Looking for ideas - Stepside rear bumper

[JJorgensen52]

Originally Posted by JJorgensen52

My truck currently has the original rusty step bumper installed:


I like the utility of a step bumper, but I HATE this one because of the design - my plate is always getting bent / crushed, it collects a ton of dirt and debris from the bed, and it rattles against the back of the bed. Plus, it's so rotted the step is about to fall off it and I don't use the hitch now that I have a receiver.



I'm looking for ideas / pictures of different bumpers on stepsides - aftermarket, late model, anything different, really. Post up what you've got.

Side note, if anybody in the New England area has a painted sport bumper they'd like to get rid of, I've got an idea for a custom one but I need a bumper to work with.

**EDIT: Now that I've got an idea, this is a follow my crazy idea thread **

[BarryB]

In my opinion, I would get a factory style sport bumper.

[Shane]

I'm with barry b ... hard to beat the looks of a sport bumper on a stepper.

[mikey531]

Subscribed, I am looking for ideas too.

[special-K]

Although sport bumpers look the best,they are worthless from a truck (being used as a truck) point of view. Some sort of step bumper like you have is the way to go to aid in climbing into the bed from the rear and can resist damage way better. I'd remove it and trim it back from the body to allow for drainage and clear the body. If you welded up a frame work to support the inner edge it wouldn't bend very easily.

[bobs409]

My stepside had that bumper on when I got it and I hated it! They look terrible and I was always running my knee into it if I walked around the truck!

I went with the chrome sport type. I don't tow with mine so the sport bumper is good for me. I have the side steps if I need to get into the back.

[mgkgmc]

I seen a stepside in one of these threads with chevy colorado bumper mounted on it. It did not look that bad and if its mounted right you could probably tow a light load with it. Or you could go with the Ece hidden hitch on the sport bumper. Just some ideas
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[JJorgensen52]

I use this truck as a truck, so a step bumper is my #1 choice.

In doing a little looking around I have a pretty good idea of where I'm going to go with this; I'm going to keep it under wraps for the moment

[bollybib]

Originally Posted by JJorgensen52

....... I have a pretty good idea of where I'm going to go with this; I'm going to keep it under wraps for the moment

Cool. I like threads with an element of suspense.

[JJorgensen52]

Originally Posted by bollybib

Cool. I like threads with an element of suspense.

I am going to take this in a positive way ... either way, I'm not going to be able to illustrate or describe the idea in my head effectively, so I'm just going to wait until I actually start doing it to post details (pics )

[bollybib]

I look forward to seeing your solution. I didn't mean to sound sarcastic.

[JJorgensen52]

Originally Posted by bollybib

I look forward to seeing your solution. I didn't mean to sound sarcastic.

No harm done, other than feeling a bit **sheepish**

Stay tuned for updates.

[JJorgensen52]

Alright, I've got a line on a bumper to work with, but I'm going to try and describe what's running through my head:

Basically, I'm going to end up with a 2 piece rear bumper. I'm going to bolt the brackets on in the original location, then make an offset plate that bolts to the brackets and the bumper will bolt to the outside of that. I'm thinking about 3" of rearward offset but will know better once I mock it up. The offest plate will also support the "step", which is going to be a steel plate shaped to match the contour of the step bumper on the rear side, and the back of the bed on the front side. I'll probably end up with a slight offset between the edges to prevent rattles, etc.

A quick sketch is probably worth 100x what that ^ is.

[TheSeeker]

This looks/sounds really cool.. Almost lke the best of both worlds eh? Ill be excited to see it finished

[mpotts64]

howdy there again, I am also looking for different things, I have a aftermarket chrome rear step bumper off a '96 S10 that is straight across the top and the bottom bevels down from the outside to the center so the center is about 4" lower than the outsides. It is like 2-3 inches wider than the bed on each side and would have to adapt the arms to fit the frame but I can take some 1/4" plate metal, bend a 90 degree bend in it to bolt to the bottom of the frame and then bolt the arms to the side, I personally do not like the way many bumpers stick way out past the bed but this one would not stick out bad, anyway, I am pondering this situation, best of luck

[JJorgensen52]

Progress! Finally

Just ordered a set of brackets, should be able to get at least a start this week

[Keith Seymore]

Our '69 GMC had the step bumper; I believe it was the factory bumper (not from the dealership).

You can see it here; unfortunately this is the only picture I have of it.

K

[JJorgensen52]

^^^ That's a nice goat you've got there! Classic picture

Anyway, I do have an option on my SPID for "Rear Step Bumper EQ" - I thought the EQ stood for equivalent, and that the bumpers were region or dealer specific and installed upon delivery? I've never heard of a factory bumper before, though yours looks just like mine. And if anybody would know, I imagine you would!

[Keith Seymore]

Unfortunately - I do not remember.

I do still have the goat but not the truck

K

[JJorgensen52]

Once again there is going to be a serious lapse in progress

My unit is getting recalled because of this silly hurricane business, so I'll be gone for a bit.

I will finish this bumper at some point, seriously

[JJorgensen52]

Alright, progress, at last! I am going to pick up the remainder of the steel for the new bumper tomorrow and Thursday afternoon I'm going to start cutting and fitting

[Sammy]

Custom ideas for bumpers that are useful are great. Seen a custom bumper on a truck for sale on a 71 LB just the other day. Didn't snap a pic but it really was a lot of work and some serious thought went in to it.

[JJorgensen52]

Alright, started building today!




(this old bumper has to weigh close to 75lbs)


The top plate for this bumper is 14ga stainless steel (I had it cut/bent by my local sheetmetal supplier)


Now we run into a problem. I measured about 4 times to figure out how much offset I would need, then made myself offset brackets:

When I assembled it, turns out I was 2" off. Still can't figure out how that happened?

Anyway, here's the best solution I could come up with that didn't involve building entirely new brackets




Rough mockup for spacing (just using 2x4 blocks)


And here is where I stopped - started stitching support brackets to the stainless top plate


This is my first experience with welding stainless to mild - some research led me to purchase 309L-16 rod, which makes really pretty welds


More tomorrow Hopefully I will be able to get this at least 100% together tomorrow. Please excuse the bracketry, I haven't cleaned up any of the welds yet so they are still ugly...

[JJorgensen52]

This morning, got the rest of the bracketry laid out and tacked together:



Then, cleaned and painted:


And final result:






I think it's a good improvement over the old bumper

I am undecided as of right now if I'm going to leave the stainless bare (I'd at least brush finish it to remove the coloration) or if I'm going to do as planned and put a textured black finish on it - whether stick on non-skid or bedliner, don't know.

[tires2burn]

It looks like your really doing a good job on your bumper.I used a astro van bumper. I had to shorten it a little but it fits the lines of the back pretty good. I'll take a few shots of it tomorrow and try to post.