Found Inexpensive Rock Slider Bodies

[Luxury Meat]

I was wondering what you guys thought about buying only the main part of the rock sliders (67") for super cheap and then either having them welded on by a friend or have a mount made to bolt them on. And by "super cheap" I mean you can get a pair for half the price of a single 285/70R17 BFG KO2. I mostly want them for jack points, a kid step, and body protection (in this order).
Thanks for your input.

 

[atchcraft]

I was wondering what you guys thought about buying only the main part of the rock sliders (67") for super cheap and then either having them welded on by a friend or have a mount made to bolt them on. And by "super cheap" I mean you can get a pair for half the price of a single 285/70R17 BFG KO2. I mostly want them for jack points, a kid step, and body protection (in this order).
Thanks for your input.

Nothing wrong with that at all. that's about the perfect length. Make sure that they are made with at least .120 wall tubing, you will use them a lot more than you think.

 

[SSDuck8]

Nothing wrong with that at all. that's about the perfect length. Make sure that they are made with at least .120 wall tubing, you will use them a lot more than you think.

He's got a great point. If used as sliders, and not steps, I wouldn't want to skimp on that area. Just my .02.

 

[The_Green_Wang]

Im interested i forgot but theres a company that makes the sliders without the legs welded, etc. Just the main slider part, rest has to be welded and it only cost around $300? These sound cheaper money wise and definently sparks my interest!

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

 

[Jeffy]

Seems like a lot more work to not really save any money.

Stubbs Welding has very nice quality rock sliders starting at $325. For yours, you'd still need to have someone fabricate the legs and mounts, and then install it. I don't see you saving more than a handful of dollars that way.

 

[83Mule]

Trail-Gear has this as well........

 

[DesertCanyons]

DIY Rock Sliders

You can weld the whole thing if you have the tools: pipe bender and welder. Price the materials and see what it'd cost. For this rail option you still need materials for the struts. Remember to add gussets. Price all that and make sure you know the costs.

The frame is actually pretty thin. You can't weld anything thicker than the frame material to it. That's why so many rock sliders come with mounting plates for bolting on. Unless you're really good at measurements and fabricating, this is more work than it's worth.

I bought mine unpainted thinking I'd save money by painting them myself but it turned out to be very tedious and time consuming to paint them due to all the surfaces. I used 3 coats of Rustoleum, primer and paint, which was very good and durable.

If you have KDSS this will become a whole-life story. Trying to fab mounting plates to fit the KDSS system will have a steep learning curve. Better to buy them complete from a fab shop that's built dozens of them already.

 

[nb rob]

I paid $360 for my OPOR sliders from metaltech when I participated in a group buy and we all got 20% off

 

[atchcraft]

You can weld the whole thing if you have the tools: pipe bender and welder. Price the materials and see what it'd cost. For this rail option you still need materials for the struts. Remember to add gussets. Price all that and make sure you know the costs.

The frame is actually pretty thin. You can't weld anything thicker than the frame material to it. That's why so many rock sliders come with mounting plates for bolting on. Unless you're really good at measurements and fabricating, this is more work than it's worth.

Good point on the thin frame. But, you can most assuredly weld thicker material to it. Welding them directly to the frame would be the simplest method for attaching them. Anyone with even the most basic skills can pull that off. As you mentioned, the frame is thin, so a simple base pad would be best to distribute the load.

I believe that most of the sliders on the market are bolt on, because of the market being catered to. A majority of the people buying them don’t want to weld to the frame and would like for them to be removable. I’ve done them both ways.

Using these, you would need less than 1/2 a stick of 2” square .120 wall and some 3/16 - 1/4”plate for pads. Space them out evenly, where ever you have room, and make sure to give enough room between the sliders and the body. Use the rest of your day to drink the beer with your buddy.

 

[honda250xtitan]

I paid $360 for my OPOR sliders from metaltech when I participated in a group buy and we all got 20% off

dang. Shipped??

 

[Luxury Meat]

I will keep Stubbs in mind.

Thanks for everyone's feedback. I am going to look at them today.

 

[PeoplecallmeIan]

do you mind sharing the info on these? i was thinking of getting the trail gear one's but I like the kick out on these.

 

[DesertCanyons]

Frame Welding Limitations

Good point on the thin frame. But, you can most assuredly weld thicker material to it. Welding them directly to the frame would be the simplest method for attaching them. Anyone with even the most basic skills can pull that off. As you mentioned, the frame is thin, so a simple base pad would be best to distribute the load.

... and some 3/16 - 1/4”plate for pads. ... Use the rest of your day to drink the beer with your buddy.

I like what you said about saving time to relax with a beer and good friends.

There's a limit to what you can weld to the thin steel frame. You can weld a thicker plate or tube end but the weld size is limited by the thin frame. If the weld is too large it melts the base material, resulting in a weak joint. And the base plate needs to be preheated to perform the weld properly so the weld doesn't cool too quickly. All this combines to limit what you can weld to the frame.

Yes, you need a base plate at the frame end of the struts. Good Point. Having a wider base plate allows you to use a longer length of thin welds. The base plate also provides a wide surface to add gusset plates between the struts and the base plate, strengthening the joint and reducing flex in the base plate.

