[Camaroboi13]

After a couple months of planning, and about 4 weeks of waiting on the exact sliders to become available, I've finally got my end result. Sadly, after purchasing my sliders for $176, they went on sale for $145. So I could have done this project for under 200 if I'd waited another week. So here we go...

For starters, the sliders I purchased online were found here:
Fits 07-18 Jeep Wrangler JK 4 Doors Textured Black Armor Side Step Bars

Fits 07-18 Jeep Wrangler JK 4 Doors Textured Black Armor Side Step Bars | eBay

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The next thing I purchased was from Home Depot, and that was a 1 1/2" x 48" flat bar, 1/8" thick.

Next I purchased a 1x2 steel tube, also 48" long if I remember correctly. Might have been a little shorter, I don't remember off the top of my head. You won't need to use more than about 24-28" if you do it right the first time. Couldn't find it locally, ended up purchasing on Amazon

By this time my Sliders had went from Industry, CA (42 miles from my house), to Ellenburg, GA, then back to San Bernardino, CA where I live. Why.... no clue. FedEx dropped the ball on logistics for this one. Here's all 3 pieces used:

So then the next step is to take a reciprocating saw with a GOOD metal cutting blade (I ended up using 3 Milwaukee blades total) and cut the old brackets off the sliders, they won't do us WK2 guys any good.

 

[Camaroboi13]

Once the old brackets were cut off, this is kind of where I made things much more difficult than I should have. I measured out my brackets, cut my flat stock, cut my tubing, and welded them together.

After doing all this, welding them to the sliders, then lining up where to drill my holes, I realized there was a much easier method to do this. I should have drilled my holes and bolted the brackets to the car, then tack welded the sliders to the brackets on the vehicle, rather than making things more difficult than they had to be. I did end up welding my brackets in the middle of the slider, rather than the top of the slider.

As seen in the photo, the brackets are right in the middle of the slider, and they should have been at the top of the slider. The reason for this is once I went to bolt them to the car, my bolts only came through the holes about 1 or 2 threads. The problem with that is the bolts hang down 1 1/2" below the vehicle, so there was a big gap there that I couldn't get rid of. So I cut them off (only after welding completely and trying to bolt them on first ugh) and rewelded them flush with the top of the sliders. That did the trick. Before doing that, I marked my pinch weld holes and drilled them in the flat stock. Once everything was welded where it should be, I used a can of rubberized undercoating/spray on bedliner and protected all my bare metal from rust. It also matched the textured look of the sliders.

Once the completed sliders were ready to go on, the part that made me nervous kicked in... cutting my rocker pannels. I took a gamble on where they should be, and I probably ended up cutting a little too much off. I ran a piece of duct tape along the plastic, using the top of it as my top line. So however wide duct tape is... 2" or 2 1/2", that's how much I left in place. I probably should have used 3" wide tape, and I wouldn't have had the gap that I do. I used some more bedliner spray to paint the bottom of my rockets so that the gap wouldn't show up once everything was bolted on. I might go back and run some weather stripping in that gap just to cover it, we'll see.

So now that everything is ready to go, installation was a breeze. Just 3 bolts on the rocker panels, and 6 bolts on the pinch welds. My vehicle came with some pretty horrible looking chrome side steps, so I reused all of the hardware it came with. For a DIY project you can find all of the hardware at your local big box store. Here's the final result:

 

[Camaroboi13]

Lastly, a side profile pic to show how far they stick out... if you build your own this is kind of at your discretion... You can make your brackets longer or shorter depending on how far you'd like them to hang out. I wanted them pretty flush with the wheels, and I think I nailed it with the side profile

So now for the strength test... this weekend is Mama's birthday so I'm not able to take her out till next weekend, but my son who did all the welding for me, is 6'3" 285lbs. If he can stand on them and jump up and down with no breakage, I think I'll be alright on the trails.

Hopefully this gives you guys some insight as to how easy it is to build your own if you've got a welder laying around. Even if you had to pay a guy a hundred bucks to weld em up for you, it's better than paying those ridiculous prices that Mopar and other companies charge for. If I had to do these again and sell them, I couldn't see charging more than 500 dollars for them. If you're paying more than that, you're buying a name and not a product.

Questions/comments/concerns greatly appreciated.

 

[19GCTrailhawk]

Strength Test ✓
Looks✓
Function✓
Price✓
Nice mod, they look great. They look like they'll function perfectly.

