Trying to Decide on Rear Bumper

[WILDHOBO]

I went with the Evo rear bumper and some DV8 bed sliders. Picked up 8" of extra rear clearance and still have a receiver. Still not in love with the license plate mount so I run my stock bumper most of the year. I can say this high clearance bumper was a game changer when I went back to Moab. No more dragging everywhere I went.

Thanks for sharing. Bumper looks good on there. I personally can’t imagine swapping my bumper out for trips, but it’s creative. It would be harder with aux lights.

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[Alpine Warthog]

I actually like that. That is a great find.

I've never had Rusty's stuff fail me. Can't go wrong quality wise

I almost pulled the trigger on the artec high clearance and the motobilt, but both require cutting. I'm hesitant to cut my bedside in a winter state that uses salt.
What I'm looking for:
-high clearance (this means moving the hitch up)
-bedside protection (I've dropped off enough ledges to know these are necessary)
-a hitch receiver, a strong one, we tow a camper all over the country
-ideally, no cutting the body - keeps rust away
-I'd like it to look good too (subjective)

I had the same requirements although I'm not worried about cutting the bottom of the bed since it's easy to monitor and I get annual touch ups at Zeibart. The Motobilt hits every point (there is cutting though) Hitch is very tight and also removeable.

I went with the Evo rear bumper and some DV8 bed sliders. Picked up 8" of extra rear clearance and still have a receiver. Still not in love with the license plate mount so I run my stock bumper most of the year. I can say this high clearance bumper was a game changer when I went back to Moab. No more dragging everywhere I went.

I'm glad I'm not the only one that's willing to swap things as needed. I tow maybe once a year. The motobilt hitch bolts to the bottom with just 4 bolts. 10 minutes max.

You and I are in the EXACT same situation. Actual towing, no chopping, bed sliders that work 100%, and higher clearance. At least on the corners. Thanks for your thoughts. At least I know I haven’t missed some magical bumper out there. I’d add that I want to retain my sensors, and have rear facing lights. That’s what might have removed cavfab.

Motobilt keeps the sensors. and has cutouts for lights (requires cutting tho)


I'm starting to sound like a sales rep..... I'm stupid excited about this bumper. So take my excitement with a grain of salt. LOL

 

[WILDHOBO]

I've never had Rusty's stuff fail me. Can't go wrong quality wise


I had the same requirements although I'm not worried about cutting the bottom of the bed since it's easy to monitor and I get annual touch ups at Zeibart. The Motobilt hits every point (there is cutting though) Hitch is very tight and also removeable.


I'm glad I'm not the only one that's willing to swap things as needed. I tow maybe once a year. The motobilt hitch bolts to the bottom with just 4 bolts. 10 minutes max.


Motobilt keeps the sensors. and has cutouts for lights (requires cutting tho)


I'm starting to sound like a sales rep..... I'm stupid excited about this bumper. So take my excitement with a grain of salt. LOL

Everyone’s requirements are a bit different, but this has brought up so many great ideas. I tow often, so won’t want to remove the receiver, but so many ideas for the end result that I hadn’t thought of. I think front bumpers are way easier to choose. More to choose from because of the JL, and they are much less likely to sustain serious damage, so nicer stuff is a reasonable choice. The rear on the gladiator gets raked over the coals. But lots of us still want basic features to still be there. Tough puzzle.

 

[Alpine Warthog]

Everyone’s requirements are a bit different, but this has brought up so many great ideas. I tow often, so won’t want to remove the receiver, but so many ideas for the end result that I hadn’t thought of. I think front bumpers are way easier to choose. More to choose from because of the JL, and they are much kess likely to sustain serious damage, so nicer stuff is a reasonable choice. The rear on the gladiator gets raked over the coals. It lots of us still want basic features to still be there. Tough puzzle.

True, I know the lack of rear step from this new bumper will be a little annoying for me. So far thats the only compromise I'm going to have to live with

 

[WILDHOBO]

True, I know the lack of rear step from this new bumper will be a little annoying for me. So far thats the only compromise I'm going to have to live with

See. You reminded me of something I forgot. Thanks. If I build one, I’ll want at least some lip. When getting out of the bed I need something to step on if I’m not using my step stool.

