best rear receiver bumper?

[N8N_99xj]

well, I'm selling my pickup truck, so I need to have a hitch on my XJ. Rather than buying just a hitch and adding it on I was thinking of getting an off-road bumper with receiver. But I will likely be using it for towing a utility trailer more often than going off road so strength and manufacturer certification is important. JCR Offroad says on their web site that their bumper can tow the full rated capacity of the vehicle. Any better/less expensive options, or is that where it's at?

Seems to me that if a hitch is $200ish and a bumper is $400ish it'd be nice to just get the bumper for increased ground clearance, better looks, etc.

I do have a factory gas tank skid so I shouldn't need anything else to make this work, right? (this is a '99 BTW, mostly stock except for some lighting upgrades and added accessories. Mild lift is planned for the vague future, but that's probably about it. Maybe a swap to a 242 xfer case if I can find someone going the other way, for better bad-weather on road driving ability.)

 

[VAhasnoWAVES]

i have run into this dilema....

the JCR bumper uses the factory bumper brackets, and a "tie in bracket" which is a thin strip of metal that uses 1 or 2 of the nut strip. while this may be able to take a pull, idk if i would trust it for tongue weight.

youll likely want to build something yourself, something that sleeves the frame rail and replaced the nut strip.

 

[KTMqdracer]

I havent seen how it exactly mounts for the rear bumper, but the mounting system for the front of Rigidco bumpers seems pretty stout. Dirtbound offroad makes a rear bumper with unibody tie in brackets. Theres a pic of how his mounts somewhere on here...

 

[N8N_99xj]

i have run into this dilema....

the JCR bumper uses the factory bumper brackets, and a "tie in bracket" which is a thin strip of metal that uses 1 or 2 of the nut strip. while this may be able to take a pull, idk if i would trust it for tongue weight.

youll likely want to build something yourself, something that sleeves the frame rail and replaced the nut strip.

Mmm. That's exactly the kind of feedback i was looking for. Do you think i could get away with making a beefier tie in? Don't have the ability to fab a whole bumper in my current situation

 

[N8N_99xj]

I havent seen how it exactly mounts for the rear bumper, but the mounting system for the front of Rigidco bumpers seems pretty stout. Dirtbound offroad makes a rear bumper with unibody tie in brackets. Theres a pic of how his mounts somewhere on here...

I'll call both tomorrow, thanks!

 

[Wil Badger]

Rigidco makes the best attaching rear bumper receiver there is......

RuggedJeep write up

subframe

subframe and other brackets installed

plus it's a good looking bumper.

So that's 18 bolts holding the bumper/brackets to the vehicle and 11 bolt hold the bumper to the brackets

 

[N8N_99xj]

Nice. Someone ought to tell them (Rigidco) that their website sucks, they don't even list rear bumpers there. But they've definitely just been bumped up to the top of my list (depending on price of course.) thanks for the pointer. Will definitely be calling next week.

Edit: just got into the writeup you linked. Won't fit with gas tank skid? That really sucks... hope they've fixed that, because I did not want to sacrifice the skid, nor have to buy a different one.

 

[GordoSmasho]

Im sure you can make it fit. But a factory skid plate doesn't really offer a huge amount of protection. If you come down on it hard it will just bend up and crush the tank above it. About all it protects against is punctures.

 

[N8N_99xj]

It's better than nothing at all, which is what I'd have... since DPG apparently doesn't have any to purchase in any case But this is all academic until I call Rigidco, because there isn't any info at all on Rigidco's web site, however the pics above look very, very nice indeed. I don't even really want a tire carrier just a strong bumper that can do double duty as a real trailer hitch not a fashion accessory. Hanson looks good too but goodness, $750 for a bumper with just a receiver and D-ring tabs? I don't see that happening...

 

[Lurch]

Seems to me that if a hitch is $200ish and a bumper is $400ish it'd be nice to just get the bumper for increased ground clearance, better looks, etc.

If you're solely concerned on towing ability, you can easily score a used hitch for under $50. I think one just sold in our chapter for $15 or something.

That said, the RigidCo is the best looking rear bumper I've seen. Hanson runs a close second but is $$$.

 

[Wil Badger]

He is a retired guy who builds bumpers and sliders for the XJ community only. His son is the one that was doing the web site for him and has sinced gone to college and is no longer around to help him with that. His prices are the best around considering you also get all the hardware to mount it as well as very detailed instructions. No having to search around the hardware stored to get the proper bolts. He sells several different versions of the rear bumper. He has it without the tire carrier as well. He also has them with the quarter panel protection if you have cut them for better clearance. The only problem with Terry is that he is retired and does this as a side project all by himself. He gets backed up with orders and it can take a while to get your bumper. But I think they are well worth the wait. I have never heard anybody complain about the build quality or stoutness of his bumpers. As for the skid plate, I'm going to say it will work with the stock one without an issue. It was the aftermarket one that he had that wouldn't work with it.

