Skid plates

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Really depends on what you intend to do.

If you intend crawling over nasty rocks, consider steel...at least behind the front piece. Most drivers frankly won't need steel for what they do (or don't do), but you might...?

I believe the reason they refer to this particular version as "overland protection" is that it is not intended for nasty rock-bashing.

If you don't intend to beat the poo out of it, aluminum saves weight.

I personally plan on going with full stainless from BB, but you might want to talk to @Taco2Cruiser about options. Bud has quite a few choices of weights & materials to choose from.
 
Markuson said:
Really depends on what you intend to do.

If you intend crawling over nasty rocks, consider steel...at least behind the front piece. Most drivers frankly won't need steel for what they do (or don't do), but you might...?

I believe the reason they refer to this particular version as "overland protection" is that it is not intended for nasty rock-bashing.

If you don't intend to beat the poo out of it, aluminum saves weight.

I personally plan on going with full stainless from BB, but you might want to talk to @Taco2Cruiser about options. Bud has quite a few choices of weights & materials to choose from.
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Thanks Markuson. I am leaning more towards the steel for now. I also heard ARB skid is not as tough as BudBuilt. Look forward to chat with @Taco2Cruiser about this.
 
Ali M said:
Thanks Markuson. I am leaning more towards the steel for now. I also heard ARB skid is not as tough as BudBuilt. Look forward to chat with @Taco2Cruiser about this.
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Hey @Ali M, as far as skid plate facts goes between ARB and BudBuilt, ARB are 3mm thick or .118” which is a little thinner than BudBuilt’s “Lite” steel of 1/8” or .125” thick. But then Bud has 3/16” steel and stainless steel (4.7625mm) and 1/4” aluminum (6.35mm). He also does 1/4” steel for the rock bouncer crowd if needed.

Bud also won’t sell a front “lite” steel plate as he’s found that it just isn't up to the task for long term use. That’s not to say it can’t handle a hit, it just can’t handle regular hits. And as Bud tells people, he doesn’t want your business twice.

But the real stuff is the mounting design, BudBuilts distribute the load over a much wider surface area than other skids. I always felt it was because Bud and the crew are hardcore, rock bouncing, old school Telico wheelers. Along with Buds formal engineering experience, his work in material analysis and failure analysis, his time designing and building safety systems in race cars and even his work on the F-15 and CH-47 combined with that rock crawler background makes him design in a way that’s just going to be stronger. You also see that a lot with his bumpers and sliders compared to most other offerings in the market.

So while an ARB 3mm vs BudBuilt 1/8” lite steel skid are pretty close in material, it’s whats behind it that is much different.

Also remember that the ARB transfer case skid still puts the impact load on the transfer case and transmission itself. Where BudBuilts puts the impact load on the frame, the drivetrain is completely isolated from obstacles, like it should be.
 
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If it helps you at all, I had Bud's full set of skid plates on my 2011 FJ Cruiser. They were beyond stout.

That said, I was pretty concerned about "flimsy aluminum" ARB skid plates, which was the only option when I bought my 200.

Fast forward nearly 3 years and over 18,000 miles of very heavy use, and the ARB skid plates have held up flawlessly. I'm really glad I went with them, as the truck is so damned heavy already. Saving weight where I can is important.

You can't go wrong with either setup, but all else being equal, the ARB skids are more than up to the task in my opinion.
 
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Canyonero said:
If it helps you at all, I had Bud's full set of skid plates on my 2011 FJ Cruiser. They were beyond stout.

That said, I was pretty concerned about "flimsy aluminum" ARB skid plates, which was the only option when I bought my 200.

Fast forward nearly 3 years and over 18,000 miles of very heavy use, and the ARB skid plates have held up flawlessly. I'm really glad I went with them, as the truck is so damned heavy already. Saving weight where I can is important.

You can't go wrong with either setup, but all else being equal, the ARB skids are more than up to the task in my opinion.
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And that’s what’s why I love this forum, real feedback, and real help for others.

