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If
you're serious about protecting your Jeep's
underside, these are the folks who can help.
Skid plates and body armor are a necessity if
you plan on tackling the rough stuff. Steering
components and oil pans do not take kindly to
meetings with granite and slate.
You
should keep in mind, though, that while you
can go out and throw thousands of dollars at
very specific pieces of armor and skid plates
designed for a specific component, sometimes
it just makes more sense to hook up with someone
local who can weld up what you want. True, it
won't have the powder coating and look all shiny
- but it'll cost a fraction of the price (usually)
and take the beating just the same.
On
this note - make sure the person doing the work
for you knows what they're doing. Thin gauge
steel, while cheaper and easier to work with,
won't protect your steering box when the front
of you TJ slips off a rock and comes to rest
on it.
If the steel being used can support the weight
of your vehicle as it grinds over rocks without
deforming, you're good to go. 1/4" to 3/8"
-walled steel seems to be the ticket in this
area. Even that stuff has limits, but brother,
if you crunch a rock rail made from 2"
x 4" tubing with a wall thickness of 3/8",
well, you're in a world of hurt.
Bottom
line - steel meets rock, rock should lose -
make sure yours is tough enough.
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