winch bumper or brush guard

Sweet, you should be set on tools than. Check out 1MeanEx's build thread too, his is a sport but shares the same thread. I have pictures of other ST's with steel bumpers on them that aren't on here too if you want to check them out I can post em up tomorrow.

If you could post up some pics that would be great! I was just looking at 1MeanEx's build thread. The bumper is nothing compared to the rest of his build lol. I do like the bumper he built and he trimmed his grill like I'm planning on doing

I'm going to buy this one from SFF Customs as soon as I get a response.

Hugh, if you're on FB stangGt is Sporty Joshy on there.

MidnightRebel07 said:

Hugh, if you're on FB stangGt is Sporty Joshy on there.

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I'm not on Facebook. I contacted him through his website as that's what I assume he prefers. I may PM him here later. I'm sure he's busy with bigger jobs.

OffTrac said:

I'm going to buy this one from SFF Customs as soon as I get a response.

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I'm not sure he's set up to build a bumper for a truck that isn't in his shop.

And if you don't use FB, send him an IM through here with your email address.

Ill be curious to see how it works out. The fact that we don't have a traditional bumper is one of my biggest pet peeves of the truck. I've been looking through custom ones because of someone/something doing this to mine recently while it was parked. It's so close to breaking in two spots and just hanging there.



Problem is the majority of people who have built bumpers for our trucks don't replace that part that's about to completely break on mine.

TGtrac05 said:

Ill be curious to see how it works out. The fact that we don't have a traditional bumper is one of my biggest pet peeves of the truck. I've been looking through custom ones because of someone/something doing this to mine recently while it was parked. It's so close to breaking in two spots and just hanging there.

Problem is the majority of people who have built bumpers for our trucks don't replace that part that's about to completely break on mine.

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To keep it from completely splitting you could throw a short pice of angle iron in there and put screws in from the outside on the vertical part. It won't be the greatest look but you can use touch up paint to match the color. Plus a couple screw heads will look a lot better than a bumper that falls off.

For the horizontal part you can screw into the metal in the inner fender. I had to do that because my oem hole was broken a few years ago. Works great and I've never had an issue.

Tom, Don't mean to hijack but do you reach under your front bumper to put the hitch pin in or is there another trick? I've seen other bumpers with the front hitch receiver and the receiver sticks out past the bumper to accept the pin.
Thanks

Where the fair lead is, use to be 2 access holes for the hitch pin. Now that the fair lead is there, the available opening to get to the hitch pin is smaller and therefore probably much more difficult to get the hitch pin installed. But I haven't actually tried it. I never used the front receiver for anything other than my Bumper Dumper.

Subscribing....
(thanks for all your help and suggestions in this forum guys...that SFF customs bumper is exactly where I want to head with my [currently stock] 02...)

Thanks for the pics Midnight and all the suggestions guys! Looks like work on the bumper will happen Thursday as of now. I need some help though from someone with an 02-05 explorer. Unfortunately I don't know anyone who has one. From the dimensions I was able to find online, it looks like the explorer grill is 22mm X 91mm and that is exactly the size of my sport trac "grill" size. If someone could measure their grill of their explorer, that would be great! I need the total height, width at the top, width at the bottom, and the width/depth of the upper lip that has the 4 bolt holes. I may try to go to a junkyard tomorrow and try to test fit one or find one in a parking lot and make measurements lol.

I'm wondering if an explorer grill will fit so I don't have to chop my oem bumper cover. I can sell my bumper cover and buy an explorer grill and be ahead $100 or so and I won't have to try and get a straight line and possible screw up

Not sure on the dimensions of the 3rd Gen Ex grille but you might be better off using a grille from a '98-04 Ranger and cutting off the side tabs under the headlights. '05+ Rangers have a different grille that goes up further so that one won't work unless you cut the top off.

Thanks Midnight! Great suggestion. I think you're right that a 98-04 Ranger grille may be a closer fit. I'll try to find someone to get measurements from or check with a junkyard. If anyone has the grille measurements for a 98-04 Ranger please post them! Thanks!

Check junkyards. I've seen some 3rd gens recently.

I think my neighbor has a '99 Ranger behind his house he was rebuilding for his daughter. He's planning on putting a '05+ frontend on it because it kissed a pole, I'll have to look and see if the grille is still intact. Otherwise I think my buddy has one or two sitting at his junkyard.

Sounds good guys. I'll go to a junkyard tomorrow and see what they have. Midnight if your buddy's grille is still intact and you compare it to your sport trac grille, let me know what you find!

Quick update. I went to 3 junkyards this morning and only one had a 98 Ranger grille and the frame for an 04 Explorer grille. The Ranger grille didn't have the plastic tabs sticking out under the headlights so maybe it was the work truck version and the measurement matched my truck. They wanted $60 and wouldn't let me take it off to test fit it so I passed on it. The Explorer grille was too wide to fit.