coltm4
New member
I got in on the group buy this last time and got A arm skids and a fuel tank skid. I chose RCI aluminum for purposes of minimal weight gain and improvement over my beat up factory fuel skid. A significant amount of damage was done to the front "corners" of the fuel skid (center most and first place to high center). Driving on logging/mining roads carries the risk of some branch getting kicked up and puncturing the forward facing portion of the gas tank (or so I think), and given the factory skid having good coverage of that area, I suspect there is high risk of damage there, albiet not full weight of vehicle will rest on it so no need for 1/4" aluminum there.
I decided to bend some 10 gauge aluminum and rivet some extra coverage the RCI unit lacks. I would love to have had a C4Fab style skid, but steel being the only option was a non starter for me. I used Marson 3/16" structural blind rivets (klik lock) to fasten the parts together. I am very satisfied with how solid the pieces feel after being assembled. The gold colored devices are called Cleco's and are used to keep the holes aligned and keep sheet metal pulled together and are highly recommended if you want to rivet stuff. There is a risk of misaligned holes and gaps between sheets if you do not use them.
Marson rivets. Each rivet is rated at 700 lbs shear, and 580 lbs tensile strength.
Bending sheet metal at home without a brake is not exactly easy, but with a mallet can be done.
Mock up. This takes time and patience to fit the parts.
Start with a single hole through both pieces, insert cleco into the hole for alignment. Drill second hole, insert cleco, wash, rinse, repeat until all holes are drilled. Clecos need a special plier to install (they are very inexpensive).
Back side of a cleco and how it holds the pieces together (lower portion of photo)
I decided to bend some 10 gauge aluminum and rivet some extra coverage the RCI unit lacks. I would love to have had a C4Fab style skid, but steel being the only option was a non starter for me. I used Marson 3/16" structural blind rivets (klik lock) to fasten the parts together. I am very satisfied with how solid the pieces feel after being assembled. The gold colored devices are called Cleco's and are used to keep the holes aligned and keep sheet metal pulled together and are highly recommended if you want to rivet stuff. There is a risk of misaligned holes and gaps between sheets if you do not use them.
Marson rivets. Each rivet is rated at 700 lbs shear, and 580 lbs tensile strength.
Bending sheet metal at home without a brake is not exactly easy, but with a mallet can be done.
Mock up. This takes time and patience to fit the parts.
Start with a single hole through both pieces, insert cleco into the hole for alignment. Drill second hole, insert cleco, wash, rinse, repeat until all holes are drilled. Clecos need a special plier to install (they are very inexpensive).
Back side of a cleco and how it holds the pieces together (lower portion of photo)
Last edited:
