That's what I like to hear! Anyone else have any comments on this?

Chris

 

I vote 3/16" too. 1/4" seems overkill and way too heavy.

 

Yeah a couple more comments like that and I'll finally be able to say that the wonderful members have actually saved me money on this project, rather than recommend that I spend more. That would be amazing!

Chris

 

I could go for a rear bumper w/o the tire carrier.

mochoajr

 

Well, I already said in the first pages somewhere that 3/16 is fine and that even 1/8th would work for the main beam (but not for the mounts).

 

Here's what I think... mounting the tire in the middle is dumb, main reason is you cant see anything out the back!! .. Tire have to be mounted on the passanger side.. Also putting it on the roof is dumb too , You try to lift a 33 Superswamper SSR up there hehe.. them things are heavy!!


Other then that .....

 

I'm definitely not having a tire mounted on the rear bumper. IT will be stowed away in the rear cargo area for now, because I rarely ever use it, and it's mostly for the dogs and jetski and dirtbike gear when I do. So it sounds like 3/16" is okay, right?

Chris

 

Ok, after not having any time to work on this thing (actually I've been off-roading too much), me and a buddy spent a couple of hours tonight figuring out what we're going to do. I'm picking up the tubing tomorrow to start the process. I'm actually going to remove the stock bumper completely, and I'm going to have a local company bend the side parts for me, and the main tubing across the back will be 3x2x3/16" rectangular tubing. It's going to be a simple, yet very effective design with looks coming last on the list of priorities. I figured out how to make the best bumper with the highest departure angle that I've seen. You're going to love it, and I can't wait to get started. Pictures will be coming so stay tuned!

Chris

 

Yea, I started on my rear bumper, I got the hole cut out for the reciever and soon I'll be making the frame braces. I'm gonna use some of Trailcarnages idea's with what I already had of my own. I'll be adding quick disconnects for rear mud flaps for highway driving. Also, I'm gonna make the departure angle comming off the rear wheel a bit more forgiving.

 

Pics and more pics will be fun to see what we both come up with.

Chris

 

The rear bumper is totally different than anything I've seen. There will be an 1" of clearance between any point of it and body in any location. The main cross tube is 3x2x3/16" tubing that will be laying flat, where there will be about a 1 1/2" lip past the rear door and 1" lower than the rear door. The frame mounts are custom made c-channel that will cup the frame on the inside of the frame rails with through bolts from the bottom to the top
for maximum strength. The side pieces are going to be custom made out of 3/16" plate with reinforcements similar to the design that Tom and Trail Carnage are doing. From the bottom of the rear 3x2 tubing, there will be flat sheet angled down to the bottom side of the frame connecting to the c-channel and running the full length of the bumper to hide the frame rails and the gas tank.

If everything goes as planned it's going to be one bad bumper. I can't wait to get it finished. My buddy is going to weld up the cross member on Saturday for me, and then we'll cut out the old crossmember and weld in the new one. Next week after getting the c-channel made, we'll mount and cut the main rear cross tube, install the custom shackle hangers I had made a long
time ago, and do the hitch tube also. Then the main tube will be attached to the truck, which will help to determine the exact angles of the side pieces, which are the most tricky.

That's all I got for now, but pictures will be on the way. Stay tuned for the pics on Sunday!

Chris

 

Sounds like it's gonna be quite heavy.... The largest plate is gonna be the pieces that make up the bumper mounting brackets, 3/16, from there I'll use 11 guage for the lower side pieces, moving to thinner sheetmetal for all the upper portions. I'll try to reduce the weight as much as possible by using a hole saw in all gusssets. I was even thinking about making a mould of the stock side pieces out of fiberglass. That way the fiberglass would shatter, before body damage would occur and with the mould I could easily make replacement parts. Also, I'll try to incorporate the stock plastic top half, but since there is a slight curve in the bumper, this may not fit too well to the straight main frame.

I'd rather have the bumper give a little, rather than the frame bending.

 

I was originally going to incorporate the stock rear bumper, but after thinking about how hard it was going to be, the practicality of it, and the strength I decided to go a different route. So far the 3x2x3/16" main tube is about 5.75 lbs/foot, and it will roughly be 5.5 feet long. In my opinion, with the wheeling I do, the 3/16" was the minimal thickness I was willing to go, because we have some big rocks that really mess things up. It will be heavy, but it's going to be strong as hell, and to be honest, I'm not really as concerned with the weight factor. I may after building it lighten it up using a hole saw as you mention.

Chris

 

Actually, 5.59 lbs/foot.

Sounds like you are making some progress on that puppy! I look forward to the pics of the finished masterpiece!

 

I don't know about masterpiece, but I'd rather call it a work of art!

At any rate, I'm hoping to cut the crossmember out today, my buddy is welding up the new crossmember tomorrow, and then Sunday we are putting it in. The fabrication has my frame mounts, so they'll probably be done the middle part of next week, and then next weekend I'm hoping to mounting the rear main cross bar. It's fun!

Chris

 

Well, tonight at 11:00 p.m. I decided that I was going to start cutting the crossmember out. It's now cut out, and one side is grinded down. All that is left is some grinding on the other side, and I'll be good to go to get the new one welded in tomorrow. Me and the wife are fighting so she's going to hang with the girls, and now I have all day tomorrow to work on it.

Chris

 

Well, the rear crossmember came off with ease using a reciprocating saw and a 4" grinder. It's ready to have the new crossmember installed, and today it's being welded together, then will weld it in place. Pictures are coming soon!

Chris

 

Here's some pics of the rear bumper removed along with the rear crossmember out:















Tomorrow I'll be installing the new crossmember including some more pics. Stay tuned!

Chris

 

 

pics no worky for me:cry: