Enthusiast I
Bolt on vs welded slidders
- Thread starter James R
- Start date
Advocate III
- 5,584
- First Name
- Michael
- Last Name
- Rose
- Member #
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20990
- Ham/GMRS Callsign
- W7FSB
- Service Branch
- US ARMY Retired
Enthusiast III
^^ This. Sliders are somewhat of a wearable component. I have sanded down and re-painted mine many times but at some point in time there wont be enough to keep the body safe and they will need to be changed out.
madcratebuilder
Rank V
Pathfinder I
Most well say that weld on are stronger. There are bolt on sliders that seem to support the vehicle weight with no problem. Both can bend, both need maintenance like painting. My Colorado has bolt on stainless steel sliders, I can use a Hi Lift on the sliders to jack the truck up with no flex. GM did a good engineering job on the mounting.
Traveler I
Skids and sliders are sacrificial parts. If they are used they will need to be replaced. The ability to do that at home with a wrench is what matters to me
Off-Road Ranger I
A jeep buddy of mine has a bolt together roll cage in his jeep. When I asked him why he went that route, he said that bolt together was guaranteed to be stronger than his “welds”. Unless you are a proficient welder I’d vote for bolt on.
Red_Leaf_Overland
Rank V
Advocate III
Bolt together cages are almost the same price if not cheaper than a well built car that can be bought and put together on your own if you don't have a bender. I'm a welder and I still went with a bolt together cage lol.
Boostpowered
Rank VI
Member III
The strength of the weld can be questionable the shear strength of a lap weld is reduced 60% from whatever wire fillers strength is rated.
Say if your using a filler that's rated at 70,000 psi it would only be rated to about 28,000 psi. This Is with lap weld technique which is likely what would be used to weld sliders to the frame, think welding a plate on top of a larger plate. Heat from welding can compromise the strength of your frame or even warp it if done wrong. To remove a weld on one is a major pain, they are best left to harcore rock crawlers and trail rigs that already have cages and exoskeletons welded on where its not a big deal to grind, cut and weld on a whim.
Now with bolt on you should be using 1/2" grade 8 bolts which will have a shear strength of around 60,000psi each and each leg should take 4 to 5 bolts x 3 to 4 legs
Right out of the box grade 8 will handle heavy duty abuse they are alot easier to replace when broken especially on the trail.
Supposedly it's easier to sell a vehicle with bolt on sliders since they are removable.
In the end it is personal choice. if you can weld or know someone you trust to do it just make sure you using some quality wire go slow and you'd be fine. Personally I like bolt on because I know for sure what the shear strength is for the mounting at least and if the slider itself breaks it is easier to remove a slider and repair or redo it and bolt back on.
Say if your using a filler that's rated at 70,000 psi it would only be rated to about 28,000 psi. This Is with lap weld technique which is likely what would be used to weld sliders to the frame, think welding a plate on top of a larger plate. Heat from welding can compromise the strength of your frame or even warp it if done wrong. To remove a weld on one is a major pain, they are best left to harcore rock crawlers and trail rigs that already have cages and exoskeletons welded on where its not a big deal to grind, cut and weld on a whim.
Now with bolt on you should be using 1/2" grade 8 bolts which will have a shear strength of around 60,000psi each and each leg should take 4 to 5 bolts x 3 to 4 legs
Right out of the box grade 8 will handle heavy duty abuse they are alot easier to replace when broken especially on the trail.
Supposedly it's easier to sell a vehicle with bolt on sliders since they are removable.
In the end it is personal choice. if you can weld or know someone you trust to do it just make sure you using some quality wire go slow and you'd be fine. Personally I like bolt on because I know for sure what the shear strength is for the mounting at least and if the slider itself breaks it is easier to remove a slider and repair or redo it and bolt back on.
Weld on sliders are almost always lighter, preserving payload capacity.
Weld on sliders can be positioned higher up in some cases, preserving ground clearance.
Bolt ons can be removed.
Getting sliders welded on can be expensive if you don't do the work yourself.
I've had two sets of bolt ons and one set of weld on sliders on my various trucks and all have held up fine when wheeled hard enough to dent the tubes.
Weld on sliders can be positioned higher up in some cases, preserving ground clearance.
Bolt ons can be removed.
Getting sliders welded on can be expensive if you don't do the work yourself.
I've had two sets of bolt ons and one set of weld on sliders on my various trucks and all have held up fine when wheeled hard enough to dent the tubes.
