What Skids Are Necessary? “Can of Worms” Thread

[Summitdan]

As a deviation from a question that came up in another thread, here’s a thread to discuss how to skid our gladiators, depending on types of trails, and types of builds.

 

[Summitdan]

For me, skids were higher on my list than lifting and tires. My thought process was that I could weather tough scraping with better protection. I have diff skids, which I find to be very important from a stress relief standpoint. Occasionally they get hit, and I’m never worried about dumping my gear oil. I then moved on to a belly skid, which took a long time to arrive, but it fixes the problem with the cross members that always get caught on things, and the risk of oil pan hits. I originally thought I was in reasonable shape, but kept hitting my frame side LCA mounts. Now I’ve gone buck wild and have skids on all 8 LCA brackets, and the rear shock mounts. I’ve hit them all lots of times. This is my extreme end of the opinion spectrum, but I like to not worry about what I might break that could disable me. Keep in mind that I use mine as a rock crawling daily driver. So the money on skids is good insurance ti know I’ll be driving home.

 

[Mav4x4Chris]

I liked having them on my JK and they saw plenty of abuse. I had the full Rock Hard 4x4 set (engine, transfer case, fuel tank, evap, control arm mounts). It was great peace of mind and really helped the Jeep slide off obstacles rather than get caught on them. They also made it a pain to do certain service and repair work.

I don't believe I will be putting any on the Gladiator - at least not in the near term, but I bought the truck anticipating that I wouldn't wheel it the way I did my two door JK.

 

[Minty JL]

Depends on the type of wheeling you're going to doing.

 

[Summitdan]

I liked having them on my JK and they saw plenty of abuse. I had the full Rock Hard 4x4 set (engine, transfer case, fuel tank, evap, control arm mounts). It was great peace of mind and really helped the Jeep slide off obstacles rather than get caught on them. They also made it a pain to do certain service and repair work.

I don't believe I will be putting any on the Gladiator - at least not in the near term, but I bought the truck anticipating that I wouldn't wheel it the way I did my two door JK.

Very true. I’m waiting for that maintenance issue that makes me remove a skid. But I’d still rather have them.

 

[drewcnit]

So I learned the hard way the importance of skid plates as a tree branch jumped up and took out my transmission coolant line almost a month ago. 3 weeks at the dealer and $6K later it has a new transmission. This was a green/blue trail at Windrock for reference, no rocks, just some mud and water holes one of which was concealing the branch.
Now I've gone to the other end of the spectrum, in my garage I have Rock Hard 4x4's Aluminum Bellypan and their FAD Skid. Next Venture's Diff Covers and Skids have been ordered and I'm eagerly awaiting there arrival. Next up will be the control arm skids sold by Rock Hard.
Easy fire roads can break your rig, freak accidents happen. Cheap insurance in the long run to spend $$ on skids vs replacing $6K in transmission...
Also when talking belly pan's Rock Hard and Next Venture are probably the 2 best on the market. My deciding factor on Rock Hard over Next Venture was that RH's had an extra skid near the exhaust loop/drive shaft and offered more coverage in that region. Also they don't remove the OEM gas tank skid, so that means no worrying about running your tank low and ratchet strapping the tank while trying to bolt up next venture's gas tank skid.
Both systems are roughly the same price (if you don't get the UHMW option with NV), although I do believe RH's would add more weight due to the steel cross members and not removing the OEM gas tank skid.

 

[Summitdan]

So I learned the hard way the importance of skid plates as a tree branch jumped up and took out my transmission coolant line almost a month ago. 3 weeks at the dealer and $6K later it has a new transmission. This was a green/blue trail at Windrock for reference, no rocks, just some mud and water holes one of which was concealing the branch.
Now I've gone to the other end of the spectrum, in my garage I have Rock Hard 4x4's Aluminum Bellypan and their FAD Skid. Next Venture's Diff Covers and Skids have been ordered and I'm eagerly awaiting there arrival. Next up will be the control arm skids sold by Rock Hard.
Easy fire roads can break your rig, freak accidents happen. Cheap insurance in the long run to spend $$ on skids vs replacing $6K in transmission...
Also when talking belly pan's Rock Hard and Next Venture are probably the 2 best on the market. My deciding factor on Rock Hard over Next Venture was that RH's had an extra skid near the exhaust loop/drive shaft and offered more coverage in that region. Also they don't remove the OEM gas tank skid, so that means no worrying about running your tank low and ratchet strapping the tank while trying to bolt up next venture's gas tank skid.
Both systems are roughly the same price (if you don't get the UHMW option with NV), although I do believe RH's would add more weight due to the steel cross members and not removing the OEM gas tank skid.

