Is anyone making good bumpers anymore?

jprover2

Well-known member
Apr 8, 2017
146
10
Birmingham,Al
Bill Muetze sold "Overtym" to Luke Miles at "The Shop" in Georgia. I have called and "The Shop" about the fab work that will be continued and been referred to a email address that Luke is using for the new "Overtym". I hope the standard that Bill set is upheld.
 

kennith

Well-known member
Apr 22, 2004
10,891
172
North Carolina
I have the integrated skid plate too, it just isn't installed right now. Just a trapezoidal piece of aluminum or is it aluminium? The leak is from my new project, not this one.
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It's "aluminum" if you want to go with the opinion of the man who isolated it, or "aluminium" if you want to go with the opinion of a bunch of people who just wanted it to sound like other elements on the table. In North America, it's officially "aluminum".

That bumper is fucking sweet. That's not just "some steel welded together". When it was finished, it was a new object. That's obvious, but there's stuff that looks like that, and then there's everything else...

There's nothing else to say on that point except that I really wish they had a site that actually showed off their work.

Cheers,

Kennith
 

CORover

Well-known member
Jun 11, 2007
745
65
Colorado, USA
It's simple and functional which I appreciate and the best part is the trademark integrated bottle opener, which I forgot to show. Actually the best part is that by having it installed I will not do more damage to the vehicle than if it were not installed, like some products out there.

Let me know if you want me to run interference with them, they are not too far down the road from me.
 

Maximumwarp

Well-known member
Mar 22, 2015
836
26
Fairburn GA
I got the last Bill Muetze D2 rear bumper that will be made. He's out of the game and has gotten rid of his equipment and drawings. We may see a come back for the RTE/Safari Guard type bumpers in the near future hopefully.

Damn. I’m glad I went ahead had him make me that D1 Slimline last year then.
 

W2TF

Member
Apr 13, 2019
16
2
Honeoye, Ny
real newbie question I have, would a arb bull bumper off a 00/01 fit a 03? pretty sure it would mount frame rails OK but would like confirmation from some of the ol hands
 

fishEH

Well-known member
Jan 26, 2009
6,927
201
Lake Villa, IL

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fishEH

Well-known member
Jan 26, 2009
6,927
201
Lake Villa, IL
Speaking of Jeep bumpers. My buddy adapted this one for his and a number of his friends D2's.

I always liked the look of those Equipe tube bumpers, but it's not the best choice for me from a practical level. I stand on my bumpers too often, and sooner or later I'd end up slipping off the thing reaching for something.

This needs a bit more time in the oven, but it's getting there:

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She's got a bit of an early '80s cop mustache going on at the moment, as they don't seem to have made the best use of the modularity; at least not when that was taken. The corners of the vehicle up there are almost entirely unprotected.

Obviously they're going for a "look" and light weight, and that's great, but finish the job. They're a couple of longer wings away from having something really interesting. I just question the locations and shapes of some of those holes, and I don't know what they're using to make the things.

Depending upon what it's made of and the overall weight, I wouldn't mind just having that center section to play around with; and then make the rest myself. It's got some similarities in concept with what I want to build, actually; though it's got quite a bit more "Call of Duty" going on visually.

I think they did an outstanding job, but potentially for the wrong vehicle. The style features are more appropriate for a Toyota in general, and the width is clearly still for a D1. That last bit kind of defeats a major obvious purpose of the modularity. They've done it before, so I'm not sure what the heck they're getting at, there.

Trimming it on purpose where you can is good. Weight sucks. That said, it's obvious what they've done here. They've made a modular bumper, and then assembled the D1 version to hang from a DII, rather than using separate DII patterns for the sides. This strikes me as odd, because the primary benefits of modularity relate to design, production, and fulfillment. They've ignored that; instead calling it a feature.

You've got to give people a reason if that's supposed to benefit them, and if you can't think of one, make sure it's fully benefiting you as a manufacturer.

One thing that's awesome is the ability to run the same center without a winch by dropping in a top plate they offer. It gives you a full box look (bumper won't look empty), and I should think some useful space if you're clever about it. If you get a winch, simply remove the plate. I know it's not rocket science, but it may as well be compared to other offerings.

It's a production benefit, but they're trying to sell it as a feature again. They don't have to manufacture two center section designs. They make the same thing, and the sell a separate cover. Done. Fuck it, sell plans for light mounts, an air compressor bracket... Use those modular mounting points as a value-added feature for the end user, or at least point them out as a place to get creative.

Look, I know these guys have some fancy equipment and do higher dollar stuff; not everyone is going to be able to crank out all those little bends and cuts within any amount of financial reason. You'd have to be hooked up with a few different shops, and typically it's hard to get even two getting along well enough to share production.

So, I wouldn't expect that level of detail out of a smaller operation, but I hope to eventually begin seeing that level of design again; slightly faulty or not.

I know that's polarizing as hell, and it's not perfect, but they really did put some effort in. I just wish they'd cross the finish line one of these days, or at least find out what they're missing and hire/buy it.

I find that company extremely confusing, but they're always doing something cool one way or other, whether or not it makes sense. That's a good thing.

Cheers,

Kennith
 

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rover rob

Well-known member
Mar 29, 2016
272
56
upstate NY
not sure what its worth, but let me know if you figure out how much you want. I love them even though they weigh a ton.