Gas tank skid?

[ace138]

I bought a 1988 k5 and it is missing the gas tank skid plate. Is it worth tracking down a stock one or am I better off making one or buying aftermarket? The trails I run on are not gas tank friendly. I know I will be dragging the tank on rocks very often.

 

[dremu]

I bought a 1988 k5 and it is missing the gas tank skid plate. Is it worth tracking down a stock one or am I better off making one or buying aftermarket? The trails I run on are not gas tank friendly. I know I will be dragging the tank on rocks very often.

Can't say as I've seen any aftermarket ones.

The stock ones aren't bad, but by the sound of it you'd be better off doing it yourself.

-- A

 

[ace138]

Can someone post some pics of homebrewed ones?

What about taking a stock one and beefing it up?

 

[roadnotca]

I have the stock skid under a 1985 Burb with 40 gal. tank. I drag it whenever I run out of asphault. Its still the original shape, plenty strong.

 

[BKinzey]

I've ended up with two of them. I'm contemplating putting one over the other and welding them together I'm also trying to think of an easy way to beef up the legs as they could be the weak spot

 

[Muddytazz]

If your worried about the mounting legs on the skid, just weld on some gussets and you'll be good to go

 

[bigjbear]

Keith welded some plate to the bottom of a stock 81-91 skid for his 78 and it it work fine. It held the full weight of his his back end (FF14B, 42s, big bumper, large storage box, ect) w/o any problems.

 

[balterbuilt]

i had one and gave it away. They don't hold up to hard hits that well, they are only like 16 guage, maybe 14 guage. You could dimple die one as fabworx did to add a little strength but that isa huge surface area to reinforce! I would recomend building something with a little more strength.

 

[muddermilitia]

hmm seems like a good product for one of the vendors here. Kert, paging kert

 

[Muddytazz]

Hell, my factory skid plate is at least 1/8" thick.

 

[roadnotca]

They don't hold up to hard hits that well, they are only like 16 guage, maybe 14 guage. quote]For 99+% of us, stock is fine. If everything else on your rig has been beefed, stock probably won't cut it.

 

[bigjbear]

Hell, my factory skid plate is at least 1/8" thick.

The stock one on my 73 was also 1/8" and wrapped around the sides, unlike the newer ones.

 

[Muddytazz]

The stock one on my 73 was also 1/8" and wrapped around the sides, unlike the newer ones.

The one previously owned was on my 75 burb, my current 88 K5 has a factory skid plate on the tank and its 1/8" thick also.

 

[balterbuilt]

1/8" isn't very thick

 

[Muddytazz]

I've slid my old suburban off a rock and landed on the skid plate and it never dented. Was a good foot drop and it hit hard .

 

[noahrob]

I don't have one, but need to build one. I will use some type of sheet metal over a gusseted frame. Or i'll just find a stocker...