Sliders - little different than everyone else

[Atoyot1031]

This could be true. Optimally you would want the main channel of the slider to run from the rear of the front wheel well to the front of the rear wheel well. These 67" ones do in fact come up just short of that. But for the cost it was a trade off I was willing to make. More importantly, the likelihood of me finding a rock that finds it's way between my tire and the slider is relatively slim. So again, it was a trade-off I was willing to make.

Here is a not-so-great photo of the sliders on my truck. I have marked with orange the leading and trailing edge of the sliders so that you can see just how much of the rocker panel they leave uncovered at the wheel wells. HTH.

Adam, IIRC didn't you get yours for free! I agree that there isn't much exposed, but...

In retrospect, on the ones I built (modeled after yours), I would have asked 4xinnovations to make them a little longer so they'd be just right!

 

[Box Rocket]

Adam, IIRC didn't you get yours for free! I agree that there isn't much exposed, but...

In retrospect, on the ones I built (modeled after yours), I would have asked 4xinnovations to make them a little longer so they'd be just right!

Yes I did get mine for free, however, even paying full retail for these from someone like Marlin, is a steal compared to some other options.

If you are having some custom built (like you did) adding a couple inches is simple and worthwhile. The other thing I would have wanted (if I hadn't been given these for free) is a kickout at the tail end of these. Similar to the All Pro ones for the minitrucks. I had some custom sliders with a kickout on my old minitruck and it sure helped keep the backend of the truck out of the rocks when pivoting around them on the sliders.

 

[Atoyot1031]

Yes I did get mine for free, however, even paying full retail for these from someone like Marlin, is a steal compared to some other options.

If you are having some custom built (like you did) adding a couple inches is simple and worthwhile. The other thing I would have wanted (if I hadn't been given these for free) is a kickout at the tail end of these. Similar to the All Pro ones for the minitrucks. I had some custom sliders with a kickout on my old minitruck and it sure helped keep the backend of the truck out of the rocks when pivoting around them on the sliders.

Oh, you mean like these!

 

[Box Rocket]

Oh, you mean like these!
View attachment 203430

Yes like those. I knew you had done that with yours and I think it is a great feature. In addition to the help they offer when wheeling, they also provide a better step option for anyone getting in or out of the back seat. My boys have a very small section available to step on with my sliders.

 

[Atoyot1031]

Ditto on both points. My appreciated them to help get the kids in & out. However, we cut them off and gave them to a buddy after she totaled the 80. But...

...my new one is cooler and has the regular Slee sliders on it. They provide enough step for me (but then again, I'm 6'2"). She has to put forth a little more effort getting in and out (35s vs. 33s), and our 2.5 year old, jsut figured out how to climb in & out of the new 80 by himself. He's very proud, as you can imagine.

 

[Box Rocket]

So, a little update. I made it out wheeling a little this morning. Hit Providence Canyon in northern Utah. Turned into an icey mess and got really scary on the trail. Came back down into the quarry at the bottom of the trail to play around.

Many people have been skeptical about the Marlin Crawler/Trail-Gear sliders being used on an 80. Some feel that the HREW will not hold up on an 80 and that they are not strong enough since they were designed for a minitruck. Well mine have worked really well since I put them on. The first real test was a couple trips to Moab where they performed perfectly. Today was no different.

How bout the entire weight of the truck on the driverside slider? Both driverside tires in the air. Also came down on it really hard a couple times while attempting the obstacle. Slid along on them for about half the length of the slider. No real flexing, no body contact, no denting of the tubing. Worked just as they should. I just thought I'd update a little since people have asked about them holding up and just wanted to show that they do and that they are a great less-expensive option for sliders on an 80. These are the 67" minitruck sliders from either Marlin or Trail Gear.

couple pics.

 

[New2Cruiser]

I have the same sliders on mine from the PO. I am very glad they will take the abuse you guys throw at them because that means they will laugh at everything I will get into! Thanks for the update and pics.

 

[nat88toy]

looks as tho you made them stick out farther then some of the 1000 dollar sliders i like that i know that the slee sliders do not stick out far enough for wheeling newengland, witnessed a club member wipe out both of his doors with the slee sliders kinda funny that the sliders did not stick out far enough to protect the doors

 

[sleeoffroad]

looks as tho you made them stick out farther then some of the 1000 dollar sliders i like that i know that the slee sliders do not stick out far enough for wheeling newengland, witnessed a club member wipe out both of his doors with the slee sliders kinda funny that the sliders did not stick out far enough to protect the doors

Never thought that they need to protect against trees If you had to make them stick out that far, they put an insane amount of stress on the mounting system and frame if you hit them from below.
I bet you there are very few 80 slider offerings that would protect the door if you try and lay it against a tree.

 

[nat88toy]

Never thought that they need to protect against trees If you had to make them stick out that far, they put an insane amount of stress on the mounting system and frame if you hit them from below.
I bet you there are very few 80 slider offerings that would protect the door if you try and lay it against a tree.

would just need to make a better mounting system then
Cristo you should come out the the east cost and come wheeling with us may give you some ideas for some new products

just saying for a g-bomb you should be able to protect your doors as well

 

[Box Rocket]

Never thought that they need to protect against trees If you had to make them stick out that far, they put an insane amount of stress on the mounting system and frame if you hit them from below.
I bet you there are very few 80 slider offerings that would protect the door if you try and lay it against a tree.

