Alumi-more! (was Alumi-less)

[Ultrasport12]

Could you maybe have someone near you make a steel version of your swing out?
Or maybe straighten yours in a press cut it at one end and put a steel tube inside the weld it back up?
I would think the bumper and only two mounts would be strong enough to hold it and the steel tire swing would be stronger...
Seems to me the weak link might be the vertical aluminum tubing...
I would just look for a fab shop and see what they think...

...Jamie

[Zeta]

Originally Posted by Tapatio

Did the added weight of fuel and sand ladders cause it?

Also, as you can see in the picture, the tire is already leaning down indicating the carrier was bent when I installed the goodies.

Still, my point stands: The aluminum isn't up to use in a heavy duty rig.

Z

[notmiller]

I've been considering getting this rear bumper, but maybe I won't now. I had seen some of the complaints mentioned before, but a lot of them were from a few years ago and assumed/hoped that Aluminess had updated the design based on these reported flaws. It looked like they had made other improvements based on complaints. Looks like I'm wrong if your bumper really isn't that old. I'm now considering maybe buying the base aluminum bumper and then bolting on some custom steel swingouts. And like you mentioned, I'm really surprised that they don't use tapered roller bearings like the heavy duty steel swingouts many other 4x4 aftermarket companies use.

They do support the vertical hinge post in double shear, which is a plus, unlike most manufacturers who just do single shear.

[Ultrasport12]

I wish these guys would make van bumpers, even from steel....

http://www.sleeoffroad.com/products/100 ... r_dual.htm

I have seen these a few times in person and they are extremely well made...
The pivot part is a pair of bearings and the little details are great, like the stainless steel part for the build in pin lock, no worn paint and no lost pins. Also the built in ladder, jack and can holders are sweet...
If I had the money right now I would be on the phone begging them to build a pair for my van...

[Ford_6L_E350]

Tom, I had the same kind of failure on my Aluminess tire carrier. I wound up with a 1/2" bolt (threads into the rotating carrier) and oilite bushings on the stationary parts. No more threads rotating on aluminum to cause wear.

Mike

[tomesd]

No issues with ours whatsoever. We have a 35" on one side and a fully loaded deluxe box and 50lbs worth of mountainbikes on the other without so much as sag.

[Gnarvan]

Tom

How many miles did you have on the bumper before you installed the hard plastic guides between the bumper and the bottom of the swingarm to help support the weight? I'm wondering how much the extra up and down movement and vibration contributed to your failure. I'm also wondering when Aluminess added these plastic sliders to their design. My new rear bumper came with them.

Like you, I don't really like the design of the pivot point bolt attatchment. That is one feature that Aluminess should look at. I also think they should come up with a better way to secure the two swing arms together at the bottom to help eliminate swing arm movement.

Aluminum can be used for this application it just needs to be designed properly with all the different stresses factored in. If it takes a thicker wall aluminum tube to keep it from bending so be it, go thicker. I'll stick with the lightweight aluminum.

This is a picture of the hitch pin I'm using to connect the swing arms together. Any way to eliminate vibration or swinging weight when the swingarms are closed would improve the design.

[Zeta]

I added the support blocks earlier this year--maybe at the same time I did the EZ Rack.

I think I'm just going to use it as is until another issue surfaces, then completely rebuild the rear bumper with a heavy duty steel inner structure that would support swing arms with a huge bearings like Rock Slide does on their Jeep carriers: http://tinyurl.com/7z2ux9s , then use the Aluminess bumper as essentially a decorative cover.

I like much about the Aluminess stuff: they look cool, the storage box in the bumper is great etc.. They just don't last.

Z

[Zeta]

Originally Posted by Gnarvan

This is a picture of the hitch pin I'm using to connect the swing arms together. Any way to eliminate vibration or swinging weight when the swingarms are closed would improve the design.

Does that pin pull the arms tightly together?

Z

[Gnarvan]

I wouldn't say the pin pulls the swingarms together but it is a snug fit. I was actually pretty impressed the holes lined up as well as they do. Aluminess must have a jig setup to give them the exact points to either drill the holes or locate the predrilled pieces before they weld them together.

Having the bottoms of the swing arms attached together with the pin helps minimize the ability of the swing arms to vibrate and move around withing the limits of the bottom latches.

Edit to add

The pin was a 1/2" farm hitch pin I picked up at Lowes. I did have to cut some of the length off the pin. I was a little worried the pin would bounce out and get lost. As snug as it fits it hasn't left the building yet.