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Rock Sliders

9K views 20 replies 9 participants last post by  Nissan4Life 
#1 ·
Hey y'all, I'm new to this forum and really excited bout gettin into things! I'm lookin to fabricate a set of bolt-on rock sliders for my '06 Frontier King Cab NISMO 4x4, and I was wonderin if anybody has some plans that they could share with me? Or, does anybody have any insight they could offer? Such as, where they bolted the sliders to their frame, etc.? Thanks a lot!
 
#3 ·
Ideally I would just like to buy a set, but I ain't got that kinda money to spend right now. I'm also tryin' to fabricate a set 'cause my buddy gave me his sliders off his slightly older Tacoma. They are 78" long (the correct length for my truck), but the posts are in the wrong spot and the old mountin'; plates won't work for my frame. So, I was thinkin' that with some plans/help I might be able to make 'em fit on my truck. Thanks!
 
#4 ·
If you have the skills, I say go for it!

For some pictures of Shrockworks sliders and how they mount, take a look at my build thread. See the link in my signature. Only 1 hole needed to be drilled on the frame as they are designed to use existing holes.

Most folks who have sliders made get them welded on but with some careful planning and engineering, you could make them bolt on.

The nuts supplied with Shrockworks sliders have metal tabs welded to them. They are about .25 wide and 3 or 4 inches long. This allows you to reach up into the frame and position the nut to engage the bolt and tighten them up. You just push the tabs up into the frame so you can grab them if you ever need to tighten or remove the nuts.

Good Luck!
 
#5 ·
For some pictures of Shrockworks sliders and how they mount, take a look at my build thread. See the link in my signature. Only 1 hole needed to be drilled on the frame as they are designed to use existing holes.

Most folks who have sliders made get them welded on but with some careful planning and engineering, you could make them bolt on.

The nuts supplied with Shrockworks sliders have metal tabs welded to them. They are about .25 wide and 3 or 4 inches long. This allows you to reach up into the frame and position the nut to engage the bolt and tighten them up. You just push the tabs up into the frame so you can grab them if you ever need to tighten or remove the nuts.

Good Luck!
Thanks a lot BCBrian. So, just to clarify: you didn't have to drill any holes for the front mount, one hole had to be drilled for the rear mounts, and they are just mounted to the frame in these two locations? How do you like those skid plates? Do they cover everythin' you need to cover, and how thick are they? Why did you chose Hefty Fabworks over all the other companies? How do you like the PRG lift, and why did you chose them over all the other companies? What size tires can you fit on it now, without rubbin'? Thanks!
 
#7 ·
Thanks a lot BCBrian, you've been a lot of help!
 
#9 ·
Best way is to attach to frame (proper weld is stronger than bolting, but you have to grind off the coating for good weld, but just spray primer/paint, etc. over that area when done), but be aware that you are then cantilevering pretty far, so beef up those accordingly, or if you do it right then you could come off the cantilever up to the body holes to give it some more support (lessen the distance) and also reduce the member size there.

However, many of these sliders simply bolt to the body and don't worry about doing that too much, since it shortens the cantilever, but more importantly that area is pretty stout and no different than the way sliders are done on a unibody; such as a grand cherokee...they are plenty strong that way, but if you *really* want beefy, weld to the frame, although maybe overkill.

The point of sliders is to be able to support the weight of the vehicle, as well as have lateral protection (force coming from the side) and picture your truck being on a 45 angle against a rock [extreme, I know], without noticeable deflection...round is stronger that square in that sense and chromoly is superior to regular carbon steel, but should be able to use that...Try not to go crazy on thickness and size like I've seen some; it's just a lot of extra unneeded weight then and your welds need to be that much better for penetration into the thicker wall. On the same note, don't go too thin, either, but like I said a round tube is quite strong in most all directions and using a ladder type (or truss type) construction is even better as there is less material needed overall.

They are not hard to design or build and as mentioned, take a look at some pics of others to use for reference.
 
#11 · (Edited)
Make your own. I have recently decided that I will not pay for any steel made products. Every steel item made for these trucks is over priced. Maybe not if it was someone like you or me making them as a hobby job, but for a company(s) that are having there stuff pre-cut to shape from computer aided files, no way. All some dude has to do is weld that sh!t together after they know their dimensions are right. My .02. I know Im gona get flamed for these comments.

But this is how I did mine.

This is the front most bracket. If you look under the truck you will see why it has the angle cut in it. It matches up with the angle that is on the truck. The shape of this one is an "L". On the left is the only hole I made that I didn't use. It would have meant that would be the only hole I would have to drill as it does not go through the other side of the frame.


The middle bracket. This one is a "U" shape that wraps around the frame.


