I've searched and read all there is, even posts with nearly identical titles. Still can't decide, I swear I've went back and forth in my head for weeks. In another post the comment was made "plan on hitting any cows". Well, I nearly hit a cow about 6 months ago, and the threat of hitting a deer is constant around here. I'm running 32's with 2.5" lift right now, and will probably do a body lift and 33's in the future... so I'm wondering if a T-17 would be high enough to not lose my grill/hood/etc to a full size deer. Also, I'm really liking the Satoshi grill mod and with driving lights and a T-15 I'd barely see the grill. Okay so sway me (pics helpful), money isn't an issue, I don't want an ARB... I hate seeing the same topics over and over but I'm one who can't decide too easily... thanks in advance!

 

you should wait and see how these turn out. its a good mix.

https://www.yotatech.com/forums/showthread.php?t=68786

 

^ this is true. that custom t-17 is awesomeness.

but if you decide to go for a t-15 (or hooped t-17 with lights for that matter), well i think that's a good choice. originally, i didn't want to put big lights on the bumper cause they'd cover up my oh-so fancy satoshi, so i made the lights with quick disconnects on the outside. well i never ended up taking them off for street driving, so i got over the "see my grill"ness. i like the hoops - i think they look neat and maybe someday they will offer some protection a hoopless bumper couldn't.

and you can still see the satoshi grill anyway. kinda.

 

T - 17 with a Sonoran Steel hoop!

 

Here's a thought that somehow just came to me: I don't really like the rubber bumpouts on the T-15, seems to dirty up the look. With the price difference of $200, about how far would that $200 get me fabbing my own hoop design on the T-17? Any additional thoughts on the height of a T-17 in reference to hitting critters, cause I don't think the hoops are the most attractive thing out there but they serve a purpose. As a side thought, I wonder if we can expect all our steel "toys and add-ons" such as these TJM's to be jumping in price soon because of the price of steel these days. Sharp rides guys, I've poured over them many times!

 

did you consider the T13? smaller hoops and more ARB style

 

$200 would probably get you something like this....

 

I love the T-15
Your color scheme is like mine.
Here is a preview of just how it would look on your truck. Mine also has 32's with a couple of lift inches.


Without Lights


With Lights

 

Skyrat - wish you had a full blow site showing all your goods, I really like how you've turned out. With a bit of time and a lot of money I can see myself going your route in a lot of ways. Alright guys, I may draw this up tomorrow in AutoCAD but picture this. Start with a T-17. Pull up in your head (or look at calrockx's front shot) a T-15 hoop setup... picture the same tube diameters, except the middle hoop down tubes would follow the edge of the grill exactly. So, it wouldn't stick out quite as far, and would look quite close to the T-15. You'd be able to show off the grill, and have driving lights out wider. Only possible problem might be the tubes blocking some of the light from the headlights, but probably not. I've never seen a T-17, from that worded description do you think that would be feasible? Anybody know the tubing size on the T-15, or just the diameter?

 

Hopefully this pic goes through... I PAINT doctored a quick pic of the modded T-17 I'm dreaming up, with the Satoshi visible... I stole JacksonPT's front pic of his T-15... You get the idea... Not sure about the bottom bar between the center hoop, it's a bit redundant but does cover up the mount on whatever lights would be put in...

http://photobucket.com/albums/a264/t...T17Ideapic.jpg

That's some pretty impressive photo editing eh?

 

so what's the difference between that and a t-15? just that the center hoop is wider to follow the grill?

 

sounds to me like thats too much work for something thats not really worth it...just get a tjm15 and dont look back. in the end, you really wont care. there will be some new mod youre obsessed with.

honestly i dont see a big difference. why have someone staring at the satoshi grille mod instead of the giant 700 investment youve put on the front of your rig?

 

Very valid points... and yeah that's essentially a T-15 with a wider center hoop and a couple inches less depth from the rubber things...My only other thought was that on a T17 where the rubber pieces stick out you have flat metal that would accept some fogs but I guess they can be thrown in there elsewhere when the time comes...

 

bumpity bump

 

Im considering custom building an ARB/TJM style bumper for the front of my first gen. Doesn anyone have a pic of the back of these bumpers? Id like to see how theyre constructed and mount up to the frame.

 

 

Okay so I decided to go with the T-15 after talking to a shop today. For exactly what I wanted it Was around $200 at the shop, plus I'd have to have the whole thing powdercoated over which I'm isn't all that cheap. That said, it's a heck of a lot easier to just order it, put it on, and be done with it. I did find another resolution to my liking to the Satoshi grill: I'm going to drill a set of light mouting holes (it'll pain me to do it) so that my lights are spread as far apart under the center hoop as possible, leaving the center open to see the grill. I would need to find some plastic hole fillers (i wonder what they're technically called) to fill the holes that are predrilled.

All this thinking opened up a new bag of worms for me. If I did the Satoshi I'd probably paint my chrome surround white, have black "netting" with a white TOYOTA logo. Now with that black bumper I don't care to have a "3-tone" vehicle. So, while I'm in the shop.... what if I had them paint all my Limited flares and cladding white to match the vehicle?!?! Or I could wait and paint them myself, but I'm not the greatest painter in the world. I saw how nice Bamachem came out, so it is tempting to try myself. Thanks for your input though guys, T-15 it is!

 

or you could color match your bumper to your cladding

look at filthyrich for an example of that

 

[QUOTE=98LimitedCustomized]Okay so I decided to go with the T-15 after talking to a shop today. For exactly what I wanted it Was around $200 at the shop, plus I'd have to have the whole thing powdercoated over which I'm isn't all that cheap. That said, it's a heck of a lot easier to just order it, put it on, and be done with it. I did find another resolution to my liking to the Satoshi grill: I'm going to drill a set of light mouting holes (it'll pain me to do it) so that my lights are spread as far apart under the center hoop as possible, leaving the center open to see the grill. I would need to find some plastic hole fillers (i wonder what they're technically called) to fill the holes that are predrilled.
[\QUOTE]

The T-15 doesn't really have pre-drilled holes per-se, as much as a crossbar that spans the big hoop and has brackets welded to it.

 

do the flares/plastic parts painting yourself. i did it. very simple. sand, primer, paint, clearcoat, done.