I'm a structural engineer. I design welds for structural steel. The American Welding Society (AWS) codifies what can be welded and how. The American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) design manual also spells out weld limitations and acceptable limits.

I don't know what the limits of welding to the T4R frame is, but I know it's limited by the thin frame.

 

[nb rob]

dang. Shipped??

afraid not-- that would have been tooooo sweet.
But shipping on bare metal sliders wasn't too bad as I recall.

paying 15% tax when I brought them across the border was the real *****

 

[honda250xtitan]

afraid not-- that would have been tooooo sweet.
But shipping on bare metal sliders wasn't too bad as I recall.

paying 15% tax when I brought them across the border was the real *****

yay gubbernment

 

[atchcraft]

I like what you said about saving time to relax with a beer and good friends.

There's a limit to what you can weld to the thin steel frame. You can weld a thicker plate or tube end but the weld size is limited by the thin frame. If the weld is too large it melts the base material, resulting in a weak joint. And the base plate needs to be preheated to perform the weld properly so the weld doesn't cool too quickly. All this combines to limit what you can weld to the frame.

Yes, you need a base plate at the frame end of the struts. Good Point. Having a wider base plate allows you to use a longer length of thin welds. The base plate also provides a wide surface to add gusset plates between the struts and the base plate, strengthening the joint and reducing flex in the base plate.

I'm a structural engineer. I design welds for structural steel. The American Welding Society (AWS) codifies what can be welded and how. The American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) design manual also spells out weld limitations and acceptable limits.

I don't know what the limits of welding to the T4R frame is, but I know it's limited by the thin frame.

Now I see where you're coming from and, obviously, you are 100% spot on! From a garage perspective, I just keep the heat on the thick stuff, make sure I have peni. and call it good. good convo and now I know who I'm coming to with my technical questions!

To the OP: I love seeing people DIY, so I'm always go to be that, "just go for it" guy. let us know how it turns out.

 

[Lukesaysrelax]

I like what you said about saving time to relax with a beer and good friends.

There's a limit to what you can weld to the thin steel frame. You can weld a thicker plate or tube end but the weld size is limited by the thin frame. If the weld is too large it melts the base material, resulting in a weak joint. And the base plate needs to be preheated to perform the weld properly so the weld doesn't cool too quickly. All this combines to limit what you can weld to the frame.

Yes, you need a base plate at the frame end of the struts. Good Point. Having a wider base plate allows you to use a longer length of thin welds. The base plate also provides a wide surface to add gusset plates between the struts and the base plate, strengthening the joint and reducing flex in the base plate.

I'm a structural engineer. I design welds for structural steel. The American Welding Society (AWS) codifies what can be welded and how. The American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) design manual also spells out weld limitations and acceptable limits.

I don't know what the limits of welding to the T4R frame is, but I know it's limited by the thin frame.

I'm a print detailer at a structural steel manufacturer, and we routinely weld significantly thicker plates to relatively thinly gauged webs and or flanges of WF beams, per the engineer's prints. Can you tell me why that's ok but not so on the frame of an auto? I'm genuinely curious. Wouldn't the weld be the same strength as when you put a thin plate on a thick base? Your thinner material would obviously be the limiting factor for strength, but I can't imagine the weld under performing.

 

[Vinsil]

I'm a print detailer at a structural steel manufacturer, and we routinely weld significantly thicker plates to relatively thinly gauged webs and or flanges of WF beams, per the engineer's prints. Can you tell me why that's ok but not so on the frame of an auto? I'm genuinely curious. Wouldn't the weld be the same strength as when you put a thin plate on a thick base? Your thinner material would obviously be the limiting factor for strength, but I can't imagine the weld under performing.

What he said is correct. You can only put so much heat and therefore, weld surface on the thinner material. Therfore, while the thinner material can become a failure point the weld itself will have a failure point on the thinner material due to lack to surface and heat you can apply.

He’s not saying it can’t be done and didn’t specifically say what the failure point of the frame is, just that from a welding perspective the weld will have weakness against your thinner, weaker material. M

Ive had weld on sliders on all my other Offroad rigs and never had one fail. I’d happily weld some in this pig. But my time is worth more now and it’s easisrr to buy some bolt on sliders and armor (for me) than spend my time designing and fabricating at this point in my life. Before kids and a demanding career...heck yes! It’s fun! Have it OP!

 

[Lukesaysrelax]

Covering more surface area doesn't make a joint stronger, your weld only needs to fuse the material. If you spread a weld out over more surface, all you're doing is moving the moment away from the joint.

 

[Vinsil]

Covering more surface area doesn't make a joint stronger, your weld only needs to fuse the material. If you spread a weld out over more surface, all you're doing is moving the moment away from the joint.

Ok.:hello:

When welding into thinner material you are limited to the amount of heat and material you can put down. If you slate putting two sets of materials together that you can pour equal heat and filler into, the weld will be stronger (usually) than the material. When your having to cheat more heat and filler into a thicker piece of metal, the joint will always be weaker on the thinner material. The working metal might give out before the weld but the joint side will be weaker due to less filler and heat needed to fuse them together.

I still think the welding is completely fine and wouldn’t hesitate to do so. Maybe we are splitting up this conversation for no real purpose at this point.

And I don’t do metal working for a living. My certs are long expired and I only did this for a hobby.