Bumper ideas

CoopaTroopa · **Posted:** Mon Aug 22, 2011 8:52 am

Hey guys I just got word that some guys locally have 2 front tj bumpers and 1 rear bumper for me to have some fun with... :BANANA:

So now that I have a starting ground for my project I need some ideas for a style and how I want this thing to look. Right now I'm only focused on the front.
Assuming alot of you have seen this...viewtopic.php?f=59&t=45262
That is pretty much what I'm going for! I love the idea that he had for the lights and the capped corners. Now I still ahve to figure out how turn signals are going to work... He had it a bit easier just because of the year his jeep was. I was thinking that I could do what rock lizard does and build the housing into the bumper or something along those lines.
If anyone has any suggestions on ideas to make this bumper work I'd love to hear them. Hopefully I can find someone on our local offroad site that welds so I can save on the cost. :BANANA:

CoopaTroopa · **Posted:** Mon Aug 22, 2011 8:56 am

Opps Forgot to mention that after the bumper is done Im going to try to find a way to make the fenders match and meet up with the bumper. This is where I need you KjWildman!! :mrgreen:

viewtopic.php?f=59&t=50541 I'm leaning way towards the flat fender idea, however just not as far out as others have made theirs. I only want mine to go out that inch or two in order to meet up with the bumper. I figure with them being that way stuffing the fender will be a problem no more and it will give the jeep that wide stance look.

JeepinJarhead03 · **Posted:** Mon Aug 22, 2011 1:47 pm

just throwin ideas out there
16ga isn't that hard to coerce uniformly, fairly rigid, IMO, add/subtract material from a securely designed mount than it is to form something to fit a mount and have it look right than it is to try and restructure the flare itself to fit less than desirable mounts

basically a shim structure, mounts with plenty of rigidity and support with known locations to support your flare securely .. or someones arse.. cause you know someone will back their rump up against it..

think shelving bracket |----- kind in the simplest form

can be lengthened, shortened, heightened, but harder to lower lest it become a fish hook mount lol..

when we built the T bucket i basically took 16 penny nails and tacked them to where I thought the lowest support of the mount should be, kind of a dotted outline of where the underneath surface of the fender flares would be, built the flares for the tub then structured the mounts accordingly

blew out a mickey and they survived the thrashing, only had to fix a few warps and dings

just need to keep in mind your limitations as far as where your mounts can and cant be and you can make anything happen

look forward to seeing what ya come up with

CoopaTroopa · **Posted:** Wed Aug 24, 2011 9:01 am

I found some different style turn signals on 4 wheel parts website... I'm pretty sure that when I do this I'm just going to end up making the housing for the bulbs built into the bumper. That way I wont have to worry about keeping the fenders on. Are there any other place I should look for turn signals that might have better prices or even some different styles? Also could I simply put an 05 grille on? that way I have the holes for turn signals?

JeepinJarhead03 · **Posted:** Thu Aug 25, 2011 7:07 am

all depends on what you want, anything can be made to work so .. it's more so important that you like it -- well that and that it's inspectable

the older round M type willys turn signals would work, as would the square type

can pretty much go through a JC Whitney and look at Jeep replacement parts involving the turn signals and see the differences or could go as far as using motorcycle turn signals

0_o

haha

JeepinJarhead03 · **Posted:** Thu Aug 25, 2011 3:09 pm

btw, northerntools has weld on trailer light boxes, square, and rectangular with the ovaly turnsignal holes in diamond plate and smooth - happened to see them in the trailer section while getting resupplys and exchanging a ratchet

tommudd · **Posted:** Fri Aug 26, 2011 10:22 am

Also check out aftermarket motorcycle lights, some of them work great for turns etc

CoopaTroopa · **Posted:** Fri Aug 26, 2011 2:19 pm

thanks guys I found the light boxes no problem and think they will save a ton of time!

