MDB Fabrication 3" body lift Trailblazer Rear Bumper...

Bartonmd

Original poster
Member
Nov 20, 2011
545
Not done yet, but here's a sneak peek...

Still needs some gussets on the tire carrier, and little stuff here and there, but a teaser pic:

IMAG1155-1.jpg


Real class 4 receiver that I wouldn't have a problem towing a car trailer or camper with, and/or using a load-distributing hitch with:

IMAG1150-1.jpg


IMAG1147-1.jpg


Progress on making the radii

IMAG1143-1.jpg


IMAG1144-1.jpg


IMAG1145-1.jpg


IMAG1133-1.jpg


Add 1" to the center portion, and this would look good as just a standard step-bumper, without the tire carrier:

IMAG1153-1.jpg


And with the 35" tire... Glass still opens with the tire in the "closed" position:

IMAG1156-1.jpg


Yeah, and I don't think the shackle mounts are going anywhere... Tripple-pass welded at 210amps, all around the back side, directly to the 3x3x3/8" angle frame mounts...

IMAG1149-1.jpg


Preliminarily, the pricing will be as follows:

- Standard body with single swing - $750
- 3" body lift with single swing/bearing - $850
- 3" body lift with dual swing - $1000

All the stuff that sets off this one... The details... Make it a GIANT PAIN IN THE ASS. This one -literally- had like $430 in PARTS COST (before powdercoat), let alone the literally 40 hours I have in it (total, probably 8 of that is sitting looking at it, doing the "design" on the fly), at this point in time (plus the ~25 or so that Kyle has been there helping)...


As an aside, a lot of the reason for splitting them on this one, was so he didn't have the full length of arm out there, just to get into the hatch. Kind of cuts down on being able to put stuff in if you've driven-thru a parking spot, or have parallel parked and there's somebody behind you. With the way we're mounting the jerry can holder on the other arm, without a jerry can in it, the lift gate will still open with just the tire swing open. The gas struts, which aren't on yet (tonight), are over-center when closed, so they should hold the gates closed just a little bit, then you pop them over center, and they open the gates up. Because of this, Kyle should be able to unlatch the tire side and swing it open, while the jerry can side will stay closed by itself... We'll see how well it actually works, but that's the plan. Because the tire is so large, though, and the mount offset a bit, he'll still be able to mount a 2' wide table on the tire side, similar to James'.

We're also putting a tab on the tire side, and a mating tab on the center latch post, so that he can put a padlock behind the arm, there, so somebody doesn't just come up and open his tire-carrier in a parking lot or garage. Also adds a little bit of security for the latch, even with a carabiner through it, since this style of latch doesn't come with a secondary safety-latch that you pull with your index finger like the straight latches can come with...

Mike
 
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HARDTRAILZ

Moderator
Nov 18, 2011
49,665
A true work of art. I Thank You Sir!
 

Bartonmd

Original poster
Member
Nov 20, 2011
545
the roadie said:
If you can deal with a 2" BL and the possibly different Envoy taillights, I'm saved up for this one.

Actually, Matt (Regulator) is getting a rear, so I can just make another one off of his, but 1" lower...

Thanks,
Mike
 

The_Roadie

Lifetime VIP Donor
Member
Nov 19, 2011
9,957
Portland, OR
I am so NOT USED to coming in third. :frown: :no: :redface: :lipsrsealed: :mad:

If there's parts to buy, put me down for a dual swingaway, one or two Scepter cans on the right. With 33-34" tire maximum, can the tire be tucked closer to the vehicle or angled like mine is now and still let the glass open?
 

Bartonmd

Original poster
Member
Nov 20, 2011
545
I'll get with you via PM tomorrow, Bill...


Got 'er all finished up and in the truck to go to powdercoat in the morning... Been working on it since 4 this afternoon.

Here's a video I uploaded to show the swing-outs in action:

[video]www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwdEor2TTeA[/video]
 

The_Roadie

Lifetime VIP Donor
Member
Nov 19, 2011
9,957
Portland, OR
Still in Korea for a few more days, so I might be out of phase on PMs. What force do the gas struts exert, and what angle do you think the vehicle can be at to not overpower them? Or can you add a stay-open spring pin? One of my worst times was having to open the HitchGate when on a side hill, and then open the hatch while the tire tried to kill me by swinging back. Or on the downhill side, it would open with a bang, and then be difficult for this old guy to push it back uphill.

winchtest018.jpg
 

Bartonmd

Original poster
Member
Nov 20, 2011
545
The ones I used on here are 50#... Takes maybe 15# or so of force at the end of the arm to close them, when fully open. They are the same cylinders James used, and he said he wished he had gone just a little heavier, as it won't stay open very well on side hills. However, his arm is longer and has the tire and hi-lift on it, so we figured they'd probably be about right for this one...

Having said that, I can really do whatever you want. Stay-open pin isn't hard, as long as your'e fine with a couple tabs sticking out 1" or so...