 

[Bandit’s Lair]

Are there any aftermarket tow setups that sit higher to the frame? I put a 15k tow assembly on my Transit van. It won’t even tow near that but the components were beefier so I felt sure that couldn’t be a weak point. I’ll have to do some research and see if there’s anything that bolts into the frame.

 

[WILDHOBO]

Are there any aftermarket tow setups that sit higher to the frame? I put a 15k tow assembly on my Transit van. It won’t even tow near that but the components were beefier so I felt sure that couldn’t be a weak point. I’ll have to do some research and see if there’s anything that bolts into the frame.

Good idea.

 

[Alpine Warthog]

Are there any aftermarket tow setups that sit higher to the frame? I put a 15k tow assembly on my Transit van. It won’t even tow near that but the components were beefier so I felt sure that couldn’t be a weak point. I’ll have to do some research and see if there’s anything that bolts into the frame.

The motobilt one is as tight to the frame as it can get.

 

[KX L]

Here is a picture of my LoD rear bumper. It has a step built right in so I can get on the bed from either side when the tailgate is down.

Note to self. "You can't use the steps when you bury the damn truck."

Wife didn't take a good picture of it buried so the front tire and wheel well should give you a hint.

We completed the Murray Kentucky BoH trail with basically no difficulty at all---only goes to level 3.

So when we finished I talked to the guy at the front gate and asked for a harder trail. Me and my big mouth....

This was the approach I did pick.

But at least I was able to use the Badlands 12 K synthetic winch I installed a couple of years ago. The tires were so caked with mud that they just spun despite being in 4 Lo with the axle locked. Two
different places on the trail he directed me to there wasn't any way around and I sure as hell was going to finish what I started.

Winch just pulled the Jeep right out. Both times, so fantastic.

Please do not tell me I shouldn't be winching anything while standing anywhere near the line. Wife wanted a picture. As you can see the truck is out of the obstacle. While winching I was safely behind the front of the vehicle and protected by the trees.

Took forever to explain to the wife unit why she couldn't stand near the tree protector padded line she put on and attached the winch cable to. And that standing twenty yards to the side didn't cut it either as more than that was out of the spool.

So, as always, safety first.

It's places like this that there was no way to go around so you try to pick the best approach. Two out of two times I didn't

This part of the trail had these two approaches and the much nicer [looking] one that I used off to the left.

 

[TwoCarGarageYT]

@WILDHOBO I just saw a social media tidbit stating that the cavfab rear bumper is reverse sensor compatible.

 

[WILDHOBO]

@WILDHOBO I just saw a social media tidbit stating that the cavfab rear bumper is reverse sensor compatible.

That’s great. Thanks. I’m pausing on this. Too many other expenses. My tentative plan is to build one in the winter. Or try to build one, fail, and revisit this after I fail.

 

[TwoCarGarageYT]

That’s great. Thanks. I’m pausing on this. Too many other expenses. My tentative plan is to build one in the winter. Or try to build one, fail, and revisit this after I fail.

Please make sure to post up on your progress! Curious to see what you come up with. Trust, me, I know all about doing something and then doing it again, and again

 

[NC_Overland]

I've never had Rusty's stuff fail me. Can't go wrong quality wise

That’s remarkable. I’ve heard that they’ve come a long ways, but they used so be known for being complete junk. I remember back in my
XJ days, over 20 yrs ago, when all they had was a poorly designed hot air intake. Kudos to them if they’ve figured it out. When they first expanded you would have been better off rolling the dice on temu.

 

[Alpine Warthog]

That’s remarkable. I’ve heard that they’ve come a long ways, but they used so be known for being complete junk. I remember back in my
XJ days, over 20 yrs ago, when all they had was a poorly designed hot air intake. Kudos to them if they’ve figured it out. When they first expanded you would have been better off rolling the dice on temu.

I remember being told I was an idiot for using their stuff in 2006 when I started building my XJ LOL. I used Rusty's heavily. Sliders, front bumper, 4.5 inch lift, HD track bar and brace. I've never broken anything Rusty's but I'm pretty sure I blew up the front Lockrite!

 

[WILDHOBO]

Please make sure to post up on your progress! Curious to see what you come up with. Trust, me, I know all about doing something and then doing it again, and again

Happy to. When I do this, I’ll post a thread, regardless of success or failure. People on here know more than me about fabrication, so it’s a good way for people to tell me I’m doing it wrong.

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