JK Wrangler home built expedition bumper

[Espo78]

Alright, so the only thing that makes this an "expedition bumper" is that I'm posting about it here. :ylsmoke: But yeah I'm pretty happy with how this thing turned out and it was cheap to build and easily replaceable, even if you are far from home. Well as long as your expedition takes you near a welding shop and a harbor freight! Anyway on with the build...

I started off with a 4' 6" piece of steel C channel from my local welding shop. $45 bucks. This is what the steel looked like after removing the factory bumper and laying the C channel on the frame horns.

Mark the 8 holes and drill. I think a 1/2" bit would be ideal but I only had 7/16" so I used that and just wallowed out the hole a little bit. Give it a coat of fresh paint and secure it to the frame using the stock tow hooks.

Now for a couple weeks I thought I was done. But there was so much space between the frame and the bumper it just begged for a winch. Harbor Freight sells a universal winch plate for 40 bucks. Use a 20% off coupon and get it for around $30.

http://www.harborfreight.com/universal-channel-winch-mount-90476.html

I had to trim the back lip off the mounting plate for it to clear the grill. I then placed the plate on top of the frame and marked where to drill using existing holes in the plate. I bought some grade 8 hardware and bolted the winch plate down. The tricky part was having to cut a notch out of the front of the frame horn in order to get a wrench inside the frame to hold the nut to tighten the plate down. After tightening the plate down, I loosened the nuts a little and placed the C channel front bumper on the frame and secured it. As I tightened the bolts it brought it closer to the frame and made it snug. Then I was able to retighten the winch plate bolts. Don't forget to use washers. Now it's winch ready.

Hope you guys like it!

 

[Gaucho919]

Very nice, simple, and productive. Have you gone to Merit Island national seashore yet? it's only a couple hrs. away from Gainesville and worth every minute.

 

[Espo78]

No I've never been there. I'll put it on my go-to list though. Thanks.

 

[X-plorenow]

Love it, I am a big fan of the slim and simple. Also just has a cool utilitarian / military cool look to it. Nice work!

 

[Espo78]

Thanks! I based it off the Jeep J8 military bumper actually so you are right on point. Eventually I might buy the bolt on D ring mounts, but they cost about $100 so I don't know if it's worth it compared to the factory tow hooks.

 

[Inline6]

Nice, I've been meaning to modify my front bumper something like this.

Matches my rear

I used aluminum though.

 

[Espo78]

Wow I really like the rear. It is a nice match. Any write ups on how you did it? I know its a lot more complicated than the front since there are no horns to bolt directly to. I'm pretty sure that's the AEV carrier? I've seen others use it solo without their bumper as well but I've never seen it listed for sale like that anywhere. Mind sharing the cost?

 

[Inline6]

Thanks, the rear was somewhat simple as well. Yes an AEV tire carrier.

I did some quick measuring. A 2"/4" 3/16 tube was slid info the frame. Then I welded a folate plate to the tube with the appropriate bolt holes for the shackle mounts. Inside the tube then welded bolts in place to hold it all in.

Ok, not as simple, but really quite easy. Just 2 tubes with a rear plate. Bolt the AEV carrier with the tube/plate assembly to the frame. Bolt the channel and recovery points to the tube/plate.

 

[Espo78]

Just a quick update, an old guy decided to stop in the middle of an intersection, throw his full size truck into reverse, and back up right into me. His rear bumper was all smashed in, my steel bumper had a couple chips of paint missing and ZERO damage. I touched it up with a rattle can and it's good as new. I couldn't be prouder of how strong this bumper is and how well it held up.

 

[Inline6]

Glad you survived, and the bumper.

 

[Espo78]

Thanks. I REALLY want a rear bumper now, because it's far more likely I'll get rear ended in the future than randomly getting backed into.

 

[heehawhardy]

Very true! It's not funny, but the little damage done to your bumper is AWESOME

 

[Espo78]

Here is a pic I took of the bumper last night after I got home from work. You can see the scrapes on the paint but really thats it. After I touched it up today you can't even tell anything happened.

 

[heehawhardy]

Mmmmm bolt on some D-Rings and it would be amazing

 

[Espo78]

Yeah that was the original plan but I didn't want to spend another $100 on it. It would have doubled the cost of the bumper!