chapmans

I'm leaning towards a PSC Brawler Lite right now... Seems to be a very well designed and highly recommended bumper. You can get it for a pretty good price right now on a few websites just do some digging...

Baddkarmaracing

Rock slide engineering can be had in steel or aluminum to keep weight down. I had one of their aluminum ones on my raptor and hit some stuff pretty hard and no damage.

Da10A

If you live where roadsalt is used in the winter, you better choose wisely, for steel bumpers will look good until winter comes, and within a few months of roadsalt will look like absolute crap, powdercoated or not.

So if you go ahead with steel, seriously consider having it linex'd prior to installation.

TJM use to makes a stainless steel bullbar.

Sent from a nearby galaxy...

Littlejon

What are you looking for in a front bumper? Do you want full width, mid-width, stubby? Winch mount on top of bumper, or between frame rails? These questions will help guide you on what bumper is best for your needs.

In my opinion the AEV bumper is one of the cleanest looking full width bumpers, and their powder coat holds up about the best of any I have seen to date. At the same time it does come with a price premium, especially compared to the Smitty Built you were looking at.

blackop4hire

I like the look of at least a mid width if not full width. I think it looks clean when the winch sits between the frame rails and I also want to retain the fog lights. I've heard bad things about aev so I haven't really considered them

EOD

mikesoffroad

I love my PSC bumpers

v8zracer260z

I'd disagree with the Smittybilt not being functional or being able to take a hit. I had a MOD bumper on my 2011 when I was hit head on by a vehicle doing freeway speed and walked away. The bumper barely had a scratch on it. There was one weld on the stinger that had a small crack and that was it. I was so impressed I bought a new MOD bumper for my 13 rubicon. Looks great and very functional on the trails too.

ShutterBug

Ditto. I have a JCR Dagger Stubby with Prerunner on the front. My rear is on order - a Crusader midwidth.

Super clean welds. They had it powder coated for me at a reasonable cost. Powder coat looks good and seems pretty thick.

Great company, too. These aren't my ACTUAL bumpers, but they are the models I have/will have.

DunnyBunny

Right they are functional. Not sure why people hate on them. Only thing really I don't like about them is the paint job. Other than that they are just fine for most people and circumstances.

ShutterBug

Because they aren't made in the USA. Chinabilt. No other reason.

The thing is, since they have to survive an ocean voyage, the powder coat is usually something a lot heavier than what you find in US made products. Especially those made in the southwest. OR-FAB powder coats their products, but it is very thin and fails in winter climates where road salt is used - mine did. Which is why OR-FAB has them now and I am switching to JCR - made in Michigan.

I have no problems with Smittybilt. They make decent products. Some will argue that the fitment isn't perfect, but then neither are some US made products. I've seen powder coat flake on Smittybilt, too.

Buy the bumper you like that has the features you want. But be willing to keep a rattle can of paint handy just in case. For me, I wanted stubby, factory fogs, skid plate, 100% bolt on, relocation of vacuum pump NOT necessary, pre-runner and winch ready. JCR fit the bill perfectly.