Frame Mounted Nerf Bars

chakis24 · February 17, 2009

id like to put steps on my truck in the future, but i want to get something that bolts to the frame. i remember on my old truck i had smittybilt steps that bolted right on, but i cant seem to find ones like these anymore- everything seems to be to the body mounts. i feel like to the frame is more sturdy and protective than to the mounts. my brother has body mount ones and i just feel like theyre not very sturdy. i was at my local shop and the guy said that they dont do that anymore on the newer trucks because of the hydroforming- i didnt think that was true (is it?), but it seems that i cant really seem to find anything that bolts right on. he also said i may have to get them custom done, maybe even welded, to get what im looking for.

i've looked at the smittybilt site and it really isnt conclusive whether or not its to the frame or body mounts, it seems like they might be, but i want to be one hundred percent before i really start looking.

does anyone know of or even have steps or nerf bars like like this? any help would be great, thanks.

also, id prefer something that doesnt drop down like alot of them do, ive got the body lift on it and with the way some of these steps are id have a like 6 inch gap between the body and the step- totally negating any clearance gain. id like them to be flush with the body. my old ones were like this, they bolted on and came right out and werent on brackets or anything that made them lower than they needed to be. they shouldnt be lower than the frame.

thanks again for the help.

Outbacker · February 17, 2009

I had Westin nerf bars installed, and they are pretty sturdy as they do not flex when stepping into or out of the cab. I have had them on there since I bought the truck and am quite happy with them.

chakis24 · February 17, 2009

I had Westin nerf bars installed, and they are pretty sturdy as they do not flex when stepping into or out of the cab. I have had them on there since I bought the truck and am quite happy with them.

do they bolt to the frame or are they connected to the body mounts?

blankey · February 17, 2009

The GMT-900 trucks the nerf bars are mounted to the bottom of the rocker panel. The rocker panels are designed for that. I have Westin Nerf bars and they attach to the body mounts. They are sturdy and flex very little. As you said about the body lift that does pose a problem with them being to low. I can't say that I have seen any that attach to the frame but I didn't really look at many choices besides Westin and I also don't have a body lift.

Outbacker · February 17, 2009

I had Westin nerf bars installed, and they are pretty sturdy as they do not flex when stepping into or out of the cab. I have had them on there since I bought the truck and am quite happy with them.

do they bolt to the frame or are they connected to the body mounts?

Like Brandon said, they are attached to the mounts. I thought they were to the frame since they are quite solid, but I was wrong. I would still recommend them though if you can get away with it.

Spurshot · February 17, 2009

I recommend you look into whether or not welding to the frame is ok or not. I suspect that GM does not recommend welding on the frames of their trucks. I know that Ford specifically says it's a no-no to weld to their truck frames.

asleep83 · February 18, 2009

I don't know of any frame mounted step bars for your truck, but I can tell you that you can eliminate Tech Tube, Deezee, Nasta and Westin from your search as they are all body mount bolted. The usual product I use in lifted trucks @ the shop here are these http://www.carr.com/store/carrsuperhoop.asp. They mount to your rocker so the body lift dosen't affect them. They have a litle bit of flex to them but it's not to bad. The install instructions can be seen here: http://www.carr.com/uploads/instructions/124031.pdf

chakis24 · February 19, 2009

I recommend you look into whether or not welding to the frame is ok or not. I suspect that GM does not recommend welding on the frames of their trucks. I know that Ford specifically says it's a no-no to weld to their truck frames.

whats wrong with welding to the frame?

chakis24 · February 19, 2009

I don't know of any frame mounted step bars for your truck, but I can tell you that you can eliminate Tech Tube, Deezee, Nasta and Westin from your search as they are all body mount bolted. The usual product I use in lifted trucks @ the shop here are these http://www.carr.com/store/carrsuperhoop.asp. They mount to your rocker so the body lift dosen't affect them. They have a litle bit of flex to them but it's not to bad. The install instructions can be seen here: http://www.carr.com/uploads/instructions/124031.pdf

yeah, ive looked at ones like that as well, theres a set by bully that i saw and another brand, but i wanted them for the side protection as well. ideally it would be from the front door to the rear wheel, but no luck so far. thank you though.

MikeInCtown · March 6, 2009

I recommend you look into whether or not welding to the frame is ok or not. I suspect that GM does not recommend welding on the frames of their trucks. I know that Ford specifically says it's a no-no to weld to their truck frames.

whats wrong with welding to the frame?

Todays frames are made with different steel than those of even 5 or 10 years ago. When you weld you change the properties of the metal by heating and in theory you could create a weak area. In addition cars and trucks have a lot of wires as well as brake and fuel lines running along the frames. I know I don't want to take a chance burning something.

FWIW I just put a set of bars from Summit on my 04 and they were body mount. I weigh 270 and aside from a little flex they hold up just fine. Now, I don't know that fastening to 65lbs is good or bad for the mounts, but I'd venture to guess that the mounts may not last as long. I would also venture to guess that installing some eurethane bushings may help some with the flex of the bars when you step up on them.

chakis24 · March 15, 2009

Todays frames are made with different steel than those of even 5 or 10 years ago. When you weld you change the properties of the metal by heating and in theory you could create a weak area. In addition cars and trucks have a lot of wires as well as brake and fuel lines running along the frames. I know I don't want to take a chance burning something.

FWIW I just put a set of bars from Summit on my 04 and they were body mount. I weigh 270 and aside from a little flex they hold up just fine. Now, I don't know that fastening to 65lbs is good or bad for the mounts, but I'd venture to guess that the mounts may not last as long. I would also venture to guess that installing some eurethane bushings may help some with the flex of the bars when you step up on them.

makes sense.

thanks for the help. it seems i may have to just settle for the body mounted ones unfortunately, i just feel like theres just gotta be a way to get it to the frame.