Ryan's Front Bumper Brain Storming Thread

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ryandavenport

Guest
So, since I haven't really found a front bumper that I love so far, I decided that I would look at designing my own and having the guy from RLC build it for me since I don't do welding and metal bending.

2011-12-04_13-20-31_650.jpg


What you are looking at here is the beginning stages of a design. I wanted something that looked like it still belongs on the X, but I also want it to be able to take an impact from a deer, considering that I drive 100 miles a day through excessive deer territory. This is the basic look that I want for the front. Obviously, it will have a few more bends in the metal, but I want to keep it this shape. Instead of reusing the stock fogs, I will have two sets of Rigid LED fogs. One amber and one white. The amber set will be wired to the "now factory" set, and the amber set will be wired in differently. I really do like the bar that goes across the top of the bumper, and it will also prove useful to attach a plate to that can hold the bottom of the grill in place (other aftermarket bumpers do not do this). I also want room for a 10,000 pound winch in there, as I want to make sure that I have a large enough safety factor built in once I finish building the vehicle. Synthetic line is also a must.

So here is what I need help with:

Headlight hoop design... I need help figuring out a great hoop design that will not diminish headlight brightness or quality, but will still protect the front of the truck.
Deciding on a winch... I need help figuring out which synthetic lined 10000 pound winch to use in this bumper.
 
D

drbandkgb

Titan Swapped / SAS'd
Founding Member
One thing ill tell you is he wont do that bend on the top under the lights :) And your missing tires :)

I like it... Im not a fan of those LED lights you want but the over all design is sweet :)
 
R

ryandavenport

Guest
Updated it a little bit. I really want that bend there so that it will look finished. And you can't get me to give up the LED lights.

2011-12-04_17-10-40_89.jpg
 
Xterraforce

Xterraforce

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Signal Mtn., TN
I don't know. Maybe if you took him some 3/16 wall tubing that was already cut lengthwise for the dip under the lights he could work it in. I do seriously doubt that he would include it in a production design though. For the right price I'm sure he'll do anything that can be done with it. All things you can discuss with him up front when you're ready.
 
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ryandavenport

Guest
Thats what my idea was. If I get some tubing with the same diameter as the blinkers, I figured he could cut and weld them in place right there.
 
TomsRedX

TomsRedX

Bought an X
Founding Member
Location
Lancaster, Pa
Is the middle of the bumper going to be close to stock height from the ground? If so that will look good but may be a bit heavy, Lots more steel than other plate style bumpers.

I would keep the winch as low as possible to cut down on the leverage and bumper movement. If you join NEXterra, Master Pull gives us a discount on their synthetic lines and other products.

The LED lights will look good if they are recessed in the bumper, something different from the norm.
 
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ryandavenport

Guest
The lights will be recessed into the bumper, the bumper will be SLIGHTLY higher than the stock at the bottom, but it will go up at a steeper angle on the sides. Basically I want the winch mounted between the frame rails if possible, and the bottom of the bumper can be directly below the winch. The bottom rectangle that you are looking at will be the skid to cover up the sway bar, and it will go from the front bumper to the crossmember (a radiator skid).
 
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ryandavenport

Guest
Somewhat like the Ironbull pictured here, but less bulky and better quality and fit. And without the square wings.

IMG_3776.jpg
 
gorillamel

gorillamel

Lockers Installed
Founding Member
Location
Idaho!
Are you also incorporating the rad skid in there, too? How low do you plan to have that bumper come- stock length or stop shorter than the stock one? What about recovery points in there? Maybe on the inside of where you plan to have your fogs...?
 
R

ryandavenport

Guest
Yes there will be a radiator skid in there as well Mel. It will be slightly shorter than the stock length. I'm not positive on a length yet, but I will decide on that when I see the frame horns. As for the recovery points.
2011-12-04_17-53-11_828.jpg
 
Xterraforce

Xterraforce

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Signal Mtn., TN
You might want to get that camber looked at before you drive to northern Kentucky. And don't forget, not far from RLC you can eat some KFC on Colonel Sanders Blvd. Now back to actual discussion about this cool bumper design.
 
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ryandavenport

Guest
Haha its the keystone of the image. Not the camber lol
 
T

TJTJ

Skid Plates
Founding Member
Location
NJ
ryandavenport said:
Yes there will be a radiator skid in there as well Mel. It will be slightly shorter than the stock length. I'm not positive on a length yet, but I will decide on that when I see the frame horns. As for the recovery points.
2011-12-04_17-53-11_828.jpg
Click to expand...


If you want the winch cradle between the frame horns, for strength, that's good...but, your recovery points should ALSO be pulling on the frame horns to brace THEM strongly as well.

Your drawing above looks like the recovery tabs are below the frame horns.

Essentially, when the recovery POINT is pulled (ONE is pulled at a time, almost always, rather than pulling on both together, etc...), it will torque the bumper up/down/left/right of the bumper's fulcrum point, depending upon the recovery pull angle, etc.

The further off-plane the recovery point is from the bumper's attachment to the frame, the more torque is typically applied to the bumper....so you really want the recovery point to be attached to the frame horn, or as close to that concept as you can get.


For the top hoop design...Due to the angular nature of the grill/lights, etc...I'd match the complimentary angles, as matching the parallel angles would be awkward looking to return the hoops to the wing areas, etc.

Typically, for DEER, you want enough hoop in front of the grill, and light/fenders, to hit the deer before the deer hits the truck...and, for the top hoop to be higher than the leading edge of the hood, to protect the front clip/radiator, etc, from that wicked head snap they do when the body gets hit, etc. (Plus, it saves you bacon in rollovers too, etc.)

