I think I went out with this girl once! Small world! I think she used to work at the Driftwood Lounge outside the main gate of Camp Lejuene! Tell her I said “Hi”!
Rear quarter panel armor - FINALLY!
- Thread starter jcardona1
- Start date
This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.
I think I went out with this girl once! Small world! I think she used to work at the Driftwood Lounge outside the main gate of Camp Lejuene! Tell her I said “Hi”!
This would certainly help cover up my boo-booed left rear quarter panel. I'd probably need a pair, though, or it will look half-arsed.
Seriously 3/16? (What are we building a arb bumper)
With the surface area that the 1/8 of an inch is covering, all that pressure on that thick of a steel, especially how big of a surface area it’s covering and the sheet metal behind it will be really tough to crush. IMHO.
Seriously again, you really going to SLAM that quarter panel that hard in its ARSE END with an 80? If I knew I would hit that hard I would reverse and say maybe a different line......
And that towel rack thingy, that’s what’s going to stop you from hopefully busting out your rear glass and even help you push away from a rock from crushing your rear upper body. (If you didn’t know already it’s a common install on the lighter 1st gen 4runner/minitruck from crushing the top of the beds)
I get you @jcardona1, you want to take the 80 to the limit but not to the point where you have to cage the damn thing... like it doesn’t have enough weight on it already.
@jcardona1......Keep doing the daymn thing!
I just think about lifting a front tire on obstacle while the opposing quarter panel gets pushed into a rock or tree. 80s are heavy, they aren't jeeps. Sometimes the only line is to squeeze through. But hey, if 1/8 isn't thick enough then I'm sure time will tell.
The 1/8" I have on the corners of my 40 have taken some decent hits and no dents. It's plenty when backed by the body.
@jcardona1 , I really like the corners. Great addition to your rig.
@jcardona1 , I really like the corners. Great addition to your rig.
Looks great! But I would only consider it, if it was at least 1/2” heat treated 4340, and used recessed Lamborghini taillights and was less than $100, and had provisions to bolt to all the rock slider and rear bumpers out there. With a swing out tire carrier.
In all seriousness I really like it and don’t let anyone persuade you to change a thing. I think I would bond the armor and rear quarter together with panel adhesive to prevent them from rattling against each other or from rubbing the paint/coating off one another and having water sit behind the armor and cause rust. But you’d never get them off if you wanted to take them off. Lol
In all seriousness I really like it and don’t let anyone persuade you to change a thing. I think I would bond the armor and rear quarter together with panel adhesive to prevent them from rattling against each other or from rubbing the paint/coating off one another and having water sit behind the armor and cause rust. But you’d never get them off if you wanted to take them off. Lol
Last edited:
I like it. It will look good with some paint on it.
RFB
97 FZJ80 LIFTED SC DUAL BATTERIES,37s
Dude you and your rig are almost legend(soup bowl) you can do whatever you like JMOThis is not going to be everybody's cup of tea so purists might wanna turn back now.
For the past few years I've been wanting some rear quarter panel armor similar to what you see on the various Jeep platforms. Anybody who wheels their 80 will probably have a few scars and dents on her big ass by now, maybe even a few broken taillights. Mine is not as bad as the dents Nukegoat and 2fpower have earned but it's starting to get a few dents that will get worse over time. Yeah she's a wheeler, but I still want to keep the truck in decent shape for as long as possible.
Earliest version I've seen of this was Action Jackson's rig with the squared off diamond plate. Not the best looking but it got the job done. The challenge with the 80 is that curvy behind she has. Because of all the bends and contours I knew I would have to leave it to the professionals. I'm sure any DIY version would have looked pretty bad.
I reached out to a few local places until I found a guy willing to take on the job (MetalCraft Innovations in the Sacramento area). After a few months of trying to make schedules work I was finally able to get the truck in his shop. After letting him know what i wanted and doing some cardboard mock ups he drew it up in his fancy software program:
The panel would end up being 10ga plate, a little over 1/8" similar to the Jeep armor. I think it will be plenty strong. After all, this is isn't built to protect the truck from a high speed collision. It's to keep the paper thin factory sheet metal from denting by merely rubbing up against a rock or a tree. The rub rail give it just a bit more room as well to hopefully avoid breaking the sliding rear windows.
I knew I wanted the factory taillights gone for sure as one was already cracked. In it's place went oval LED trailer lights (from RuffStuff) and a flush mount 2x2 China LED pod. The yellow pod is used for the turn signals. I will be mounting another set of flush-mount LEDs in the tailgate to serve as backup lights, similar to what Apounder did.