 

[Camaroboi13]

Strength Test ✓
Looks✓
Function✓
Price✓
Nice mod, they look great. They look like they'll function perfectly.

That’s what I’m hoping for! Next week I should be able to get out and test them.

 

[WK2-Overland]

Looks awesome!

Would there be any additional benefit, I wonder, to welding the sliders to the chassis? I installed Rocky Road sliders on my WK2, which also mounts with bolts in the rocker panels and pinch weld, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little nervous that the sliders are going to tear right off my car if I come down on a rock with them. I've been pondering the idea of reinforcing it somehow with welds and maybe more brackets.

 

[Camaroboi13]

I was a little nervous about that too, so I welded small braces to my brackets for a little more support. I don’t know if it will help but it gives me more peace of mind at least 😆

 

[OldBlue61]

Looks good!

 

[Camaroboi13]

Looks good!

Thank you 😊 I just can’t fathom spending the kind of money these companies charge. There’s very little aftermarket for the WK2 platform and these companies monopolize on that. They’ll never see a penny of my money. Next I’ll be doing skid plates and hopefully a lower front guard similar to the 6 Monkeys one.

 

[OldBlue61]

Thank you 😊 I just can’t fathom spending the kind of money these companies charge. There’s very little aftermarket for the WK2 platform and these companies monopolize on that. They’ll never see a penny of my money. Next I’ll be doing skid plates and hopefully a lower front guard similar to the 6 Monkeys one.

Cool! Make sure you document what you do! Love to see your results. I'm already planning on my rock sliders, thanks to what you posted here.

 

[Camaroboi13]

Cool! Make sure you document what you do! Love to see your results. I'm already planning on my rock sliders, thanks to what you posted here.

You'll be glad you did! If you have a welder available to you this is ridiculously easy to accomplish. I took all these crazy measurements, and by the time I was finished I realized that I didn't need to take a single one. Just have to work backwards.

Make yourself 6 flat bars with holes in them that will bolt to the pinch welds. Then make yourself 6 pieces of 1/2 tubing in whatever length gives you the best coverage for your sliders. Drill holes in those and attach them to 3 bolts that will hang down from your rocker (if you have any form of side steps now, the bolts are already there). Weld the flat bar and the 1x2 bar together, then bolt them back on. Lastly, take your slider and line it up how you like it. Tack it in place then unbolt the slider and weld it all together. It's literally that simple.

I would consider making a couple sets if the price was right, but I couldn't see myself shipping these as they're about 45lbs per side if memory serves me. Good luck with your sliders, when I get my hands on some steel I'll be finishing the rest of the under body panels.

 

[GRP]

To begin with, I love the ingenuity and DYI of what you created, not to mention bypassing crazy pricing.

I very well may be missing something here so forgive me if I misunderstood the above postings. I just wanted to point out a pretty important difference between steps and sliders for those unfamiliar. If I followed correctly, you created a great set of steps for your WK2…not sliders.

Sliders mount (whether bolted or welded) to the frame of a vehicle - not the pinch weld. This is significant because sliders allow your vehicle to literally grind over a boulder / hard surface and keep your vehicle (ideally) damage free. I’ve had sliders on a Tacoma that were used for pivoting the vehicle in tight situations. The sliders took the beating underneath - not the truck.

Steps do not serve the same purpose as sliders because they do not serve as protection underneath the vehicle. If you tried using steps the same way sliders are used, the underside of the vehicle (pinch weld, frame, etc) would be messed up pretty badly.

WK2 rock sliders are costly because of their utility, not so much because of niche market. Tacoma sliders are in the same price range and there are a million Tacomas out there.

I hope this helps clarify. By no means do I want to rain on the really great post here. I just don’t want my fellow WK2ers getting into any issues out there in the dirt. Happy trails!

 

[WK2-Overland]

To begin with, I love the ingenuity and DYI of what you created, not to mention bypassing crazy pricing.

I very well may be missing something here so forgive me if I misunderstood the above postings. I just wanted to point out a pretty important difference between steps and sliders for those unfamiliar. If I followed correctly, you created a great set of steps for your WK2…not sliders.

Sliders mount (whether bolted or welded) to the frame of a vehicle - not the pinch weld. This is significant because sliders allow your vehicle to literally grind over a boulder / hard surface and keep your vehicle (ideally) damage free. I’ve had sliders on a Tacoma that were used for pivoting the vehicle in tight situations. The sliders took the beating underneath - not the truck.

