Looking for best value skids

The time has come to get my skids.

Looking for the best bang for buck. I don't wanna buy and replace later as I add on to the truck, sooooo...

Please help me. This is what I need to know;
Steel vs aluminum?
Love the look of the cbi, but the cost is higher, are the wings worth the cost?
Has anyone tried out OK Expeditions alum skids? I mean used them off road?
Should I just get someone to fab up some plates for me? if yes, what thickness would you recommend?
I know I want full skids, but should I get the LCA skids as well, or are they just mud traps?

Please keep in mind that my build is at the beginning stages, and am intending to use this truck to go anywhere I point the engine.

 

Not sure if you're found anything since your post, but a lot of the US guys still might have some of the "Tax Time" sales going on right now if you've decided on a material.
If you're hunting local or Canadian made; https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/canadian-made-skids.627529/

But answering what you havel;

Steel is heavier and cheaper relative to aluminum, but it is FAR more robust. If it takes a hit, you'll be fine and you can always beat back out any dents with a hammer that might form a few angry rocks. however, being steel, it will rust over time if not correctly coated, but even then it'll rust if you use the skid plates and scratch if off of anything. You can also modify them with a welder and some elbow grease to suit your needs a little better.

Aluminum is lighter but also usually more expensive than steel plates. Also to note also need to be thicker to compensate for their lack of strength to keep up with steel. In terms of Aluminum taking a hit, it usually smears. by that i mean that portions of the al can be physically scraped, cut, or gouged off if it takes too hard of a hit, so repairs to it is generally a bit more difficult. It will hold up to corrosion, and the weight savings (from shipping costs as well as fuel economy) can be beneficial in the long run.
choose your poison.

CBIs are nice, but it depends if on what sort of offroading you plan to do. It might be worth it for rock crawling, might be overkill for the mall curbs.
I personally ordered RCI plates, but there are hundreds of other names out there that have their own twist on things. Some more major than others.

Speaking of Canadian made skids, @ok_expedition Is actually here on Tacomaworld with us. Not sure if anyone USED USED their skids, but i too am looking forward to hear about it. from the designs and comparing them to others, it seems like it will hold up quite well.
there was a mention of steel versions of them, but nothing more than that.

Custom fab plates can be an option. However, you'll need to engineerd it all together and that falls on how much you trust the material and the fabricator with the precious undersides of the truck. IMO, go with something tried and tested by the community. it'll save you a lot of headache.
but if you do go with a self made plate system, document it all and share it with us, this way we can give you pointers as you go, as well as a way to show the community that sometimes Built-Not-Bought can be a wonderful thing!
Wall thickness are standard 3/16th but if you plan to do some serious off roading and are climbing rock walls along the way, then anything thicker than that will save you from hits, but it'll obviously be heavier.

LCA skid plates, i have no idea about. I've scratched mine (no plates) up quite a few times, so it is a busy area if your wheel misses it's mark, or slides off of it. maybe someone else might chime in on it?

 

Do you know if the CBI mid skid plate is compatible with the TRD pro front skid plate.

 

I have pelfreybilt steel (all 3/16) moving to 4x4inovations next (1/4) front and (3/16) mid and rear. Changing them out because the pelfreybilt ones aren't holding up. If you want it to go ANYWHERE aluminum is not the way