CoopaTroopa · **Posted:** Fri Aug 26, 2011 3:04 pm

This might sound like a dumb question but no matter what I put in I cannot find what I'm looking for... For the tow points that I 'm going to slide into the bumper and attach to the frame, what are they called? :banghead:

CoopaTroopa · **Posted:** Fri Aug 26, 2011 3:16 pm

nevermind I believe I found it! I had tried everything far tow bar to 10,000 lb metal bar... just to randomly come across draw bar :banghead:

that is what I want right? What is the best towing capacity to try and go for? I know the more the better but this is also supposed to be on a budget

JeepinJarhead03 · **Posted:** Fri Aug 26, 2011 9:48 pm

for the rear? class III although KJs are only classed for Class II weight

CoopaTroopa · **Posted:** Fri Aug 26, 2011 9:55 pm

Actually they are for the bumper. They will go through the tj bumper and get bolted to the frame. Durantango or however you spell it used 10,000 lb not sure what class that is. I found 20,000 and 6,000... yes 20 seems like over kill haha but 10k was actually more expensive because of the drop in the hitch and brand. So are two 6k hitches going to be enough to get me out of a sticky situation such as mud or snow? Or do I need to get the overkill? By the way while I was there I found lights that fit right into the boxes you suggested. So thanks a ton

JeepinJarhead03 · **Posted:** Fri Aug 26, 2011 10:24 pm

oh u mean the hitch inserts used as replacements for tow hooks

Class II's have plenty of "pull" strength, class III's are heavier and have even more

the rating on the hitch inserts won't be the recovery pull rating as the rating is based on how much weight they can support at tongue

rummage through the adapted front recovery points in the fab section , the stuff used ranges from C2 to C3 with varying drops based on where people wanted the hitch to come out at in the fascia, with your application, it'll be different, you'll need to rough some measurements and see which drop would work best for ya

CoopaTroopa · **Posted:** Fri Aug 26, 2011 10:38 pm

So the two 6ks will be enough? 20k for bragging rights :ROTFL:

JeepinJarhead03 · **Posted:** Thu Sep 01, 2011 1:36 am

i'd personally put a C3 in the back

and a C2 in the front for baskets/grills etc

and put 7/8ths+ D shackles parallel to the mounting points

usually when getting pulled, unless you're going forward it's better to have an option of left or right side to increase the lateral force if necessary (need to pull hard right you hook to the drivers side) etc

or you can weld on 3/4+ tabs after drilling a hole 7/8-1" ish and get a twisted clevis with quick release pull pin

have one on the back of mine that i've used in the front a few times or put on someone elses rig - the twist int he clevis takes the stress off the line when pulling at a angle, doesn't bunch up in the corner of the clevis next to the mount, why they're not more common i don't know.. less wear and tear on the straps, mobile, and have ridiculously high working load limits

CoopaTroopa · **Posted:** Thu Sep 01, 2011 6:44 pm

Went to Northern Tool again today to pick up both hitches, d rings, lights, and housing for $123.03 Now all I need to do is pick up some hard ware and I'm good to go! :BANANA:

JeepinJarhead03 · **Posted:** Thu Sep 01, 2011 6:51 pm

did ya use atleast the 5 off 15 coupon if not the 20 off 100 ?

if ya didn't smack yourself

I had two 20 off 100s sittin on my desk

CoopaTroopa · **Posted:** Thu Sep 01, 2011 7:01 pm

ouch...

I honestly didnt even think about coupons! The only time I really look for them is when I buy some thing online. Well at least I'll know for when I go back to get all the bolts and such... Do they carry metal for welding? I know they have a pretty decent size section of the store for welding stuff but not sure about metal

JeepinJarhead03 · **Posted:** Thu Sep 01, 2011 7:06 pm

depends on the store

just bout all of them have stuff in stock up to about 3" wide ~ 24-36" long

a few of the bigger stores have a Fastenal style fab section where you can get stuff up to 2" thick 6" wide cut in whatever length you want - that being said, their typical metals stock at each store is little different than lowes or home depots

CoopaTroopa · **Posted:** Thu Sep 01, 2011 7:11 pm

sweet just trying to make sure that I can try ti buy every thing at one store to save multiple trips haha. What thickness would be good for making these corners and how much would you say I would need and finally how much would that run me :mrgreen:

Bumper ideas

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