POLL: Which Front Bumper Do You Have on your 200? (3 Viewers)

[4wheelgreg]

Just received my TJM T13 from Slee , packed very well and looks to be a good choice , I have had ARB stuff on my other trucks only complaint was the coating could have been a better job ARB came down with rust spots at the weld areas like the powered coat was applied thin .
TJM and Slee did a good job on the packing and shipping .
Still waiting on a rear bumper and sliders , seems like every parts supplier is running a little behind on supply’s

 

[John Guedry]

Wife got me a no hoop 16+ for xmas. Installed 2 weeks ago. I like it, only question I have is will the finish hold up or do I have to lineX or paint to match? I live south texas.

 

[catastrofe]

I can't speak to the ARB Summit but I have the Trail Tailor bar with a winch and lights, all of which adds almost 200#. I run the Tough Dog standard duty springs and lift-wise it was less than 1/2" of sag.

That said there's more to your setup than just ride height as the weight over the front impacts braking and handling characteristics.

Thanks Geoff!

 

[fos373]

Still waiting on a rear bumper and sliders , seems like every parts supplier is running a little behind on supply’s

When did you order / how long of wait / How long of wait did they tell you? Just curious and comparing with something else.

 

[scottm]

Someone said the ARB dropped the front 1". I've put them on my 80 and 100, no measurable drop on either, no noticeable change in handling. I switched regularly between my 80 with bumper and my wife's 80, and could not tell any difference with and without the bumper. No winch, just bumper.

I pick up my 2021 tomorrow, will have deer protection, as I've hit seven deer and totalled a few vehicles. Does an ARB or other full-hoop bumper really make that big a difference on the 200? I'm planning on keeping the stock suspension, this truck will get mostly long highway runs around the bottom of Lake Michigan, in all kinds of weather.

 

[Wisluggo]

Just received my TJM T13 from Slee , packed very well and looks to be a good choice , I have had ARB stuff on my other trucks only complaint was the coating could have been a better job ARB came down with rust spots at the weld areas like the powered coat was applied thin .
TJM and Slee did a good job on the packing and shipping .
Still waiting on a rear bumper and sliders , seems like every parts supplier is running a little behind on supply’s

What did you think of the coating on the tjm? My shop says they don’t like the powder coat on tjm, but I like the looks of that over the arb.

 

[4wheelgreg]

My TJM is still in the box but I did cut it open and did a inspection , its wrapped and packed really well , I inspected the winch carriage and unwrapped some of the upper bull bar seemed to be a nice coating , I’m still thinking of color matching some of the bumper .
I like the TJM its as bit more slim and I like how the upper bar push supports match the headlight and grill angle , unlike the ARB is just straight up and down .
I don’t think you could go wrong with either TJM or ARB . The biggest thing between the two bumpers comes down to No cut for the TJM and winch selection .
ARB you can mount a M12000 which is a bigger frame winch and feet forward . TJM Bumper , Ben at Slee says zeon12 mid size is what they recommend fitting .
I have warn 9.5 xp which may be a little light for hard core wheeling , might be ok for me doing mostly overlanding .
I may pick up a zeon 12 platinum , not sure yet .

 

[Wisluggo]

My TJM is still in the box but I did cut it open and did a inspection , its wrapped and packed really well , I inspected the winch carriage and unwrapped some of the upper bull bar seemed to be a nice coating , I’m still thinking of color matching some of the bumper .
I like the TJM its as bit more slim and I like how the upper bar push supports match the headlight and grill angle , unlike the ARB is just straight up and down .
I don’t think you could go wrong with either TJM or ARB . The biggest thing between the two bumpers comes down to No cut for the TJM and winch selection .
ARB you can mount a M12000 which is a bigger frame winch and feet forward . TJM Bumper , Ben at Slee says zeon12 mid size is what they recommend fitting .
I have warn 9.5 xp which may be a little light for hard core wheeling , might be ok for me doing mostly overlanding .
I may pick up a zeon 12 platinum , not sure yet .

Thank you, this is exactly what I was looking for. I too like the angular look of the tjm over the arb, and I didn’t realize the winch limitations over the arb. Though it makes sense with how much less the tjm seems to protrude.
I won’t be doing much in the way of hard core off roading so a 10k or 9.5k winch should be plenty for me

 

[4wheelgreg]

TJM is also offering a 3yr warranty , I figure thats materials and manufacturing , I would figure TJM is doing a better job on the coating than years past . ARB and Ironman had issues with there coatings also , they never seem to do a good job on all the nooks and crannies would get rust spots showing up after a year .
Not even sure what ARB or Ironman are offering but had a buddy with a ARB on a 4Runner was only on less than a year , last year had rust on the inside area , in my world thats total not acceptable for the money you pay for these bumpers .

 

[linuxgod]

Someone said the ARB dropped the front 1". I've put them on my 80 and 100, no measurable drop on either, no noticeable change in handling. I switched regularly between my 80 with bumper and my wife's 80, and could not tell any difference with and without the bumper. No winch, just bumper.

I pick up my 2021 tomorrow, will have deer protection, as I've hit seven deer and totalled a few vehicles. Does an ARB or other full-hoop bumper really make that big a difference on the 200? I'm planning on keeping the stock suspension, this truck will get mostly long highway runs around the bottom of Lake Michigan, in all kinds of weather.

