Hammer wrote:
After reading this interesting thread, I've found both valid points and inconsistancies in a few posts.
I understand budgets however when it comes to tooling and I don't care who you are, every manufacturer has to tool for each application they design. Warn, Spyder & other's all have to design bumpers for each model of vehicle. So if these people can build bumper's for specific vehicles, I'm not sure I understand why All J ( or anyone else) can't? Again, I understand budgets. However budgets should not be confused with tooling specifics. Related as to costs, yes.
While I'm on the subject of confusion, I find it silly for anyone to confuse perfection with quality. Now it has been posted that All J is a perfectionist. I question this. A quality builder, no doubt but a perfectionist? For example, All J states in their .pdf instruction sheet for the Super SkidPlate; "The front skid will need to have the rear driver’s side slot notched.... You will be notching the angled corner of the front skid plate, which is the rear driver's side of the plate." Is this tooling perfection on their part? Again, let's not confuse perfection with quality. Although I do not own a All J skid, I believe they are quality built, as in second to none.
By the way, DC didn't simply tool a plastic bumper. They tooled a plastic cover over a D.O.T. approved front (steel) assembly, which had to pass crash industry standards to become D.O.T. approved.
Now as for cutting the stock DC bumper, I say hell yes! I for one just might consider this alternative myself. I for sure won't be dropping off my KJ at All J?! That's just stupid for anyone who lives outside the left coast. Now if All J does deliver the cool looking bumper I viewed in the other thread, sweet! Yeah, I'm seriously game.
Again, my .2 cents.
Hello,
First of all let me clear up one part. You are NOT notching All J's Super Skid, you are notching the stock KJ front skid to fit over our thicker skid plate, that was never there from the factory. If you are not running a factory front skid, this step isn't needed. And there are variations to the super skid install. This is due to exhaust tolerances and hole tolerances in the various KJ models. This is worse on a KJ that has been off road, and might not be perfectly "factory" any more. Metal moves when hit with rocks, so installing a skid on a used KJ, it may require some adjustment and shimming.
Again, as far as us tooling up for front bumpers, yes, we can do it. It will be expensive, and yes it will be quality built and well made. Now is it cost effective? This is what I have to look at when building new products. Everyone says they will buy a said product. Then we build. If sales are not as expected, then what? All I have to go by with KJ's is 2 years of KJ owners buying habits. We consider all things when deciding to build new products. Also we have to decide if it is worth building a products that will only fit 3 years of KJ. 02, 03, 04 are the only KJ's that will work with the said bumper. We are still considering the front bumper and looking into ways to tool up properly. Also we have to keep in mind that there are differences in each KJ that will effect fit of the bumper. We have already done this proess before with Wranglers, Cherokees, etc.
On a different subject. As far as comparing quality to perfection, there is a line there. Yes, we build quality products, and YES, we are perfectionists. Would you want anyone making parts for YOUR KJ that isn't a perfectionist??? Look around at some of the other recent posts on this board. I see tons of posts about poorly fitting parts, and parts breaking when subjected to "off road" use. Maybe these manufacturers were not perfectionists, I'm not sure. But I would think that us being "perfectionists" and building quality parts that fit and fuction correctly is something customers would want. Am I wrong?
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