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Off Your Rocker Rocker Guards
By Jimmy Vance

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If you read my last article on Off Your Rocker Panels body armor, you know that I am very pleased with the products that come out of Dan Duffy's shop. I had Dan send me a set of his Rocker Guards to match the corner guards I installed on the TJ several months ago.

Off Your Rocker Panels manufactures corner guards and rocker panel guards for Jeeps from 1955 to present. These panels are beefy!

When the boxes arrived, the contents were well-packed to prevent any damage during shipping. The rocker guards come with stainless steel mounting hardware and include instructions that are very straightforward.

Tools Required:

  1. Electric Drill, 1/4", 1/2", 1-1/2" drill bit.
  2. Hammer & center punch.
  3. Large locking clamps.
  4. Silicone sealer.
  5. 5/16" wrench and socket.
  6. 4mm Allen head wrench.
  7. (4) 1-1/4 Hole plugs
  8. Masking tape
   

The installation will take a full day to complete.

First, remove the flare extension and flares. (Dan's instructions say to remove the flares, but I opted to just unbolt them enough to get access to the rocker panel area.) I did have to remove the tube steps to get better access to the rocker area.

OYR Rocker Guards


You will need to drill holes in the guards to match the factory body holes for the flare and flare extension bolts. Here's how I made the rocker guards stay in place to drill the holes.

OYR Rocker Guards
OYR Rocker Guards
Clamp one of the rocker guards in position. I used masking tape on the tub to mark the top edge of the panel. You can look down between the tub and the panel and see the factory flare mounting holes. To make the panels sit flush with the tub and to bolt the flares back on you will need to drill holes to expose the mounting nuts. Using the eyeball method, I put a vertical strip of masking tape on each side of the mounting nut.

After all the areas are marked, remove the panel. Using the tape mark on the tub, measure down to the centerline of each mounting hole. Mark the panel in between each piece of tape with the measurements taken from the tub. Center punch the line and drill a ½ inch hole at each location. As you can see, when you place the guard back into position, you can now access the mount points to re-attach the flares.

OYR Rocker Guards
OYR Rocker Guards

Once you have finished making these holes, clamp the guards back into position. You now need to lay out the mounting bolts for the rocker guard. Using a tape measure, evenly space out the bolt locations along the top and bottom of the rocker guards. Be careful marking the bottom layer of bolts. If you mark too low on the panel, you will not drill into the body tub. When you are satisfied with the bolt layout, center punch the location of each hole on the rocker guard. Using the ¼ inch drill bit, drill through the rocker guard and body tub at each of your center punch marks. The upper bolt on each end of the tub will not be accessible from inside the tub yet.

At this point remove the guard. The upper bolt hole at each end of the tub must be drilled through to the inner tub. You may need a longer ¼ inch bit to get this done. Once you have drilled the inner tub you now have a pilot hole to drill a 1-1/4 inch hole from the inside. This hole will allow you to place the nut on the bolt when you bolt the panel in place. Once finished, you can place a 1-1/4 inch hole plug to give the installation a finished look.

OYR Rocker Guards
OYR Rocker Guards
Once you have all the holes drilled, remove any rough edges and paint the exposed bare metal to prevent rust. You need to seal the top and sides of the guard before bolting it into place. Sealing the guard prevents mud and debris from collecting between the panels which would eventually lead to rust.
OYR Rocker Guards
OYR Rocker Guards
I laid out a solid, straight piece of tape on the tub across the top of where the guard will bolt in place. This will make a straight edge on the sealer once the panel is bolted down. When you have the sealer applied to the guard, place it back into position and bolt it down. Reattach the fender flares and flare extensions.
OYR Rocker Guards
OYR Rocker Guards

That's all there is to it. If you want a more subtle look, you can use a black marker to cover the heads of the bolts with black to match the diamond plate guards.

The guards not only look cool but add quite a bit of extra strength to your rockers. So whether you just want to protect from potential damage in the future or you are trying to cover up the damage from that last unprotected run, the Off Your Rocker Rocker Guards may be just the ticket for you.

 

RESOURCES

Off Your Rocker Panels
www.offyourrockers.com
Phone: (650) 726-3008
Fax: (650) 726-3008
Email: sales@offyourrockers.com
Address:
P.O. Box 462
Half Moon Bay, CA 94019

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