# Fabrication DIY videos?



## Alexander (Nov 6, 2020)

I am wondering if anyone has some suggestions on a youtuber or blog about fabrication? I am struggling a bit to come up with inspiration on how to make a bumper at home with basic tools. I attached a few photos so you get what I'm after


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## DPittman (Nov 6, 2020)

Well its not for a jeep but I've seen a few threads building bumpers for Xterra on thenewx.org site

If you are wanting to make a bumper as shown, that shouldn't be "too" hard.  It's when you get some funky angles and bends in it that get difficult for basic homeshop resources. 

I hoed and hummed about making a bumper for my rig (not a jeep) and decided that it was beyond my resources and skills to accomplish and ended up paying pretty dearly for a commercially made one.  I've always admired all the choices for aftermarket accessories for jeep (unlike my xterra).


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## Alexander (Nov 6, 2020)

I attached a picture of my front bumper. I don't actually think it is very good. The other two pictures are just some tube I could make the rear bumper out of. Ill check out that link you shared


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## YYCHM (Nov 6, 2020)

Man, you have lost me here.  Where are you now and where do you want to go????  Front bumper, back bumper and why?  


What's wrong about the one?


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## Alexander (Nov 6, 2020)

I have the steel front bumper installed and now I want to make a steel back bumper.


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## kevin.decelles (Nov 7, 2020)

I've only made bumpers for my 5th wheel trailers so I could support a receiver to tow a boat behind.  The bumper that comes w/Rv's is useless and not structure.  It typically comes down to how to attach to the frame -- advise starting there and working back..... how will it attach.

Once you do that, how would you get it off?  Or is it permanent?  Bolt on?  Weld?

We installed one of those towable kits on a Jeep Compass so it could be towed behind a Class-A motorhome.  The mounting was about 12 bolts to the frame, and the tow-links connect via tubing (round).  Very slick.  I like that.  I'd probably look to install the bumper so you have 2 or 3 pieces of pipe mounted to the jeep, and the bumper 'slips' over those and is bolted/pinned on.  

I don't have any go-to video blogs etc.,   only a classical 'farmer-engineering' background and lots of overbuilt, over-welded contraptions kicking around..... (but none that failed me!)


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## kevin.decelles (Nov 7, 2020)

Here is the brand of tow-bar we installed.... from a company called Blue-Ox.  Blue Ox

What impressed me with their design was that it was invisible once you removed the link....  a twist lock pin / D-pin was all there was.  Very slick.


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## Alexander (Nov 7, 2020)

https://knowledge.autodesk.com/supp...articles/Fusion-360-Free-License-Changes.html[/QUOTE]


kevin.decelles said:


> how will it attach.



Attaching it is easy there is some brackets attached to the frame that the plastic bumper was bolted to


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## YYCHM (Nov 7, 2020)

What is the machine on the right side in this image?

BTB - Your square tube bumper looks just fine to me.....  maybe paint it?


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## Alexander (Nov 8, 2020)

I am going to try milling a cut out for the spare tire. I would like to cut this free hand with a plasma cutter. But I don't have one and I would imagine you need a pretty big plasma cutter for this quarter inch steel? @Janger will your Everlast cut something like this out?


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## Alexander (Nov 8, 2020)

Results are clean. I wrote the program in Microsoft notepad to save time


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## DPittman (Nov 8, 2020)

Alexander said:


> Results are clean. I wrote the program in Microsoft notepad to save time


Man I dont think you could do a better job than that!


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## Tom O (Nov 8, 2020)

I have a plasma cutter ( freehand ) and I’m just a stones throw from you.


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## Alexander (Nov 8, 2020)

@Tom O thanks. I may take you up on that. This took a little longer than I wanted it to. But then again I am not a fabricator. I will weld 3 plates in here tomorrow for a cleaner look


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## Tom O (Nov 8, 2020)

Well if you need it just holler the most we have cut with it is 1” just to see! Lol


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## Janger (Nov 8, 2020)

I can’t get cuts with the plasma anywhere near that clean. Even with a guide. Even with a manual torch sled. You can’t pull the torch at the correct  and constant enough speed. It needs to be moved by a machine.


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## CalgaryPT (Nov 9, 2020)

Janger said:


> I can’t get cuts with the plasma anywhere near that clean. Even with a guide. Even with a manual torch sled. You can’t pull the torch at the correct  and constant enough speed. It needs to be moved by a machine.


