DIY Rear Tube Bumper... any advice?

After seeing the crazy lead times for rear bumpers and the never ending urge to build cool stuff for my truck I decided to take a crack at a custom rear bumper.

1.75" .120 wall DOM
1/2" plates to mount it to the factory bolt locations in the frame.

I'm sure I will mess something up along the way but is there anything I am missing here before I start bending tube?

My main concern is recovery point attachments, I have 1.5" holes on the mounting plates but i don't think a shackle will fit in there and have enough room to feed a strap in there. If I move the hole outwards there isn't a lot of meat to keep the shackle pin from pulling through.

 

Very cool, we want to make our own as well. what do you have for a tubing bender?

As for things that are missing, what about a place to put your license plate?, hitch receiver? just thoughts

 

Good call on the license plate mount. I thought about the hitch receiver but I don't really tow anything.

I have a rogue fab bender

 

That's a pretty nice tube bumper design.

Although I don't think I will be making my rear bumper with tube on my 3rd Gen, I really like the layout of yours.

I might take some of the lines you have and some how incorporate them using 1/8", 3/16" steel plate with 1/2" flat stock for frame mounts.

 

You don't have anything to tow "yet"

Like the bumper though. clean.

 

Haha isn't that the way it always goes.

 

Looking good - I don't have any advice, but where did you get a 3d scan file of the rear? I've been looking for that, and a scan of the front.

 

plate added to center section? with holes for cubes? and 2 eyelets for shackles even with frame mounting points?

 

I'd add a cross member and the 2" hitch receiver like this: https://trail-gear.com/armor/rock-assault-rear-tacoma-bumper-05-15.html

 

I have a scanner. It's not fancy but gets the job done

 

Maybe on those 1.5" holes break the edges enough to be able to use soft shackles? Something like the setup below without the hitch setup?

 

No advice really, but make 2 . I'm obsessed with tube bumpers

 

Mind sharing the STL?

I do like the design of yours, but as others have mentioned, I'd add a hitch receiver.

 

I will be making 2 actually haha
I'm going to start with 1 that involves no cutting of the bed sides then do a 2nd one full high clearance style.

The 1st one just might make it to the for sale section

 

/

Oh, then make a third that goes directly to FL.

 

We will see how the 1st one goes

 

I don't know if it's possible or something you want. But adding a step on the corner to get into the bed would be nice. I wished more companies would incorporate that into their designs, especially on plate bumpers that have enough room to do so.

 

Do the side wings go on top of the bedsides or are you cutting like a high clearance?

 

This version goes around the bedside. No cutting

Version 2 will be a true high clearance with cutting involved

 

I think the tube design looks great.

I’d beef up the two frame plates to 5/8” or thicker and add extend them further out for use with traditional metal shackles, add a center section with integrated tow hitch hidden behind a flip up license plate mount.