Steps/sliders
 

I made some custom steps/sliders about a month ago and I finally got around to spraying them in herculiner. Here are some pics of them, I will take more tomorrow after work when I mount them back on my blazer. They were still a little wet so I had to leave them over night. They are made out of 2x3" box tubing, the ends are fully capped and welded. The mounts I made out of 3/8 " plate and the round bar is 1" solid stock. If enough people are interested i might start making them on the side for a little extra cash. I am also going to be making upper A arms and a new bumper within the next couple of weeks. i am just tired of there not being stuff for our trucks out there and since I have the ability to fabricate my own parts I think I might start offering products to those that want them. I will update this once I get the A arms built because they are the next thing to be built.


http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/d...5/IMAG0540.jpg

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/d...5/IMAG0539.jpg

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/d...5/IMAG0538.jpg

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/d...5/IMAG0537.jpg

They look great! Can't wait to see 'em on your truck. If the shipping wasn't going to cost a fortune, I'd definitely buy a pair!

looks nice i spy way more bed liner on the floor then the bar jokeing imageine your self covered in bed liner

Too bad I just bought a pair of nerfs, these look real nice.

Only one bolt per support & 2 supports? Hope you don't have them come off on you if you really use them for their intended purpose. :icon_shrug:

Looks like good work though. Just question the strength of the design.

Those might work as steps but I wouldn't call them sliders. One bolt mounting and 1 inch stock are gonna break or bend. How thick is the metal even?

I made them with the main purpose of being a step. That one bolt is a 3/4 inch bolt and believe me they are sturdy as hell. I had them on my truck for a month before I finally sprayed them. Honestly they probably wouldn't be good sliders for a hardcore wheeler but for the occasional bumps and rock bangings they would be fine. With the discussion of strength, all I have to say is that the first trial set I made held to 600 lbs before it started to bend. The 1" round stock is angled at roughly a 50 degree angle from the steps to the mounting point. This creates a sturdy platform with minimal material while also creating a step that weighs in the ballpark of what an aluminum aftermarket step does after all the mounting bracketry is included in the weight.

Not doubting the quality of your welds but one bolt through these thin walled frames with a 3/4" bolt with rip the frame long before the steps/sliders start to bend. I highly recommend putting a bigger foot on the supports to allow 4 smaller bolts. Say 7/16" to spread the load.

Two supports would be fine, as a slider, for a two door. I'd go three for a four door.

My 2 door sliders have 3 mounts, if I was building for a 4 door I would go 4.
I'm sure they work great for steps I just wouldn't put much faith in them as sliders.

took the words right out of my mouth. You gotta take into concideration of how they are intended to be used and that people will actually use them (even if you tell them not to). The integrity of the design will hold up but the single bolt will not.

My advice, even if you don't want it, make it have 4 bolt holes per support bar. 4 bolts will be a lot stronger then just 1 per support. Depending on the length of them, you might want to add another support in there or maybe even 2 to try to distribute the weight of the person a little better. Which will also take the stress off the bolts which i assume will be mounted in the frame rail.

Good thought, good design, just sketchy due to the one bolt per support.