Steps do not serve the same purpose as sliders because they do not serve as protection underneath the vehicle. If you tried using steps the same way sliders are used, the underside of the vehicle (pinch weld, frame, etc) would be messed up pretty badly.

WK2 rock sliders are costly because of their utility, not so much because of niche market. Tacoma sliders are in the same price range and there are a million Tacomas out there.

I hope this helps clarify. By no means do I want to rain on the really great post here. I just don’t want my fellow WK2ers getting into any issues out there in the dirt. Happy trails!

Ya but, as discussed above, every rock slider I'm familiar with for the WK2, including the > $1000 kinds, all mount to the pinch welds. You can't access the frame without significantly cutting up the sheet metal body.
So you're right about sliders being best if mounted to the frame, but incorrect (I believe) about the more expensive sliders mounting to the frame, as I have yet to find any that do that.

 

[GRP]

Thanks for the heads up. I haven’t bought sliders for the Jeep yet and appreciate the info. I guess the WK2 is a different set up than I’m used to. Thanks again for your post.

 

[peta8368]

I would consider making a couple sets if the price was right, but I couldn't see myself shipping these as they're about 45lbs per side if memory serves me. Good luck with your sliders, when I get my hands on some steel I'll be finishing the rest of the under body panels.

Would you be open to making some of these for those local to you and can pick it up in person? You mentioned that you are 42 miles from City of Industry, and in the San Bernadino area, would that be in Hesperia/Victorville? I am looking for some rock rails, but am having a hard time swallowing the $1000 price tag of one. Let me know if that's something you would be willing to entertain. Thank you!!

Peter

 

[Camaroboi13]

Would you be open to making some of these for those local to you and can pick it up in person? You mentioned that you are 42 miles from City of Industry, and in the San Bernadino area, would that be in Hesperia/Victorville? I am looking for some rock rails, but am having a hard time swallowing the $1000 price tag of one. Let me know if that's something you would be willing to entertain. Thank you!!

Peter

Hesperia and Victorville are about 20 minutes up the 15 from me. I’m down at the bottom of the hill closer to the 15/215 interchange. You can send me a private message if and when you’d like to get them done and we can discuss it. I’d have no problem building a set or two for other people, but it helps immensely to have them built on the vehicle so everything matches as it should.

 

[SRTabc123]

Ya but, as discussed above, every rock slider I'm familiar with for the WK2, including the > $1000 kinds, all mount to the pinch welds. You can't access the frame without significantly cutting up the sheet metal body.
So you're right about sliders being best if mounted to the frame, but incorrect (I believe) about the more expensive sliders mounting to the frame, as I have yet to find any that do that.

My Chief products rails use the pinch weld but definitely mount to the body securely using a fancy set of nuts that go up into the frame rail under the door and sandwiches itself in there and then also uses the factory set of holes in the lower door jam with a long bar that wedges tightly to the top of the slider. Their instructions are free on their website to see how they mount. The offroad animal ones screw into the lower door jam with self tappers, I wasn’t a fan of that. But definitely kuddos for making your own thing to fit your needs and wants and your strength test of a large man hanging on them shows they should hold up. You aren’t joking about the high price of fabricated parts for this platform tho.

 

[Camaroboi13]

Agreed, high prices are killing the aftermarket world. I reached out to a company about future sales on their lower guard for the front bumper. They said with the increasing rates on steel that the prices would likely not go down at all. Funny, because there’s a place down the street from me selling 4x8 sheets of steel for 100 bucks each 🙄 so after I make my skid plates I may tackle the lower front guard and see what I can do there.

 

[SRTabc123]

Agreed, high prices are killing the aftermarket world. I reached out to a company about future sales on their lower guard for the front bumper. They said with the increasing rates on steel that the prices would likely not go down at all. Funny, because there’s a place down the street from me selling 4x8 sheets of steel for 100 bucks each 🙄 so after I make my skid plates I may tackle the lower front guard and see what I can do there.

I already have everything from chief but another company is 6monkeys offroad and he appears to build nice stuff that’s fairly reasonably priced. But if you can fabricate then that’s the way to go. I need to teach myself how to weld one of these days.

 

[Camaroboi13]

I already have everything from chief but another company is 6monkeys offroad and he appears to build nice stuff that’s fairly reasonably priced. But if you can fabricate then that’s the way to go. I need to teach myself how to weld one of these days.

That’s the exact company I was talking about lol. Hands down they have the best looking lower guard, but I just can’t fathom spending 700 on a piece of sheet metal that’s been cut and welded a bunch.