Opinion battle:

Who makes the TOUGHEST bull bars/brush guards?? Or integrated bumper/guards?

In my area, hitting deer with you vehicle is almost a legalized sport

I know Westin, Go Rhino, and the other all mkes nice looking stuff, but what really performs when whacked at 65mph? Road Armor is just too expensive


Here's a link for fun
http://www.bigtruckbrushguards.com/

 

Brush guards aren't real useful in my opinion. They maybe guard against brush (and have aesthetic appeal to some) and that's it. What you really need is a full bumper replacement--A REAL DEER STRAINER! And as far as full bumper replacements go, I think Reunel and Ranch Hand are probably some of the best, but they're pricey too. I'm saving my pennies for a Ranch Hand. http://www.ranchhand.com/frontbumperstandard.htm

You'll also get a winch mount and front hitch receiver to boot!

 

Buckstop.biz

 

Full bumper = Ranchhand
Even though it is not as good as a full bumper, as far as brushgaurds go I think ranchand makes the toughest bolt on brush gaurds too.

 

I had a reunel on my 2001 Ram. I loved it. It's very heavy, you can hit an elk! You can get channels for shovel, axe and high lift jack cut into front. If your worried about deer get this one. Change your front springs for snow plow. The bumper with the winch is weighty. I went to reunel to pick up my bumper they hoist it on with a forklift.

Jeff

 

I just added a Ranch Hand Full Front End Replacement (Legend series) and it happens to be Winch Ready. You can get them with our without the Winch ready option.

Winch Ready option is about $100.00 more and you lose the tow hooks.

The NON-Winch Ready lists for about $939 and you can retain your factory tow hooks if your truck has them.

Either way, it is a hunk of steel. Weighs about 300lbs. It will provide maximum front end protection against bambi.


I also like the Buckstop........but plan on at least 1500 to 2000 for one of those....and good luck finding a dealer anywhere in the South.

 

For front end replacements, Reunel is probably all around the strongest.

But they're also VERY expensive, and WAY TOO HEAVY.

IMO, Aluminum is the way to go. Much less weight for the strength. That means Denver Off Road (Layne Wright), or UTE.

The other option to get strength with light weight is to go tube. Personally, this is where the Offroad Tech bumpers are VERY nice. Here's a pic of the Offraod tech bumper on a Dodge:

 

I'd have to go with BuckStop . Its built strong and mounted to the truck even stronger . Although a little on the pricey side ( $1800 Shipped ), i can't say enough good things about it . Even comes with a handy dandy 2" reciever Can't wait to hit my next deer

 

I had a Manik brush buard on my last truck they're pretty heavy duty you can mount a winch to them. Or a Warn transformer.

 

Texas seems to be the "center of the universe" when it comes to building stout bumpers. They have a serious White Tail Deer problem, down there & it seems like almost everyone has one of those bumpers. They are usually built around 4" round schedule 40 pipe. When finished, they are heavy. Mine was, also, installed with a forklift & 4 guys.

Beware of cheap imitations, though. Some manufacturers are now manufacturing light weight versions of these bumpers. For "looks-only", I suppose. I even saw one made out of a composite material at the SEMA Show, last year. There was a pretty, young girl at the booth that easily lifted it off the ground, by herself. I didn't know it was a composite material model & just about fell over at, what appeared to be, her unbelievable strength. It looked just like the heavy-weight models.

Just thought I'd pass this "caution" on to you.

Joe F.(Buffalo)

 

Thats exactly what I mean...I dont think .065 tubes are gonna hold a candle next to 1/4 plate

 

check out these http://www.eaglecarriage.com/bumpers.htm

 

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Warn Heavy duty bumper

 

I have to go with the aluminum bumper I designed for a buddy of mine to build for me. This pic was taken after hitting a cow moose at around 40 km/h.

I did bend the passenger side rake slightly on her leg, but most people don't notice unless I tell them. I also broke one light mount - it took longer for Brent to rig up his welder than it did to fix it. It has taken a couple deer on two occasions travelling to the farm - no ill effects other than alot of blood on the truck.

I have to either modify this one to fit a new truck when I can afford one or get Brent to build me another - I've already designed it on paper with some minor modifications. I wouldn't own another truck without one.

P.S. Stay away from anything Aliarc has for pickups - they'll far apart if you hit a coyote. This is why I designed my own.

Aluminum looks nice with a silver truck.

 

How about a Road Armor?