ARB bumper repair

[SteveH-CO]

I bought an ARB bumper that was side-swiped by a minivan. The face piece (1.5" wide by 1/8" thick) is bent aside, and so is the support plate behind it.

Fixing this would be easier if the entire bumper were not nicely factory powder coated - I'd just cut it all off and weld away. The bumper is more than 100#, so my plan is to mount it on my truck ('89 FJ62 Land Cruiser), park near a tree, and attempt to pull and bend this bumper face flange back, straightening the support piece behind it. I doubt it will look nice when I'm done, but my on-the-truck operation might straighten the support plate, if nothing else.

Question: should I just cut off the face piece right away, and re-bend the support plate (maybe with heat as needed) and weld on the new face, skipping any attempt to push the face piece back?

After the support is straight, I will bend a new face piece, weld it, and paint it. I see no way to powder coat any of my repair pieces, since they will be welded to the bumper.

Thoughts? - thanks!

Steve

 

[APEowner]

It's hard to tell from pictures but it looks like you could get that 90% by tweaking it with a big adjustable wrench.

 

[archtimb]

I bought an ARB bumper that was side-swiped by a minivan. The face piece (1.5" wide by 1/8" thick) is bent aside, and so is the support plate behind it.

Fixing this would be easier if the entire bumper were not nicely factory powder coated - I'd just cut it all off and weld away. The bumper is more than 100#, so my plan is to mount it on my truck ('89 FJ62 Land Cruiser), park near a tree, and attempt to pull and bend this bumper face flange back, straightening the support piece behind it. I doubt it will look nice when I'm done, but my on-the-truck operation might straighten the support plate, if nothing else.

Question: should I just cut off the face piece right away, and re-bend the support plate (maybe with heat as needed) and weld on the new face, skipping any attempt to push the face piece back?

After the support is straight, I will bend a new face piece, weld it, and paint it. I see no way to powder coat any of my repair pieces, since they will be welded to the bumper.

Thoughts? - thanks!

Steve

Careful. That 3FE might just uproot the tree! Kidding.
I'm with Ape. I would go at it cold with a big wrench. Only heat if really needed.
FYI I had my old ARB powder coated to put on another FJ62 last year. Wasn't cheap at about $600, but when a new one is now going for about a grand, a good option if looks matter to you.
Now, let's see your cruiser!

 

[SteveH-CO]

I tried an adjustable wrench on the (cold) bent metal - no way! The metal is too thick to easily bend that way. The FJ62 has 268K miles, bought it from a neighbor (original owner) and did some rust/paint/interior repair. Original engine and transmission, no leaks.

 

[SteveH-CO]

I cut off the old upright, straightened the support, and then fabbed and installed a new upright. I bolted it to the existing bumper, which solved the welding problem. Not perfect, but close enough. The powder coater put on a ton of satin black.

 

[4xdog]

Boy, that's a complicated part of an ARB bullbar, @SteveH-CO. Your repair looks quite good.

Is that one still in production? Your effort and powdercoating costs might have made simple replacement with a new one a reasonable option. The bullbar on my Gen 1 Tacoma is almost fifteen years old now and the powdercoat is weathering. I've thought about having it recoated, but haven't gotten any quotes yet...

 

[slowtwitch73]

Throw that **** in the recycle bin. Just a bunch of weight hangin off the front that does zero for performance or deer hits.

 

[Michael B.]

Good job on repairing the ARB Steve. Oh and nice 62! Are you on Mud?

 

[SteveH-CO]

This particular (old style FJ60) ARB is no longer in production. The current FJ60/2 model sits higher and blocks the FJ62 turn signals in the valence.

This one was $450 used/bent, and a new one with tax is close to $1500. I read of someone having an entire bumper blasted and re-powder coated, and it was $600 to do so. My bumper had been garaged, so the powder coating is in nice shape, save for a few hacks from the minivan attack. This whole effort was a silly 'project' - but it was fun in a way. I'm simply too cheap to write a big check like that.

On Mud as 'SteveH'

 

[Bigblue&Goldie]

Throw that **** in the recycle bin. Just a bunch of weight hangin off the front that does zero for performance or deer hits.

Down in Mexico we plowed 2 cows on the highway in an OBS Ford Super Duty. We got lucky in that it didn't blow the radiator, but it did crack the aftermarket trans cooler. We were able to re-route the trans lines through the OEM cooler built into the radiator. We all agreed that if it was any of the newer trucks in our group it would've been disabled due to all the coolers that would've been damaged. Grill guards serve a purpose when smashing animals. Sure, your body work will still get damaged, but the grill guard might be the protection that allows you to drive home.

 

[slowtwitch73]

Guaranteed expense up front, guaranteed hit to mileage, guaranteed extra wear and tear on front end, guaranteed heavier steering for the possibility it *may* help (may not) in a fairly unlikely scenario.

Your trucks may have faired the same without the guards... sometimes its worse having them as the animal gets stuck to the front instead of bouncing off to side, under etc.

That's my take on em. Get off my lawn.

 

[SteveH-CO]

Guaranteed expense up front, guaranteed hit to mileage, guaranteed extra wear and tear on front end, guaranteed heavier steering for the possibility it *may* help (may not) in a fairly unlikely scenario.

Yes, and this truck has 262K on the original engine and transmission, and the trunnion bearings in the front end are still original and smooth. It will take more than 75 additional pounds on the front end to kill the suspension. Mileage? I get 11-12 most of the time, and 14-15 on the highway at low speeds. And a remarkable 4.78 MPG offroad on Black Bear pass. I measure my fun in smiles per gallon ;-)

 

[Michael B.]

Steve have you been to SAS?

 

[SteveH-CO]

Steve have you been to SAS?

Have not - it's a long drive, but would be fun.

 

[Michael B.]

I made it in 2018 but life has interrupted my plans every year since.

 

[mrvm]

Throw that **** in the recycle bin. Just a bunch of weight hangin off the front that does zero for performance or deer hits.

I’d agree if you’re referring to the cheap crappy non-ARB grill guards that mount onto the radiator support and easily bend on impact resulting in extra damage the hood, headlights and grill.