Yes, the tire can tuck in tighter, because your tires aren't as big, or as wide as Kyle's. I'll need all the back-set info and such before starting, but with all the orders I've gotten in the last couple months, lead time is in the ~6 month range right now. I also figured out how to make the 2" body lift bumper for you... Put it all together, up next to the body on Matt's, with the hitch in the right place on the bumper, then just put the mounts down 1", and move them up when it's finished... Bada-bing, bada-boom.

Mike
 

HARDTRAILZ

Moderator
Nov 18, 2011
49,665
The tire will be tucked in closer since those pics as well. Probably a decent bit actually.

I am not sure you could do alot of angle and still get the window to close. We were not really concerned about the window, but more of departure angle and not landing on the tire in dropoffs. The window opening was a bonus, but it is fairly close.

Roadie...I do have a 285-75-16 mounted on an aftermarket 6x5.5 rim that can be used for mock-up when building yours.
 

Bartonmd

Original poster
Member
Nov 20, 2011
545
Yeah, I took off the 1.25" we talked about, and just put a new 1/4" plate on there, and positioned the studs from your spare...

Mike
 

Bartonmd

Original poster
Member
Nov 20, 2011
545
Bartonmd said:
I'll get with you via PM tomorrow, Bill...


Got 'er all finished up and in the truck to go to powdercoat in the morning... Been working on it since 4 this afternoon.

Here's a video I uploaded to show the swing-outs in action:

[video]www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwdEor2TTeA[/video]

Will it auto-embed this time? (sources say yes)

[video=youtube;kwdEor2TTeA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwdEor2TTeA[/video]
 

HARDTRAILZ

Moderator
Nov 18, 2011
49,665
No issues with it back there over 400 miles. May be hauling a trailer next weekend
 

HARDTRAILZ

Moderator
Nov 18, 2011
49,665
Couple pics from the MI meet


ColdwaterMIMeet019.jpg


2012-05-19_14-21-06_615.jpg


2012-05-19_14-17-19_250.jpg
 

HARDTRAILZ

Moderator
Nov 18, 2011
49,665
2012-05-30_07-04-37_588.jpg


Temporary plate relocation until the bracket gets here.
 

HARDTRAILZ

Moderator
Nov 18, 2011
49,665
rear-1.jpg


rear2.jpg
 

HARDTRAILZ

Moderator
Nov 18, 2011
49,665
Few new pics. Bumper has continued to impress. Functions perfect. Tows good. Looks perfect.

b2-1.jpg


b1-1.jpg


2012-07-15_21-06-05_909.jpg


2012-07-15_21-05-05_719.jpg
 

The_Roadie

Lifetime VIP Donor
Member
Nov 19, 2011
9,957
Portland, OR
Spalding1028 said:
... us non-bl guys?...
I thought I could do without a BL, and did a BUNCH of fantastic trails without it, but after four years, bit the bullet and went further up. Had to pay for refabbing the bracketry for my existing bumper and to reweld the rock sliders.

If you're serious about rock crawling, get the BL first. Then the optimum tires. Then the underbody armor. Then the front bumper and winch. Then the rear bumper.
 

HARDTRAILZ

Moderator
Nov 18, 2011
49,665
the roadie said:
If you're serious about rock crawling, get the BL first. Then the optimum tires. Then the underbody armor. Then the front bumper and winch. Then the rear bumper.

No No NO. Get the Underbody Armor first. The body lift will not affect that fit and it could save you tons of money. Even no lift and stock tires can get you to where the armor is useful. The armor is most needed before you have a lift and big tires and your undercarriage is right at rock level.

ARMOR FIRST!
 

The_Roadie

Lifetime VIP Donor
Member
Nov 19, 2011
9,957
Portland, OR
HARDTRAILZ said:
ARMOR FIRST!
Yah, on further reflection, that makes sense. Personally, when I started, Mike wasn't making anything yet, and I needed to get out onthe trails and get a TASTE for what it was like, and the addiction grew. But it's true that on almost all the trails I go on, I run out of traction or ground clearance LONG before I run out of torque. And without armor on a boulder garden, it's like you're in a wiener dog race and suddenly spot a nice bitch and get a hard-on. Your forward motion ceases, you become a plow, and serious damage can result. :redface:
 

Bartonmd

Original poster
Member
Nov 20, 2011
545
Spalding1028 said:
Any dual swing out love for us non-bl guys? :worried:

I can probably come up with something, but you'll lose departure angle from moving the bumper down far enough to get a center latch in below the lift-gate (about the height of the stock hitch). If you're OK with it, so am I... It's just not something I'm going to put in a standard offering.

Mike
 

Spalding1028

Member
Jan 20, 2012
60
ah. Good point you have there. I'm still waiting to see where I'm going as far as a body lift goes. I want to get everything paid off and even then look into something more for daily use, so that I can do crazy things such as body lifts, bad ass burton bumpers, (see what I did there?) or even a SAS :crazy:
 

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