For everyone remember, I’m obviously biased toward BudBuilt (which is why I put that “friend of BudBuilt” under my name, to better let people know that they need more than just my opinion.) Now that is founded in him being the only one that armor last for my wheeling style, but that’s not to say it’s one option and that’s it. We all have different styles, and that’s a good thing, build for what for what works, for you.

I did remember another difference also now that @Canyonero mentioned mileage. BudBuilt has armored doors to access the engine oil filter and drain plug, so no need to drop the skids. ARBs require you to drop the whole front skid for routine maintenance.

Does anyone have the ability to weight a full set of ARB UVP?
 
Taco2Cruiser said:
And that’s what’s why I love this forum, real feedback, and real help for others.

For everyone remember, I’m obviously biased toward BudBuilt (which is why I put that “friend of BudBuilt” under my name, to better let people know that they need more than just my opinion.) Now that is founded in him being the only one that armor last for my wheeling style, but that’s not to say it’s one option and that’s it. We all have different styles, and that’s a good thing, build for what for what works, for you.

I did remember another difference also now that @Canyonero mentioned mileage. BudBuilt has armored doors to access the engine oil filter and drain plug, so no need to drop the skids. ARBs require you to drop the whole front skid for routine maintenance.

Does anyone have the ability to weight a full set of ARB UVP?
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When mine come off I'll weigh them... :)

By the way... **My ARB skids are for sale to a good home.** :)
 
linuxgod said:
Any issues with running any of these with a diff drop kit?

Just curious, has anyone looked at asfir aluminum skids or any other skids? TOYOTA Land Cruiser 200 - Skid Plates
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At least for BudBuilt, they are designed to curve around the front diff for maximum ground clearance, these have more clearance than the stock, so they don’t really work with a diff drop. You could space down the skids with spacers of the same thickness as the diff drop you have, that is always an option.

The reason for not designing them for a diff drop is because of how low the front diff is to begin with a total chaos upper control arm and no shock installed (more drop than any aftermarket coil over could provide) there is still no CV binding. So the decision was made to not loose ground clearance. This testing was done on my ‘11 with the boots removed.

Diff drops became popular with early Toyota pickup through the 1st gen Tacoma and 3rd gen 4Runner. Those trucks front diffs were much higher from the factory, and dropping them an inch didn’t loose ground clearance. In 2003 when the prado 120 was realsed in NA, Toyota dropped the front diff lower than ever and subsequently every model made after that. But the old thinking of diff drops has stuck around. I know at Budbuilt they push to remove any late model diff drops that come in.

Also, diff drops cost about $15 of hardware but hey charge $50-200, which is just wrong to do to people.
 
TonyP said:
Any word on lead time yet?
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With the first guys orders going out like @RET2. It is probably less than 2 month now. Bud also just recently released some super strong sliders for 16+ Tacoma’s so he’s up to 20 more orders of those this last week. Really if you want something he’s got to build it. Even with over 100k of built product on his floor, he still is basically a build to order shop.

But that reminds me, I need to get the shock skids up on, I think he’s going to have 10 of those ready to go when they launch, but I know guys like @Markuson and @Obi Wong Kenobi already have some set aside from what I remember Bud saying.
 
Canyonero said:
If it helps you at all, I had Bud's full set of skid plates on my 2011 FJ Cruiser. They were beyond stout.

That said, I was pretty concerned about "flimsy aluminum" ARB skid plates, which was the only option when I bought my 200.

Fast forward nearly 3 years and over 18,000 miles of very heavy use, and the ARB skid plates have held up flawlessly. I'm really glad I went with them, as the truck is so damned heavy already. Saving weight where I can is important.

You can't go wrong with either setup, but all else being equal, the ARB skids are more than up to the task in my opinion.
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Thanks for sharing your experience with ARB skids. You are right about the weight advantage with aluminum.
 
Taco2Cruiser said:
And that’s what’s why I love this forum, real feedback, and real help for others.

For everyone remember, I’m obviously biased toward BudBuilt (which is why I put that “friend of BudBuilt” under my name, to better let people know that they need more than just my opinion.) Now that is founded in him being the only one that armor last for my wheeling style, but that’s not to say it’s one option and that’s it. We all have different styles, and that’s a good thing, build for what for what works, for you.