All good points. I hadn’t thought about tree branches. Definitely they can do some nasty damage. I have the next venture aluminum belly skid with UHMW. My decision was that they’re the only ones doing UHMW, which has been amazing, and I actually liked the removal of the oem gas tank skid for weight savings. I’m also using their diff skids front and rear. I didn’t do covers because the skids are so protective, the oem covers aren’t exposed at all. I think their diff skids are stronger than any I’ve seen from any other vendor. And they share 6 diff cover bolts, so are very strong from a mounting standpoint. I’ve hit the rear skid straight on, and didn’t even ding the pinion. I’m waiting for an exhaust belly panel from them. They told me it was in the works and would work as an add on. Hey already have it for the diesel.

I’m also a huge fan of rock hard. I have all 8 of their LCA skids, and the rear shock mount skids. They see a lot of action, and hold up great. Super easy installs as well.

 

[Sandevino]

They’re in the top 3 of my list as there’s more to cock up under a diesel gladiator. I’ll be replacing or fabricating replacement plate skid plates to replace the thin wall tube skids on from the factory.

For a list, oil pan, fuel tank, def tank, DPF, transmission, transfer case, etc…. The more I type, the better a belly pan sounds.

 

[Escape.idiocracy]

So I learned the hard way the importance of skid plates as a tree branch jumped up and took out my transmission coolant line almost a month ago. 3 weeks at the dealer and $6K later it has a new transmission. This was a green/blue trail at Windrock for reference, no rocks, just some mud and water holes one of which was concealing the branch.
Now I've gone to the other end of the spectrum, in my garage I have Rock Hard 4x4's Aluminum Bellypan and their FAD Skid. Next Venture's Diff Covers and Skids have been ordered and I'm eagerly awaiting there arrival. Next up will be the control arm skids sold by Rock Hard.
Easy fire roads can break your rig, freak accidents happen. Cheap insurance in the long run to spend $$ on skids vs replacing $6K in transmission...
Also when talking belly pan's Rock Hard and Next Venture are probably the 2 best on the market. My deciding factor on Rock Hard over Next Venture was that RH's had an extra skid near the exhaust loop/drive shaft and offered more coverage in that region. Also they don't remove the OEM gas tank skid, so that means no worrying about running your tank low and ratchet strapping the tank while trying to bolt up next venture's gas tank skid.
Both systems are roughly the same price (if you don't get the UHMW option with NV), although I do believe RH's would add more weight due to the steel cross members and not removing the OEM gas tank skid.

https://www.artecindustries.com/jt-diesel-bellypan

anyone running the artec? I ran a lot of their stuff on my jku, and will likely go down this route with the gladiator.
I will need to wait for a lift though. Minimum lift is usually 1.5” for a lot of the skid plate systems. - has to do with axle and oil pan skid clearance.

 

[Summitdan]

https://www.artecindustries.com/jt-diesel-bellypan

anyone running the artec? I ran a lot of their stuff on my jku, and will likely go down this route with the gladiator.
I will need to wait for a lift though. Minimum lift is usually 1.5” for a lot of the skid plate systems. - has to do with axle and oil pan skid clearance.

I don’t have any experience with Artec, but next venture will go on without any lift, and actually gains ground clearance over stock.

 

[drewcnit]

https://www.artecindustries.com/jt-diesel-bellypan

anyone running the artec? I ran a lot of their stuff on my jku, and will likely go down this route with the gladiator.
I will need to wait for a lift though. Minimum lift is usually 1.5” for a lot of the skid plate systems. - has to do with axle and oil pan skid clearance.

