Some people have said that an option to drilling into the bumper is to use brackets that somehow bolt onto the front bumper. I went to Off Road Warehouse, Pep Boys, and 4 Wheel Parts, but no one had heard of these brackets.

Where do you find them, who manufactures them, and what are they actually called?

------------------
X_tempore
2000 Aztec Red SE 4x4

Well, I guess I get to answer my own question. There's just about every auto store in my area and I went to most of them. The guy at 4 wheel parts gave me this look as if to say "Just drill the freakin' bumper."


I found the bracket at Kragen. It's made by Blazer International Corp. in Illinois. It's called by the nebulous name "Universal Mounting Bracket." Blazer item #201.


It doesn't look weak and wimpy. This is a pretty sturdy looking piece of hardware. I think I'm going to have to take off the bumper to get it on however. The plastic grill extents too far for me to slip in the bracket and tighten it onto the bumper. I guess that's a good thing, because I can remove the lights if I want to and leave the brackets on...nobody could get them off without removing the bumper.


------------------
X_tempore
2000 Aztec Red SE 4x4

[This message has been edited by x_tempore (edited 05-25-2001).]

Hey I have been looking for the same thing! Have you ever seen a website showing this product.....or do you have a picture you could place up here? If you get them let us know how sturdy they are.



------------------

Check out this site: http://www.jaosusa.com/products/lampstay/ as they have something you might be interested in.

Also try the search function on this site, this is a topic that has been discussed before and you might be able to find some good advice.

Good luck.

------------------
SOXC Member
www.soxc.org

Slamson,

The Blazer brackets I bought at Kragen cost about $6 for a pair. They are 1/16" steel. They seem very sturdy.
I think they are probably galvanized or something. When I took off the thick black plastic covers (that makes them look nice on the X's bumper), I noticed that one was very slightly oxidized. It doesn't look like rust (red iron oxide). Instead it looks more like zinc oxide corrosion. That's why I say they might be galvanized. If they are, the corrosion is a good thing. The other was nice and shiny, so you might open them in the store right after you buy them. This way, if you don't like the oxidation, you can ask to get a different set off the shelf.

------------------
X_tempore
2000 Aztec Red SE 4x4

Here is the solution I came up with. Instead of taking the bumper off to mount them, I mounted them lower where the openings are. They weren't too steady though, so I bought some U-bolts and a piece of perforated aluminum to hold them in place. You can paint the new hardware black if you don't want it to be seen. Here is a picture that hopefully illustrates this method clearly enough. They are rock solid now, too, and don't vibrate at all on roght terrain. Here is a link to a picture of mine showing where they are mounted. http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=37709&a=7605600&p=49396181

[img]http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=37709&a=13098652&p=49478614[/img]

------------------
"Jesus Ellen! Its only the biggest damn hole on Earth!"

'00 Alpine Green XE 3 pak

Thanks for the pictures on the information. How did you attach the perforated alluminum to the inside of the bumper though? Sorry if I am missing the obvious I apologize. Is there anyway you could take a close up picture of your set up....I would like to duplicate it. Thanks!

Slamson

------------------

You're not missing anything. The aluminum isn't held in there by anything. It is basically squeezed between the wing nut and the back of the grill. The tighter the wing nut is, the more immobile the aluminum is. The piece I bought was a little too long, and I didn't have anything to cut it with, so I just bent the end to make it fit. It doesn't rub anything and actually pretty much stays in place even when nothing is attached to it. I'll try to take pictures of it soon; all our digital cameras are out of the office right now though.

------------------
"Jesus Ellen! Its only the biggest damn hole on Earth!"

'00 Alpine Green XE 3 pak

tcdesign,

Nice pic, but I also don't see what you did. The light is mounted on the mounting bracket, which is hooked onto the U bolt. Right. This U bolt is hooked to the aluminum strip. What's the strip hooked to?

The only problem I'd have with this is that the lights stick out in front of the bumper. Shopping carts or old ladies in parking lots could break your lights if they bumped you.

------------------
X_tempore
2000 Aztec Red SE 4x4

I don't know if you've come to a conclusion here, but check out the thread about the Westin Safari Bar as it might be another option for you.

------------------
01 SE 6cyl 5spd Solar Yellow

Here are some pictures I finally got around to taking. To be honest, if I had more expensive lights, I probably wouldn't do it this way, but mine are only $15 a piece. Still, no one has hit them yet and they've been there for a good 8 months at least.
http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=37709&a=13098652&f=0

------------------
"Jesus Ellen! Its only the biggest damn hole on Earth!"

'00 Alpine Green XE 3 pak