White Knuckle Off-Road Rock Sliders

Project Buckshot – our ’74 Ford Bronco – is really starting to take shape. We’ve added fender flares, a 5.5” lift, new wheels and tires, Axle upgrades, disc brakes, an 8-point roll cage, hushmat, seats, interior upgrades, and it’s been treated to a complete soda blasting and new paint.  It is now time to indulge Buckshot with some trail armor, namely in the form of a set of rock sliders that would not only protect the body, but provide a nice step to get into the big Bronco. After all, the owner wanted to protect his $12,000 body work and paint job, and we can’t blame him. This isn’t to say it won’t see the trails though, but that’s another story all together.  We spent several hours looking at various types of rock sliders for early Bronco’s, some of which were just God-awful ugly and others just didn’t offer the protection we needed. After searching high and low, we landed on a set made by White Knuckle Off Road Products. We chose the White Knuckle sliders because of their durability, fitment and great looks. Here are a few key features:  Rock slider body is made from quality ¼” laser cut, mild steel  Rub rails (tube) is made of durable 1 ¾” X .120 wall steel tubing  Provides 51” of body protection at its longest point  Fits 1966-1977 Ford Bronco’s with or without the reserve fuel tank  Rub rails act as both a step and a secure point to lift your vehicle with a hi-lift jack  Comes in bare metal finish ready to paint and saves you money. Installation – White Kuckle Off Road Rock Sliders, 1966-1977 Ford Bronco Time: 10 hours  Tools Needed: 1/2″ Drill, 1/2″ Drill bit, 13/32” Drill bit, 5/32” Drill bit, 9/16” & 1/2″ Wrenches, 3/16” Allen wrench, Center punch & hammer, Philips Screwdriver, Marker, and a Floor jack Difficulty: Installation We started our installation by putting 3M Blue masking tape over the body to protect it from the test fitting we would have to do. With the masking tape in place, we placed the White Knuckle rock sliders onto the body and centered them so that there was ½” on both sides of the door opening. It’s easiest to use a tall floor jack underneath the “rub rail” to secure it in place. Our rock sliders needed trimming in a few areas, mostly because we are running the big fender flares, which meant we needed to trim both ends of the rock sliders. We also needed to notch the underside / inside of the rock sliders to clear one of the body braces too. We slid our rock sliders underneath our fender flares and traced the lines, then cut the areas using a plasma cutter and ground them smooth. You can also use a jig saw or a cutting wheel too. Reposition the rock sliders back on your Bronco (if trimming was necessary) and once you have the rock sliders aligned perfectly, you can mark the centers of the 6 holes with a center punch. With the holes marked on the body, begin drilling all 6 holes with a 13/32” drill bit. Then drill out the 4 center holes with a ½” drill bit, and the 2 outer holes with a 5/16” drill bit. It’s now time to insert the heavy duty Nutserts into the 4 center-most holes. They measure 17/32” in diameter, so you may need to enlarge the holes *slightly* by wallowing them out with the ½” drill bit. DO NOT overdo it though or you’re in big trouble as it will be nearly impossible to get the nutserts to collapse. Anyhow, press the nutserts into the 4 center holes and collapse them by using a nutsert installation tool, or by using the supplied hex bolt, cut washer and shoulder nut supplied in the kit. Crank down on the bolt and nut VERY hard. You need to collapse the nutsert completely to ensure it is locked into place. Next, put the rock slider back onto the body and install the supplied 5/16” button cap screws to secure it into place. If the holes don’t line up perfectly, you can enlarge the holes in the slider slightly. The two outer holes use the same button cap screws, but are secured by the supplied cut washers and Nylock nuts. As you tighten the cap screws, the rock slider will pull tight against the body. Using the 5/32” drill bit, drill through the holes on the backside of the mounted Rock Slider into the rocker panel. Insert a sheet metal screw and tighten until the screw head is flush with the Rock Slider. Once you have everything mounted and adjusted, remove the rock sliders one more time to paint them. We chose to paint them with super-durable POR 15 semi-gloss paint. Once dry, reinstall and admire your trail armor work.

 

 

 

The Verdict

 

Making rock sliders for an early Bronco isn’t tough. Making high-quality rock sliders that conform to the body curves and provide true protection of our Bronco is a whole different animal. We’ve seen rock sliders made from sections of receiver hitch tubing which I’m sure are strong, but just don’t look the part we needed for Project Buckshot. White Knuckle Off Road Products has done a great job building a set of rock sliders for early Bronco’s that provide excellent protection, look great, and are strong enough to be used as lift points, or take a serious beating. 

Our rock sliders required trimming on the inside / underside area to clear the body seams. We made short work of this with a plasma cutter, but for those of you that don’t have one, be prepared to spend an hour or so cutting away material with a right-angle grinder and a cutting disc. We also needed to modify ours to work with the large fender cut-outs that we were using and we had to cut just onto the rear-most weld on the rub rail – but not enough to cause any problems. We also knew this going into it. 

The instructions provided with the kit are exceptional well laid out. There are good, clear pictures within it, a comprehensive list of the tools you need, and good step-by-step instructions that are easy to follow. When we did have questions, John (the owner) was quick to answer them and provide even more detail. 

If you have a 1966-1977 Ford Bronco and are in need to a set of tough, good-looking rock sliders and trail armor, be sure to give White Knuckle Off Road Products a call or at least stop by their web site. 

 

White Knuckle Off Road Products

Web: www.white-knuckleoffroad.com Email: john@white-knuckleoffroad.com Phone: 760-628-9338