No experience with their skids, however they are highly regarded I know. I looked at their setup for my 3.6 and it really came down to coverage for me, so here's the diesel bellypan's lined up:
Here's Artec (Diesel):

NextVenture:

RockHard:

While mostly the same the Rock Hard/Next Venture offer a wider skid over the transmission/transfer case near the front. Rock Hard also offers more exhaust coverage.

 

[Summitdan]

No experience with their skids, however they are highly regarded I know. I looked at their setup for my 3.6 and it really came down to coverage for me, so here's the diesel bellypan's lined up:
Here's Artec (Diesel):

NextVenture:

RockHard:

While mostly the same the Rock Hard/Next Venture offer a wider skid over the transmission/transfer case near the front. Rock Hard also offers more exhaust coverage.

Rock hard is definitely the best exhaust coverage. But I’m guessing it’s a pretty hefty weight gain with rock hard. Are those aluminum or steel?

 

[Northridge4x4]

Both the Artec skids and the Rock Hard 4x4 skids have been very popular here.

This is the Gladiator forum, but the skids are very similar on the Wrangler JL and that is the one we have the best pics of after a week in Moab and this JL even had 37s on it:

That wasn't from thrashing on them, that was doing the challenging trails and sliding along the rocks. So when we got back, we swapped in the Artec Belly pan system (the only one available back then).

Artec Belly Pan kit - Aluminum - JT 3.6:
https://www.northridge4x4.com/part/skid-plates/jt4150-artec-industries-full-bellypan-skid-plate

Rock Hard 4x4 Belly Pan kit - Aluminum - JT 3.6:
https://www.northridge4x4.com/part/...kid-plate-system-w-dual-crossmembers-aluminum

Rock Hard 4x4 Belly Pan kit - Steel - JT 3.6:
https://www.northridge4x4.com/part/...ellypan-skid-plate-system-w-dual-crossmembers

Rock Hard 4x4 Belly Pan kit - Aluminum - JT Diesel:
https://www.northridge4x4.com/part/...-complete-bellypan-skid-plate-system-aluminum

Rock Hard 4x4 Belly Pan kit - Steel - JT Diesel:
https://www.northridge4x4.com/part/...-hard-4x4-complete-bellypan-skid-plate-system

The Motobilt skids are starting to get pretty popular too because of the amount of coverage they offer, but the currently only have kits for the 2020 Gladiators:
Motobilt Skid Plate System - Steel, unpainted - JT 3.6:
https://www.northridge4x4.com/part/skid-plates/mb1106-motobilt-skid-plate-system-bare-steel

 

[Escape.idiocracy]

Looks like the rock hard aluminum saves $500+ too! May have just convinced me!

 

[Bobchadwickga]

So I learned the hard way the importance of skid plates as a tree branch jumped up and took out my transmission coolant line almost a month ago. 3 weeks at the dealer and $6K later it has a new transmission. This was a green/blue trail at Windrock for reference, no rocks, just some mud and water holes one of which was concealing the branch.
Now I've gone to the other end of the spectrum, in my garage I have Rock Hard 4x4's Aluminum Bellypan and their FAD Skid. Next Venture's Diff Covers and Skids have been ordered and I'm eagerly awaiting there arrival. Next up will be the control arm skids sold by Rock Hard.
Easy fire roads can break your rig, freak accidents happen. Cheap insurance in the long run to spend $$ on skids vs replacing $6K in transmission...
Also when talking belly pan's Rock Hard and Next Venture are probably the 2 best on the market. My deciding factor on Rock Hard over Next Venture was that RH's had an extra skid near the exhaust loop/drive shaft and offered more coverage in that region. Also they don't remove the OEM gas tank skid, so that means no worrying about running your tank low and ratchet strapping the tank while trying to bolt up next venture's gas tank skid.
Both systems are roughly the same price (if you don't get the UHMW option with NV), although I do believe RH's would add more weight due to the steel cross members and not removing the OEM gas tank skid.

Did you try submitting this to your insurance company as a collision claim? You did collide with an object, just not the traditional MVA.

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