Replacing the bottom protection with an aluminum one

[Sungate]

Everything is very simple. Cut to fit the original plastic protection. Cut from aluminum sheet. 15 minutes and you're done!
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[bikerbillone]

I'm subscribed to get more information, I'm a bit lost here.

[safecracker]

Great skid plate replacement. I need to do that.

[Sungate]

I also plan to replace the protection under the radiators with aluminum

[RICZ]

The bend on the wide end is not needed?? It's OK if it's flat??
What thickness sheet aluminum did you use??

[KenInMN]

The bend on the wide end is not needed?? It's OK if it's flat?

I was wondering the same thing myself.

[MONK]

I'm mechanically challenged and have never seen the skid plates (or whatever they're called) in person so this is just conjecture but I would imagine the front of the skid plate isn't bent as much as it's tapered. I'd guess this is so that nothing catches the plate and rips it off. OTOH, I could very well be wrong.

[ThreeWheels]

Is it wise to make this out of metal ?
The skid plate replacements supplied by the vendors are generally flexible plastic, thicker than the stock and they are also much bigger and cover more area.
Do you see any issues with hitting something with the metal plate ?
I'd have two concerns.
1) A metal plate won't have as much give so that it won't absorb the energy from the impact, but just transmit it directly to the bike.
2) If it does give, it will deform, potentially breaking.

I applaud the skill of the OP in fabricating this piece in aluminum.
I'm just not sure that it's the right material of construction for this service.

Just my opinion, I could be wrong.

[Peter Aawen]

I dunno ThreeWheels, I think Sungate's done a pretty good job of replacing the flimsy placcy OE piece of kit (that's probably only intended to fool owners into thinking that they have any underbody protection at all, and is very likely 'flimsy plastic' simply to save weight anyway?!) Besides, I reckon that an inspection would show that pretty much every one of those placcy trays that's not still effectively brand new is very likely 'well marked' if not already a bit tattered on any Spyder that's been ridden for very long/seriously on anything but a SuperSlab!!

Bear in mind that even on the smoothest of roads, there's not all that much ground clearance underneath our Spyders/Rykers, and besides, just passing over the usual accumulation of road grit that gets sucked up & disturbed below the belly pans will likely cause abrasion down there; let alone the potential for damage that hitting any real debris &/or any of the occasional obstacles or hazards, road-kill etc that's not uncommon on roads is likely to cause?! And when you consider that it wasn't too many years ago that EVERY vehicle had similar metal plates underneath them, I don't think that one being made of a relatively lightweight metal will be too much of a worry!! In fact, I reckon that a 'fully underneath' metal version like that is somewhat less likely to contribute to any 'additional damage' than those thicker (Urethane?) Bumpskid units or even the 'full bumper' or 'profile bar' types of protection that protrude beyond the outer limits of the OE bodywork, thereby reducing the approach angle and the ground clearance of the machine & very likely causing more of the damage you're concerned about than any of the 'fully underneath' metal replacements are likely to.

Sungate's version is very similar to the alloy SkidPlates that Noboot has been offering to Oz Spyder Ryders for years, and there's now a helluva lot of them running around here Down Under; but I've never heard of, let alone seen, any 'additional damage' arising out of having fitted one of those - quite the contrary in fact!! They provide substantial & useful protection, at least here on our Ozzie roads! But that is definitely NOT the case when it comes to those protruding protective plates &/or even the a/mkt 'bumpers' & sometimes full under-body trays that some have fitted!! The damage I've seen caused by things hitting the protruding bits of those 'protruding beyond the OE body lines' a/mkt plates or bumpers has been significant & pretty expensive to repair! In at least one case that I'm personally aware of, where a couple of SkidPlate equipped Spyders simply scored another line gouged into their alloy belly trays, much the same impact on the leading edge protruding lip on the 'protective bumper' equipped Spyder caused significant frame damage that required a full strip down & frame replacement! Yet the Spyders with alloy trays simply rode straight over the top of the obstacle... albeit with some awful graunching sounds!! And besides all that from the ryders, the noise from the 'metal on obstacle' impact was almost as bad!!

So I guess there's more than just a little bit of 'horses for courses' coming into play here; but for my 2 bob's worth & our Ozzie roads, I very much prefer the 'fully underneath metal skid pan replacement' version; and I suspect that Sungate might have similar reasoning & preferences. But of course, your preferences may be more appropriate to your particular circumstances, ie YMMV

[RICZ]

I have to agree with what Peter Aawen said, especially about the plastic bump skids protruding. After lightly nerfing a wheel stop shortly after owing my F3L, due to my not knowing where the front of the bike is, and causing (fortunately) a small hairline crack in the lower horizontal grille piece I have toyed with buying a bump skid. I keep putting that off for the same reasons Peter gave, but I have another concept in mind for bottom protection. Using the 4 corner screws of the bottom piece, I plan on attaching two 1/4" X 1" aluminum bars lengthwise with the bike, extending out beyond the grille. Turning the fronts upward and attach an aluminum bumper to them. I will post photos as I'm doing that winter project. Those bars should act as skids that will protect the stock belly pan.

[MONK]

Slingmods sells something similar, I think.

[RICZ]

Slingmods sells something similar, I think.

That's a herky roo bar! And not very complimentary to the bike. My concept is for a small, narrow bumper of aluminum that I will polish to a chrome like finish. Material not yet determined.

[MONK]

Yeah. I looked again. Slingmods has a roo bar. Someone has little "bumperettes". Do some research before you reinvent the wheel. I know they're out there.

[RICZ]

You may be referring to the one Rivco Products makes for the RT costing $350 in chrome. I have less than $30 in materials and I'm a frugal old fart. Besides, it will be a good winter project and one that I can share with my 10 year old great grandson - the one who installed the cat delete.

[MONK]

Could be. I just remember seeing them.

[Sungate]

The bend on the wide end is not needed?? It's OK if it's flat??
What thickness sheet aluminum did you use??

The leading edge is slightly curved

[Sungate]

The bend on the wide end is not needed?? It's OK if it's flat??
What thickness sheet aluminum did you use??

The leading edge is slightly curved
Sheet thickness is approximately 2 millimeters. Aluminum is a soft metal and will deform on impact but will not break like plastic.

[Sungate]

That's a herky roo bar! And not very complimentary to the bike. My concept is for a small, narrow bumper of aluminum that I will polish to a chrome like finish. Material not yet determined.

In your case, it is better to use stainless steel. Aluminum oxidizes rapidly in air. After polishing, it will quickly become cloudy

[Peter Aawen]

...... After polishing, it will quickly become cloudy

Well, unless you 'clear coat' the polished aluminium straight away There's lots of 'Aluminium' or 'alloy' Bull Bars that're kept all polished and shiny for years that way here in Oz!

[RICZ]

Thank Goodness for Never Dull, it has kept a lot of shiny aluminum bits shiny for me for many years.