Installing fiberglass type skid plates -need ADVICE/HELP!

[ron]

Hey Ron, in VA we have front plates and I found the M6-1.0x35 were too short. I tried the 40's instead and they were too short too. Thinking of going to Fastenal tomorrow to see if they have 45 or 50. Ever run into that problem with any of your other customers?

Do you have my original plates or the fiberglass ones that Roward made. All the plates that I've created were vacuum formed ABS and all utilized the screws: 35's for the top license plate holes and 40's for the bottoms. If you have the fiberglass plates, since my plates were the original molds for these copies, I have a gut feeling that the fiberglass material may have shrunk a bit which will cause the plates to 'pull away' from the cladding and the screws would be too short. Resorting to longer screws, like 45's or 50's, will probably make it work.

[vt_maverick]

Do you have my original plates or the fiberglass ones that Roward made. All the plates that I've created were vacuum formed ABS and all utilized the screws: 35's for the top license plate holes and 40's for the bottoms. If you have the fiberglass plates, since my plates were the original molds for these copies, I have a gut feeling that the fiberglass material may have shrunk a bit which will cause the plates to 'pull away' from the cladding and the screws would be too short. Resorting to longer screws, like 45's or 50's, will probably make it work.

Sorry Ron, should have been more specific. I do have your plate, but the problem is when you try to mount a front license plate. If you don't need a front plate, 35 works fine.

[VX KAT]

FRONT SKID INSTALL-
Top 2 holes, where license plate delete goes.
~Weird, one side allowed bolt to go through the inner most hole on the clip thing with the threads, and other side wouldn't whatsoever!
So I had to slide the clip over a little, to line up with skid hole, so the bolt could use the other hole on that clip. Allowed bolt to screw right through it.

~OK, got both of those are nice and snug, with the rubber washer and metal washer on front.
~Had to use 45mm screws.
~Also cut some neoprene washers in half and glued them to the back of skid, covering the raw ends of the "fake" bolts" and the top edge of the plate. Otherwise those would be grinding a nice notch in the cladding.
With the washers glued on, none of the edges of the plate are rubbing too much on the cladding.

Lower plate holes are way way off, at least 1/2", maybe even 3/4". If I sanded down the plate hole with a file, it would end up pretty darn thin between the hole and the edge of the plate. So maybe Luna's "slide hammer" idea would work here.

QUESTION: It seems really secure with just the 2 top bolts, and the lower edge is within 1/2" of the cladding, so nothing's "drooping"....... think it would be sufficient with just those 2? Thoughts, opinions?