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Hawairish and TowndawgR50 are teaming up!


hawairish
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On 7/19/2019 at 8:48 AM, DesertKyle said:

Looking good! Any chance the panhard bar drop bracket will be available by itself?

 

Overdue thanks!  I think that's a very likely possibility.

 

On 8/16/2019 at 4:18 PM, dezm said:

Any new updates guys??

 

Well...sorta.  Things have been slow-moving, and my fault really...overworking at my regular job, working on a downright horrible Land Cruiser project, and a few other projects eventually just burned me out a bit.  So, I took a vacation!  Spent a few weeks driving around the country with my family, caught a few baseball games, visited family, and just put some miles on the new Telluride.  Notably, I did spend one of those weeks on the road at my company's headquarters working...not that I really wanted to, but it saved me the trouble of having to fly back out there later and it was actually on the way home.  Plus, the expense report paid for all my gas on the trip.  It was a good way to clear my head.

 

@TowndawgR50 and I haven't stopped chatting about things, and feeling a little refreshed now, we're ready to move forward again.  After the first prototype sets were made a few months, we learned a few things and it's just been a matter of adjusting things to get the product we want.  So we've tweaked the designs a little, purchased some more equipment, and are working on a few more tooling items before cutting the raw parts.  The near term goal is to produce a small batch of kits and finally get them on the PNW Piners' trucks.  Steering joints ordered already. 

 

The biggest change from the first kit is that we've decided to drill all bolt holes.  The plasma cutter can cut small circles and can do it reasonably well, but it can't do it consistently well.  So we're needing jigs to ensure we can mark all holes quickly and consistently, and while it'll be extra work drilling, we think it'll produce a cleaner product.  It also gives us opportunities to use press in studs, which will simplify installation in a few places.

 

I've got an expansion kit for the plasma table arriving this week.  While it doesn't give us any massive cutting widths, it's a beneficial upgrade that I'm pretty stoked about nonetheless.  No immediate need for it, but the need to do skids keeps surfacing, and there's a good possibility we may see if bumpers are viable.

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New tools huh? Fun fun! Excited to see the small changes too, that's the kinda attention to detail that's gonna make your guy's SFD far better than those in the past, not to mention the unique design of it.

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10 minutes ago, mjotrainbrain said:

New tools huh? Fun fun! Excited to see the small changes too, that's the kinda attention to detail that's gonna make your guy's SFD far better than those in the past, not to mention the unique design of it.

 

Hopefully!  But yeah, given some product decisions, we just need better and/or efficient ways to do things. Drilling holes is definitely not efficient, but it will be better.  A larger and slower drill press was a must.  Though, I did also buy another tiny flux core welder...probably not a must, but I couldn't resist.  I've also been eyeballing a horizontal bandsaw...

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 8/19/2019 at 8:27 PM, hawairish said:

No immediate need for it, but the need to do skids keeps surfacing, and there's a good possibility we may see if bumpers are viable.

 

Yes please! I'm just a few minutes away up in Anthem AZ, in need/desire of a bumper. Looking at Coastal's but would be nice to avoid the freight cost.

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  Yes please! I'm just a few minutes away up in Anthem AZ, in need/desire of a bumper. Looking at Coastal's but would be nice to avoid the freight cost. 

 

I have Coastal Offroad’s bumper and I think it might be the best product currently produced; however, I intend to sell it & upgrade to a Pines to Spines Offroad version when that comes out. I’ve seen[mention=36148]hawairish[/mention]’s bracket’s & I originally met[mention=37543]TowndawgR50[/mention], 2 years ago, specifically to talk about his thoughts on bumper design. As a combination product, it will be unbeatable. Several concerns they expressed years ago are not addressed in the Coastal version.

 

I’m looking for a bombproof design where a lot of thought has gone into attachment, the forces at work on a bumper during different recovery situations, and the unique nature of the R50s unibody design. I think the process they’ve followed with the Swingates & the SFDs illustrates well that @PinestoSpines goal is a top notch product. They are taking their time, testing prototypes, and willing to delay production to adjust & tweak their design when something doesn’t measure up to their expectations. 

 

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5 minutes ago, RainGoat said:

I have Coastal Offroad’s bumper and I think it might be the best product currently produced; however, I intend to sell it & upgrade to a Pines to Spines Offroad version when that comes out. I’ve seen[mention=36148]hawairish[/mention]’s bracket’s & I originally met[mention=37543]TowndawgR50[/mention], 2 years ago, specifically to talk about his thoughts on bumper design. As a combination product, it will be unbeatable. Several concerns they expressed years ago are not addressed in the Coastal version. I’m looking for a bombproof design where a lot of thought has gone into attachment, the forces at work on a bumper during different recovery situations, and the unique nature of the R50s unibody design. I think the process they’ve followed with the Swingates & the SFDs illustrates well that @PinestoSpines goal is a top notch product. They are taking their time, testing prototypes, and willing to delay production to adjust & tweak their design when something doesn’t measure up to their expectations.