You probably know this already John, and I agree that speed is the toughest thing to control manually. But do you notice any improvement with proper drag tips? I found I get a much more consistent cut with a vented drag tip, at least on the Hypertherm. A lot of plasma cutters ship with a standard tip that isn't intended to drag. They either expect you to hover above the plate magically with a tip better suited to mechanical torches, or deal with the back dross and accept poor results. The vents on drag tips minimize the back dross, and seem to help prevent the stalling of the tip due to the dross blowing back and making the tip jump.

No where near as pretty as CNC granted, but better than cheap tips not really intended for dragging.


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## Tom Kitta (Nov 9, 2020)

I have a plasma cutter and I am even closer then stone throw away. You don't need a lot of amps for 1/4" - my cheap Chinese unit struggles with 1/2" which it claims it should handle but stuff such as 1/4" or say 1/8" goes on smoothly. Of course not clean at all and slag etc. but works. 

My main issue with plasma cutting is its susceptibility to water. You better make sure its dry or strange things happen.


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## Janger (Nov 9, 2020)

CalgaryPT said:


> You probably know this already John, and I agree that speed is the toughest thing to control manually. But do you notice any improvement with proper drag tips? I found I get a much more consistent cut with a vented drag tip, at least on the Hypertherm. A lot of plasma cutters ship with a standard tip that isn't intended to drag. They either expect you to hover above the plate magically with a tip better suited to mechanical torches, or deal with the back dross and accept poor results. The vents on drag tips minimize the back dross, and seem to help prevent the stalling of the tip due to the dross blowing back and making the tip jump.
> 
> No where near as pretty as CNC granted, but better than cheap tips not really intended for dragging.
> 
> View attachment 11601



No I didn't know about that. I'm going to have to look into those tips further. Thanks Pete!


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## CalgaryPT (Nov 9, 2020)

Janger said:


> No I didn't know about that. I'm going to have to look into those tips further. Thanks Pete!


Sorry, should have taken pic with them side by side. Machine torch on left, drag tip on right. Oddly enough, a lot of plasma cutters come out of box with a variation of the one on the left. They are totally inappropriate for dragging and are meant to hover above the plate.

And to make matters worse, some bargin plasma torches are not even intended to drag—thus you may not be able to get drag tips for them. No way am I steady enough to hover at the same distance above the plate. Heck, even when I had my CNC I swear my G code shook when I wrote it


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## Tom O (Nov 9, 2020)

Mine came with the drag tip I also have the machine torch for it that has the normal type On it.


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## Tom O (Nov 9, 2020)

Tom Kitta said:


> I have a plasma cutter and I am even closer then stone throw away.


Really? Now I’m intrigued I’m just behind The Catholic school in DoverGlen.


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## Alexander (Nov 11, 2020)

I am slowly chipping away at my bumper. I am lucky enough to be able to borrow a really good plasma cutter so I am all set now. Today tacked some ends on. I feel I will trim the ends off and then finish welding it.


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## YYCHM (Nov 11, 2020)

Wow, you're making a fancy bumper.  Right on.

What's the machine on the left in the above image?


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## Alexander (Nov 11, 2020)

Glad I decided  to chop the ends off a bit.


YYCHobbyMachinist said:


> What's the machine on the left


Oh that is my MILLRITE manual mill nothing fancy.


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## Alexander (Nov 14, 2020)

I am still working on this. I definitely want to upgrade both my grinders. One is Mastercraft and the other is Power fist. They work ok but the vibration is annoying. I saw home depot has this

https://www.homedepot.ca/product/milwaukee-tool-15-amp-7-inch-9-inch-large-angle-grinder/1000730761
Any thoughts?


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## Chicken lights (Nov 14, 2020)

Depending on what you’re trying to accomplish, I prefer something like that for fabricating


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## Alexander (Nov 14, 2020)

Interesting. Am I right in guessing because it is small and light?


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## Chicken lights (Nov 14, 2020)

That’s part of it for sure. It fits a lot of places a large grinder won’t. It’s also adjustable for speed, which is nice. The flap disc does a very good job smoothing down welds without leaving grinder marks, if that makes sense


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## Alexander (Nov 18, 2020)

My bumper is nearly finished. All I have left to do is fabricate the mounting brackets. This project took longer than I expected it to. It weighs about 78Lbs so it will need more mounting points than the stock bumper. Overall it was pretty fun. Lots of cutting and welding.


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## Chicken lights (Nov 18, 2020)

Sounds about right, the factory bumper I took off my little truck was probably 30 pounds or so, the one I put in weighs 95 pounds or so.

Those pockets for lights or steps?

Looking good!


