Driver's Tail light guard- NEED INPUT

[Y33TREKker]

...Ron, are you saying have the metal tabs snake up through the actual plastic lens housing and up to the surface of the plastic lens? I wasn't quite sure if I got that correctly?...

If I had to guess, I'd say that Ron was suggesting having those existing tabs made longer so they could then have additional 90 degree (or so) bends added that would follow the contours of the taillight lens...which would position the tabs the guards screwed/bolted into parallel with the plastic lens of the taillight.

Bosses could be placed on the back of those tabs (the sides facing the taillight) for use with the screws/bolts holding on the guards you're installing, but neither the tabs or the bosses would ever actually touch the taillight lens.

Granted, that would add an additional step if it became necessary to change a bulb in one of the taillights because those mounting pieces would then also have to be removed before being able to pull the taillight off, but, that's the price you pay for having custom $#!+.

[VX KAT]

Hi KAT,
Forgive my ignorance but are you just doing these for looks or actual protection? Obviously they may protect from some types of brush but any type of impact may do more damage than just maybe losing a lens. Coming from my Land Rover dealer roots, those guards were weak and any type of impact and/or catching on something actually ripped from the body damaging the surrounding area requiring body shop and paint = $$$. The way yours are mounted could potentially be the same and more damage as a result......But we personalize our vehicles to our own desired taste and I applaude your persistence to make these work. I just hope they are not charging you an arm and a leg for fabrication. Good luck!

If I had to guess, I'd say that Ron was suggesting having those existing tabs made longer so they could then have additional 90 degree (or so) bends added that would follow the contours of the taillight lens...which would position the tabs the guards screwed/bolted into parallel with the plastic lens of the taillight.

Bosses could be placed on the back of those tabs (the sides facing the taillight) for use with the screws/bolts holding on the guards you're installing, but neither the tabs or the bosses would ever actually touch the taillight lens.

Granted, that would add an additional step if it became necessary to change a bulb in one of the taillights because those mounting pieces would then also have to be removed before being able to pull the taillight off, but, that's the price you pay for having custom $#!+.

Sad but true ...love the look....really want them....and yes maybe 10% is about protection from really tough chaparral around here.
I know 'zactly whatcha mean about the damage potential of all grill guards...the cowcatcher on our D90 was well known to damage the heck out of the front...I can see where the tail guards could get yanked off too and cause a real mess.

That's also why I favored the FLAT metal style (stainless but would get powdercoated)...as I thought they could be mounted a little more flush to the plastic lens....or dare I say....use 3M double stick tape? But they're so robust, nobody can bend them.

I asked if they could heat them up to soften the metal and just open them up a bit (the curvature angle)...but guy told me today because the horizontal bars had a larger flat top surface , it would be really difficult to get them to spread wider w/o damaging them (I don't know, is it like bubble gum and you stretch it and it gets real thin in the center??) I thought it was mostly re-shaping the metal, not stretching it. ANYBODY KNOW SOMEONE THAT COULD RESHAPE THESE?

TREK, thanks I do understand now exactly what you're saying (that Ron said...) Yes, they were already planning on making the tabs take a 90 degree turn to run parallel with the lens..... and then another turn outward to mate up to the guard. You can kind of see that 3D style of the Manik tabs in the pic...it's not just an "L" shape, it's 3D




Can see L-shape tab on wekilled's pic here: It's coming from that last cladding screw, then 90 degrees outward, and then another angle again to match up to the vertical tubing.




Stainless ones have flat top surface on the horizontal bars:

[Y33TREKker]

I'm no professional metal worker mind you, but if you like the stainless set that you have, I'm thinking the best choice your fabricator would have of making those work would be along the lines of chopping the roof on a vehicle based on the idea that the shortest distance between any two points is a straight line.

Even if the metal could be heated and re-bent, the excess length of the guard from one side of the taillight to the other would still be there. To get each crossbar to follow the contour of the taillight more closely and the sides to still line up, some length would have to be removed. How much length would depend on what kind of clearance you wanted between the guard and the taillight.