 

 

Thanks for the feedback. Think I'll wait then, no rush here. It's been 23 years already with the pathy as is, what's a bit more time to get it right. 

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Thanks for the feedback. Think I'll wait then, no rush here. It's been 23 years already with the pathy as is, what's a bit more time to get it right. 

Ha, that’s my feeling - though only 17 years. I only put the Coastal on because I ran across it second hand & my front end had been messed up from a collision for 2 1/2 years.
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  • 3 weeks later...

Alright, we've been busy.

 

5-A3-F4828-6762-4-AAE-95-A2-74-C2-CE94-F

 

Big batch of parts finally cut and cleaned up, ready for drilling and bending.  Couple tweaks on parts from the last sets, most notably changes to the motor mount spacers.  Same footprint, but more efficient piece with tons more tool access.

 

8-A8-F6637-1-F4-B-4826-A7-D3-24-D0-EADA6

 

B14-C58-C5-67-E0-4-B64-90-D3-09-E6-B10-D

 

In other news...I ordered another CNC plasma table last week.  This one will increase cutting sizes to 48" x 33" (my current is 25" x 23", though I've not installed the kit that bumps it to 25" x 33").  This gets us a step closer to making bumpers and skids a reality.  Still tons of things to think about in that regard, but since the table won't ship until January, we have some time to plan.

 

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  • 3 weeks later...

looks great guy! im a metal fab guy myself and if yall need any help hit me up... otherwise im down to buy some products as they are available. im working on a front bumper design that would incorporate a receiver, flush mount leds and ditch lights as well. I had back surgery less than a month ago so its put a halt on all my projects but hopefully I can get some CAD work done while im laid up. 

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On 10/18/2019 at 10:14 AM, scottxemry said:

looks great guy! im a metal fab guy myself and if yall need any help hit me up... otherwise im down to buy some products as they are available. im working on a front bumper design that would incorporate a receiver, flush mount leds and ditch lights as well. I had back surgery less than a month ago so its put a halt on all my projects but hopefully I can get some CAD work done while im laid up. 

 

Hope you back recovers smoothly. Also I am wanting to install some ditch lights but, there are no mounts for sale. I saw that there are ham radio antenna mounts that work, but I wanted to know if you have worked up a design for one? I saw this on another forum, of a mount some made.

LKnrG5Ql.jpg

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  • 1 month later...
  • 4 weeks later...

Man, it's been over a year since our announcement.  Where are we?  We're behind where we wanted to be.  We still talk about projects endlessly (today's topic was rear disc brake conversions), but a couple events in our personal lives this year surely derailed us a bit.  I think @TowndawgR50 will give a separate update, but in general, I'll take the blame for things being slow throughout the year. 

 

At this point, we are finishing up 6 kits (3 each of 3" and 4"), plus some other side parts to complete another kit already partially in the field.  Four of those kits are spoken for among the PNW crew, leaving 1 each of 3" and 4".  I'm not sure when we'll push those latter two kits out, likely after we've had some additional hands-on with the parts and installs.  That's the focus right now.

 

We're still discussing 2020 plans, but tentatively we're talking about a few short run kits here and there rather than anything full-fledged.  Our work schedules and locations presented their fair share of challenges, and Jake and I both have a few personal projects we'd like to focus on, so we've been discussing ways to make our two locations a little more independent.  Part of that will be transferring my current CNC plasma table to him once my new one arrives and is operational.  That would put nearly all of the SFD-making equipment in his hands, plus give him a kick-ass tool for a ton of projects.  Since I'll have a larger table, I'll probably be exploring bumpers and skids, but will also be able to supplement SFD parts and such, too.

 

More to follow soon...

 

 

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  • 2 months later...

Any new updates? I know there are several people intrested. Im curious if the camber adjustment worked out on the strut spacers. Also someone posted your 3" kit on the fb group which was a 2" strut spacer with ome springs to make it 3". So does that mean you have 2" strut spacers that could be matched with 2" ac springs to make a 4" lift and then use 4" sfd spacers with it? Would love to buy a strut spacer from you!