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## Alexander (Nov 18, 2020)

Chicken lights said:


> Those pockets for lights or steps?


The holes are for these flush mounted reverse lights.


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## Tom O (Nov 18, 2020)

Nice looking bumper.


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## Everett (Nov 18, 2020)

Very nice job on this one, I used to work at a Chrysler/Jeep dealer and we did lots of accessorizing. Yours looks more pro than some of the commercial units we used!


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## CalgaryPT (Nov 19, 2020)

Alexander said:


> I am still working on this. I definitely want to upgrade both my grinders. One is Mastercraft and the other is Power fist. They work ok but the vibration is annoying. I saw home depot has this
> 
> https://www.homedepot.ca/product/milwaukee-tool-15-amp-7-inch-9-inch-large-angle-grinder/1000730761
> Any thoughts?


That's a big grinder. I think I have 6 grinders ranging from 3 to 7 inch, plus smaller air grinders. 7" is too big for me and I rarely (once every two years) use it. They are just too heavy unless you are building bridges, etc. My 2 cents worth Alex.... 

I'll take a high end, cord-powdered DeWalt. Milwaulkee, Makita, Bosche, 4.5" any day.


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## Dabbler (Nov 19, 2020)

I have a large bunch of 4" and 5" grinders and 3 (working) 6" grinders. 

On the 6" side, The Hitachi is built like a tank, but it is too heavy for longer use - but it is so heavy it doesn't vibrate much at all.  

The best heavy duty grinder I've used (And I've used Mikita, Dewalt, Hitachi and Porter Cable) is hands down the Dewalt 831.  It is powerful enough to do really heavy grinding, and it is light enough to use for hours.  

-- My (now dead) Mikita is from the 80s but it is heavy and wore out the brushes too fast.  My Porter Cable is from the 60s, and works  great but I don't think they make good products any more (they used to be among the best)


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## Alexander (Nov 19, 2020)

Everett said:


> Very nice job on this one, I used to work at a Chrysler/Jeep dealer and we did lots of accessorizing. Yours looks more pro than some of the commercial units we used!


Thanks. I don't like how all the aftermarket bumpers for the JL are built to accommodate 37" tires this bumper fits around the stock spare tire like the oem plastic bumper does. I think it looks better if I am only running stock tires on my 2020


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## Alexander (Nov 19, 2020)

CalgaryPT said:


> That's a big grinder. I think I have 6 grinders ranging from 3 to 7 inch, plus smaller air grinders. 7" is too big for me and I rarely (once every two years) use it. They are just too heavy unless you are building bridges, etc. My 2 cents worth Alex....
> 
> I'll take a high end, cord-powdered DeWalt. Milwaulkee, Makita, Bosche, 4.5" any day.


I did this whole job with my power fist 7" grinder. I prefer it because it removes material a little faster than a 4.5"


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## CalgaryPT (Nov 19, 2020)

Alexander said:


> I did this whole job with my power fist 7" grinder. I prefer it because it removes material a little faster than a 4.5"


Ahhhh....to be young and strong again


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## Chicken lights (Nov 20, 2020)

What’s a good way to make straight cuts in heavy wall metal? 
Without a plasma cutter or a shear


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## CalgaryPT (Nov 20, 2020)

Chicken lights said:


> What’s a good way to make straight cuts in heavy wall metal?
> Without a plasma cutter or a shear


Are you speaking of sheet, plate, tubing, angle iron...etc?


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## CalgaryPT (Nov 20, 2020)

Because you reference a shear, I'm going to assume you are cutting _sheet or plate_. If not, let us know. Wall makes me think tubing or pipe though, for which there are different options.

For sheet or plate: depending on thickness, a good quality jigsaw with the right blade and guide can do a really good job. The key is supporting it underneath so that it doesn't bind as the cut progresses. That can be tricky because the material bends and pinches off the blade, which dulls it until it fails. You'll know you did it wrong if the cut starts out beautifully, then fails as you progress; it's pinching the blade. Some guys find using two (not one) straight edges as guides and clamping them at both ends works. But if the length of cut is longer than about two feet, you need to find a way to clamp in-between the edge clamps. Without expensive commercial jigs, the best way to accomplish this is to use flat bar as guides on both sides of the cut and tack weld it along the sheet. I've never cut anything with a jigsaw over 1/8" (plate), and I find anything under 20 gauge doesn't work well either. 

If within throat specs a nice vertical bandsaw with a proper fence can do a terrific job. Of course over a practical size limit bandsaws are useless for an individual to handle.