Having made bushels of venison puree over the years, driving through deer infested back country...in NEW JERSEY, where the deer are not only over crowded and exposed to pollutants and malls, they are suicidally depressed....I KNOW what makes the difference between suicidal deer spatter and a suicidal insurance agent.



For the winch, well, that depends on your planned use/desired capability.

The synthetic line is great, but, unlike wire rope, you can get the same diameter line with DOUBLE the strength of the winch itself....as a opposed to a 10k winch with 10k rated line.

The Masterpull Superline / XD (Mentioned above, re the discount we get, etc...) is the best out there I've seen.

~ 21,000 breaking strength from just a 5/16" line for example...the same DIAMETER used for steel rope with a ~ 9,800 lb breaking strength.
 
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ryandavenport

Guest
I tried to revise it to as close as the frame horns possible. Now the winch and shackles should be level with the frame.
2011-12-04_20-24-34_303.jpg
 
TomsRedX

TomsRedX

Bought an X
Founding Member
Location
Lancaster, Pa
Make sure you leave about a half inch clearance between the bumper and the body. I had about a quarter inch and just driving on a rough dirt road there was contact.

I like the grill and light hoops.
 
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ryandavenport

Guest
thank you sir. Any idea if there is a way to stiffen the design so that tolerances can be lower? I thought about tying the sliders into the front bumper via a tube that went alongside the front fender this would keep the damage down in that spot too. But I guess if I'm getting g serious enough to need front fender protection then I will then definitely need a half inch gap. Haha
 
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ryandavenport

Guest
^^Thank you sir. Thats exactly what I was going for. I did some more thinking on it today, and it would be easily adaptable to the later model second Gens I believe. I have a picture of one and I will try to draw up something later tonight to see it if will work. I am also going to look at making one for my Dad's FJ
 
RacerXXL

RacerXXL

First Fill-Up (of many)
Founding Member
Location
North Alabama
ryandavenport said:
I tried to revise it to as close as the frame horns possible. Now the winch and shackles should be level with the frame.
2011-12-04_20-24-34_303.jpg
Click to expand...

I like it man. :) A couple of questions though...

Where you have the round cut out in the top of the bumper does the round light in the headlight really protrude down as it doesn't appear to in the pic you posted of the Iron Bull above. Or are you going to have the top of the bumper actually extend above the bottom of the of the head light? Either way I like the half round cut out.

Is it going to wrap around the fenders a bit to offer a little side protection?

Love the top bars and as already pointed out the whole thing looks like a Nissan factory accessory .... very nice man. :)
 
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ryandavenport

Guest
It comes down just a little bit. I drew it slightly exaggerated in the drawings so that I wouldn't forget to put in in there. My biggest problem with aftermarket bumpers is when they don't look like they belong on the truck, so I really want those cut outs so that it looks like it fits.

Yes it will wrap around the front fenders a little bit to offer side protection. I haven't fully decided on how far back it will go, but when I get a chance to do a 3d model i will.

Thanks a lot for the nice compliments.
 
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Rook

Test Drive
Founding Member
Location
Morristown, NJ
i really like that design Ryan. Just make sure they bolt the recovery through the bumper and weld to the back....haha. wouldn't want those suckers ripping out...lol ;) I'm sure if they shop knows their stuff they will build it correctly. I like the fact that you are keeping the bold lines of the X in the design. That could look killer!
 
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ryandavenport

Guest
I drew this up for a later 2nd Gen guy. The grill guard part of this one looks pretty sick.
2011-12-05_22-54-58_565.jpg


and I went ahead and shaded the bumper on mine for anyone that was having difficulty distinguishing lines.
2011-12-05_22-58-21_359.jpg


The shading on the bottom is just to denote that the metal down there is at an angle compared with the face of the bumper, which will be straight up and down.
 
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ryandavenport

Guest
Thank you sir. I'm putting a lot of thought into this, because I want to do it once and do it right.
 
BigMeanTam

BigMeanTam

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Woodstock, GA
Is the opening above the fairlead for access to winch controls? I totally dig how well it ties in with the stock lines of the X!
 
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ryandavenport

Guest
Its for access to the winch as well as air flow. I've learned that's one thing you try not to mess with and since I do a lot of towing I still need to be able to tow.
 
R

ryandavenport

Guest
I just had to look up what prudent means. The one thing you don't squire in engineering is a good vocabulary lol
 
TomsRedX

TomsRedX

Bought an X
Founding Member
Location
Lancaster, Pa
ryandavenport said:
thank you sir. Any idea if there is a way to stiffen the design so that tolerances can be lower? I thought about tying the sliders into the front bumper via a tube that went alongside the front fender this would keep the damage down in that spot too. But I guess if I'm getting g serious enough to need front fender protection then I will then definitely need a half inch gap. Haha
Click to expand...

Not much you can do to narrow the gap, the frame will twist and the body will move some when wheeling. Half inch will look fine, better than dented fenders anyway.
 
R

ryandavenport

Guest
^^Thank you sir. That's all that I needed to know. A half inch isn't much at all now that I think about it. There are a lot of guys that look like they run close to a 1 inch gap on their bumpers, and I definitely don't want that.
 
J Everett

J Everett

Suspension Lift
Founding Member
Location
Houma, LA
Damn, Ryan, that last design looks fantastic! I'd love to have the same bumper but with round openings for the factory fogs. I can't wait to see the finished product.
 
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ryandavenport

Guest
^^thank you sir. Sorry it took so long to respond. This website doesn't subscribe automagically like I have found, so I often lost track of my threads.
 
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