Welding on chrome bumper

admin

I'd like to add some reinforcing to the back of my stock bumper (dodge ram 1500), and then add a couple of shackle mounts to it. The bumper itself is surprisingly thin (~1/8"). How do I handle the chrome? Do I need to grind it off first? Thanks!
Reply:The dodge bumpers are junk, I would toss it and build one. But to answer your question. Your not gonna get a good weld untill you grind that chrome coating off it. Good luck.
Reply:Short answer : Yes, you have to remove the chrome plating.Longer answer : Yes you have to remove the chrome plating.    The chrome is often/usually just a super thin top layer.  Underneath that top super thin chrome layer are one or more layers of other plating metals, typically nickel and then copper and then the 'base' steel/metal.  If you don't remove the 'chrome' (actually ALL the plating layers down to the bare steel), you end up with various witch's brews of unknown alloy composition(s) throughout the weld zone.The stock bumpers are often just thick enough to act as a surface to put the chrome onto.    The best laid schemes ... Gang oft agley ...
Reply:Thanks guys. I figured as much, but I wanted to be sure. I might just get the whole thing sandblasted. I know the bumper s just thin junk, but I don't want to go to a Road Armor style. My plan is to beef up the back of the bumper with some gusseting and some square steel.
Reply:Originally Posted by RubberFrog and then add a couple of shackle mounts to it.
Reply:Not. It doesn't yank off when I wrap a tow strap around it, why wod it yank off from using a shackle mount?
Reply:If it is anything like a stock chevy bumper, check the mounts you're probably going to need an upgrade. The bumper isn't designed to pull a whole lot, maybe 500-1500lbs. You might notice the guys who have their bumpers bent down usually have a hitch ball on the bumper also. I would suggest building a whole new system from the mounts back and just figuring out a way to use the stock bumper as a cover per say. Build yourself a super structure with the shackle mounts or whatever you want and then bolt the chrome piece to it so its nice and shiny.If you cannot convince them, confuse them.         Harry S Truman
Reply:I already have upgraded mounts. The bumper is one of the last few things left to do on the truck.  It's cammed, headers, full exhaust, ported tb, vararam intake, 9" of lift, etc. I've went back and forth for a long time with the bumper. I love the Road Armor style bumpers, but it seems everybody that does anything with the bumper builds a RA clone. That's why I'm going to beef it up from behind and make a "tougher than it looks" stealth bumper. I'm also designing a behind-the-bumper winch mount. My plan is to hide the roller fairlead behind a flip down license bracket.
Reply:hmm...I've seen those bumpers bend like tinfoil.  Would it make more sense to just connect the shackles to the frame and have them stick out through cutouts in the bumper?  Just thinking that it's probably going to be a whole lot more work than it's worth to try to reinforce the stock bumper (and, honestly, it probably won't work all that well).  You could build a solid bumper attached to the frame which the shackles could be connected to and then just mount the stock bumper over that so that the stock bumper is basically just a piece of pretty trim for the real bumper under it.--Wintermute"No man's knowledge here can go beyond his experience." - John Lockewww.improvised-engineering.comManufacturer Agnostic:Blood----------Sweat---------Tears----|------------------|----------------|----Lincoln Red, Miller Blue, Esab Yellow
Reply:That's why I was going to use the square tubing. The shackle mounts are 5.5" long, so plenty of room to go through the bumper and into the square steel. I still want to weld them onto the face of the buper so it doesn't just look like a hole with something sticking through it.Last edited by RubberFrog; 02-19-2010 at 07:26 PM.
Reply:I know the new bumper on my F550 dents like tin foil compared to my '00 F250. I must have a 1/2 dozen small dents from the plastic bollards at WAWA in it and I've wailed into those with the 250 and never had a dent.  Thank you FED's for making my truck more car friendly in an accident! Like a "soft" bumper is really going to matter with 7+ tons of truck behind it... .No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:RubberFrog,I've done exactly what you are talking about doing. Take it from me, its not worth it. The stock bumper is a POS. Enforcing it with some structural steel behind it only leads to other problems. When you stress it, it will simply deform in all the areas it is not enforced. The only way to really do it right would be to custom form a sheet of thick steel to fit inside the back of the bumper, WAY too much work.You don't want the looks of the RA type bumpers, understandable. But consider a lot of the look comes from the color, where the RA type is almost always black. What about building a custom low profile RA style and having it chromed?
Reply:I appreciate all of the design ideas. I guess I should have been more specific on my plans to reinforce the bumper with a square tube frame beneath it. I want the shackle mounts to go through the bumper into this frame. I only want to weld to the bumper to clean up the appearance, I don't want it to just be a few holes with a shackle sticking out.With all that said, I was able to get answers specific to my question via google. For anyone who may care to know... welding on/thru chrome releases a gas called hexavalent chromium. It's a real bad guy. You need fancy respirators (beyond a basic mask) so I am just going to grind off all the chrome in 6" of either side of my weld area.
Reply:I gotta vote for a completely new bumper.  Even my old 78 Powerwagon had a lousy front bumper (we are talking about the front bumper?)Got bumper problems with my 94 1 ton, literally about pulled off the truck last week  Mudhole 1, Truck 0It's going to get a new purpose built bumper.  And modifying the factory mount system on the frame is gonna be a nightmare.  These bumpers were never designed for any stress, and the mounting holes are in the wrong place.  I have to defeat the anti crumple zone on the front of the frame to mount the bumper properly.  Truck, trailer, and load, can be in the 20,000lb range.  No wimpy bumpers will do"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/