Metal circular saws have their place. I don't own one, but I think @Janger does and may wish to comment. I suspect the same issue of support to prevent binding is key.

There are grinder attachments that run along a sheet and use a thin kerf cutoff wheel. From the ones I've seen the cut is so-so and requires cleanup.


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## Chicken lights (Nov 20, 2020)

CalgaryPT said:


> Are you speaking of sheet, plate, tubing, angle iron...etc?


For the project I’m thinking of, 1/2” plate and 3/8” wall tube or angle


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## Chicken lights (Nov 20, 2020)

CalgaryPT said:


> Because you reference a shear, I'm going to assume you are cutting _sheet or plate_. If not, let us know. Wall makes me think tubing or pipe though, for which there are different options.
> 
> For sheet or plate: depending on thickness, a good quality jigsaw with the right blade and guide can do a really good job. The key is supporting it underneath so that it doesn't bind as the cut progresses. That can be tricky because the material bends and pinches off the blade, which dulls it until it fails. You'll know you did it wrong if the cut starts out beautifully, then fails as you progress; it's pinching the blade. Some guys find using two (not one) straight edges as guides and clamping them at both ends works. But if the length of cut is longer than about two feet, you need to find a way to clamp in-between the edge clamps. Without expensive commercial jigs, the best way to accomplish this is to use flat bar as guides on both sides of the cut and tack weld it along the sheet. I've never cut anything with a jigsaw over 1/8" (plate), and I find anything under 20 gauge doesn't work well either.
> 
> ...


I was thinking of clamping angle iron as a guide and using cutting torches as I don’t have a plasma cutter

But then I’m also trying to figure out how to hold the pieces I want to cut while cutting 

I’ll post a couple pics in the morning when I have the pieces


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## CalgaryPT (Nov 20, 2020)

Chicken lights said:


> I was thinking of clamping angle iron as a guide and using cutting torches as I don’t have a plasma cutter
> 
> But then I’m also trying to figure out how to hold the pieces I want to cut while cutting
> 
> I’ll post a couple pics in the morning when I have the pieces


For plate that thick your practical DIY options are plasma or torch. I don't use O/A anymore but those torch guides on rails yield darn good results.


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## Chicken lights (Nov 20, 2020)

CalgaryPT said:


> For plate that thick your practical DIY options are plasma or torch. I don't use O/A anymore but those torch guides on rails yield darn good results.


“torch guides on rails”

Off to google. Thanks


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## Janger (Nov 20, 2020)

I do have a circular saw style metal cutting saw. It will cut 1/2” plate. The blade goes dull fast doing that though. It’s rated for 1/4”. Very good cuts with a straight edge like a piece of angle. It’s a evolution brand saw. The fancy blade and lower rpm is the key. Just a regular framing saw isn’t suitable for steel but you can aluminum like that. Material closing on the kerf can be a problem.


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## Alexander (Nov 25, 2020)

It is done. I am pretty happy with how it turned out. The back up lights are very bright. As you can probably see I welded some tow hooks onto each end of the bumper. This meant I had to mount the bumper with new brackets so it dosen't get pulled off during a recovery. In total there is fourteen bolts mounting the bumper to the frame in 4 places.


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## Brent H (Nov 25, 2020)

Well done!!!!  Looks better than factory!


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## DPittman (Nov 25, 2020)

Job well done. I'm sure that feels good.


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## Chicken lights (Nov 25, 2020)

That turned out great! 

I just had my lights wired up in my rear bumper. Two LED license plate lights, black to match the bumper. Then had the two lights in the bumper added to the light circuit for the two on the headache rack. Mine are wired to an aux switch though, I’m not using the reverse light circuit. I want them as work lights not dedicated reverse lights, if that makes sense 

Nice to see yours is finished too!


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## Janger (Nov 25, 2020)

What kind of paint did you use? Primer? coats? rattle cans or ? It does look great.


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## RobinHood (Nov 25, 2020)

That turned out very well. Now I have to add that to my list of things to do. The rear bumper on my truck is very rusty.


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## Alexander (Nov 25, 2020)

Janger said:


> What kind of paint did you use? Primer? coats? rattle cans or ? It does look great.


I used rocker guard, it is easy to touch up, easy to blend. Looks like allot of other aftermarket parts


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## Billy (Dec 17, 2020)

Alexander said:


> I am wondering if anyone has some suggestions on a youtuber or blog about fabrication? I am struggling a bit to come up with inspiration on how to make a bumper at home with basic tools. I attached a few photos so you get what I'm afterView attachment 11549


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