Adding to the story, here's part 1 (To Be Continued because I/we are a bit too busy right now to do these big projects in 1 sitting).
Here's the not fully secret slider project a handful of us have been talking about for a while. The short is they're an improvement on what the GenRight set I had mixed in with a bunch of other ideas, mostly seeded from Blaine's work over the years.
Josh pretty much ran this show, he had all the parts ready and a direction in mind - but I'm not going to dive into everything beyond snapshots.
1. Making sure the sliders fit as designed. There's at least two bends we cared about and wanted to know the distances we had to work with along the wheel wells.
2. Beyond making sure the fit seemed roughly right, we need to know the body mount locations and cut them out. Only the rear two are relevant for the depth these were designed for.
3. Now things start to be somewhat more precise in that you want proper engagement with the slider to the body and the torque box. Measure twice, cut once. You get to see neither, as that was done by now.
4. Mine will look a little different than others, as I had planned to upcycle the GenRight sliders until these got me more excited. One thing I bought 14 months ago was 2x1 aluminum bar. Regardless, it more or less will be the same as others fundamentally. Drill the same bolt holes as the slider, and countersink.
5. Use a router correctly and have a very nice edge (this is in progress of going deeper to a final finish). The other guys won't likely do this as they're using a different solution for the rub rail. The BFH Garage will be finding glitter forever.
6. From here I had to run for some family obligations, so we translated the cuts and holes to the left slider for me to finish at home. Pretty much what is left is preloading it against the body, drilling the holes, adding nutserts where appropriate, trimming the ends at the wheel wells, painting, and installing. I will see how the AL bar looks and may leave it bare as a transition from the black fronts to the raw corners that will eventually likely be body matched.
Here's the not fully secret slider project a handful of us have been talking about for a while. The short is they're an improvement on what the GenRight set I had mixed in with a bunch of other ideas, mostly seeded from Blaine's work over the years.
Josh pretty much ran this show, he had all the parts ready and a direction in mind - but I'm not going to dive into everything beyond snapshots.
1. Making sure the sliders fit as designed. There's at least two bends we cared about and wanted to know the distances we had to work with along the wheel wells.
2. Beyond making sure the fit seemed roughly right, we need to know the body mount locations and cut them out. Only the rear two are relevant for the depth these were designed for.
3. Now things start to be somewhat more precise in that you want proper engagement with the slider to the body and the torque box. Measure twice, cut once. You get to see neither, as that was done by now.
4. Mine will look a little different than others, as I had planned to upcycle the GenRight sliders until these got me more excited. One thing I bought 14 months ago was 2x1 aluminum bar. Regardless, it more or less will be the same as others fundamentally. Drill the same bolt holes as the slider, and countersink.
5. Use a router correctly and have a very nice edge (this is in progress of going deeper to a final finish). The other guys won't likely do this as they're using a different solution for the rub rail. The BFH Garage will be finding glitter forever.
6. From here I had to run for some family obligations, so we translated the cuts and holes to the left slider for me to finish at home. Pretty much what is left is preloading it against the body, drilling the holes, adding nutserts where appropriate, trimming the ends at the wheel wells, painting, and installing. I will see how the AL bar looks and may leave it bare as a transition from the black fronts to the raw corners that will eventually likely be body matched.
That's one piece I need to order still, I'll have a temporary one that's less ideal but better than nothing. That'll be the last thing added once things are mounted as only 3 bolts go through it IIRC.
Another outstanding thing is I'll also spot weld all the holes from the previous sliders closed.
My wife scheduled something that day so I'll have my kids, sadly that puts me out since Hailey is still too young to do that long of a trail day.
Maybe if/when he does his set. This one was just for us trying to get my POS ready for the season.
I had an early version that was aluminum with a full coverage thin steel skin as the sliding surface. But I soon realized this was heavier and much more difficult to have fabricated than just steel. It wasn't making sense to go that that direction.
Durability with the full weight of the Jeep dragging along the bent edges. It's why the Savvy sliders have a steel slider over the aluminum rocker.
I'm going to start charging you a non-refundable cleaning deposit to use the shop....
I'm going to start charging you a non-refundable cleaning deposit to use the shop....
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One thing is obvious, HJ - you do know how to sharpen a drill bit...
One thing is obvious, HJ - you do know how to sharpen a drill bit...
Not me lol .... They bought new bits for this project
Not me lol .... They bought new bits for this project
Always a smart choice. Nothing is worse than trying to use dull bits.
My father inlaw has a set of Milwaukee drill bits with a stepped tip (just the tip) and they're fantastic.
FIFY. Better method according to some impatient dilbert from Dayton, Ohio.
I'm going to start charging you a non-refundable cleaning deposit to use the shop....
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Sorry
We should have brought a leaf blower. If it makes you feel any better my entire garage will be filled with the second one's shavings.