Frame mounts for a bumper

[Fraser]

Im looking to put a decent piece of steel on the front of my truck, and since ive been in jeep land for the past long time i havent really got into looking what i need to put together for a ranger. also wondering what kind of frame bracing i can run that will help my truck hold up to an impact a little better [i live in deer country lol] descriptions and piks will be appreciated if you got them FYI-~94-97 truck, dunno if theres any differences between them and the box bodies

 

[strvger]

lots of deer here in northern Minnesota as well. if your truck is like mine, only 4 carriage bolts holding the thin bumper on. about 10-15 minutes to get it off. you can easily see how it's bolted up and what it might take to replace it with something more substantial. i plan on doing the same thing later this summer after i figure a way to incorporate it into the push bar that i want to keep. good luck with your build.

 

[pillen140]

Attach giant spike to front of truck.... Or, make a bumper that would deflect a deer down and under the truck. I removed 1 bolt from each side of the bumper brackets on mine so it loosens on impact and pushes the bumperdown and deflects the deer down.... It worked too..... Drove over the huge doe i hit, rather than blow it through my windshield.

P.S. NO CARRIAGE BOLTS ON YOUR STYLE... JUST TWO BOLTS ON EACH SIDE THAT ARE PLATED TOGETHER.

P.S.S. THE 95 AND UP FRAMES HAVE A BUILT IN CRUMPLE ZONE-ISH SECTION OF THE FRAME. SHOULD STILL HOLD UP TO A DEER THOUGH.

 

[pwrranger88]

tac

P.S.S. THE 95 AND UP FRAMES HAVE A BUILT IN CRUMPLE ZONE-ISH SECTION OF THE FRAME. SHOULD STILL HOLD UP TO A DEER THOUGH.

actually 1993 and have the crumple zones

 

[Fraser]

tac
actually 1993 and have the crumple zones

ya, thats what i figured. my 94 crumpled up pretty good when i t-boned some old dude at 55. i prob just gotta take it all apart and look and see what i have to work w/.

 

[nate09]

heres what my 93 looks like without the front bumper to give you an idea

 

[fordtech1]

I am looking to buy a push bumper with built in winch mount that came off of a 94, will I have any headaches bolting it up to my 91?

 

[pillen140]

tac
actually 1993 and have the crumple zones

i always thought it was 95+? I have a 94 parts truck and they front of the frame rails are different?

 

[Fraser]

heres what my 93 looks like without the front bumper to give you an idea

hmm, looks similar to my cousin's exploder that he used to have. newer then ttb tho. ill have to remember what i did to mount the bumper i built for that thing

 

[nate09]

i always thought it was 95+? I have a 94 parts truck and they front of the frame rails are different?

started in 93 afaik.

 

[-Nathan-]

heres the front of my '94 before I mounted my winch.

and during surgery

and after...I moved the mounts from the inside to the outside, to allow clearance for my winch.

 

[clifford97]

fraser, if you're a jeep guy, do you think any of the stinger bars would fit on a 97? they look sweet on jeeps, and in your case WOULD deflect deer down. hahahaa. im from jersey so we have quite a few deer too. does any one know if any of those bars would work?

 

[Fraser]

fraser, if you're a jeep guy, do you think any of the stinger bars would fit on a 97? they look sweet on jeeps, and in your case WOULD deflect deer down. hahahaa. im from jersey so we have quite a few deer too. does any one know if any of those bars would work?

it may, but im not too huge into the toob work yet. as i have no kind of bender :/. you would prob have to build a pretty decent one to hold up to it tho, the monster stinger that sticks out a mile from your truck might fold if its not supported right

 

[ForOffRoadDriving]

the jeeps all use different mounting than the rangers as the rangers' mounting holes are horizontal and jeeps use vertical holes (not to mention the frame rails arent the same distance apart, so the holes still wouldnt line up). now thats not to say that you couldnt make a jeep bumper fit with custom brackets and a little welding, but it will by no means be a bolt on affair. as far as making a bumper to fit the 93-97 rangers, the front ends are curved and i think straight pieces of steel look way amature for anyone who can weld and operate a angle grinder. i started with a piece of 5" x 2" channel and an old bolt on brush guard from a 90s 1/2 ton chevy, then using paint stirring sticks riveted together at the end i cut and bent the channel to the proper angles (determined by my paint sticks) and then made sure that both sides had the same angle (again, with my paint sticks). here a link to the spot in my build where i started making the bumper
http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=37621&page=11

as far as bracing the frame for impact, these trucks have a crumple zone right behind the bumper mounting plates, so unless you want to cut the crumple zone out and replace it with aproppriate sized square tube then i would just leave it be. messing with the crumple zone is just going to change the spot in which your frame buckles when it is pushed hard enough.