Newly designed ALMUNINUM bumper for the Gen1 Xterras and Frontiers

[Big-Bird]

After being away for so long from the NICO forum I though I migh update my fellow NICO-naughts on the latest goings on with my Xterra. I have been working with a bumper manufacturer in Alberta Canada who makes Bull-Bars for big rigs and full size trucks. They wanted to try and design a bumper for a smaller vehicle so I was asked if I would provide my Xterra for some R&D work.

The bumper you see here is all 3/8" plate 6061 aluminum. After a single visit to the fabricator I came back 2 weeks later and this prototype was ready for test fitting. The design of the mounting bracketry and winch connection was finalized as well as the clearancing for fenders. This unit weighed in at a mere 70 pounds and should be around 90 with the mounting plates. A similar styled steel ARB or TJM weighs over 90 pounds. (we checked)

Since my Ramsey Profile 9500 has a separate relay box I opted to have it mounted inside the bumper so it will stay out of harms way. (It will be sealed with a layer of resin to prevent corrosion.)

The bumper will be getting painted in a similar shade of grey used on the grill but the Endura paint is tougher than powder coating. Sorta like bed liner but it isn't prone to peeling. Final pictures will be posted by the end of January 2010 when I go get the Bandit Bar installed.

[silveradobeast]

you should ask them to make one for a hardbody! it looks sick though!!

[Big-Bird]

The LED signal lights and LightForce HID's still need to be mounted. Then it will look sick!

Too bad I have to wait for a few more weeks until i can drive out to their shop....Its a 2.5 hour drive from home just to get there...

[Rev_D21]

Good to see you back. Looking sharp!

[Big-Bird]

Once mine is done they intend on putting the design in their 'build to order' program. I'll have plenty of images once its done since the intent of the build is to have a new design in their CAD system and offer it for sale to potential customers.

[Big-Bird]

The bumper is done and the wait was so worth it! It turned out better than we hoped and along the way some improvements were made. The routing of the wires for the winch motor and the solenoid control are tucked inside the bumber an completely hidden. I had to rebuild the whole winch motor due to some nasty salt ingress into the brush chamber and the gear box was loaded with silt, probably from the last rally I helped out at. Oh well the bumper has been coated in Endura Rock Guard and the color was as close to stock as we could find in the available pallette. I nearly went for yellow but decided against that choice. The signal lights on the ends are LED's and are quite bright despite their small size of under 2" round. All in all I am very pleased with the finshed product. Total bumper weight with hardware and coating is just under 100 pounds. ( winch not included ).



So what-do-ya-think?

[Rev_D21]

King s*** of f*** Mountain! Looks great!

[lino]

That is a thing of beauty. Outstanding!

[Desert Rat]

I like it, but weight wise, what's the benefit aside from the cool factor of aluminum over steel?

I guess things do rust up in your neck of the woods....

[Big-Bird]

I neglected to show you where this Xterra bumper gets its pedigree....



Well D.R. the aluminum being used is much stronger than mild steel of the same thickness. A similar thickness steel bumper would weigh almost 2x what this one does. As it turns out the only reason this one is slightly heavier han my old TJM is due to the 5/16" thick QT100 steel used for the main mounting plates. My TJM didn't have the bull bars and the endura coating is heavier than powdercoating so yeah I have a bit more weight now. An increase of 18 pounds isn't bad considering what I had done.

And you're right, rust is a major concern up here since they use a liquid salt solutions on the city streets when temps are just below freezing. Then they switch over to calcium chloride beyind -15 degrees C. Corrosion is inevitable unless mitigated with good quality coatings and frequent washings. The powdercoating was done after 6 years of road salt exposure.


Modified by Big-Bird at 6:28 PM 1/19/2010

[Rev_D21]

Volvo VNL64T. Nice until one tries to work on one. Peterbilt 359 FTW!

[Big-Bird]

Rev...you gotta focus on the bumper..not the truck.

The design you see is the general design platform they use for all of their big rig bumpers. Of course the bar setups vary with each truck. Thankfully the grill bars tilt down on pivot pins to allow the hood to be opened while the bumper stays stationary.

[seang]

I like it, but weight wise, what's the benefit aside from the cool factor of aluminum over steel?

I guess things do rust up in your neck of the woods....

Even he has it good compared to me. Do they even use salt in Canada? They probably just drive on top of the snow like they should.

[kibatheloanwolf]

Volvo VNL64T. Nice until one tries to work on one. Peterbilt 359 FTW!

Long nose 359?