pros and cons to bolt on vs. weld on sliders

i was looking into sliders for my taco. cbi has the bolt on sliders on a nice sale. is there any disadvantage to the bolt on sliders? i dont know how to weld so i was thinking these would be easier for me. it also said some drilling required... anyone know what drilling needs to be done?

 

I would go weld on, seems to me they could take more abuse and jacking but just my .02 and welding is supposedly a pretty easy skill to learn

 

The drilling means you have to drill more holes in the frame. Your frame has some, but not all where the sliders would bolt up.

I got weld on and love them. Hit them hard and never bend.

 

welding is farily easy to learn...i just learned how at work a few days ago...

but however, some of us dont have access to a welder or the means to store a welder, making this pretty difficult to acheive...

not to mention buying a welder just to weld on sliders might be a little unrealistic...

 

think i answered my own question after some research, sorry i should have done that first. correct me if im wrong but it seems that the bolt ons are just more of a beefed up side step and can take a little more abuse then side steps, but not as much as weld on sliders. nor can they be used as a lift point???

 

They are very comparable to weld on. Not sure where you got that. And I'm pretty sure you can jack from them.

 

Quality bolt-on sliders (Demello, CBI, Shrockworks, etc.) will take just as much abuse as weld-ons. You can definitely use them as jack points.

My concern with bolt-ons is shearing the bolt head or softening the frame with further drilling.

 

Subscribed. Wanting sliders but waiting on $$$$$$$

 

False. All it is is a different way to mount them. Many guys (including my self) have bought bolt on sliders. I wouldn't have bought them if they weren't strong enough for being used. I plan on beating on mine. I have not hear any complaints from people that ave bolted them on (as far as strengh goes), but they need to be made correctly (just like any slider). Do a little more research on the topic.

BTW: I bought the CBI bolt-ons. I have yet to put them on ( they are at home and I will not be for 2 more weeks).

 

Also the thinking that drilling a few holes in your frame and making it weaker is dumb (to say the least). Those few holes are not going to make a difference that you will be able to tell ( which it is a VERY miniscule amount of strength lost)

 

Demello Bolt on sliders....


yes the front tire is off the ground even though you can't actually see it in the pic.

 

hmmm.... this is where i got the idea that bolt ons are not as strong. its from avid offroads slider description....

The bolt-on slider/steps are an alternative to the step bars. They are designed more for the people that like the looks of sliders but don’t need the super strength of weld ons. There is no drilling or welding required to install them. They simply bolt into the factory running board mounts. Because of the mounting location, these sliders are not intended to support the weight of the truck but can be used as steps, dent protection, and light off-roading. Think of them as step bars that look like sliders.
The weld on sliders are designed for the more extreme off-roading. The triangulated frame plate design allows the frame welds to be angled, giving them much more strength then the normal vertical weld on design. Four legs attach the sliders to the frame, making them solid enough for a hi-lift jack and strong enough to protect your truck through whatever situation arises out on the trail.

so maybe their bolt ons are not that strong but cbi's and demello's are???

 

I also forgot to add that if you use quality grade 8 ( or higher) bolts, then you will NOT break them ( with the shear force). You will most likely break the sliders before you shear the bolt. Most companies provide 1/2" grade 8 bolts with the sliders.

 

Avid's bolt ons are bolted to the stock running board location and not the frame.

 

Weld on vs bolt on are just as strong as long as the design is good.

Welding on shitty sliders doesn't make them better than bolted on ones. If you were doing competitive rock crawling, weld ons would be ideal but for what you can do in a Taco the bolt ons are fine.

These are bolted on:


PS: these make shitty steps, but are great sliders.

 

bolt on, weld on, they are both good. i personally welded & bolted mine. why? because i have a welder and it was a b*tch to hold them in place without bolting them. if i didn't have a welder i probably would have just bolted them on.

 

ok gotcha. so if i decide to go with the cbi's or demello, or another brand, as long as they bolt to the frame and not the running board location they will be just as strong as weld ons and i can use a hi lift on them

 

I just bought the demello hybrids in weld on after researching for a bit.

 

Yes and no. I say no because if you go with a crappy design (most comon is no gussets on the frame plate) then that will be a bad move no matter bolt or weld on. I recommend CBI, cause they have awesome customer service ( not saying other don't cause I haven't tried all places).

 

A "how to" for the CBI bolt ons.
Picking my set up on friday! I plan on using them as a hi-lift point.