rock sliders -bolt on or weld??? (2 Viewers)

[Schmutz]

Just ordered a set of the Trail Gear 67" sliders for my '95 80. They will be here next week. In the meantime, just thought i'd pick your collective brains about attachment methods. Some of you have welded on your sliders. Others use bolts. I have a couple of questions I'm pondering, as usual...
1 -pros/cons of either method?
2 -if bolt on, I imagine the bolts go through the entire chassis rail. Will that weaken the chassis? The gusset mounts have an L profile, and each of the mounts has 4 holes on the face(into the side of the chassis rail), and one hole on the bottom tab. That seems like an awful lot of holes to be drilling through the chassis. But what do I know about this topic...That's why I'm asking all of you.
Look forward to your input if it's helpful or educational. Thanks

 

[math]

Bolt on! You will tear them up on rocks (assuming you use them). This leaves exposed metal, which will rust. So if you want to stop them from rusting, you will need to be able to take them off and rattle-can them again. This is what we've heard and why we've chosen bolt-on sliders for our future install.

 

[richardlillard1]

Bolt on! You will tear them up on rocks (assuming you use them). This leaves exposed metal, which will rust. So if you want to stop them from rusting, you will need to be able to take them off and rattle-can them again. This is what we've heard and why we've chosen bolt-on sliders for our future install.

Or use a piece of cardboard behind it...

 

[LINUS]

Bolt-on.
I am that way just because Murphy's law dictates I'd need at something behind a welded leg. You name it, the muffler bearing fluid resivoir, whatever - it would be right behind that freshly burned in leg. --- And I've been a welder for a living, so it's not like the welding is the issue at all.

Mine bolt on using a tractor/trailer style U-bolt. Both my Slee & Hanna are that way, had full weight on a slider multiple times, no issues.

 

[rc51kid]

i like the bolt on so i can access stuff like the cats on my 94. I have the Metal tech ones, i think. BUT... the right side fit a little close to the cats and rattle from time to time. If i welded it on i could lower it .5 inches and fix that. Also it squeaks regardless of how tight i make the bolts. Since it sits to high it hits the pinch welds which is causing some of the problems. When wheeling, last time i hit them HARD, they flexed up and slightly bent the pinch welds. Really not that big of a deal. Much better than landing on the rocker panels. But welding on would fix a lot of this at the expense of convenience of removal.

 

[Hornd]

I'm welding mine on.
If I need them off a Angle Grinder will do just fine.

 

[nukegoat]

Either way

 

[Schmutz]

I'm welding mine on.
If I need them off a Angle Grinder will do just fine.

why have you decided to weld?

 

[Schmutz]

Either way

sorry but your response did not teach me anything. I'm not conducting a survey. I'm trying to educate myself

 

[Schmutz]

Bolt-on.
I am that way just because Murphy's law dictates I'd need at something behind a welded leg. You name it, the muffler bearing fluid resivoir, whatever - it would be right behind that freshly burned in leg. --- And I've been a welder for a living, so it's not like the welding is the issue at all.

Mine bolt on using a tractor/trailer style U-bolt. Both my Slee & Hanna are that way, had full weight on a slider multiple times, no issues.

so if I understand it correctly, there are no holes drilled through the chassis rail itself. I'm picturing a big U-shaped bracket that slides up underneath the chassis, and is held in place by two U-bolts. The slider leg is welded to that bracket...I like the concept

 

[Schmutz]

i like the bolt on so i can access stuff ...

how do yours bolt on? U-bolts, or are your bolts through the chassis? If the latter, I'm curioius -how many bolts per leg?

 

[bluecruiser]

Pretty sure they all bolt around the frame. At least the ones from major vendors here on Mud.

 

[FZJ80 in KC]

I'm welding mine on (same TG sliders), but I've already redone my cats and exhaust to accommodate, and am not worried about needing to remove them in the future.

Bolt on is probably smarter for ease of accessibility when servicing anything in those areas in the future.

Either way, you will have some fabrication ahead of you on the passenger side around the cats.

 

[ewillis]

how do yours bolt on? U-bolts, or are your bolts through the chassis? If the latter, I'm curioius -how many bolts per leg?

Take a look at the images on the White knuckle slider website...that should give you an idea of how they mount.

 

[bicycleagent003]

nukegoat says either way, and that guys wheels harder than 99.99% of us. I think bolt on is plenty safe.

 

[Heckraiser]

I didn't know you *could* bolt on the TG sliders. Mine were weld-together only. Anyway, paint touch up is easy, just mask off the truck with plastic. Removal took about 15 minutes with the sawzall The only time I could see needing to remove them is to replace the cats, in which case, I would just cut off the one one offending leg and then weld back together when done

 

[Summiteer]

I choose to weld mine on, really didn't want the extra length of brackets and bolts hanging down below the frame. As others have stated, cardboard or masking tape for when they need touched up a bit.

 

[bmwjnky]

I don't remember which brand my friend got for his 80 but they bolted on and we didn't have to drill any holes in the frame. We tested them by lifting the truck from them and they didn't hit the body under load. If/when I get sliders I'll be doing bolt on just for the off chance that something needs to be accessed where the slider is I can pull it and put it back without any extra parts being needed.

 

[LINUS]

so if I understand it correctly, there are no holes drilled through the chassis rail itself. I'm picturing a big U-shaped bracket that slides up underneath the chassis, and is held in place by two U-bolts. The slider leg is welded to that bracket...I like the concept

Correct - from memory they both (sides) use 4 legs to a U bolt on each leg, except the old Slee that on the RS used the 4 captured nuts in the frame to a plate for the 1st leg of the slider, closest to motor. -Not sure why, either that or a U bolt works.

The U of the bolt both Slee & Hanna provided closely matched the frame shape, since the frame is really more a ~3x8" box tube, flaring wider from rear of motor to where rear axle pick points start.

Most all of us are on U bolts - and I did remove my old Slee step sliders from my 80 & trade with the Hanna ones I had on my old bigger LX450, so there is a time / real life example of when a rachet was 1186556856% nicer than being under there with a grinder, sparks & slag spraying back down on me.

 

[jtwopark]

fj60rocksliders2large.jpg

try making something like this