Before I get on to the pics, just want to give props to Mitchell at MetalCraft Innovations. He was great to work with and highly recommend him. He normally builds Jeep parts but if you take a look at his website you can see his fabwork is top notch. It is still TBD if he will be able to make these a production piece as there is a considerable amount of massaging needed to make the bends just right. Also, mine is more of a one-off as my fenders have had several inches trimmed away.
Despite that though, he said he could make some more sets, maybe even offer a DIY version. But don't expect these to be $199 like the XJ quarter panel armor from the JC Whitney catalog. It's just one guy in a small shop making stuff by hand. I'd suggest reaching out to Mitchell if you're interested and see what he can do (website link with contact info above).
Enough rambling, on to the pics. Over the next few weeks I will be unbolting these for the first time for paint. Thinking of going with a rattle can finish, similar gray color as my front bumper. I'll post updated pics here whenever that happens.
I don't think it's your style but you could probably hinge a nice full width rear wheel/can carrier from rear face of that armour now.
nukegoat
Should have bought a Jeep
I imagine demand wasn't high
jkeithw
Supporting Vendor
tight gap on the bumper; any issues with the body banging on it when wheeling?This is not going to be everybody's cup of tea so purists might wanna turn back now.
For the past few years I've been wanting some rear quarter panel armor similar to what you see on the various Jeep platforms. Anybody who wheels their 80 will probably have a few scars and dents on her big ass by now, maybe even a few broken taillights. Mine is not as bad as the dents Nukegoat and 2fpower have earned but it's starting to get a few dents that will get worse over time. Yeah she's a wheeler, but I still want to keep the truck in decent shape for as long as possible.
Earliest version I've seen of this was Action Jackson's rig with the squared off diamond plate. Not the best looking but it got the job done. The challenge with the 80 is that curvy behind she has. Because of all the bends and contours I knew I would have to leave it to the professionals. I'm sure any DIY version would have looked pretty bad.
I reached out to a few local places until I found a guy willing to take on the job (MetalCraft Innovations in the Sacramento area). After a few months of trying to make schedules work I was finally able to get the truck in his shop. After letting him know what i wanted and doing some cardboard mock ups he drew it up in his fancy software program:
The panel would end up being 10ga plate, a little over 1/8" similar to the Jeep armor. I think it will be plenty strong. After all, this is isn't built to protect the truck from a high speed collision. It's to keep the paper thin factory sheet metal from denting by merely rubbing up against a rock or a tree. The rub rail give it just a bit more room as well to hopefully avoid breaking the sliding rear windows.
I knew I wanted the factory taillights gone for sure as one was already cracked. In it's place went oval LED trailer lights (from RuffStuff) and a flush mount 2x2 China LED pod. The yellow pod is used for the turn signals. I will be mounting another set of flush-mount LEDs in the tailgate to serve as backup lights, similar to what Apounder did.
Before I get on to the pics, just want to give props to Mitchell at MetalCraft Innovations. He was great to work with and highly recommend him. He normally builds Jeep parts but if you take a look at his website you can see his fabwork is top notch. It is still TBD if he will be able to make these a production piece as there is a considerable amount of massaging needed to make the bends just right. Also, mine is more of a one-off as my fenders have had several inches trimmed away.
Despite that though, he said he could make some more sets, maybe even offer a DIY version. But don't expect these to be $199 like the XJ quarter panel armor from the JC Whitney catalog. It's just one guy in a small shop making stuff by hand. I'd suggest reaching out to Mitchell if you're interested and see what he can do (website link with contact info above).
Enough rambling, on to the pics. Over the next few weeks I will be unbolting these for the first time for paint. Thinking of going with a rattle can finish, similar gray color as my front bumper. I'll post updated pics here whenever that happens.
- Thread starter
- #53
Not that I've ever noticed...
If anyone wants custom stuff like this or anything else, I am one of those guys that has fancy software, a laser scanner, and a shop to build this sort of thing. Just PM me with your ideas.
Road Apple
SILVER Star
How has your quarter panel armor held up over time with big hits ? Any issues around the perimeter ?
There are a few of us that would like to copy your design. Any idea where to find the CAD file?
There are a few of us that would like to copy your design. Any idea where to find the CAD file?
Also curious about the file, the shop that made it seems to have closed its doors. If you know how to get in contact with the maker I’d be interested.
