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Gas tank skid

J

jeeper01

NAXJA Forum User
Location
North Carolina
I am trying to design a gas tank skid for myself. Does anyone have anything I should take into consideration before I begin planning I want to make sure I know everything. I am using 1/8" steel and I am planning on welding it all not bending.
 
jeeper01 said:
Does anyone have anything I should take into consideration before I begin planning I want to make sure I know everything.
Click to expand...

Yes-- OEM gas tank skids are tough, cheap, and readily available. Designing your own tank skid would be slow and expensive. Unless you cannot use a stock piece--different tank or something-- I would check out a salvage yard before tackling this project.
 
I've seen the stock skids and I don't know how much they would help over a real skid. Proably better then the plastic piece I have but....on second though I should take a look at a stock plate. Been awhile since I've seen one. Bending it would be better if you can, roll the edges and box it in with aprox. 1-2" sides. Not much too it really.
 
Mine is 3/16 plate. Flat under the tank then bent at an angle up to the bumper I made as well. The bumper has tabs on it that I drilled an tapped to hold the bumper. 2 arms going to the unibody in the front where angle is bolted to spread the load. If I had a digital camera and could figure out how to post the pictures I would. I can borrow a camera if you like. This will hold up to anything. Put a floor jack under it and lifted up the whole Jeep. Built once and never have to mess with it. Salvage yard for steel. I spent less than $15.
 
It's very worth it to design and build your own skid.
This one, that I built about three years ago, cost about $30 in materials AND it's loads stronger than any skid that came from the factory.....
I think I used 1/8".

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You do have a hitch, right?
 
Okie...is that just welded to the hitch. That's simple...and really nice.
 
Yeah, it's just welded inside and along the tube you see.
It is mounted to the XJ by the bolts that hold the hitch.
 
Stocker skids are better than nothing. They'll take some moderate hits alright....however, I just totally bashed my stock skid in this weekend. Like you look at it from the back and it's totally bent in.

I think I may have to try Okie terry's solution...looks solid, and makes the design of the mounting and physically mounting the skid a whole lot easier!!
 
mjma said:
Stocker skids are better than nothing. They'll take some moderate hits alright....however, I just totally bashed my stock skid in this weekend. Like you look at it from the back and it's totally bent in.

I think I may have to try Okie terry's solution...looks solid, and makes the design of the mounting and physically mounting the skid a whole lot easier!!
Click to expand...

Consider if you beat it back out again you can add reinforcing strips and weld them on. Okies looks good but would not work here in the NE, you need to be able to get the mud out that gets scooped in there otherwise your tank gets smaller and smaller and smaller.
This is my factory skid, notice the channels next to the hook, lets me clean it out nicely
http://www.rjpsystems.com/rearhook.jpeg
 
My tank already is smaller and smaller and smaller!! and it's got holes in it for the mud to drain. The stock skid is pretty good for most, but doesn't really hold up well to guys like me that like to run big rock trails that I really have no business trying to run in the first place.

If you look at okies, he doesn't have anything in the front to prevent stuff from falling down in the front. With the amount of clearance he has, I doubt that protecting the front of the gastank is an issue. I guess you coudl also do a hole saw or two to in the bottom.

I've heard of the reinforcing option. I even have some 3/16 plate to do that with...but grinding that rubberized stuff off of the stock skid to weld onto is no fun!! I already did modify another stock skid...it's sitting in the basement...
 
Okie
got any demensions on that
I had been thinking of that exact fab but just have not spent the time to do it yet
now that I see a prototype I am ready to do it
 
Oh man....
Give me a few minutes......
I just basically took rough measurements of the tank from the hitch mounts.
Then I cut and cut and shaped a stencil out of cardboard and transferred it to metal.
The long welds, across the bottom are from where I ground seams and bent the sheet then laid a nice bead with a hobby welder to fill in and reinforce them.
Then, I just welded on the sides that I cut out.
Finally, I welded the whole thing to the hitch and painted it.

That skid has literally been the toughest thing on my thing.
Everything else on it has been bent or mangled, but that skid has only got scratches in the paint.

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I vote:
Best mod for a gas tank!:thumbup:
 
Thanks I will play around with it later this week
make your rock ring also?
and did you move your shock mounts got any pics of those?
need to do both those things also
 
Okie Terry said:
That would be a lot easier than using an angle grinder and a cutoff wheel, like I did.
Click to expand...

I have found that a sawzall with a good metal blade works very well. no hot sparks, and less mess. also, the blade is nice and thin for less waste. as far as speed... they seem about the same. i guess it's a trade off between hot sparks and nicely masaged hands from vibration.
 
MrMom said:
Thanks I will play around with it later this week
make your rock ring also?
and did you move your shock mounts got any pics of those?
need to do both those things also
Click to expand...
The rock ring was a gift from a good friend.

The shock mounts are simply trailer spring perches with a 5/8"(?) bolt and nut welded high on the axles.
There's a lot of different ways to relocate shock mounts, but that was easiest for me.

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jjvande said:
I have found that a sawzall with a good metal blade works very well. no hot sparks, and less mess. also, the blade is nice and thin for less waste. as far as speed... they seem about the same. i guess it's a trade off between hot sparks and nicely masaged hands from vibration.
Click to expand...
I generally like a Sawzall, too.
But, I didn't want to go all the way through, as I only wanted to thin it out just enough to bend it without a break.
The patterns, I cut with my torch and smoothed out on a wheel.
 
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