$40 DIY Corner Guards

I know...Lipstick on a pig. Oh well...Like it or hate it, but play nice.

You can do this for less if you go to the steel yard, but it was after 5pm and I knew Lowes had stuff pre-cut on hand. Mine aren't heavy gauge...If you are serious about abusing these...Step up the thickness to your needs. They didn't have the height I needed in a single sheet so I bought 2- 12"x18" 16ga steel sheets and 1- 2"x36" 1/8" thick flat stock and a bag of hardware.


I used a piece of tape as a template to get the length and angle need to fit the Jeep's lines. The middle of the flat stock is 18". The piece on the left is scrap (save for a gusset someday?).




First hole drilled in the flat stock on the bench. I then drilled through the Jeep and bolted it up.


Cold bend.


I removed the flat stock a couple of times and hand bent the radius over a small paint can.


Once satisfied...I drilled the 2nd hole (middle) and bolted it, then the 3rd hole (left).

 

Same deal for the lower guard...Work right to left.




Once here use a pen to trace the inside of the wheel well and save drilling the last 2 mounting holes for later.


I screwed the metal to the bench and used a grinder to cut the radius plus the little tip at the left top.




Determine where you want the last 2 bolts...Drill and bolt. I personally like the raw metal look. I'm torn on whether to clear coat or paint to match my rock sliders.

 

There's already Truck Bed Liner sprayed on the corners from earlier. That should be good...Right?

 

I thought about it, but I'd have to change the tittle to $45 DIY.

Seriously...At Lowes last night I almost got the 1-1/4" wide flat stock, but wasn't sure if it would look right? I was thinking I would have to wrap the whole thing. Now that it's mounted...I could probably get away with doing just the bottom too. I'm sure it will haunt me and I'll end up doing it.

 

Curses!

 

I almost used the button head, but I wanted the industrial look. I might regret it someday...We'll see?

The 16ga was easy to bend. To get the corner tighter against the Jeep I used my foot to push and pulled on the roll bar for leverage.

 

I'm a rebel.

I always thought it was weird that the driver's side has the marker, but the spare side doesn't?

 

Looks great. I think you should do the bottom too though.

 

I did...Pix of proof to come.

 

I really struggled with leaving them raw metal, but the family consensus was to paint them to match the other black accents. I still like the chunky look of the bolts, but button heads probably make the most sense. That's the beauty of custom add ons...Build to suit.

Lower (3rd) piece installed and coated.