Skid Plate for 2014 RT -- Aluminium or "PVC"???

[gerard]

Which is the best type? One manufactured from aluminium or heavy duty PVC?
What type are the OEM BRP skid plates?

[Highwayman2013]

There is a small one from the factory that is plastic. We have the Spyderpops one. It is a heavy plastic and protects the nose and the bottom of the frunk. Don't know of any made from metal. You should see the marks on our skid plate after a couple high blacktop low driveway scrapes.

[Chupaca]

as mentioned above the oem is plastic and tucked under covering basically the frunk. We know only the spyderpops which is appropriately named a bumpskid because it extends out about an inch and acts as a bumper and cover the entire area under the nose. I have seen aluminum ones but custom made and not readily available....

[Bob Denman]

The BEST one comes from SpyderPops!

[PrairieSpyder]

The BEST one comes from SpyderPops!

I didn't realize there is an OEM one!!

[Highwayman2013]

When you install the Spyderpops one, the OEM one is removed. It's very small.

[KX5062]

as mentioned above the oem is plastic and tucked under covering basically the frunk. We know only the spyderpops which is appropriately named a bumpskid because it extends out about an inch and acts as a bumper and cover the entire area under the nose. I have seen aluminum ones but custom made and not readily available....

What he said. A custom made aluminum one might be better, but you'd have to do it yourself.

[jthornton]

Which is the best type? One manufactured from aluminium or heavy duty PVC?
What type are the OEM BRP skid plates?

I wouldn't use either material as a skid plate, I would use Delrin or similar. I'm pretty sure Harvey (SpyderPops) makes his from Delrin and if I wanted one it would be his.

JT

[Highwayman2013]

What is this Delrin you speak of?

[jthornton]

What is this Delrin you speak of?

Delrin is an acetal homopolymer resin combines lubricity and wear resistance with the stiffness and strength needed in parts designed to replace metal. It is made by Dupont but there are many versions of acetal homopolymer resin based material. It's a common material used in industry.

Delrin acetal homopolymer resin is a highly-crystalline polymer that has high stiffness and strength without the need for glass reinforcement. When compared to acetal copolymers offered by competitors, Delrin® offers higher tensile strength, stiffness, and creep resistance, and significantly outperforms on impact resistance, allowing for thinner and lighter part design. In addition, Delrin^® offers outstanding low- and high-temperature performance, good colorability, and good mating with metal and other polymers.

JT

[bluestratos]

UHMW (ultra high molecular weight), it is a very slick plastic, you often see it used for cutting boards. It resists cuts and abrasions and is not brittle. It is heavy (hence the name) but it is good product for skid plates as it will slide up and over rather than gouge or shatter.

[Jim&Teresa]

The BEST one comes from SpyderPops!

Installed the Spyderpops Bumpskid on both our 2012 and 2014 RT L's. The 2012 was saved several times by the bumpskid on areas such as entrances and exits, speedbumps. road hazards, etc. Haven't put the 2014's bumpskid to the test other than one scrape coming out of a gas station at a very slow speed.

Good luck with your decision!

[Cruzr Joe]

What he said. A custom made aluminum one might be better, but you'd have to do it yourself.

an aluminum one will bend.

Cruzr Joe

[gerard]

Thank you to all for your prompt replies. This is a great forum for getting info on Spyders, particularly when you are new to the wonderful world of Spyders.

[Jim&Teresa]

Thank you to all for your prompt replies. This is a great forum for getting info on Spyders, particularly when you are new to the wonderful world of Spyders.

Yup, Spyderlovers here are very helpful! I use this forum for info., questions, etc.

BTW, to help protect your front end of your RT, (maybe this is obvious), take your entrances and exits (safely) at an angle to reduce the chance of bottoming out....I have a sloped driveway and do that all the time. Helps when you go into places like gas stations, restaurants, etc, as some of those places can have a steep entrance/exit.

Good luck with your 2014 RT - It's an AWESOME machine! We have about 8,000 miles on ours.....and lovin' every mile.

[CyncySpyder]

&

[KX5062]

an aluminum one will bend.

Cruzr Joe

Yep. That's what it's supposed to do, to absorb the impact energy. Then it can be bent back easily. That's one of the reasons why it's the most common materials used for this purpose.

[Bob Denman]

UHMW (ultra high molecular weight), it is a very slick plastic, you often see it used for cutting boards. It resists cuts and abrasions and is not brittle. It is heavy (hence the name) but it is good product for skid plates as it will slide up and over rather than gouge or shatter.

Yup!

The slideails on snowmobile suspensions are made out of it...
As are the best of the new plastic skis and skidplates!

They can take a pounding!

[Motorsickle]

Installed the Spyderpops Bumpskid on both our 2012 and 2014 RT L's. The 2012 was saved several times by the bumpskid on areas such as entrances and exits, speedbumps. road hazards, etc. Haven't put the 2014's bumpskid to the test other than one scrape coming out of a gas station at a very slow speed.

Good luck with your decision!

I know this is an old thread but I have a 2011 and am looking for
A skid plate or belly pan and am only finding ones listed for 2014 up. After reading your comment about the spyder pops one I checked it out but they are listed 2014-19. They are the same that you put on the the 2011 and 2014? Thanks

[Peter Aawen]

I know this is an old thread but I have a 2011 and am looking for
A skid plate or belly pan and am only finding ones listed for 2014 up. After reading your comment about the spyder pops one I checked it out but they are listed 2014-19. They are the same that you put on the the 2011 and 2014? Thanks

The 2014 & on Spyder RT's are somewhat wider in the frunk area, especially underneath.... so while I strongly suspect that you could physically fit a 2014-19 Bumpskid onto a 2011 (or 2013 ) Spyder RT, there'd be a fair bit of Bumpskid sticking out from underneath just about everywhere but the very front.

Forum member Noboot (who is also an Ozzie ) sells the replacement Billet Windscreen Lift Arms and a pretty effective Alloy Skid Plate for RT's that might be more suitable for your 2011, but I don't know how you'd go with freight costs & delivery time in the current overseas freight delivery environment?! Still, might be worth a PM, you'll never know unless you ask!

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

I know this is an old thread but I have a 2011 and am looking for
A skid plate or belly pan and am only finding ones listed for 2014 up. After reading your comment about the spyder pops one I checked it out but they are listed 2014-19. They are the same that you put on the the 2011 and 2014? Thanks

A " SKID " plate IMHO may give the owner a false sense of security, .... if you hit say a curb, at any speed, there is a good likelihood that this will cause the entire FRUNK to raise up. If that happens a few of the Plastic tabs that attach with T-30 bolts will Break off. A dealer will NOT repair any of them ... they will just say the FRUNK has to replaced. This is going to be very,very expensive. and definitely not covered under warranty. Some scratches to the underside of your frunk is the least of your worries. .... just something to consider ..... good luck .... Mike

[M109Dreamer]

I know this is an old thread but I have a 2011 and am looking for
A skid plate or belly pan and am only finding ones listed for 2014 up. After reading your comment about the spyder pops one I checked it out but they are listed 2014-19. They are the same that you put on the the 2011 and 2014? Thanks

Here are the 2 available.

https://spyderpops.com/the-original-...odels-2010-13/

https://spyderpops.com/the-original-...odels-2010-13/