1999 tacoma after market bumper

When I bought the they said heavy duty with 40%more shock dampening

 

Just kidding bro, you're not pissing us off. Just trying to give you a little more forward-thinking advice.

Sure, the material is free. But is it REALLY "free"? No. You're going to need, at a minimum, very heavy duty springs, and honestly the heaviest ones I can think of - the OME 883's are not going to be sufficient for that amount of weight. There's also the added wear and tear on your motor and drivetrain pushing that extra weight.

When I put my pumper together (3/16") I thought THAT was heavy. I'm pretty sure most Hummer or F-350 bumpers aren't even 1/4", lol.

Why do you think welding 1/4" is easier than 3/16"? I can assure you there is no real difference as long as your machine is set properly. Believe me, I know it's temping to just throw something together based on what you have laying around the shop. I've done that with various projects, and it ends up more work than it's worth. You always end up with design compromises or limitations because you don't have the right materials. You end up doing it again with the proper material. Most of the scrap I have laying around is failed attempts to "make something work".

You don't need to double up the tubes and plate, either. If you're using the tubing for the main structure, the plate is purely window dressing and could even be 1/8" to have a TON of weight. Use 1/4" for the winch plate, but that's it. Hell, a few well placed gussets and 3/16" is more than strong enough for a winch plate, for much less weight.

 

That's not really a "thing" lol, That just means they're stiff.

Shocks do almost nothing for the weight carrying ability of the vehicle. The springs support the weight, not the shocks.

"Forged" balljoints is pretty meaningless, too, which makes me think you got them at an auto parts store = bad. Click on my build thread for a little rant, I mean write-up I did on ball joints. There are others, too. 1st gen Tacos have kind of a "thing" with balljoints, and you should really be avoiding anything but genuine OEM or 555's. Moogs (from Rockauto) are acceptable, too, but the consensus is that anything from the parts stores are plain crap.

Also, you have coilovers, not struts.

 

Ok I understand and it is completely free my welding shop teacher gave me a 4 by 6 1/4 inch piece of steel diamond plate

 

oh damn! sell it and buy 2 sheets of 3/16! lol

As for being completely free, I just meant that while the material itself is free, there usually ends up being other costs associated with it that might not be necessarily with thinner material.

 

All of my stuff is off of rock auto

 

I was also wondering if it would be smart to put in a light bar I was given a 16inch light bar from a friend who doesn’t want it and it’s still in the box if I was to put it in where should I put it