So for a winter project I want to give my new welder a good work out, I was thinking about building a custom bumper..

Has anyone done this? Any suggestions on do's and don'ts?

What thickness steel is a normal aftermarket bumper?

I have never really off roaded, so its probably more for looks.. But if the opportunity presents itself I want something that will hold up...

with that in mind I was thinking about 1/8~3/16" steel...

so fabricators speak up..

Bill

 

I recently just finished my custom bumper. Its a hybrid plate, round, and square tube and I love it. I used 2" x 2" square tube, 1.5" and 1" round tube, all hrew all .120 wall. For the structural plate stuff i used 3/16 steel, and when i do the winch mount its going to be .25 inch steel. There is some 16 gauge steel in there too. You don't want to skimp on the materials, even though you may not offroad alot, you still want it to protect you.
Here is a picture of the bumper and a link to the build up.
https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f88/...-build-122252/

 

That sounds about right to me and I agree about using .25" for a winch mount plate (that's what Warn recommends). May also want to add some angle on the winch plate front and back like this:


One thing to think about with your design is try to keep from blocking air flow to your radiator as much as possible. I found after some road testing that my original TJM bumper raised my coolant temps about 10 degrees.

 

Thats pretty sweet... I was thinking of something similar but without the hoops..

that guy does really clean work.. are your sliders custom too?

 

Yep sliders are custom too, same friend built them for me. the good thing about my bumper is that it is light. and if you go without the hoops its just going to get lighter.

 

Front Stinger Bumper, Rear Bumper, Sliders. Chop. yup built em all.

Only advise if your using MIG, USE GAS YOU NEED GAS.

 

The nice thing about hoops is they add a lot of stiffness to the outside edges of the bumper. Without hoops you'll need more steel in other places to get the same stiffness.

 

I diggin' this bumper crolison! That's exactly what I want my bumper to look like. When saying it turned out light, how much are we talking cuz I will freak out if my front end sags with a heavy bumper?

 

Thanks for the replies all..
You know looking at his hella's I was wondering about air flow...I was actually thinking about the skid plate blocking flow too..
As for the welder yes its a Mig, with gas... (actually I have both..but I plan to use gas)
crolison thanks again for the info... I may start with some sliders I just dont have a tube bender... I got the creative itch... must cut and weld on something...

 

I originally made mine to keep the stock bumper, while adding protection from rocks and a winch.



But I have since changed that since I am doing more extreme trails and need the clearance.

 

Yeah that is very extreme... I kind of like leaving the top part of the bumper... its something to consider..

 

That's one mean 4runner...