Help me choose a skid plate

That's an interesting line of thought, certainly something I hadn't considered before. I'd gladly trash the skid plate in exchange for protecting my frame. Thanks for the input!

 

So, now that I've got some good gouge on IFS skids, how about the rest? I know transmission and transfer case skids are important to protect the bits that will get you home, but when do these skids become a necessity? I'd really rather not find out the hard way.

Also, how do you guys feel about gas tank skids? I've read a few stories about guys getting their tanks punctured or fittings ripped off by highway debris, but don't know if that's a common issue.

 

Subbing because you, OP, have asked some good questions and I want to get educated. Also, too true on those rampant Mustangs with an interest rate higher than the age of the fresh E who bought it.

I think the Pro skid looks the best but it's lack of compatibility is a turn off. I like RCI's offerings and they have their trilogy which is 3 skids combined into a single package with savings. Thinking of doing that. I'm curious how significant it is to go aluminum vs steel. Steel is stronger and sounds great for low speed, high force playtime. But it rusts. Aluminum doesn't rust but it's not as resilient, but sounds like it's better suited to providing high speed protection by capturing a lot of impact energy so your frame stays happy. Decisions, decisions.

I'm no expert but fuel tank skids seem less common but I'd ultimately still want to run one. I'm Para oid like that. I'm guessing you're more likely to hit something else before you hit your tank.

 

My greatest skill is annoying more knowledgeable folk with sideways questions. I'm glad my ramblings are useful to someone.

I ended up adding RCI aluminum IFS and transmission skids to my build sheet. The transfer case is located above a frame cross-member, so it is less susceptible to damage than the other two parts. It seems that both the engine and tranny come with "splash guards" installed from the factory, which should function as a single-use protective item. Once they get smashed, I'll go ahead and throw down for the beefier RCI replacement. Bear in mind that I won't be seeking out stuff to hit with my truck; for my use, skids are insurance and nothing more.

As far as aluminum vs. steel, I'm personally setting my truck up for years of neglect. This lovely Taco will eventually lose its novelty, changing from a shiny new thing to kit out back to... well, an appliance. The fewer maintenance tasks (read: self-induced @ss-pain) I have, the better. This is why rust is a major concern of mine.

I would tend to agree, but Toyota seems to have a different opinion. Their TRD Off Road package comes with a fuel tank skid plate stock, which lends credence to the idea of protecting the tank. I think the TrailToys 1/4" plastic skid will do the job well without adding too much performance-robbing weight.

If you want to really gain an in-depth understanding of how adding bits and bobs affects your vehicle as an entire system, you should really check out anything written by @crashnburn80. Dude knows his stuff.

 

Bud Built skids. Have them on my FJ Cruiser. They are modular so you can pick how much protection you need. They are also available for Tacoma’s.

 

Just noticed your use of the term “gouge” along with the USN badge in your profile. Takes me back a few years....”live by the gouge, die by the gouge”...do they still use the NATOPS manual?

 

Even more pro/cons for aluminum vs steel. Curious, are you indeed getting them powder-coated? For the price, I wonder if saving some freedom bucks there would be worth the hassle of an initial painting and future touch ups. I suspect I've answered my own question in typing that.

@crashnburn80 is super smart. I've read his lighting threads and most of the AGM battery. Did he do something on armor? Haven't seen that yet.

 

Can't say I've heard of that. I was in the expeditionary community, so gray hull stuff isn't my forte.

... is my brownwater snobbery showing?

I'm planning on getting them powder-coated for sure. It's the best way to protect metal from corrosion, and aluminum does indeed corrode.

He hasn't written much on armor, other than this bit on sliders:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/all-pro-apex-bolt-on-sliders.450494/

I was creeping on his posts and came across some discussion of RCI skid plates. Little weird to be trawling through people's activity, I know, but credible sources are few and far between on the interweb.

