They are great, no issues, Its hard to tell if I lost any clearance because of the extra weight that i have added (winch, mount, belly skids, sliders) etc. What I will say is that i creates an almost slick/smooth undercarriage where it is much, much harder for anything to get caught on. The UHMW is much more pleasurable than steel skids being dragged on rocks. You almost don't realize you are sitting on the skids. I also never need to worry about corrosion from scrapes. I do wish they upgraded the hardware to all stainless for the ultimate in corrosion protection, but I have Tef-Gelled all the threads and I have Fluid Filmed what is exposed.
While I’m not the OP, I did sleep at a Holiday Inn Express…parking lot. Anyway, in this application, it’s very unlikely you would notice any corrosion on the Aluminum plate. While aluminum does corrode, it’s not in the typical steel sense. Aluminum reacts with the oxygen in the air, and creates its own protective film of oxides that interrupts future such reactions. When those oxides get removed through abrasion or chemical exposure (acids usually), the aluminum immediately starts the whole process over. This reaction cycle does consume trace (think microns) amounts of the surface aluminum, but it would take considerable time and repeated damage in the same area to notice these effects in this application. So, why are so many parts painted, powder coated, or anodized. Reasons vary and include things like special applications (acidic environments, boat hulls where the friction of the water or even electrolysis exasberates the problem, etc.), cosmetics, or even installation environment. I have a white water cat frame made of uncoated aluminum tubing. The oxides tend to wipe off and contaminate everything with a black residue, like my legs for example. Not really an issue under a Bronco. Now, there is one area that probably will rear its ugly head in say, maybe 10 years. Galvanic corrosion. This occurs when dissimilar materials (metals in this case) like to steal electrons from each other. Environmental factors and Ph play a role here, but I’m on my lunch break, so I’m trying to summarize. I’m totally skipping any mention of sacrificial engineered “solutions” and electrolysis. The stainless hardware that’s holding the UHMW on will eventually create corrosion between the two. You can mitigate the effects with certain products or possibly coatings(powder coating, painting, anodizing, neoprene/plastic washers, SuperLube, etc.), but you’ll only slow it down really. We’re all oxidizing. Cycle of life baby. How ironic, the thing protecting the surface of the aluminum (UHMW) will also contribute to its demise…waaaayyy down the road. Conversely, all of the mounting hardware (to bronco) and brackets appears to be steal, which doesn’t create as aggressive galvanic corrosion effect, but will corrode very quickly in the traditional sense in my environment. I had all the mild steel brackets powder coated by NVM and I’ll be likely replacing the hardware immediately with stainless and trying to apply superlube where practical. In the end, smashing aside, they’ll likely outlive the rest of my Bronco.
This was the TED talk I needed.
It's the same in the Swamp which was where my concern with corrosion initiated. My street is covered in a layer of salt for the snowstorm that never materialized Friday night.
Most municipalities practice “Use or Lose“ budgeting strategies. If they don’t use it this year, they won’t get the money next year to buy the same amount, so they dump it often needlessly to justify next years expenditure. Oversimplification of the issue but not inaccurate either.It's the same in the Swamp which was where my concern with corrosion initiated. My street is covered in a layer of salt for the snowstorm that never materialized Friday night.
I’m definitely not the pro in this realm, there are many here with more experience on this topic. What I will say, based on what I’ve learned from those folks here is; the diff cover offers a couple of advantages to the OEM piece. It allows for easier maintenance of the fluid, and likely some torsional stiffening. Beyond that there’s not much I can speak to. I will say I opted against it for now hoping to select one that will facilitate easier drainage, but an inexpensive fluid extractor would likely mitigate any issue there really. In the end I like their products so much, I’ll probably end up purchasing one anyway lol.
yeah, I could see myself getting it down the road, but like I mentioned before (I think) we mainly overland in the mid Atlantic with occasional trips to VT, TN, GA. Maybe some stuff in the Ozarks next year. We just will never face the kind of stuff that the guys out west will deal with. The stuff I’m worried about is the unplanned/unforeseen on the trail that could be a day wrecker. I probably don’t really need NVM. But my approach with this vehicle has been to use the best parts, do it once and be done and have peace of mind. Additionally, I think NVM will last forever for my use case, and be better resale value for the next guy that really is looking for a purpose built vehicle.