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Any new updates? I know there are several people intrested. Im curious if the camber adjustment worked out on the strut spacers. Also someone posted your 3" kit on the fb group which was a 2" strut spacer with ome springs to make it 3". So does that mean you have 2" strut spacers that could be matched with 2" ac springs to make a 4" lift and then use 4" sfd spacers with it? Would love to buy a strut spacer from you!



62b8f215da7e21b8a1ae4007c043e0b7.jpg

Mine would be the one on Facebook with the 3” sfd. I will let the pines to spines guys explains the technical parts. The sfd strut mounts do fix the camber issues beautifully. You essentially need to get the full 4” sfd kit to utilize the full benefits. Like leveling out the cv axles back to factory angles. With any spring lift you have on the struts you will keep that going into the added height of the sfd. So if you have +2” springs and then add a 4” sfd you’ll net a total of 6” over factory height.


My current set up:

OME Struts
OME Springs
3”sfd
7449 Landrover springs.

All this equals + 4.75” over factory height.




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  • 2 weeks later...
OME StrutsOME Springs

3”sfd

7449 Landrover springs.

 

All this equals + 4.75” over factory height.

 

 

My truck should be done soon & will have a similar setup. The purpose of the 3” over 4” is to add 1” additional ground clearance, whereas the 4” equals OEM CV joint geometry. My set up will have a much heavier front end with a Coastal Offroad Steel Bumper (~97#) + I’ll be mounting my Smittybilt X2O winch (~66#). Additionally, I’ll be starting with OEM tires size & upgrading later this year.

 

FRONT

Pines to Spines Offroad 3” SFD

ARB Old Man Emu Struts N145S(L) & N146®

ARB OME Heavy Load Spring (110-220#) [2928]

 

REAR

Land Rover Britpart NRC9448 Springs

Bilstein 5100 Shocks to be replaced by 5165

 

 

 

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  • 1 month later...

Another long-overdue update.  Let me start by quoting myself from an FB response I posted earlier tonight, mainly in response to mentions that P2S has been trying for years to do things and will probably not materialize:

 

Quote

First, I'm the "S" in P2S; I am Hawairish.

Second, "the business" is a hobby for two dudes with families and full time jobs who've put a name on a passion. We'd rather just make stuff than fuss with the formalities. As for "trying for 2 years"...we've never attempted to sell anything in the open, and we haven't needed to.  We've been active on projects, and will stay busy for the remainder of the year. (I'll put an update on the NPORA thread.)

Third, our last batch of SFDs was six kits, three each of 3" and 4" kits. Two are installed, and another in a few weeks. That will make four trucks, not including our own, with our kits. We've not even remotely tried selling the remaining kits, and there's no rush or need to. The economy isn't impacting us at all, and making another batch would be trivial.

Lastly, we've been seeing all the chatter about demand, and it's great. But as others have noted, there are more talkers than buyers, and that's expected. We want to offer a kit that's within all budgets, but being honest, there's a premium here. We were never in this to do things quickly or cheaply. The guys who've bought from us know us personally, know our work, see the value, and bought our kits without hesitation. We've asked those guys to put their opinions and experiences on FB and IG because we need to see the reactions to justify if this is even worth it. We'll sell those extra kits regardless, but if the interest is there when the money isn't, then that'll be the last batch.

 

I'll be honest: if P2S never becomes a legitimate, multi-state corporation, nor has a website or IG or FB page, I'll care very little.  ( @TowndawgR50 probably won't let that happen as our Director of Public Relations.)  If it remains a hobby, ok.  It won't stop us from making things, and it hasn't stopped us either.  The discussions and ideas we've had are just as frequent as they've always been.  We've not been idle.

 

Yes, it has been over two years since our initial post and we're still not "selling" SFD kits and we don't have a website, or secretary, or whatever.  But yeah, we have kits out there already, and we're proud of that.  We actually put a partial kit on a member's truck over a year ago; some setbacks prevented us from completing the install at the time, and ultimately led to a small redesign.  We were expecting to have completed that installation this year, but the pandemic derailed things; barring some travel plans, we're ready to finish that job.  As you've probably already seen here or on IG or FB, @Stpickens and @02_Pathy have been sporting the kits from the latest batch for a few weeks, and @RainGoat's install is coming up.  So again, we're not idle.

 

As suggested in my post, we've not needed to push the sale on the extra kits.  They hopefully speak for themselves, but at the same time, we're still needing to fully vet our parts and test the waters by gauging interest from seeing real trucks with those parts installed.  On the vetting side, we've even confirmed that an alignment shop was willing to adjust our spacers and was able to get the vehicle within spec.  We've fully assessed the costs of our kits and the value of our time/work; these aren't rusty steel tubes with holes drilled in them.  We've paid heavily into tooling to do this sort of stuff, and compromising on a price to meet all budgets isn't an option.  The intention isn't to narrow the market, but it has that effect.