 

Naval Air Training and Operating Procedures Standardization (NATOPS). P3’s for me so no haze gray underway in my background...no brown water snobbery, the only littoral stuff we did was mostly around air mining exercises. Mission has changed over the years.

 

Ah, airedale type. I was a GM, so my whole job was pick things up and put them down and make them go boom. I hear you on the mission change. My unit was decommed 3 months after I got off active duty. These new CRS cats are doing a very different job.

 

Everyones needs for armor can be different, there is no one-size fits all solution. What is important is to appropriately balance your armor level with how you use your truck. Realistically, most people on this site use their truck as a daily driver and weekend warrior. I see too many people overbuild their trucks with crazy heavy armor and overweight tires, to where the trucks mpgs and performance are hit hard and the vehicle starts to transition away from a common sense daily driver due to self inflicted choices. It is really easy to fall down this rabbit hole, 25lbs here, 25lbs there, to save cost over more expensive options and too soon the truck has gained far more excessive weight than necessary undermining the performance across the board. There isn't typically one bad decision that breaks a vehicle, it is usually a number of seemingly small sacrifices that eventually add up. Weight is literally a vehicle's number one enemy, it affects acceleration, mpg, braking, ride, handling etc. You'll notice a common trend across my wheel/tire/armor threads is alway minimizing weight gain. My truck is supercharged and can pull the rear end free on the highway and corners impressively well for a truck with TRD's most aggressive ever Baja suspension, I aim to maintain on road performance but I also want performance and protection on the trail.

RCI offers some of the best aluminum skid designs IMO, which minimize weight and provide stout coverage and an excellent continuous multi-skid flat panel design. In evaluating a skid plate solution, you should look at the entire engine/trans/t-case package integration for future build potential. Brands like All Pro build tight skid packages, but they do not flow in a flat surface between components at all, leading to very significant hangup points with staggered uneven surfaces, which are not ideal. I rocked my factory skids until I smashed the engine skid on some rocks, to where it was punctured and inverted, but it saved the oil pan with plenty of room to spare. It is effectively a single use sacrificial skid and did its job (if you are not an OR or Pro you likely don't have factory skids!). RCI's skid in 1/4" aluminum is much lighter than the competition's aluminum skids and ridiculously stronger than stock, but the design does leave the LCA cam bolts exposed. They do offer separate LCA armor if needed, though the stock LCA mounts and hardware are all steel. RCI's skids are also not the strongest out there, however they are some of the lightest and IMO very well thought out. Based on my use, for how I wheel and daily drive my truck I went with RCI's aluminum skids. The RCI engine skid is only a few pounds more than the thin stock skid and steel supports, but massively beefier. If you are the type regularly pivoting your rig off the skids over rocks on crazy rock crawling adventures, obviously aluminum isn't appropriate for you and you will need the protection heavy duty steel offers at the weight penalty. However, chances are if you have never significantly hit your OEM skid, you likely don't need a massive 50-70lb steel skid for your truck. Make it as strong as it needs to be and as light as possible.

You can see the linked thread for my thoughts on sliders. I know I need to finish my build thread for all the other info not contained in dedicated threads.

My truck literally brand new with 5k miles on stock skids:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIHAhINLRfI

 

For what it’s worth, I’m planning on getting your skid plates. I can get over aesthetics if the product is superior quality, which yours reportedly are. A “sterile” unbranded version would be nice, but again, not a dealbreaker.

 

I just bought a full skid package from RCI (and a fuel tank skid).
No weird angles, no god awful logos, just a plain skid plate.

 

Looks great!! Glad to see everything arrived to you safely! If you have any questions/comments/concerns, let us know.

 

I look forward to the opportunity to impress!

 

I do.
When are you releasing an extension plate for the transmission skid so it fits a 4 cylinder? Hint, hint. Nudge, nudge.

 

I have another question.
What's the small access panel on the front skid for?

 

I think that's for getting to the oil filter. Not sure which engine(s) have an undermounted one.

 

I think the third gen.