Who makes this bumper?
Bulkhead strength, bumpers and crash damage.
- Thread starter modsledr
- Start date
Who makes this bumper?
The skinz bumper uses a second mounting location other than just the cast tabs. It still uses the factory tube that attaches to the lower part of the bulkhead which in my opinion is too weak. I smoked a tree with mine and I feel that if that lower tube was stronger it would have saved my pipe as the bumper crumpled down.
Heres the pics. Probably going to go with a VE bumper for next winter.
Heres the pics. Probably going to go with a VE bumper for next winter.
I have the same bumper and was also worried about using the stock center tube as well. Did you hit the tree at a decent speed? Could you ride back to the truck?
your f'ed. if you weld it back on most likely the adhesive in the (lets just call it over structure) could melt or be weekend. I have a totaled sled that has NEVER taken an impact other than jumping. The over structer is week, the cas piece that joins the 4 bars and locates your steering post/handlebars is a POS. The actual cast bulkhead is strong and requires a direct impact to hurt it. It will flex and put the damage else where. You will get broken running board brackets, flexed tunnle or "dog legged". broken chaine case, broken cast aluminum muffler bracket, bent "overstructure" and like MH said, thsoe tabs are a joke. This IS the cost of us demanding lightweight.
Excuase my less than thrilled outlook but polaris owes me a sled. There is no reason someone should be able to total a polaris assault by jumping it. I have no broken bones, therefore the sled shouldn't either. If randy sherman is aloud to jump roads and drop cliffs in the promo video for the sled, shouldn't i? ohh well, guess i will start building "ms america", the baddest free ride sled you guys will ever see
Yer Matte Murder's cousin, right? Please show us what a trophytruckfreeridedirtcyclebigairsled on snow looks like (and what it weighs)...
With Polaris introducing what is deemed the Ultimate bumper... and the fact that there is, as it should be, no warranty on collision damage.... I think that the cast-alumiumiun tab mounting on the bulkhead and the folding down-tube design needs to be a bit more stout from the factory.
Especially with the empirical testing in the field of other designs that mount more firmly.
There is no DOT crash testing.
Fold to protect is one thing... but I've personally seen the results of minor front crashes with the stock grab-handle/bumper.
There is room to improve strenght... and still keep weight very reasonable or even the same.
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Especially with the empirical testing in the field of other designs that mount more firmly.
There is no DOT crash testing.
Fold to protect is one thing... but I've personally seen the results of minor front crashes with the stock grab-handle/bumper.
There is room to improve strenght... and still keep weight very reasonable or even the same.
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S
sledneck_03
Well-known member
For the VE bumper, early reports said no instructions on where to drill that lower hole??? anyone have that figured out yet or do they come with decent instructions now. Nothing like drilling some big holes in the front of your belly pan in the wrong spots.
Yes. Just drill through the skid plate same as belly pan.
http://www.snowestonline.com/forum/showthread.php?t=336827
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So the guys that drilled the belly / skid plate area, I assume a hole saw would work or something else?
Drill the hole and mount the the bumper, would it be a good idea to seal around that lower mounting arm / hole, or don't bother?
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Drill the hole and mount the the bumper, would it be a good idea to seal around that lower mounting arm / hole, or don't bother?
Sent from my DROID X2 using Tapatalk 2
FDX... do you have one of the VE bumpers?
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Instructions... pretty clear.
As far as I know... the instructions have always been out there... You just needed to download them from VE or get them emailed to you.
Here they are for all to look at.... very detailed and with photos.
http://www.snowestonline.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=205206&stc=1&d=1364929517
As far as I know... the instructions have always been out there... You just needed to download them from VE or get them emailed to you.
Here they are for all to look at.... very detailed and with photos.
http://www.snowestonline.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=205206&stc=1&d=1364929517
Nope, been looking at them for a while but no one around here has one to look at, that's why the questions.
I actually will be needing both front and rear bumpers.
I have ve bumper in question mounted up with stock skid plate. I actually had skid plate already mounted up before I had ve bumper. I justed measured from the inside and drilled according to instructions. I did not seal around tubes on top or bottom. I have been on one week trip, with no issue of snow ingestion. I have used it as a brush gaurd and a few times it has stopped me dead going over the bars. No issues with bending breaking or cracking of any kind. Just my 2 cents.
Yes I hit the tree and a pretty good speed. It had held up pretty well on the smaller trees but this 12" tree was a little too much for it. I think I lot of it had to do with the fact it uses the stock down tube. If that piece was stronger I think it would have held up better. I was able to ride it back to the truck this way. Burnt a nice 2" hole in the side of the nose pan from the pipe rubbing against it though. If it had the factory polaris bumper Im sure there would have been no way to ride it back so it definetly helped but I think for next winter I will be running the VE bumper instead of the skinz this time.
MH I'm running Airframes on the Pro. I have always thought it would be nice to tie a wider bumper all the way back to the Airframes. Run a bar low on the side panel. Also, I have always thought that some kind of sacrificial bar should go out far enough to protect the lower a-arm. If the bumper was tied in to the front structure, maybe upper shock mount and the Airframes it seems like it would be super strong, protect the pipe, a-arms, and the TUNNEL right at the footwell where it kinks most of the time. Am I missing something?
I like the thought but in my opinion, that's gone a little too far. That's a lot of messing around plus added weight for, in my opinion, not much benefit. Sure, you might save some lower a-arms, but then you're just wrecking something else.
I've bent 4 lower A arms this year and all but one was from hitting the ski dead on or glancing off a tree with the outside of the ski. All three folded the lower rear tube. This "sacrificial tube" you talk about wouldn't help there. When I hit a tree straight to my lower a arm, it folded my tunnel in the footwell area.
I'm running a vanamburg front bumper, alternative impact chromoly a arms, fire-n-ice/kmod tunnel gussets, and a 162 M bumper on my 155 and I think that's a perfect combo of strength to weight for me and how much I hit stuff. In my experience the a arms are stronger than stock but still save my bulkhead from damage.
Interesting. Mine have taken some hard hits just like you describe without coming apart or buckling. Hitting a tree right on the tube seems to bend them easier. I just had the Roosterbuilt guys order me some Alt Im Cromoly lower arms. Saw several sets of 13 arms in Alpine last week where the glue failed. Don't want one to come apart a speed. I had dinner with Alan of Tsled last week and his buddy had a lower A arm come unglued ripping across a meadow. He hit so hard he needed surgery to untangle his guts. Ugh. I'm going to roll pin and reglue my stock arms for spars. They still might come unglued but I don't think they will fail with no warning.