Oh, those rocker panels.
The rock magnets of your vehicle. Each of us has cringed at the
shrieking sound of granite and metal becoming one. No longer! These
vulnerable areas of your rig can now be guarded by Off Your Rocker's
steel rocker panel protectors. The 3/16" diamond plate runs the
full length of the rocker panel from wheel well to wheel well.
There
are many varieties of rocker panel protectors available. "Nerf
Bar" type guards offer good protection by bolting to the frame, but
take away valuable ground clearance, and have been known to bind upward
into the rocker area anyway. Angle iron and aluminum rocker panel
reinforcements work well, but don't always look clean or support the
entire weight of the vehicle. The OYR panels surpass all protection
offered by these other types of protectors. They conform tightly to the
rocker panel, so thee is no loss of clearance. The panels are offered in
silver or black powdercoat, and diamond plate or flat, so matching then
to your vehicle is easy. Lastly, the panels are made of thick, high
grade steel, so a Hi-Lift jack (or big boulder, whichever you prefer)
can easily support the vehicle under the OYR panel. Without a doubt
people, this is the real stuff!
My
first impression of the product came when talking to Dan Duffy, owner of
Off Your Rocker, over the internet. He asked about my vehicle and it's
color, and suggested the black wrinkle diamond plate. He answered all
questions I had and was extremely friendly.
When the box arrived, I nearly dropped it! Heavy duty is definitely the
correct term here. Opening the box, I found the panels tightly packaged
together, with Styrofoam and all small parts in between where they all
fit and stayed put during shipping. The panels were packaged back to
back, so the faces of each would not get scraped by the other.
The
black wrinkle finish was beautiful. I scratched my fingernail across it
and knew immediately how strong and durable the finish would be. Project
Trail J had not arrived yet, so I had to imagine how good the panels
would look. Picking up one panel and looking over the workmanship, it
was clear that these were designed by someone who knew what they were up
against.
Installation
I
took the liberty to deviate from the instructions (which are very clear
and explanitory) a bit. I bought a can of spray on rubberizing
"paint". I sprayed about eight coats on the back side of each
panel, after masking off 1/4" of each edge. I do wish that I had
gotten the brush on, which would have given a thicker coating I think,
but the spray worked well. I lightly sanded the surface, removing a bit
of powder and scuffing it, then sprayed away. Once dry, I cut the edge
of the mask and pulled it, leaving a nice thin rubber coating over most
of the inside of the panel. This, along with some silicone sealer,
should help keep rust away by creating a barrier between the metal of
the panel, and the metal of the Jeep. I also scuffed and painted the
bolts with the black rubberizing paint, so they will blend in with the
panels.
Unbolt and remove fender flares (5/16" socket). I removed 2
bolts from the rear flares and 4 from the fronts. I also planned to
not reinstall the small flare behind the front wheel wells.
Clamp the OYR panels to the vehicle (I used woodworking clamps
with rubber grips to protect the surface). I clamped the outside of
the panel in front, and the underside of the panel to a small tab on
the body in the back (see picture).
Once panels are correctly placed, mark holes to drill with pencil.
I evenly spaced the marks in two rows, about 9" apart along the
panel (watch for body tub supports and obstructions to holes before
drilling) I used a T-square to mark all along the panel so each line
of bolts would be even. I also marked the 2nd panel at this time, so
I had the line even on both panels. I ended up using the three bolts
that hold on the small flare as supports, along with 10 supplied
bolts on each side, and the fender flare bolts.
Remove panel from vehicle and drill holes with 1/4" bit
(drill press was alot quicker than drill). For flare bolts, use a
3/8" bit to drill out enough for the head of the nutserts.
Touch up the surface of each hole with black paint to help deter
rust. *(The rubberizing paint saved me some time here. I was about
to measure where to drill for the nutsert heads, and when I pulled
the panel off, the heads of the nutserts had marred the rubberized
coating when clamped on, leaving a clear mark where to drill).
Again clamp the panels to the body and position them correctly.
Apply masking tape to vehicle about right at the top edge of the
OYR panel.
Using holes in panels as a guide, drill through body of vehicle.
Remove OYR panels and apply medium layer of silicone to the back
of the panels. Also apply silicone to all holes drilled in body
after de-burring them.
Hold panels up to the body and push 1/4" stainless cap screws
through OYR panel and body.
Tighten all bolts evenly with 5/32 allen wrench.
Some silicone will squeeze out after the bolts are tightened. Run
your finger along the edge to smooth out the extra silicone and
create a seal around the edge of the OYR panel. Apply more silicone
where needed to create a seamless caulk line.
After silicone dries for 15 minutes, remove masking tape to reveal
a perfect caulk line.
Replace fender flares. Use original hardware to reattach flares.
Apply masking tape along the body and the edge of the flare where
the OYR panel creates a gap between the flare and the body.
Squeeze a bead of silicone into the gap, smoothing it with your
finger.
After about 15 minutes, remove the masking tape to leave a clean
line filling the gap.
Installation took about an
5 hours by myself. It was not a problem, the instructions were clear and
helpful, but took longer than I thought. Trust me, it was painful
drilling into a 2 day old Jeep! I ran into some problems wondering where
to drill. I had marked out all holes for mounting, then realized that a
few of them would be inaccessible from the inside. I decided that I
would just insert a bolt and silicon it in the hole so it looked like it
was in use. I don't feel this takes away from the stability of the
panel. With 15 screws in each side, they aren't moving.
The rubber paint peeled off the screws, so I'll brush over them with
flat black this week. Siliconing the edges was a bit messy on the first
one, but went good on the second. I ran out of silicon, so I will be
retaping and sealing the edges again later this week.
As you can see, the panels look excellent! After a run to the Ramsey
trail in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, I am convinced I made the right
choice in rocker panel protection. The panels held their own while
scraping past a few rocks. With a one-month old Jeep, I was a bit timid
at first, but once I saw the OYR panel dig into a rock, I was confident
the rest of the trip.
Twice I was climbing a ledge, only to find myself planting my driver
side rocker quite close to a metal hungry rock. As I inched up the
ledge, I contacted granite both times. I slid along with the OYR panel
against the rock, watching out the window. A quick once over afterward
revealed that the rock had been chipped away by the thick steel of the
Off Your Rocker panel, and the panel had a few minor scratches and some
chalky rock dust. A quick wipe of the hand and a bit of flat black when
I returned home, and the panels looked as good as new.
I highly recommend the Off Your Rocker panels to anyone
serious about rock crawling, they will save your rig, and your wallet!
Off Your Rocker Panels Dept. ORC PO Box 462 Half Moon Bay, CA. 94019 650-726-3008 Tel/FAX geepn@aol.com
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There
are many varieties of rocker panel protectors available. "Nerf
Bar" type guards offer good protection by bolting to the frame, but
take away valuable ground clearance, and have been known to bind upward
into the rocker area anyway. Angle iron and aluminum rocker panel
reinforcements work well, but don't always look clean or support the
entire weight of the vehicle. The OYR panels surpass all protection
offered by these other types of protectors. They conform tightly to the
rocker panel, so thee is no loss of clearance. The panels are offered in
silver or black powdercoat, and diamond plate or flat, so matching then
to your vehicle is easy. Lastly, the panels are made of thick, high
grade steel, so a Hi-Lift jack (or big boulder, whichever you prefer)
can easily support the vehicle under the OYR panel. Without a doubt
people, this is the real stuff!
