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Skid plate
Posted: Tue Oct 10, 2006 7:07 pm
by Siggymanx33
I am getting ready to put a skid plate on my buggy. I have the diamond plate and I am getting ready to make a template and cut. I want the plate to protect the underneath and then make the bend in between my two 1 1/2 bars on my engine cage. The plate I chose is fairly thin and will make the bend easily but I am trying to figure out how to mount it. I was initiial thinking of a banded 1 1/2" padded clamp, but my local hardware store turned up nothing worthwhile. I need something that is going to be easy to drop for oil changes, etc. (I am not going to be drilling a hole for oil changes initially.) I thought about tapping small holes into the cage but that will ultimately weaken it. Anyone have any cool quick realease ideas with nice hardware? The skid plate will see very little heavy duty use......unless I back over a parking block.
Posted: Tue Oct 10, 2006 7:21 pm
by fubar
You could try rivnuts in the tubing and button head allen screws. Some kind of rubber or nylon washer should keep the rattle down. No quite quick release but pretty quick with a t-handle allen wrench.
Posted: Wed Oct 11, 2006 9:07 pm
by manxdavid
I may be stating the obvious but make sure you put the chequers at the top of the plate rather than underneath so it skids over rocks rather than digging in...I see so many 4x4's with poorly designed 'fasion' skid plates.
Posted: Wed Oct 11, 2006 10:16 pm
by ROSSDC
[font=Verdana]I am in the same planning stage with a skid plate. I was thinking of welding a 3/8" nut to a piece of flat bar and then welding the flat bar to the tubes in 4 places with the nuts up, opposite the side of the flat bar the skid plate attaches to. To change oil, zip off the 4 bolts and drop the plate. I was also thinking of doing the skid plate in 2 pieces, one for the engine and one for the tranny. I have a large diameter tube .075" thick that I plan to split and cut to shape for the transmission skid plate, this will give it a curved shape like the bottom of the tunnel.
Posted: Thu Oct 12, 2006 11:45 am
by newmanx59
Buy some formed tabs at the local buggy shop and have them welded onto the rear cage then bolt thru the tabs. If you thread the bolt into the cage tubing you run the risk of ripping the bolt out of the tubing and deforming the tubing if you do infact use the skidplate.
Posted: Thu Oct 12, 2006 1:29 pm
by markmark
Newmanx59 do you have any other pictures of the rear cage? It looks like aluminium. Or is it powder coated steel?
Posted: Thu Oct 12, 2006 10:31 pm
by newmanx59
That it the only picture I have of the cage. The cage is actually mild steel tubing that has been Jet Hot coated (the same thing they coat headers with). That particular cage is on the Siggy Manx that VW Trends built and gave away a few years ago.
Posted: Fri Oct 13, 2006 3:13 am
by DIESELDOOG
Go to the local airport and ask a mechanic that does sheetmetal if he can make a flush patch pannel with counter sink screws and nutplates than all you have to do is unscrew the patch and drain the oil. If done right it will be as strong as original plate without hole. I can make a drawing and send it to you.