Rock Slider Mod! - How to.

[HumminNBoatin']

Hey guys as all you H2 owners know its nice to have factory rock rails. But.... It sure would be nice to have them come off the body a little to not only protect from rocks underneigth the truck but also protect the truck when the trail get a little to tight and you are forced to pivot off of a tree.

A before picture!


So to do this you will need.

-5ft. of 1 1/2" Steel Square tubing with a 1/4" wall.
-29 M12x1.75x80MM Bolts. Make sure these are graded 10.9!!!!!!
(I bought 90MM bolts and they were a bit too long and had to stack washers to get them to work thanks to the idiot that took the order at Fastenal)
-Grade 8 washers.
-Black Rustolium.

Cut your tubing into 2 1/2" lengths and drill a 7/16" hole in the center of the pieces. You will need 20 of these and it will take quiet a bit of time to drill and cut. Clean them up and shoot a couple coats of paint on them. When you get done they should look like this.


Then its time to get under the truck. Remove the two bolts from the very front and most rear brackets and tread your new bolts in with nothing on them. Then remove the rest of the bolts from the H2 frame and slide out your rock slider. It should look something like this.


Now that you have room to work, start by placing your spacers between the rail bracket and the frame in the center. Put a washer on your bolt and thread it in...THREAD THEM ALL IN BUT TO NOT GET TIGHTEN THEM DOWN. YOU WANT ROOM TO BE ABLE TO MOVE THE SLIDER AROUND TO GET ALL THE SPACERS IN!!! Work from the center out. Once you have all spacers in and all bolts started then torque to 35ft lbs. or as tight as you can with a small 3/8" ratchet. (Its a tight area to work in I used a cordless impact with a swivel and extension for most of the bolt turning then torqued them by hand.) Any it should look something like this.



Once you get out from under you got your finished product!

[BACKNBLACK]

Good work and concept However I wonder if welding the brackets on the rails would give it that extra stregth it may need when you/if you pivot off the tree???

[HumminNBoatin']

I know what you are saying. Alot of guys with rail buggies do that. We will see how they hold up. The intention of this mod was to be able to use them as a "fail safe" to keep from taking body damage. Not to consistantly go up a trails intentionally knowing I am going to have to pivot off of a tree to make it through.

However---If I do bend them up you will see a post on "How to beef up your rock sliders" lol

[CONRAD II]

I just got back from Grayrock and decided to order these http://www.rocky-road.com/H2rockrail.html from rocky-road.com Some of the H3's are wheeling them and they are supposed to be extremely strong.

[timgco]

check out Drty's sliders he improved/ made.

I like the extra coverage, but I do worry about extra leverage when slaming down on a ledge or rock. Your additional materials will not bend..that's for sure.

[HumminNBoatin']

And this project cost me about $45. A whole lot less than Rocky Road. While I like Drtyfn's rails, that was really alot more work than my project. In the end we get the same protection.