@Markuson hit a deer with his TLM and his truck had no damage. I'm not sure the size of the deer, but yeah, they can help.

Aside from vehicle damage the big risk with wildlife is them coming up over the hood into the windshield - and then into the cabin. If you hit a 6 point buck or an elk or moose, the bar might help you hit the animal square, but at high enough speed with a big enough animal no bumper is going to save your vehicle from damage (and if it does save the body, the energy absorbed from a large animal strike at high speed has to go somewhere, so you should hope it goes into the crumple zone and not into the frame)

 

[scottm]

@Markuson hit a deer with his TLM and his truck had no damage. I'm not sure the size of the deer, but yeah, they can help.

Aside from vehicle damage the big risk with wildlife is them coming up over the hood into the windshield - and then into the cabin. If you hit a 6 point buck or an elk or moose, the bar might help you hit the animal square, but at high enough speed with a big enough animal no bumper is going to save your vehicle from damage (and if it does save the body, the energy absorbed from a large animal strike at high speed has to go somewhere, so you should hope it goes into the crumple zone and not into the frame)

Thanks, no moose or elk around these parts, but the deer are big enough. Slee cautioned that these bars are just supposed to allow the truck to stay mobile, not entirely protect from damage. Lots of cars get deer through the windshield here in Michigan, not so many trucks.

Mostly I'm curious about comments on the weight causing front end drop, handling and braking issues. With just the bumper and no winch, that hasn't been measurable or noticeable on my 80 or 100 with stock springs. I'm just wondering if that is really an issue with the 200?

 

[4wheelgreg]

That’s sucks I was looking for a Moose proof bumper ... LOL
The moose only tipped the scale at 2200 lbs

 

[linuxgod]

Thanks, no moose or elk around these parts, but the deer are big enough. Slee cautioned that these bars are just supposed to allow the truck to stay mobile, not entirely protect from damage. Lots of cars get deer through the windshield here in Michigan, not so many trucks.

Mostly I'm curious about comments on the weight causing front end drop, handling and braking issues. With just the bumper and no winch, that hasn't been measurable or noticeable on my 80 or 100 with stock springs. I'm just wondering if that is really an issue with the 200?

I would expect the impact to be similar to your 100 with IFS. I'm less sure about the 80 mostly because it's a solid front axle so I don't know how handling differences might compare.

My Trail Tailor bumper with the winch is about the same as an ARB or TJM without one. I measured <1/2" of reduction in front height with my Tough Dog standard duty springs. I don't notice any difference in handling either, except when towing. However despite what I might not notice, I do suspect there's a bit more nose dive under hard braking and a bit more body roll in turns or emergency handling, based on the physics of hanging 200# off the front.

 

[scottm]

I would expect the impact to be similar to your 100 with IFS. I'm less sure about the 80 mostly because it's a solid front axle so I don't know how handling differences might compare.

My Trail Tailor bumper with the winch is about the same as an ARB or TJM without one. I measured <1/2" of reduction in front height with my Tough Dog standard duty springs. I don't notice any difference in handling either, except when towing. However despite what I might not notice, I do suspect there's a bit more nose dive under hard braking and a bit more body roll in turns or emergency handling, based on the physics of hanging 200# off the front.

135-lb additional weight according to ARB. Maybe the Summit bar is heavier than the Deluxe bars I've used in the past.

 

[calixto]

Any use painting the TJM or ARB before install to help with rust prevention? Have an ARB Deluxe bar on my 100 series & love it however its starting to show some rust in a few places. I would likely just paint black in case of chipping & touch up. Seem so much easier to paint before install vs pulling the bumper back off after 5 years to paint.

 

[calixto]

FWIW for MY 16+ Slee lists ARB Summit Bumper as "295 lbs" priced at $2276 and TJM T13 as "250 lbs" priced at $1775. ARB requires you to purchase a camera relocation kit & a few other bits, TJM has an optional wiring harness. I am going with TJM because I can do local pick up and save on shipping.

 

[sleeoffroad]

Just for clarification make sure you are not looking at shipping weight vs item weight.

 

[calixto]

Good point, thanks for the clarification! I assumed that was product weight. Sorry it was the only stat I could find for weight for the those two particular bumpers & it was only described as "weight" Anyone want to chime in with actual product weight? Saw some other figures around them weighing quite a bit less than what I mentioned before but I'm hesitant to list anything again I'm not certain about.

 

[TheGrrrrr]

Just bumping this poll because I’ve seen a lot of new bumper installs the past few months.

 

[eskimoke]

Just ordered an ARB Deluxe bumper for my 2014 LC200 from Slee. I was surprised that they had both the ARB and TJM in stock given recent supply chain issues. I was also told by TJM that they are doing a redesign on the T13 and it will take 4+ months before those land in the US. The TJM seems slightly more "modern" and swept to follow the front end contours, but no ARB product has ever let me down and they have great support for aftermarket stuff like light and winches so I went that direction.

Related question: after putting on a bumper that exposes the front end, are y'all putting on additional skid plates or is stock front end close enough?