Reinventing the rock slider

​Still messing with the tuning on the '88. The rear dshaft starting making that magical sound they make when the double cardan is about to explode But, its been probably 10 years since i changed a ujoint in it, so i dropped it off to have it fully rebuilt and balanced. So while thats out, im building a set of rock sliders.

Ive built them before, and followed the typical design that basically everyone does.

10 years ago now i built a set for the diesel with a low hanging tube step for my vertically challenged wife:

​Then a couple years ago i built a set for my '96 bronco with a shallower step thats removable, just in case i get stupid and decide to take it wheelin:

​But when i mocked up something similar on the 88 it looked super dumb:

So, i came up with another idea. I dont think ive ever seen anyone build a set like this before. Maybe because its more time consuming, or maybe because its just a bad idea!

3x3 box tubing fits up into the channel in the rocker, and hangs down about an inch:

​i bent a piece of 1/4" in the press to fit here:

​and then the rear quarter guard:

​the rear has a bracket that goes behind to sandwich the fender so it doesnt just bend backwards the first time its hit:

​...and from there im connecting the dots with a piece of 2" flat bar:

​So yesterday i got it all welded up

​...and today its back on the bronco.

In case you cant tell, its pretty crummy outside, which isnt helping my ancient phone get good pics!

So, the flares were installed with rivnuts and machine screws so i could install & remove them whenever. So now im going thru the process of trimming them to fit over the guards:

​with those back on im now mocking up a tube rail to keep the rocks at bay:

​So that's where im at. Tomorrow im going to make some kind of brace behind the rail so it cant bend in (probably 2 short tubes), and then tack it all in place so i can yank it off and start all the finish welding and grinding. And then i get to do it over on the other side!

Im toying with the idea of tieing into the frame. The back end is pretty much in line with the rear's front leaf spring hangar, so it wouldnt be too hard to build a short brace that would bolt between the two. Im just not yet sure if its a good idea tieing the body in like that, knowing the truck isnt caged. For now the plan is to just get these things built, and then il figure that part out.

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