I set mine up with only a slight upward angle. Protection was one reason but I also needed them to function as a step. I am pretty sure these don't stick out any further than the old step style Slee sliders. Christo, were you having issues with your old step style sliders having too much leverage on the mounting system?

Once again for the record, I believe that sliders from some of the vendors like Slee, Hanna, MetalTech etc are superior to these. They were designed specifically for the 80. These were in fact designed for a minitruck. However, these "minitruck" sliders have proven to me that they can hold up to a decent amount of abuse. And if they were to fail earlier than a set of other vendors sliders, I could replace mine with a second or third set of these and still be saving money. So not to take anything away from other vendors, because were I able to afford it I would have bought some. For the cost however, these are hard to beat IMO.

 

[js93cruiser]

how long did you cut the legs on the sliders to?

 

[KRAZIKRAKER]

Not sure what others were paying but I got mine from BUMP IT OFF ROAD for a good $6 bills, not powder coated, not welded on. Sliders look great haven't really had time to rock test them - however work great as a step in/out & to get to the roof. I need to find my strength and tighen a few bolts cause a slider did move :whoops:when I was putting the lift on the truck. Easy fix tho with some muscle and possibly a shim.

 

[Box Rocket]

how long did you cut the legs on the sliders to?

i don't remember exactly what length I cut them at. The process I used was to set the main sliders on jackstands in the location under the rocker panels where I wanted them. Then I measured the distance from the frame to the slider for each leg. there is no "set" distance for these since you can set them more outboard if you want, or farther under the truck or at a different angle to protect doors more or to be used more as a step.

Not sure what others were paying but I got mine from BUMP IT OFF ROAD for a good $6 bills, not powder coated, not welded on. Sliders look great haven't really had time to rock test them - however work great as a step in/out & to get to the roof. I need to find my strength and tighen a few bolts cause a slider did move :whoops:when I was putting the lift on the truck. Easy fix tho with some muscle and possibly a shim.

The Trail-Gear sliders are $140. Add a gusset kit for another $25 and you're set. IMO there is no better bang for your buck than that in the slider arena.

 

[Mo Rocks]

Well after reading this, I just ordered a 68" set of sliders from Marlin Crawler $159...including the gusset kit......$211 to my front door......via FedEx ground.

Sliders for my 80 for a tick over $200 is too hard to resist on my budget...

I wonder if I can modify their tacoma F&R bumpers to fit the 80 !!??

I can fab up my own slider mounts and cat. protection.....I think I will try to make it a bolt on.......

I am sure it will not be as good or nice as some of the custom high dollar sliders.....but I can't buy the tubing for much less than that.....let alone get it bent or buy a tubing bender and the dies.

Cool thread.......

 

[nuclearlemon]

Well after reading this, I just ordered a 68" set of sliders from Marlin Crawler $159...including the gusset kit......$211 to my front door......via FedEx ground.
QUOTE]

I've had mine sitting in the garage waiting to go on since december...maybe i'll get em on before you. did yours come with the frame plate? if not, add plates. i can show you how the frame will buckle if a slider is welded on without a plate to distribute the pressure

 

[Mo Rocks]

Well after reading this, I just ordered a 68" set of sliders from Marlin Crawler $159...including the gusset kit......$211 to my front door......via FedEx ground.
QUOTE]

I've had mine sitting in the garage waiting to go on since december...maybe i'll get em on before you. did yours come with the frame plate? if not, add plates. i can show you how the frame will buckle if a slider is welded on without a plate to distribute the pressure

I just ordered mine today.....about 3 hours ago.......I do not think they will come with a frame plate as I did not see them in the pic with the gussets and connector tubes. Guess I will have to see what FedEx brings me !!!!!

No problem it they do not have plates. I have some nice plate in my tiney shop that will fab up well........I am hoping to make them a bolt on setup instead of welding to the frame.....I know some weld to the frame, but I prefer not to if possible.

And yes I hope to get mine on before you do !!!!!!

 

[2manycruisers]

I followed this build and bought from Marlin, too. I decided to make mine bolt-on and used a u-bolt design using George's drawings at the frame mounts. Worked out very well. I was able to use the 12" legs included for 4 of the mounts (trimmed to fit), the front ones are much longer. To go under the cat, I used round tube, but in 2 pieces welded to a 1/2" barstock directly under/between the cats so it wouldn't go any lower than the cat. From this would be easy to build a cat skid similar to the metal tech sliders, but I haven't done it yet. I also trimmed the pinch weld to put the sliders as high as possible. In doing so, I had to notch and reweld the middle leg at an angle to clear everything. I didn't use the included gussets as they are pretty tiny. I made my own from 1/8" flatbar to extend more of the length of each leg, as those long front legs seemed like it could flex a bunch and I don't have much tolerance for flex with the pinch weld gone. They got a couple scrapes at CM, but I found all the other stuff underneath was likely to drag first. Didn't lay on them hard to see how much they move yet.

Good luck on yours and thanks for the idea Box Rocket!

 

[24HOURSOFNEVADA]

Those turned out great, nice job.

 

[kidglove13]

4x Inovations has nice sliders as well, similar to Marlin and such but they have the rear kick out which is nice and they cost alittle more $250 or so.
I have been very pleased with them