Rear bracket. This one mounts right where the frame starts to ramp up at the back. This one too is only an "L" shape. The gas tank is in the way to really be able to get behind it. Really just enough room for the nuts.



And my end result.







Just be sure that when you bolt them up, you don't tighten the nuts and bolts too tight. I used like 3/4" bolts or whatever size it was that fit the big holes without much slop. And on the mounts where I didn't have a backing plate, even with some HUGE washers, you could see and feel that it would squash the frame if you tighten them too much.

Good luck, and have fun fabricating. I know I do.
 
#18 ·
Hey loopout, do you think you could take some pictures of the arms between the bracket and the actual sliders. I like how close you were able to get them to your bodywork and i want to see how exactly you set that up.

Thanks in advance!
 
#12 · (Edited)
You are right on about the cost and time really on these companies...either they don't have their act together, are too small, cater to too many other makes/models, just reaming the $$ for some 'name' they came up with...

Once you have the 'engineering' done, you make the prototype and then the tooling (mostly just jigs/fixtures), order your materials; cut; trim; prepare; set-up; weld; finishing touches; paint/coat; box; ship, etc...Computer modelling makes it nice to get your cut dimensions, factoring in shrinkage and all that, so to me a pair of sliders should be $300-350 (for a company that sells a fair amount and is set-up properly) and that's still giving some profit. The more you make, the less, although welding time is welding time, so that does not change, but materials/expendables in bulk do go down with more as does set-up time...Course I'm making this sound easy, but I'm also being honest with seeing how things work in the fab/manufacturing places I've been and am currently at, as well as being involved with the stuff.

However, to be fair, I would also keep in mind supply and demand and IF a product is top quality, I could see a little extra $$ added to it and there's just not enough of a market to really get too interested in making these, it seems.

I understand the welding part may be an obstacle to somebody wanting to make their own, but if you can design what you want, take dimension, cut and prepare your materials, you could then take them to a welder, along with a drawing of what you want and it shouldn't cost a whole lot.
 
#13 ·
#14 ·
^^ I think the Trailgear sliders are an awesome item for guys who are new-to welding or fab, or just wanna save a little $$ over the other major guys. This is a prime example of why I think some of the other major companys over charge. So really because the bigger companies are actually welding the mounting plates to the legs, and powdercoat, they get away with charging $200+ more!

JNR: I find myself rippin on metal fab shops alot lately, but I do understand that not everything is as easy as it seems. And that it really does take time and labour to make these things to a sellable quality. But its just really hard to take their prices serious when there are companies like TrailGear proving that they are raping us.
Im glad that atleast one member on here who is a fabricator, or atleast in the scene, can share alittle of my opinion on this.
 
#15 ·
I have been thinking of building a set of sliders completely out of square tube and mitering all the joints since i am a gc/carpenter and don't have access or experience with a bender but do have a cut off saw i could miter mild steel with. Any problem with this?
 
#16 · (Edited)
I think you could make this construction method work. I would avoid making 90 degree miters though as those corners could hang up on rocks. 2, 45s or 3, 30s would clean up the corners. I would suggest you use the strongest tubing that you can find. DOM or HREW at least.

If I hadnt got my Shrocks from a CF member for a GREAT deal ($350 painted and installed), I would have had some made locally. You could have a local shop do the bends for you and use round tubing for the outer rail.

Good Luck and post pictures.

LoopOut - Those Mounts look super strong.... Good Job!
 
#17 ·
I figured i would angle the outer section back away from the truck so as not to get hung up like you were saying, a pair of 22.5s makes a fine 45 degree angle. Actually planning to mock up the whole set up out of 2x2 lumber and such and use those pieces as a template for the steel. So i will essentially build an entire wooden slider except for the mounts and just recreate it with steel when i am happy with the shape and proportions.
 
#21 · (Edited)
When I built my sliders I wanted to tuck them in as far as I could to the body. I actually cut half moons into my pinch weld. The main reason is because the forward most section of the truck comes down behind the front wheel. I made a very simple elongated "U" more like "I_______________I" and welded it to the frame. The U was made with a tubing bender, and I had little supports ever couple of feet. The rear most section of the U is not supported. The whole thing is welded right to the frame. It is pretty strong, and I have hit many things with it. The tubing itself however is a little weak, and has bent in many place. I liked how the sliders do not hinder clearance and is tucked away close to the truck.

A friend helped me make these as he has a welder and a bender. What we did not use was DOM or thicker wall steel.

I have since acquired a set of shrock works extended sliders used. They are still in transit to me (ie sitting in a friends backyard). I plan on cutting my old sliders off and bolt/welding the shrocks on.



You can see what I am talking about when I say the "front comes down" in this picture.
 
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