Just wanted you all to see the results of having front marker light guards on after only 16 mo. I won't deal with Smitybilt again.
Smitybilt products
- Thread starter CMTJ
- Start date
Not surprised. SB stuff is generally low grade China product. I do have their bumpers however and have no issues.
I'd probably be able to buy a new complete rollcage for my TJ if I had a dollar for every time I've recommended against buying any modern Smittybilt products. 
No surprise there whatsoever. This has happened with Smittybilt products in the past for me as well. It's cheap powder coat, crap quality metal, etc.
You live and learn though, I've been here before myself with their nerf bars!
Some of their stuff is fine though, just depends on what it is. I'd always use caution against putting a piece of metal like that up against a painted surface where water (which has minerals in it) can get trapped between the two surfaces. That's a recipe for rust.
You live and learn though, I've been here before myself with their nerf bars!
Some of their stuff is fine though, just depends on what it is. I'd always use caution against putting a piece of metal like that up against a painted surface where water (which has minerals in it) can get trapped between the two surfaces. That's a recipe for rust.
OP
They were a Christmas gift from the wife. She now knows what company not to buy from.I'd probably be able to buy a new complete rollcage for my TJ if I had a dollar for every time I've recommended against buying any modern Smittybilt products.
OP
I'll probably sand the crap out of them and then bedliner them.
Blank
TJ Enthusiast
oh hell i need to look behind my rocker guards for possible damage...dammit! however my SB front bumper hasnt been bad at all
My smittybilt top is a POS. Noisy as heck, crap zippers and fitament. Looks cheap too. Can’t wait to replace it with a bestop. I guess there’s a reason the SB replace a top is $200 and the Bestop Black Twill replace a top is $900
Starrs
TJ Guru
I have smittybilt bumpers and they function and still look brand new after more than a year, doesn't keep me from wanting different higher quality ones though despite having no problems. Basically I bought what I could afford at that moment instead of planning it out and buying what I really wanted. I can't bring myself to ask my wife if I can get new ones even though they look brand new, function well, and are free to keep on my jeep, any logical person would look at me and say WTF are you talking about lol and I wouldn't blame her or have any counter point. I will live for a while longer. The moment this powder comes off and starts looking like crap, that's when I will try to seal the deal on a new set.
What's odd is Smittybilt gets ragged on the most, but they're no worse than a lot of the Amazon sellers of Chinese made bumpers. There's one particular bumper that a LOT of TJs sport on their front end...but more times than not, we hear about how bad Smittybilt is...sometimes from TJ owners running that other Chinese made bumper...
Starrs
TJ Guru
Starrs
TJ Guru
SB is a big name and has been around a long time. Some of there stuff is garbage, same as the EAG stuff on Amazon. Some of it is decent, however. I run SB bumpers and they work for me. No rust, fit correctly, finish is holding up. They are a simple "shell" of 3/16" steel and not boxed so they could be better. Would I buy them again? No, when I can buy something like the Dirtworx for only a little more money. I also have a SB bikini top, also works great and is without issue.
Who knows, maybe those 5 or 6 brands of that same bumper (or rebranded identical bumpers from the same Chinese factory) really are that much better. It's just that SB seems to take all the flak, simply for being Chinese made, when they're just one of many.