 

Specifically regarding SFDs, we plan to have a new NPORA thread that just covers them.  This thread is basically our "overdue update" thread now.  The FB post pretty much provides the current state of things (noting that I never reply to things on FB but wanted to curb the bull@!*% there), but I'll add:

  1. Obviously, we have SFD kits available and intend to sell them eventually.  A few people have messaged us here and on IG; we've not announced any pricing, and we're not keeping a wait list.  We'll discuss that stuff in the new thread when ready.
  2. The parts for my new CNC plasma table have been delivered, but I have no space for it yet.  The plan was to have personally delivered my current 2' x 2' table to @TowndawgR50 by now, but that didn't happen for obvious reasons.  The new table gives me a 4' x 2'6" footprint, so dreams of more skids and bumpers may soon become reality (at least on my truck, ha!).
  3. When the new table is up, I plan to make a pair of plate-style rear bumpers with integrated tire carrier—one for my truck, another for a buddy's.  I may eventually do a front bumper as well by year's end.
  4. We're discussing the feasibility of offering re-packed LSDs and/or complete 3rd member assemblies.  Jake's already gung-ho about swapping to 4.6's ever since borrowing my truck for a few weeks while visiting AZ, and his swap will include a re-packed LSD and rear disc brakes (geez, finally!).  We have the means to re-pack a few LSDs and offer them up, but I also intend to do a write-up about the process in the coming weeks.

That's about it.  Hope everyone's well given the state of things, pandemic, economy, yada.  Take care!

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I thought it might be worthwhile to add something here.  Personally, I find all the chaff on FB to be silly and I don’t really even follow there anymore. I have repeatedly advised them to ignore it. I have owned my truck since new and have used it primarily for offroad exploration for the majority of its lifetime – here in the PNW, but mostly in the SW (AZ, UT, CO). I intend to drive my truck for another decade at least. I actually have a 2018 Toyota 4Runner I own with my Mom but I prefer my Pathfinder for narrow PNW trails, its uniqueness and nostalgia. My truck has driven almost all the CO Passes (except Black Bear) and I’ve done several multi-day off road trips in places as diverse as Big Bend, the White Rim Trail and down the West Coast of Vancouver Island. All of that was done as a basically stock ’02 LE with Air Lifts and AT Tires.

 

Pines to Spines (@TowndawgR50 &[mention=36148]hawairish[/mention]) has played a big part in my decision to keep my truck. I am a long term owner and look at modifications with an eye to well thought out design, safety, and long term durability. Also, while I have the capital to invest where I’d like, I’m frugal and generally commit to modifications only after long consideration and with an eye to value. It was these principles which led me to[mention=37543]TowndawgR50[/mention] and[mention=36148]hawairish[/mention] in the first place. Anyone who reads the NPORA forum routinely will soon identify them as two individuals who give thoughtful consideration to their projects and are meticulous in their implementation. It was for these reasons that I eventually met the two of them and, ultimately, developed friendships based on shared values and respect. I think the most important attribute they bring to the table is their ability to look at their own work critically, decide it doesn’t meet their own standards, and go about rectifying their critiques in a thoughtful manner. It’s also worth noting that we kid around with[mention=37543]TowndawgR50[/mention] in the PNW group by calling him “Captain Safety”.

 

I am continually impressed with the work Pines to Spines has done and their in depth consideration of usability, practicality, durability, and safety.  I am now privileged to be in their inner circle so I’m likely to be a lucky recipient of their ingenuity and labors in any case; however, I think all those who truly want quality products for their R50 would be wise to look to them. The SFD project has proven their commitment. It is their willingness to be patient which has led to progressive improvements. [mention=36148]hawairish[/mention] mentions a redesign but, in fact, I have overheard many little tweaks as they work their way to make the product better. For the two of them, it is in their character and a matter of personal pride rather than as means of income which they rush to market. I have several projects in the pipeline with them but I have patience as I know the length of time to fruition of those projects just results in a better product. I have already seen this several times in discussions regarding things like snorkels, bumpers, differentials, etc. Ultimately, we all gain by their passion. If you’re in a hurry, Pines to Spines may not be for you. If you want something safe, practical, well designed and durable, it’s worth the wait.

 

 

Edited by RainGoat
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  • 4 weeks later...

I hope y'all stay at it, take your time, and keep the quality where it should be. That said, I have money ready to send for the 3" SFD. Real talk. $$$

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