I finally wrapped up my install this morning. This was on a 4th gen with RCI skid plates front to back. Here are my impressions:
Specific to RCI Skids:
- You'll need to modify your slider foot that wraps under the frame so that it doesn't interfere with your RCI skid crossmember. See pics below:
-You'll need to modify the rectangular silver bracket used for the center foot for the driver's side to avoid interfering with the RCI skid crossmember. The reason you only have to do it on driver's side is because the brake line position prevents you from being able to rotate it so that the long side is horizontal. Note the pic below is of the passenger side which I didn't have to cut, but I did because I didn't know better at the time. It shows the clearance issue, but again on the passenger side you could rotate it around to make it work and be okay as there are no brake lines interfering.
- You may or may not need to drop the fuel skid plate to get enough clearance to fit the U-Bolt around the back side of the frame. I had to to do so.
GENERAL OBSERVATIONS
The quality of these seems terrific. I like both the fit and the function these sliders provide and I think at the price they're about the best value out there for my particular needs. No regrets about this purchase whatsoever.
This was much more involved than I imagined it would be. It is officially a bolt on, but it's not as simple as a couple of wrenches and a couple hours in the garage. This included for me 2 or 3 trips to a hardware store, and a trip to a specialty store to find the right size bits. Outside of the painting/prep of the sliders, I probably spent 6+ hours on this install, not counting all the errand trips. The first one took me about 4 hours, the second about 2 taking what I learned on the first go-round. Keep in mind, some of these annoyances are due to running aftermarket skids that cause more hassle with installation.
In the instructions it notes that an 11/16" hole needs to be drilled for the center foot (bolt that goes up through the bottom into bottom of frame into rivet nut). They note you have to install the slider to mark the location. My truck already had a hole here in this location. I'd assume all do, but maybe not. I simply had to enlarge it.
Rivet nuts are a complete headache. Having no experience doing rivet nuts kind of makes it tough to get it right on your first try. As you might imagine, I didn't. When I tried to remove the bolt from the rivet nut installed on the front leg, the rivet nut turned inside the frame. :redbrick:
After some more quality time with the grinder that I got more use out of on this project than I think I have in years, I punched the rivet back through and into the frame and then fished it out. I ended up going another route. I'm not going to recommend it, but I'm pleased with it. I basically used a magnet to pull the bolt from a larger hole within the frame within which it could pass and pulled it through the hole drilled in the frame and then threaded my nut and washers on it from the outside, holding it for tightening with vice grips. Obviously this buggers the threads a bit on the end of the bolt, but I'll consider it a sacrificial bolt if I ever need to remove it. BTW, if you go this route, such a large hole as is needed for the rivet nut isn't necessary. Picture below:
Luckily I had less trouble with the larger rivet nuts, but still don't consider myself proficient at it. I would recommend anyone that is nervous using these rivet nuts to consider buying 2 or 3 practice nuts to use on a piece of steel where you can see and feel what's happening as the rivet crushes into shape. I watched a couple of youtube videos, but still managed to screw up. I suspect on the my first attempt I put too much torque on it and somehow rotated the rivet within the frame and then I was SOL. One other trick I saw online in the event your rivet nut is just spinning in the frame before you can get it to crush in on the back side was to use these little locking washers. You put them between the surface of the rivet and your spacer (oversized nut) to put a bite on the lip of the rivet to keep it from spinning until it begins to crush as you tighten the bolt into the rivet threads. They worked great. Can be found at your local hardware store:
With regard to chasing the factory threads in the front top bolt hole as is recommended in the instructions, I found it wasn't necessary. My truck has never been subjected to any meaningful amount of corrosive material, so if yours has, the instructions should probably be followed. On the first one I did chase the threads. But they didn't seem that dirty and it was a bit of a PITA due to the clearance. So on the next side I simply used some WD40 and the bolt and ran it in and out a couple of times, cleaning the threads each time. By then I could thread by hand. Use discretion and obviously if you feel the bolt not going in smoothly or tightening up, take appropriate precautions.
Tips:
Use jack stands (with blocks to avoid scratching your new paint) to help hold your slider in place if working alone. Depending on the height of your rig, a 5 gallon bucket also may put it pretty close to where you need it.
Don't tighten your bolts until you have them all in and partially threaded. The instructions say to tighten the center large bolt first. Given my uneasiness about the rivet nut, I did thread this in until it started to get some tension, but then tightened my front bolts. Then I went after the rears, then the lower bolt on the center foot and finally the horizontal bolt on the center foot. I used a jack to make sure the slider was positioned where I wanted it while tightening the hardware.
If you take as long as I do with this stuff, put a charger on your battery or you'll run it down listening to the classic rock. :doh:
Good luck!