I did remember another difference also now that @Canyonero mentioned mileage. BudBuilt has armored doors to access the engine oil filter and drain plug, so no need to drop the skids. ARBs require you to drop the whole front skid for routine maintenance.

Does anyone have the ability to weight a full set of ARB UVP?
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That's a good callout about the ARB. Another reason for me why BudBuilt is the way to go. @Taco2Cruiser is the website the best way to order them? I also email BudBuilt few questions and did not get a response. thanks!
 
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Taco2Cruiser said:
With the first guys orders going out like @RET2. It is probably less than 2 month now. Bud also just recently released some super strong sliders for 16+ Tacoma’s so he’s up to 20 more orders of those this last week. Really if you want something he’s got to build it. Even with over 100k of built product on his floor, he still is basically a build to order shop.

But that reminds me, I need to get the shock skids up on, I think he’s going to have 10 of those ready to go when they launch, but I know guys like @Markuson and @Obi Wong Kenobi already have some set aside from what I remember Bud saying.
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I’m extremely excited and can’t wait for my set to arrive. I just gotta call Bud and see when that is.

Once my sliders and skids arrive, I’ll add pictures to this thread and the other one.
 
@Taco2Cruiser I am about to place the order with Bud as he just replied to my emails. Also another question for you, do you know if your or anyone have installed Bud's rock sliders who can share their experience of the install and how it is holding up for them?
 
Ali M said:
@Taco2Cruiser I am about to place the order with Bud as he just replied to my emails. Also another question for you, do you know if your or anyone have installed Bud's rock sliders who can share their experience of the install and how it is holding up for them?
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Chip (Bud’s son) and I installed my set. The passenger side is pretty easy but the driver side is tough because of the KDSS stuff. Since there is no drilling or cutting, the only tough part is that you need at least one, better two friends to help you get the slider in place. The frame plates on Bud's are huge 3/8" thick with massive 5/8" bolts. Then with 6! legs and top mounted gussets, they aren't going anywhere. That's why I can confidently say they are the strongest slider on the market just from the sheer amount of metal used.

As far as holding up, my sliders are the prototype set, so all that rack bashing on the test set is the same slider. Then they took it again during Appalachian Toyota Roundup where I was wheeling the mud covered rocks crawls (east coast wheeling is like west coast rock bashing mixed with south east mud bogging' is that makes sense)

Now there are a lot of good sliders out there, they all do their job and protect your body so you really can't go wrong with any of them. I obviously sold my last sliders because of too much deflection and knowing how much I use the slider to wheel in rocks, and I really needed a kicker, but that's not to say that that last slider didn't absolutely save my rocker panel in California last summer, because it did.

I do like though that I wouldn't have to drill, and I like the leg arrangement for minimal deflection, especially when really slamming these sliders.
 
Taco2Cruiser said:
Chip (Bud’s son) and I installed my set. The passenger side is pretty easy but the driver side is tough because of the KDSS stuff. Since there is no drilling or cutting, the only tough part is that you need at least one, better two friends to help you get the slider in place. The frame plates on Bud's are huge 3/8" thick with massive 5/8" bolts. Then with 6! legs and top mounted gussets, they aren't going anywhere. That's why I can confidently say they are the strongest slider on the market just from the sheer amount of metal used.

As far as holding up, my sliders are the prototype set, so all that rack bashing on the test set is the same slider. Then they took it again during Appalachian Toyota Roundup where I was wheeling the mud covered rocks crawls (east coast wheeling is like west coast rock bashing mixed with south east mud bogging' is that makes sense)

Now there are a lot of good sliders out there, they all do their job and protect your body so you really can't go wrong with any of them. I obviously sold my last sliders because of too much deflection and knowing how much I use the slider to wheel in rocks, and I really needed a kicker, but that's not to say that that last slider didn't absolutely save my rocker panel in California last summer, because it did.

I do like though that I wouldn't have to drill, and I like the leg arrangement for minimal deflection, especially when really slamming these sliders.
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Thanks. This is consistent with the Bud’s reply to my email. For the same reason of not having to drill my frame is why I like them. Placing the order tomorrow. Thanks!
 
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