installing skid plates

[wanderer]

I am going to install my own skid plates from rubicon exrpress. The plates will cover the transfer case the transimission and oil pan? Is this difficult? I don't have a lift so it is on my back, under the jeep work.

Later I will do diff skids and shock and control arm skid plates.

On the diff skids I see alot of kits that will replace the cover. I talked with a 4 wheel parts guys and he told me that the rancho skid cause a loss of ground clearance? Any one know if that is true? Does any one have recommendations for othe differnetial skid plates or other skid plates for that matter?

I don't have the right tool to do the rusty control arm mount. No air wrench with torque. actually no air wrench at all.

Post up your links and pictures to what you did and what you want or wish to do and what you didn't do or wish you didn't and anaything else . Thanks

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[hjdca]

I installed 8 control arm/shock skids. You need an impact driver and 24 mm impact universal joints to do the control arm skids, especially the front ones with the spacer tabs. There is also 21 mm bolts under there -- I think for the shocks. The skids compress the control arm tabs which in turn compress the control arm rubber so that it will not move. This takes constant over 100 ft lbs of force for quite a number of turns to tighten them down enough. I doubt you could do it with a breaker bar on your back.

Also, the bolt holes on the control skids barely fit the bolts. The tabs on the truck have a tad larger holes. I had a hard time getting one bolt through one control arm and I had to widen the hole on the Rockhard skid. One hole on the Rusty's skids for the front of the rear control arms was way off (not the control arm bolt hole). It took me a while to widen it out.

So, what looks like an easy job, may not turn out that way...

You will need the universal joints because the impact driver will not fit square where you want it to go.

If your truck is stock, when you do the front diff cover, lift the body 4 inches from the frame or steel front bumper.. This will move the track bar up and allow you to easily access all the bolts for removal and installation.

If you truck is stock, use silicone to put on the diff covers. The aftermarket front diff cover will just barely clear the stock track bar at full compression. If you use a re-usable gasket, this may reduce your clearance and your track bar could hit your new diff cover at full shock compression.

Note: I picked Metalcloak mostly for the diff skids.... I like them the best and I think they have the best clearance and strength... I also like how they do not use the same bolts that are holding on the diff cover... from there, the metalcloak diff cover is required for the front skid..., and I naturally went with the back diff cover to match.

 

[wanderer]

I installed 8 control arm/shock skids. You need an impact driver and 24 mm impact universal joints to do the control arm skids, especially the front ones with the spacer tabs. There is also 21 mm bolts under there -- I think for the shocks. The skids compress the control arm tabs which in turn compress the control arm rubber so that it will not move. This takes constant over 100 ft lbs of force for quite a number of turns to tighten them down enough. I doubt you could do it with a breaker bar on your back.

You will need the universal joints because the impact driver will not fit square where you want it to go.

Note: I picked Metalcloak mostly for the diff skids.... I like them the best and I think they have the best clearance and strength... I also like how they do not use the same bolts that are holding on the diff cover... from there, the metalcloak diff cover is required for the front skid..., and I naturally went with the back diff cover to match.

 

[wanderer]

probaly wont do the control arms skids not set up but the others seem doable.

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