Aluminum vs steel skid plates?

Aluminum vs steel trans skid

  • Aluminum

    Votes: 49 81.7%

  • Steel

    Votes: 11 18.3%
  • Total voters
    60
Gollywomper

Gollywomper

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I am having some indecision on which way to go on a trans skid. I am looking at UCF skids. I Am not looking to do a complete flat belly but I am looking to improve a couple inches.
Is the aluminum worth the 30lb weight savings? How does it hold up?
Which would you buy?
 
What about the benefits of sliding over rocks easier with steel? Is that the reason some put that high impact plastic over the aluminum, to make it slide better? Does the plastic weigh much? Not enough to matter?
 
Head Lice said:
Just my experience on off-road trucks, logging equipment, and quads . . . . rock seems to 'grab' aluminum, while steel tends to slide on rock.
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This was my thought as well. But some very experienced guys who spend much more time in the rocks than I do seem to have experiences that say other wise.
 
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I'm interested to hear what other have to say on this. I have a flat aluminum belly skid that's still relatively new. It's taken a couple hits on the rocks but nothing that's really gotten my attention yet. I assess the new scrapes and scars after each wheeling trip.
 
I would 100% go aluminum, but...

I had the seemingly unsolvable oscillating driveline vibes and had read that a heavy skid had helped some with this. So I got the 1/4" steel, and it did reduce their intensity as well as moving them a little higher speed.

It weighed 77 pounds. It's a heavy bitch, but if you can't avoid the weight, there's not much better place to put it than the trans skid, since it's the lowest sprung weight on the whole rig and pretty well centered between the axles. I'd much rather have it there than up at hood level or on top of the roll bar.
 
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For simple welded skids the weight is pretty much proportional to the strength. With the UCF welded skids they are a little weaker per pound because they do not re heat treat the aluminum. A golden rule every Jeeper should remember is that 6061 aluminum is pound for pound almost the exact same strength as mild weld steel. So if you get a skid lighter than the stock one in aluminum it is that much weaker. Obviously the Savvy skid leverages some fancy construction techniques to get more out of the aluminum, the other plain skids don't.
 
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I have an aluminum tank skid incoming, and if I ordered a trans skid I'd go aluminum too.
I wanted to save the weight, and I don't crawl in rocks.
I'm in mud and snow and will bang a rock once in a while, but I'm more likely to hit a stump or a log than anything.
To me aluminum is a twofold significant weight savings, both my skid and wallet are now lighter!
 
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Gollywomper said:
At roughly $10 per pound. Is that worth saving weight? Is the 30lbs saved really going to make much difference?
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My aluminum skid is nearly half of what the stocker was. It seems like night and day now dropping the skid with one arm and one knee - a maneuver I never would have attempted with the stocker.
 
pagrey said:
For simple welded skids the weight is pretty much proportional to the strength. With the UCF welded skids they are a little weaker per pound because they do not re heat treat the aluminum. A golden rule every Jeeper should remember is that 6061 aluminum is pound for pound almost the exact same strength as mild weld steel. So if you get a skid lighter than the stock one in aluminum it is that much weaker. Obviously the Savvy skid leverages some fancy construction techniques to get more out of the aluminum, the other plain skids don't.
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This is why I referenced that I was planning on the UCF skid. Working the treated aluminum, either by bending it or welding must play a role as well.
 
Gollywomper said:
This is why I referenced that I was planning on the UCF skid. Working the treated aluminum, either by bending it or welding must play a role as well.
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It's all just a rough comparison. If you hammer on the stock skid and it's all bent up then the aluminum might be a poor choice. If your stock skid looks like the day it rolled off the line it's probably just fine especially because the tuck will expose it to less damage. If you haven't really bent or damaged any of them you're really coming to the table blind.
 
pagrey said:
It's all just a rough comparison. If you hammer on the stock skid and it's all bent up then the aluminum might be a poor choice. If your stock skid looks like the day it rolled off the line it's probably just fine especially because the tuck will expose it to less damage. If you haven't really bent or damaged any of them you're really coming to the table blind.
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My skid is pretty beat up, enough that it is a pain to get bolted back on, but that is from the previous owner. Just trying to make the right decision.
 
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I think this thread ties into another that, if I remember right, you posted. Get the Savvy if you're a late model (they don't make the early model one anymore) and want the benefits of aluminum that doesn't compromise too much vs steel.

Otherwise, find a well designed steel one. I've never researched what's out there, so I can't speak intelligently to the best steel one in terms of tradeoffs between weight and rigidity. Watching the latest BFH Garage video I learned the rockmen one bends a good bit, and I'm betting will do moreso after removing the middle rib.
 
I wheeled my LJ for almost ten years with a 1/4" UCF extra clearance skid and never regretted the decision. The only thing I would have done differently is to order the 3/8", simply for peace of mind. Yes it would get scraped up, but this was nothing that a grinder and flap disk couldn't fix. What's the advantage? Weight, weight, weight! ;)
 
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Irun said:
I wheeled my LJ for almost ten years with a 1/4" UCF extra clearance skid and never regretted the decision. The only thing I would have done differently is to order the 3/8", simply for peace of mind. Yes it would get scraped up, but this was nothing that a grinder and flap disk couldn't fix. What's the advantage? Weight, weight, weight! ;)
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This is another consideration. Is 1/4” enough for aluminum or do we need the 3/8”.
 
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Gollywomper said:
This is another consideration. Is 1/4” enough for aluminum or do we need the 3/8”.
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I can only speak for myself. 1/4" was enough when I started out on 33" tires and wasn't in the rocks a lot. As I went to 35" tires and more technical rock maneuvering, the 3/8" would provide additional strength in the UCF skid. If it was a Savvy skid, with the cross-member, 3/8" wasn't needed.
 
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