Rear Bumper Build

[DocWhiskey]

Well I finally did something interesting enough to post my first thread. Or at least I like to think so. I've had this project in my head for a couple years now and I finally got around to making some tangible progress. Many thanks to everyone whos posted a similar fabrication project, ya'll are awesome. Thanks especially to user "boo471" for his thorough, detailed walkthrough of his front bumper build. I give that credit to helping me think I could actually get this done.
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Background: I drive a 2005 Ford F150 XLT 4x4 SuperCrew yada yada yada. I've had her for about five or six years, and in that time "Emily" has slowly gone from stock to where she sits now (which admittedly isn't far). I found this forum/blog a couple years ago during a really boring deployment and have been an avid reader/lurker since then. I knew I wanted to take my build in an overland/expedition direction (didn't even know that was a thing when I decided to do it) which I realize is an odd choice for an F150 owner but that's the great part about being a free American with the vehicle title framed on my wall. I purchased a front bumper from a company called Iron Bull for a really good price, but when I decided I wanted some rear armor as well I was pretty taken aback at the prices being asked as well as the lack of options for my vehicle. I also decided I wanted rear tire carrier/fuel swing-outs incorporated into the bumper. Do I need them? Almost definitely not. But again, free American.
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So far I've only managed to get Phase 1 (the base bumper) complete. I have most of the hardware on hand for the final phase (swing outs), it's mostly a matter of finding the time between work, holiday leave, an upcoming deployment, and the drive back to Pennsylvania to get that done. As well as a few design tweaks. I could also Line-X it now and just leave it as it sits until I get back but my schedule is pretty vague right now so who knows what I'll do until I do it. For my first ever fabrication project I'm pretty happy with it so far.
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*I cant seem to start a new thread using my Tapatalk App, so I'll have to throw this up right quick and then transition to my phone, where all the picture are located. So fear not! Visual aids will be provided.

 

[DocWhiskey]

First things first: straighten the frame-side bracket, because 19-year-old me is an idiot and backs into stuff.

 

[DocWhiskey]

And this is where it started. I used office supply store foam poster board stuff and painters tape to do the mock up. Pro tip: make sure your razor blade is sharp , otherwise the cuts get all funky.



This was my first attempt at the corner, which I anticipated to be the hardest part (and correctly so). I don't know if I'm horrible at geometry or compound angles are just that difficult (I suspect both) but man that was hard



And this is where it sat after the first day of mock-up. I decided to keep the design simple but still attempt to the best of my ability to match the front bumper. Not exactly match it obviously, because those are truly some crazy angle and doohickeys, but at least somewhat consistent.

 

[DocWhiskey]

I don't have any pictures of the next iteration of the mock up, I had to do it after work and was rushing to finish. The Hobby shop on base is super cheap but unfortunately closes earlier than I would like. I chose to revamp a little and instead of cutting into the back plate to create the angle, I added another strip below it that angled towards the front at a 45 degree angle and then continued that around the corner. After that, I ran over to the steel shop during lunch the next day and grabbed a 4'x6' sheet of 3/16 A36 steel and planned on cutting sometime that week or the next.



I used my DeWalt circular saw with some metal cut off wheels. I assume anyone who's ever cut anything like this is already laughing at me and they probably should. This was tedious and hot and sparky. But it's what I had so I made do.

 

[DocWhiskey]

Fair warning: using these method means you will burn through a fair amount of blades. I cut for a total of maybe 6 hours over several nights and went through about 4 and a half. Luckily they're cheap. It's probably not that easy on the saw either, the motor stayed nice and cool but the blade guard got a but toasty.



I know this is all super high tech but try not to be intimidated.



The angle grinder came in really handy for the smaller cuts.



The end result was about thirty or so peices of steel. I ended up using only a little more than half of the sheet of steel, I guess I'll keep that around for the rest of the build and whatever else strikes my fancy.

 

[DocWhiskey]

Now the fun part. I know just about nothing about welding so this is where I called in reinforcements. Luckily they were right down the road and willing to work on a Sunday, as well as do it in a loaned garage.



It was super trippy to see what had been a concept in my head for the longest time become a reality right in front of me.



Starting to take shape. The back is arc welded in stitches. Or so I'm told.



Lots of grinding. Lot and lots. I still had to do some fine tuning and cut out some smaller pieces, but I expected that.



Following that, the true master came out in the garage to show us how it was done. The front seams are 100% TIG welded and man do they look sexy.

 

[v_man]

cool project , just curious how much that 4'x6' foot piece of steel was ...

 

[DocWhiskey]

For the amount of steel it was it seemed cheap to me. I think it was $173 but I'd have to double check the receipt to be sure.

 

[eurosonic]

awesome. I wana see it finished

 

[DocWhiskey]

awesome. I wana see it finished

You and me both!

 

[DocWhiskey]

I grabbed some quick snapshots during lunch, work has been from before sunrise to well after sunset so I've been lacking photos. Of course after a year of no rain Southern California dumped a few inches as soon as I had raw steel hanging on the back of my truck, so there is now some surface rust. Nothing a wire wheel can't handle. It's not final mounted so it needs a few tweaks to get rid of the saggy look.

 

[rayra]

Gonna look nice. Rattle can or powdercoating?

 

[DocWhiskey]

Gonna look nice. Rattle can or powdercoating?

I'd like to have it Line-X'd if I can. The front has a similar lining so I'd prefer to match that if possible.

 

[Ace Brown]

Good post. Shows that anyone can do a project like this if the ambition is there. Nice mix of humility and humor. Keep it real!

 

[DocWhiskey]

Good post. Shows that anyone can do a project like this if the ambition is there. Nice mix of humility and humor. Keep it real!

Thank you! I'm definitely no expert; if I can do it anyone can. I'm stoked to wrap this project up