kkuntz01

Any bumper which has a tire carrier which opens independant of the rear gate will eventually encounter the problem of squeeking and rattling eventually, even with routine maintenance and adjustments. To avoid that problem you may want to explore companies that integrate their tire carriers in with the rear gate. The premise with this combo is the weight of your spare is carried by the arm of the carrier and the spindle on the bumper but bolts to the rear gate so as to eliminate any rattling. Another added benefit to this is if you need to get something from the back of your rig, you're not having to open the tire swing AND the rear gate as there they both open in one motion. To my knowledge there are only 3 companies that manufacture a bumper with this configuration, Expedition One, AEV and a 3rd which cannot be named due to being blacklisted for violating forum rules.

LoD has a nice set up, I've got their rear bumper w/o carrier that I have to install. If I were to go with a bumper with a carrier I'd go with one of the three I mentioned above.

kkuntz01

I've got both the front and rear from LoD. I actaully have install instructions for the rear but was he's got nothing available for the front . How much of a pain in the b-sack is it to bolt up the mid-width?

RevyJKU08

I just installed the rear 2 days ago and my mid-width about 3 weeks ago...I found the Mid-width much easier to install, no drilling!

Rear bumper is nice no rattles and you can adjust the pressure points to the rear gate to snug up to the tire carrier on the LoD and don't see any issues with rattles down the road. The lights will be a pain in the ass when the bulb burns out. or have wiring issues as you will have to remove the whole damn bumper off to gain access to the lights. However, it is one well built bumper and still very pleased with my purchase.

mmacJK

Hey

Midwidth front has a write up on this website somewhere (which i didnt know about till well after i had installed it). Ill try and avoid my rant about spending 1K on something and not getting instructions.... unreal...

Anyway, the front midwidth isnt too bad unless you are installing a winch. then it gets a whole hell of alot more complicated and since there is no indication of what to do first, it is highly annoying.

Hoopa70

its very easy, especially if you've already done the rear and have an idea of how things go. I did mine in under an hour and most of that was just popping the old one off. I remember the air dam kind of sucked, and wiring for the factory fogs was a bit of a challenge. It's been a while since I did mine, but i remember the wires being on the short side and i had to get creative to make them work.

kkuntz01

We'll see how thing go with install, I'll have to dig around to find info on the front bumper install just to have an idea what we're getting ourselves into.

As for carrier rattle, my understanding is that any company whose carrier swings away independant of the gate will eventually have problems. The problem tends to be in the handle mechanism that locks the carrier into place. Over time the little parts that lock it into place begin to wear giving it more play causing the noises. If you keep on it and maintain in properly by greasing and adjusting it, you'll of course have few issues but at some future point that handle will need to be replaced. Mind you this characterization isn't a knock against the design or manufacturer as it's been around for a decade or two . The other approach I mentioned I think is an innovative approach to killing two birds with one stone, not having to make two pulls to get at things in the back of your rig and any squeeks and rattles from the carrier.

mmacJK

yup, For the stock fog lights to be wired into the front LoD midwidth you have to extend the wiring. took me like 10 minutes.

deekum1627

you you pm me a good site with these man thanks

kkuntz01

Did I already do this or are you asking me to do this?

deekum1627

haha sorry can you thanks