351FUN Posted August 15, 2021 Share Posted August 15, 2021 Let's say the bottom tube is taller rather than wider. The 3 1/2" height instead of 2 1/2" for the rest of the tubing means it engages the full length of the pivot. And, IIRC, the stiffness of a tube goes up with the square of the height, so a 3 /12" piece will be almost twice as stiff as a 2 1/2" high piece. Plus, we have almost 1/3 more area on which to weld. As for the thickness of the material, let's take that up in BB's Transformation and keep it all together there. I haven't read through the entire thread Gary, but I made something like this for my Blazer with a Curt spare mount and a folding hitch adapter. I cut the end of the curt assembly off and mounted it into the adapter, all told it was less than $150 but it folds down so it can be pretty heavy to lift back up. In the bull I have the spare in the bed taking up the front third unfortunately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted August 15, 2021 Author Share Posted August 15, 2021 I haven't read through the entire thread Gary, but I made something like this for my Blazer with a Curt spare mount and a folding hitch adapter. I cut the end of the curt assembly off and mounted it into the adapter, all told it was less than $150 but it folds down so it can be pretty heavy to lift back up. In the bull I have the spare in the bed taking up the front third unfortunately. So you used something in the trailer hitch? And yes, I have a 33" tire taking up a whole lot of what is left of the bed - after the toolbox and cover canister. So I really would like to get this bumper built. But, to follow the work there you should go to Big Blue's Transformation. Start there and scroll up a few posts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted July 16 Author Share Posted July 16 So you used something in the trailer hitch? And yes, I have a 33" tire taking up a whole lot of what is left of the bed - after the toolbox and cover canister. So I really would like to get this bumper built. But, to follow the work there you should go to Big Blue's Transformation. Start there and scroll up a few posts. Just an update. I saw an advert for an Affordable Offroad bumper today and followed up. Their Elite bumper with a pair of 3/4" D-ring shackles, a spare tire carrier capable of 37" tires, 4x4" Nilight flush mount lights, all powder coated black comes in right at $1500 with free shipping. The bumper is made of 3/16" steel, so should be substantial. When Janey and I took Big Blue to New Mexico last year we had the bed FULL of suitcases and totes for the camping gear. If I get to do something like that again I think I'll put that bumper on. That will sure free up a lot of space in the bed by getting that 33" tire out of the middle of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArdWrknTrk Posted July 16 Share Posted July 16 Just an update. I saw an advert for an Affordable Offroad bumper today and followed up. Their Elite bumper with a pair of 3/4" D-ring shackles, a spare tire carrier capable of 37" tires, 4x4" Nilight flush mount lights, all powder coated black comes in right at $1500 with free shipping. The bumper is made of 3/16" steel, so should be substantial. When Janey and I took Big Blue to New Mexico last year we had the bed FULL of suitcases and totes for the camping gear. If I get to do something like that again I think I'll put that bumper on. That will sure free up a lot of space in the bed by getting that 33" tire out of the middle of it. What happened to your tailgate gate plans with the spare and Jerry can??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted July 16 Author Share Posted July 16 What happened to your tailgate gate plans with the spare and Jerry can??? Too much else to do and too little time or energy with which to do it. This looks "close enough" to what I wanted to make it acceptable. I did want to put the receiver in the bumper, but they don't do that. Oh well, I have a receiver on the truck that's rock solid. And with two gas tanks I really don't see the need for a Jerry can. Further, I mounted the jack on the sidewall in the bed, so that isn't needed either. So when wants/wishes meet limited time/energy something has to give. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBrother-84 Posted July 18 Share Posted July 18 Just an update. I saw an advert for an Affordable Offroad bumper today and followed up. Their Elite bumper with a pair of 3/4" D-ring shackles, a spare tire carrier capable of 37" tires, 4x4" Nilight flush mount lights, all powder coated black comes in right at $1500 with free shipping. The bumper is made of 3/16" steel, so should be substantial. When Janey and I took Big Blue to New Mexico last year we had the bed FULL of suitcases and totes for the camping gear. If I get to do something like that again I think I'll put that bumper on. That will sure free up a lot of space in the bed by getting that 33" tire out of the middle of it. Gary, maybe I’m missing something… Does the spare go there? If so, you have to pull it off each time you need to drop the tail gate? And what about the license plate visibility? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nothing Special Posted July 18 Share Posted July 18 Gary, maybe I’m missing something… Does the spare go there? If so, you have to pull it off each time you need to drop the tail gate? And what about the license plate visibility? Looking at the picture of the spare tire carrier in the link Gary posted, the carrier is a swing-away. So like a Bronco you need to unlatch it and swing it out of the way to open the tailgate. A slight pain, but everything involving a spare tire involves some compromise. I couldn't tell from the picture, but it's possible that the tire would ount high enough to leave the license plate visible. But that would mean it would be higher, blocking visibility to the rear. Again, compromises. Or you could relocate the license plate to the center of the tire. That's pretty common on aftermarket Jeep bumpers/tire carriers since the factory license plate location results in it getting ripped off when rock crawling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted July 18 Author Share Posted July 18 Looking at the picture of the spare tire carrier in the link Gary posted, the carrier is a swing-away. So like a Bronco you need to unlatch it and swing it out of the way to open the tailgate. A slight pain, but everything involving a spare tire involves some compromise. I couldn't tell from the picture, but it's possible that the tire would ount high enough to leave the license plate visible. But that would mean it would be higher, blocking visibility to the rear. Again, compromises. Or you could relocate the license plate to the center of the tire. That's pretty common on aftermarket Jeep bumpers/tire carriers since the factory license plate location results in it getting ripped off when rock crawling. Right, Bob. Here's a shot of the spare tire carrier itself and you can see the pivot and the latch. Can't tell if it clears the license tag, but I'm guessing that it does. And yes, the tire will obscure the view to the rear, but that's not a problem in my case as I have the rear view camera and only use the interior mirror as a display for the camera(s). I don't particularly like the full-width design and it means that you have to have a lot of clearance to the rear when opening it. In fact, I might not be able to open it in the shop. My design of the latch being just left of center reduces the width a lot. But then I'm not getting it made either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
85lebaront2 Posted July 18 Share Posted July 18 Just an update. I saw an advert for an Affordable Offroad bumper today and followed up. Their Elite bumper with a pair of 3/4" D-ring shackles, a spare tire carrier capable of 37" tires, 4x4" Nilight flush mount lights, all powder coated black comes in right at $1500 with free shipping. The bumper is made of 3/16" steel, so should be substantial. When Janey and I took Big Blue to New Mexico last year we had the bed FULL of suitcases and totes for the camping gear. If I get to do something like that again I think I'll put that bumper on. That will sure free up a lot of space in the bed by getting that 33" tire out of the middle of it. Gary. that is why I found and installed a proper factory spare tire carrier on Darth. Since Darth is a DRW truck, the wheels are a deep dish design but the tires are narrower (215/85R-16). It took some modification to the spare tire carrier so it would clear the bumper/receiver assembly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArdWrknTrk Posted July 18 Share Posted July 18 Gary. that is why I found and installed a proper factory spare tire carrier on Darth. Since Darth is a DRW truck, the wheels are a deep dish design but the tires are narrower (215/85R-16). It took some modification to the spare tire carrier so it would clear the bumper/receiver assembly. Your narrower tires should only be 30.4" diameter. You have a hard time fitting them between the receiver side plates? I don't think Gary wants to deal with crawling under the truck to get the spare, and he has a roll out cover so can't use the 'stand up in the bed' factory type wheel mount. BB is a lot of "stuff" in a small bag. 😉 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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