front and rear bumpers for a 2nd-gen mini

[aruzaman]

Hi guys. I'm looking for bumpers for my 1988 mini and I have no idea where to turn. I met Marlin at the LSLC Roundup and I'd love to support his shop, but they're currently sold out of bumpers and I want to get some before the next event.

Could you guys post up some pictures, recommendations, and links for aftermarket (preferably bolt-on) bumpers? What are stingers for, exactly?

For what it's worth, my truck is a daily driver, so I'm trying to build more of an expedition rig than a crawler. I'd love to get a winch down the line, so a bumper that can accommodate one is a plus. I'd like to find something simple and light, but I want to see some bumpers on similar trucks to get a better idea of what I like.

 

[WarDamnEagle]

It's pretty hard to beat an ARB winch bumper up front.

 

[aruzaman]

Yeah, I was pretty impressed with those at the roundup, but aren't they over $800? I'm trying not to break the bank because I'm hoping to get both front and back bumpers as well as sliders in the next two months. I'm just starting out and I'm planning to exceed my monthly budget, but I'd like to protect my daily driver before my next event, y'know?

 

[CreeperSleeper]

Other than building my own, I have only run Marlin Crawler bumpers. I guess I'm not much help in that department!

As for the stinger, the original idea was if you were summer-saulting your rig, the stinger would either save the roll or cause the rig to flop on it's side. This turned into the "cool" thing to run and has gone from there. From what I have seen, it's nice having a point on the rig that you can see from the drivers seat. It helps you to know where the front of your rig is on tight trails. Basically, it comes down to if you like the look or not....

 

[meigsrock]

I have a marlin crawler rear bumper and like it a lot. I think he makes front bumpers too. I would also look into All-Pro and Trail Gear. They all make similar stuff in tube style bumpers and are all similar prices and should run just under $500 in most cases which is a good bit less than an ARB bumper.

I was looking at possibly getting a TG front bumper with out the stinger and adding to it but I may end up making my own if I use the winch I already have which will not fit in a TG front bumper. You know the old cart before the horse type of thing....but if you don't have a winch yet the pick any one you like and buy the winch to fit later.

 

[toy4xfun]

It's pretty hard to beat an ARB winch bumper up front.

X2 on the ARB, i wish i had put one on the front of my 84, the one on the wife's 95 is a bad ass bumper, good luck finding anything that can take that much punishment for the money.

 

[bryan89]

here is my arb front and my 4x innovations rear.
no winch right now, but still love it.

On the ARB the only thing that sucks is that my body mounts are so old and saggy that the wrap around corner pieces hit the bottom of the front fenders.

easily fixed with a new body bushing kit, but if you go that route...just something to think about.

The rear 4x innovations bumper looks cool and is quite solid, although i was not completely impressed with the design in terms of how it mounts to the truck. there are a couple things i would have done differently if i were making it myself. so i wouldnt really recommend it to someone, but then again i am a engineer and i am pretty picky.

 

[bryan89]

As for the stinger, the original idea was if you were summer-saulting your rig, the stinger would either save the roll or cause the rig to flop on it's side..

I always thought they were for crossing gaps or steep ledges??....
front wheels go down into bottomless pit / cravass/ and stinger reaches over and touches other side to stop rig from plumiting to certain death and destrcution. then rear wheels force the truck up the other side until front wheels contact and pull back wheels through??

or front of rig approaches vertical face and rear pushes to slide front up?
no??

 

[aruzaman]

Good news, everyone!

Thanks to the local Toyota community, I may have found a friend willing to help me make a front bumper and some sliders. The problem is that I don't know the first thing about their design. He has made his own before, so it's not a matter of the blind leading the blind, but I was hoping to get some of your recommendations for design considerations (and pictures of course).

What are some of the important things to consider when designing bumpers and sliders? Do any of you have any good links to slider and bumper builds?

You guys have been awesome so far. This is my first foray into Toyota ownership and 4x4 upgrades, and I couldn't possibly have found a better community for it. Sorry for all the n00b questions.

 

[CreeperSleeper]

I always thought they were for crossing gaps or steep ledges??....
front wheels go down into bottomless pit / cravass/ and stinger reaches over and touches other side to stop rig from plumiting to certain death and destrcution. then rear wheels force the truck up the other side until front wheels contact and pull back wheels through??

or front of rig approaches vertical face and rear pushes to slide front up?
no??

Ah, for the Artic trucks... I didn't think about that. I have heard that before and it slipped my mind. Thanks!

As for bumper designs, I may have a few suggestions. Things that I look for is approach and departure angles and protecting the important bits. I have come to realize that metal will flex and try to design everything to flex and not damage. (i.e. Design a slider so when you hit it, it flexes up and it spreads the load along the lenght of the pinch weld.)

Here is my current front bumper:

Then only thing that may be added would be some protection for the radiator in case of a rollover. Hope that helps!

 

[Rattlewagon]

I build my own our of the TG winch mount. Great base to build off of.

If you plan on doing any winching, make sure you plate the front of your frame.

 

[mattafact]

I just picked up an ARB front bumper for my 4runner and it came with a $200 off coupon for a Smittybilt XRC8000 winch. It's no Warn but for $99 it's worth the gamble.

 

[CreeperSleeper]

Nice! I had good luck with my XRC. It's slow but it always worked!