size spare
front steel bumper
steel skid plates
Rock Sliders
Led lights
Bed Canopy
OTT Tune
35x12.5x17 Mickey Thompson AT's

 

[huntsd]

I also have a 2017 Tundra. I've built it out over the past 8 years to be my ideal western hunting/fishing truck. None of the mods (except skid plates IMO) I've done are "critical" to going hunting, but they definitely offers some ease of mind and comfort. Plus, I really enjoy the researching and wrenching of installing the mods. The truck has gotten me everywhere I want to go.

I do wish I had the longer bed tho, the 5.5ft bed gets quite cramped on longer trips, as you can see in some of the photos

It has:

3" coilover lift and heavy duty leaf springs
decked system
rear tire carrier + full size spare
front steel bumper
steel skid plates
Rock Sliders
Led lights
Bed Canopy
OTT Tune
35x12.5x17 Mickey Thompson AT's

Looks great! What skid plate are you running

 

[AndrewMT34]

RCI, they pretty commonly have 20%+ off sales on their skids.

If I could do it again, I'd probably get their 1/4" Aluminum skids instead of the steel.

 

[Jason Snyder]

What is the benefit of diff breathers? Help with pressure?

I am assuming they are for pressure.

The problem is the factory one sits right on top of the pumpkin, leaving it susceptible to water intrusion if it fails.

It’s a 15 minute job to put it up behind the taillight.

 

[Jason Snyder]

RCI, they pretty commonly have 20%+ off sales on their skids.

If I could do it again, I'd probably get their 1/4" Aluminum skids instead of the steel.

Man I’ve been happy with the steel one. Very solid.

 

[AndrewMT34]

Man I’ve been happy with the steel one. Very solid.

Yeah they are super solid, I just don't really contact them with anything other than sage brush, so I'd appreciate the lighter weight

But it's better to be ready for a hard impact than not I suppose.

 

[4th_point]

What is the benefit of diff breathers? Help with pressure?

A breather is just that, it allows air to escape the diff as it heats. Go look at your rear diff, the breather is sitting on top.

The concern is when the diff goes underwater while crossing a deep creek. You don't water mixing with the gear oil.

A remote breather raises the submersion level well beyond any reasonable fording depth for a Tundra.

 

[Fireflyfishing]

I’d leave it stock until you find a reason to change something. Find solutions to actual problems you have with the vehicle. There’s alway cons to all the pros of altering a stock vehicle. It’s pretty amazing what a decent driver can do with a stock vehicle. And…it always amazes me how much people spend on vehicles to solve a problem that doesn’t exist for their use of that vehicle. An example would be all the overland racks with crap strapped to them driving around town…all the time. Or…a wing the size of TX on the trunk of a Honda Civic….WASTE OF $!!! But hey, at least you look cool, right?

Where exactly are you looking at running this vehicle? Desert, mud, rocks, snow?
Are you sleeping out of it?
Do you really need extra clearance?
Why do you need a winch? If you get a winch, will it be mounted on the front, rear, or both?
What % of actual trail time will this vehicle see?
Will you be towing anything?

 

[4th_point]

Not a great photo but it shows where I routed the factory breather up and behind the driver's side rear taillight housing.

Cheap and easy mod - just need fuel line, hose clamps, and nipple fitting. Just do a web search.

Blue = shows the factory breather
Red = inline fuel filter just for extra measure

 

[Jason Snyder]

I would definitely buy an air compressor and some traction boards.

 

[huntsd]

I’d leave it stock until you find a reason to change something. Find solutions to actual problems you have with the vehicle. There’s alway cons to all the pros of altering a stock vehicle. It’s pretty amazing what a decent driver can do with a stock vehicle. And…it always amazes me how much people spend on vehicles to solve a problem that doesn’t exist for their use of that vehicle. An example would be all the overland racks with crap strapped to them driving around town…all the time. Or…a wing the size of TX on the trunk of a Honda Civic….WASTE OF $!!! But hey, at least you look cool, right?

Where exactly are you looking at running this vehicle? Desert, mud, rocks, snow?
Are you sleeping out of it?
Do you really need extra clearance?
Why do you need a winch? If you get a winch, will it be mounted on the front, rear, or both?
What % of actual trail time will this vehicle see?
Will you be towing anything?

lol ya there will be no 10k pop up camper shell on this. I hunt all over the west it’s really a combo of nasty southern Arizona rock roads( where a bit of clearance does help) to late season snowy muddy gummed up Colorado roads. The truck will be used on Highway to get me to trails and trails. Never for daily driving. I’ve killed the winch idea and yes I will sleep in the back

 

[Fireflyfishing]

lol ya there will be no 10k pop up camper shell on this. I hunt all over the west it’s really a combo of nasty southern Arizona rock roads( where a bit of clearance does help) to late season snowy muddy gummed up Colorado roads. The truck will be used on Highway to get me to trails and trails. Never for daily driving. I’ve killed the winch idea and yes I will sleep in the back

As others have mentioned, a light lift and new rubber would certainly benefit your use case. I think the smallest lift you can get away with is usually the best option. I’m running Geolanders on my Tacoma and really like them for an AT tire.
What about lighting? Up in my neck of the woods, it gets dark fast come fall and is usually coupled with moisture. This makes for low vis conditions as the norm. Extra LED bars are great to see the critters before they step out in front of you on remote roads.