ARB Vs. Relentless Fab Front bumper.

6 hours....damn, if the shop can't figure it out in a timely manner I'm going to be screwed. You'd think that by taking your ride to a professional custom shop that specializes in off road trucks you're in good hands. I mean FFS, they won't even order me clear lenses because they say they're illegal in the state even though right on the state website under section 12 it clearly states that front lights can be white or amber. After I get my ride back and put together I'll let y'all know my results and the name of the shop. I don't want to talk crap, especially while they've got my truck by the nuts and bolts...

 

Check out craigslist. I looked there before realizing a friend of mine was a skilled welder. But I found a ton of people on craigslist and was willing to pay $300 which was the low price I could find. I did get told by a truck/ hitch shop that they wanted $1,000 to weld it together but that was ridiculous.

 

Will do. I've already got it in my head that from now on, unless I learn to do the work myself, I can't be upgrading the truck and relying on a shop (well, not unless insurance is footing the bill ). Would be cool if some of my friends were gear heads, then we could exchange services or whatever.

 

Where in SoCal?
Jason (screen name is speed freak) is in north county SD and could probably weld it for you, send him a PM and he'll give you a price if he'd like the work.

If you're worried about how skilled he is PM Tyler at Pelfreybilt off-road and ask him about Jason.

 

I would find a different shop. Any competent shop would have no problem fitting the bumper.

 

I just hit up a few ads on craigslist and the first guy responded with this:

If I mig weld the bumper and assemble it 4hrs 240.00
If I Tig weld it and assemble 6hrs 360.00


He also is insured and guarantees the work. If the shop my truck is at can't give me a decent answer tomorrow I'll just have them finish what's already under works and have the bumper finished at this guys place. I wonder if he does Line-X

Other than being more of a pain in the ass than MIG, is there any benefit in going with TIG welds? I know that the welds can be made extraordinarily fine, but I'm more interested in it being sturdy and preferably as cost efficient as possible. If TIG is the way to go 2 hours of work won't break me in comparison to the lifetime of the vehicle. Well, that and I don't want goopy joints or anything, but I figure that would rest upon the skill of the welder anyhow.

HOLD THE PHONE:

for just a tad bit more, I can get a kit in aluminum. I thought the DIY kits only came in steel for some reason. Since I'd hate for my front bumper to cause my front end to sag I have to ask: A) what is the strength of the 1/4" aluminum plate compared to the 3/16" steel plate, B) what exactly are the fog light cut out options? I noticed that the options differ from the steel kit.

Does anyone have the DIY bumper in aluminum they'd like to show off?

I bet if I asked the shop the truck is at now to do the kit in aluminum their heads would explode...

 

If your referring to my pic of the bumper then no I didn't grind the welds down. Still on my todo list, but probably won't happen until right before I decide to get it powder coated.

 

I've had this same debate in my head for the past few weeks. The thing about ARB is that it is airbag tested with your vehicle, it comes standard painted with center and headlight hoops, turn signals, bumpers, and can be had for $850ish shipped.

A relentless bumper with with similar options will run $1350ish shipped (as per their site).

Now that I look at this, I must be missing something. I agree the relentless is the best looking bumper on the market, but I guess you have to decide if it looks $500 better than the ARB.

 

Air bag tested? You do know air bags are set off by accelerometers not little buttons you have to crush right?

 

I'm aware of that. Different front ends will have different crush rates and thus affect acceleratometer performance.

From ARB's website:

With an air bag equipped 4x4 it is essential that the vehicle's crush rate and air bag triggering is not altered when a bull bar is installed. To ensure compatibility, ARB assesses each vehicle's frontal crush characteristics and replicates the crush rate into the design of each air bag compatible bull bar and its mounting system. This method enables engineers to achieve maximum possible vehicle and passenger protection without affecting the crash pulse. ARB has invested heavily in vehicle crash barrier tests to validate the performance and compliance of its air bag compatible bull bars, and as a consequence, our bars offer a far greater level of protection than most standard brush guards and grille guards.

 

Yea I read that many years ago...do you know what it means though?

In laymen's terms: We build our bumpers out of thin gauge metal so they crush like stock.

The harder the bumper the quicker the accelerometer will go off. Strap a 4" diameter concrete filled tube to the front of your truck and your air bags will go off much quicker in an accident because they transfer the forces quicker with less energy absorbed.

 

You get 10% off from relentless for a TW member

 

It looks like the price of the pre welded relentless one is almost equal in price to the DIY kit + paying someone to weld it for you. So in my opinion i would just save till you can afford the pre made one. It will save you a bunch of time and effort. If you could do the welding yourself id say go with the DIY.
Up to you though..

 

I had 575 in bumper shipped then 300 in welding and painting

 

Can the relentless aluminum front end accommodate a winch and control box internally and if so what's the max rating? The reason I'd like the control box inside is so I can run a 10Wx20 LED bar between the center hoop (and possibly a 10Wx2 LED spot light on the opposite sides of the bars).

The dude who quoted me said it would cost an additional hour of labor for the aluminum kit to be welded. So that's apx. $893 for parts and labor. I see the ARB front end is going for $860 + tax.

I love the idea of having a steel battering ram on the front end, but this truck is also my daily driver, so more weight = less fuel economy, more ass to haul when hauling ass, and I'd rather not drop a few grand on the suspension right now to correct any sag that may be caused by the new front end. Besides, 50 lbs saved is 50lbs I can put towards a winch's additional weight without sweating additional sag.

is 1/4" aluminum really that much flimsier than 3/16" steel and is there any specific forms of wheeling I'd be limited from participating in with the lighter bumper? I'm looking to drive it urbanely maybe 90+% of the time with occasional trips down highway 1, it's trails, and I would like to haul ass through the deserts of southern California once I've got a buddy or two to head out with. I'm not looking to scale rock cliffs, but knowing how Baja can be, I'd hate to not be able to.

Typed that while on the phone, hope that all makes sense.

 

ARBs are the only ones I know that work with the airbag.

 

merican schools......non-stop failing to teach reading and comprehending

 

I would absolutely consider this option. Jason is extremely talented and could weld one up for you no problem, Steel or Aluminum.

Just my opinion between the two bumpers, the ARB is nice, nobody argues that but the Relentless is in a class of its own for your truck. Eric does top notch work and has great eye for detail so the finished look and fit is spot on.

 

Prius internet police!

 

There's no way, unless you're willing to pay a ridiculous price for it to be welded. I paid $500 for the DIY kit and $225 to have it welded. I saved roughly $600, although it's not as perfect as the fully welded bumpers Eric puts together, but it is perfect enough for me.