For example, if you cut one of those stainless guards in half from top middle to bottom middle at the center bend, aligned each side of the guard to the appropriate side of the taillight, then proceeded to bend the pieces (BFH, rubber mallet, etc) so that they'd follow the contour of the taillight starting at the outside edges and working towards the middle, when you arrived at the middle you would have some excess length that would have to be removed before the two pieces of the guard could be welded back together. (Your fabricators would have to weld the two pieces back together, then grind down the welds to make the squared/flattened shapes match again, which shouldn't be an issue if you're going to have them powder coated, or for that matter, even if you wanted to leave them stainless since the stainless could be polished out again too).

It doesn't look like as much length would have to be removed from the outline of the guards as would have to be removed from the crossbars, but I'm sure your fabricators would see that too.

[VX KAT]

Now that's an idea worth discussing further with the fab guys! Thanks TREK! I think I need "Flem" from Sons of Guns"!!

• Cut 'em in half vertically at the junction of the 90 degree angle,

• remove any excess length on the horizontal bars,

• PERHAPS fab up and insert a horizontal piece that has correct corner angle,

• address angle of outline frame

• weld 'em all back together at proper angle/curvature

• . Grind down the weld to be flat.

• ..get powdercoated.

• Seriously consider 3M double stick tape...

....hmmmm....hmmmm.....

[lasturbo]

Now that's an idea worth discussing further with the fab guys! Thanks TREK! I think I need "Flem" from Sons of Guns"!!

• Cut 'em in half vertically at the junction of the 90 degree angle,

• remove any excess length on the horizontal bars,

• PERHAPS fab up and insert a horizontal piece that has correct corner angle,

• address angle of outline frame

• weld 'em all back together at proper angle/curvature

• . Grind down the weld to be flat.

• ..get powdercoated.

• Seriously consider 3M double stick tape...

....hmmmm....hmmmm.....

Nice!!!!!!!!! Our best to your venture!

[tom4bren]

I don't think that those bends that you're talking about are going to happen.

Think about bending a ruler. You can bend it along the flat of the ruler but you'll never be able to bend it along the edge. Even if you're able to do it, you'll end up deforming the cross section shape.

That said ... I'm not a metal worker either so ... no charge for my opinion.

[VX KAT]

I don't think that those bends that you're talking about are going to happen.

Think about bending a ruler. You can bend it along the flat of the ruler but you'll never be able to bend it along the edge. Even if you're able to do it, you'll end up deforming the cross section shape.

That said ... I'm not a metal worker either so ... no charge for my opinion.

oh, I see what you mean, and I think that must be the same thing the guy was trying to tell me yesterday about the top flat surface.....

??? Maybe cut out the horizontal bars entirely, reshape the outline frame angle, fab some crossbars (try to make styling acceptable), weld 'em up. ???

Probably all possible with unlimited money!

I'm def going forward with the tubular style, and then if they think they can tackle the flat ones, and it works out, I can always sell the first set.

[tom4bren]

Maybe cut out the horizontal bars entirely, reshape the outline frame angle, fab some crossbars (try to make styling acceptable), weld 'em up.

Tubular Dudette.

They could probably salvage the cross bars but they'd have to cut them loose from both ends, bend them out flatter and then shape the ends to re-weld to the frame (I just noticed in the pic that the crossbars narrow down to almost square in cross section near the center so the flattening may actually be possible).

On the other hand, I don't like the fact that the frame doesn't really match the shape of our tail lights anyway so I don't think that the end product will be a good solution.

Again: IMHO - ya got what ya paid for.

[VX KAT]

Tubular Dudette.

They could probably salvage the cross bars but they'd have to cut them loose from both ends, bend them out flatter and then shape the ends to re-weld to the frame (I just noticed in the pic that the crossbars narrow down to almost square in cross section near the center so the flattening may actually be possible).

On the other hand, I don't like the fact that the frame doesn't really match the shape of our tail lights anyway so I don't think that the end product will be a good solution.

Again: IMHO - ya got what ya paid for.

Yeah, I can see your point if I used the stainless ones and had them really close or double-taped to the lens, their footprint would need to be really spot on. But they also seem to be the "most" accurate footprint shape of the 3 I've now had in hand. Plus there's 9 pairs left on ebay in case somebody else wants to get them.

I was telling Dave about all the latest, and maybe I'll just go and buy a few strips of the door molding and make'em like Dub's.... That would eliminate the risk of damage also....
Dub- is the outline/footprint all one piece? How'd you do the sharp turns...heat?


Stay tuned ya'll......