All his rear bumpers and options

And going through the pictures he has a folder labeled factory skid mod......so. He is also willing to talk to you and make any changes you may want to the bumper.

 

[N8N_99xj]

ah... thanks for clearing that up. So I can't be so hard on him about the web site but I bet he'd sell a lot more stuff (although it sounds like he may not want to) if it were improved.

this right here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rigid/1166280004/in/set-72157601539294145/

is exactly what I would love to have, just if I were assured it was beef (and it sounds like it certainly is) and would allow me to keep skid plate (and from link you posted maybe it's just a little trimming on the skid? I'd be OK with that; I don't have a welder though.) I'll definitely call him, don't want to bother him over a weekend though.

 

[souske]

How tall is your XJ? One thing to consider is most reciever bumpers have the reciever much higher than the stock hitch location, requiring a longer drop for the hitch ball.

 

[N8N_99xj]

not tall at all, hence more concern about ground clearance. I had to back the pickup truck into the driveway at my last place, and at an angle at that, for just that reason. Would be nice to avoid "special instructions" like that. Somewhere I have an adjustable-drop thing for a Class 3 hitch, so that is not a real concern.

 

[souske]

My gas tank would likely be down to 10gal capacity if the hitch wasn't there to take the big hits.
For ultimate strength, sleeving the unibody, and bolting a plate underneath where the stock hitch woulg go can't be beat. Don't forget to pick up the two holes in the rear x-member as well.

 

[NCCherokee]

I have the rigid rear bumper. I actually had cracks develop from towing with a poorly designed homebrew bumper. It was basically a bar with the stock points and a flat strip picking up 3 hitch attachment points on each side. Tongue weight caused it to flex and stress the rear cross member. That was the main reason I avoided JCR and went with rigid. that and I have their front bumper and love it.

We welded up the cracks, and I actually copied Foxwar's design with the mounts. I cut out the nut strip access hole in both rails, and slid a 2x4 steel tube in there, about 18-20" long. Welded nutstrips inside that picked up all the hitch mount points. That 2x4 was welded to the back of the rigid brackets for extra peace of mind.

If I hadn't had the cracks, I probably wouldnt have bother, but we were fixing them anyways, so I decided to beef it up even more. I did run it for a few months with the cracks, and the standard RigidCo mounting system before we fixed it all. It was solid. This past month, I have had my dad's 2005 Correct Craft Ski Nautique with wakeboard tower. Towed it to the lake every couple of days, and had no concerns with the bumper. Felt solid. My old bumper would deflect downwards with that tongue weight, and you could actually see it move.

 

[Wil Badger]

My guess would be that you are trimming the rear corner of the skid plate to clear the two lower bolts on the subframe

And yes I agree the best thing for mounting is a section of 2x4 slide down inside the frame rail but as he said he doesn't have a welder and most don't so bolt on is their only option and as far as bolt on his stuff rocks....Anything can be modified to be better but for some out of the box is the only way to go.

As for having to back something in at funny angle and having to get instructions from somebody you could always look into his from receiver bumper as well. It is built with the same quality and beef. I ran one on the front of my XJ . You might be able to get a better deal if you order both???? Never know.

 

[N8N_99xj]

yup, that's exactly the deal... I *can* weld but due to personal circumstances I no longer have my own place and my dad has my welder and is 5 hours away... All work will be done outside in the driveway. Anyway, I just got off the phone with the Rigidco guy and he's supposed to be sending me a price list and I'm sorely tempted - from talking to him I have a better feeling about his stuff than anyone else's I've seen yet. Yeah it's a couple hundred bucks more than just buying a new trailer hitch, but I have to admit to some vanity, I like my ride to look good. Plus when you live in NoVA the possibility of getting rear-ended by some idiot is not inconsiderable. Tempted to get a front bumper too just to balance it out Don't know if I will get enough money from the truck to justify two bumpers *and* the lift I wanted though. (will look silly with 235s, but unless I get a deal, tires won't happen until winter at the earliest...)

BTW he said that it is not all skid plates that have an interference issue only some. At one point I was looking under the heep while talking to him and he said there were several different designs of late model skid plates; when I described mine to him he said that he didn't think I would have to do anything other than cut the ends off my nut strips (where they stick out of the rear bulkhead) so that I can definitely handle.

Anyway, thanks for the pointer, I would have never bothered to call Rigidco based on the web site but after talking to the guy and seeing the pics posted I think that's the way I'm probably going to go unless the money doesn't work.

 

[NCCherokee]

Terry is the man and will do you right. When I got my rear, he let me pay in installments. $100 deposit to get the build started, and then $50 here, $100 there. It was fine with me cus it can take a couple months anyways cus his products are so popular. This way it was ready when I was ready to make the final payment.