I buddy of mine installed some Bushwhackers so I nabbed his takeoffs which were pretty brutally handled by the shop. Decided to try something.
Used tape to line my cut. I didnt think it would stay well so I had a gold Sharpie and just outlined my line in case it fell off. Tape actually never fell off so the sharpie was just pointless lol
Just used a Dremel with Plastic cutoff wheel.. Looks gnarly but as you know the melted plastic bits just chip off later. You can also see the stuff that liked to get stuck above the cutting wheel. Had to peel that off every now and then. The internal gussets are only really attached at the edges for maybe 1/2". I pretty much just tore them apart after I made the cut. You can go in and clean up the little tabs they leave pretty easily.
I just scraped the edges to 'deburr' and sanded them a little. I still havent really finish sanded with a block. I have a belt sander but it doesnt like to keep the belt centered well. Will tackle that soon. I may try some heat on my scrap flare pieces to see if I can melt the edges smoother. (EDIT: dont bother smoothing much. Just use door-edge guard to cover)
FYI the OEM rocker plastic holds a TON of debris. I bet you anything in ten years we are going to be seeing them rust out down low..
I am overall happy. I am going to fab up some mud flaps. Downside to this mod is it leaves the front of the rear bumper open to catch debris.
Front mudflap area.
some pics
Added 'door edge guard' and some generic mud flaps to finish it all off.
No more holding dirt and mud!
Used tape to line my cut. I didnt think it would stay well so I had a gold Sharpie and just outlined my line in case it fell off. Tape actually never fell off so the sharpie was just pointless lol
Just used a Dremel with Plastic cutoff wheel.. Looks gnarly but as you know the melted plastic bits just chip off later. You can also see the stuff that liked to get stuck above the cutting wheel. Had to peel that off every now and then. The internal gussets are only really attached at the edges for maybe 1/2". I pretty much just tore them apart after I made the cut. You can go in and clean up the little tabs they leave pretty easily.
I just scraped the edges to 'deburr' and sanded them a little. I still havent really finish sanded with a block. I have a belt sander but it doesnt like to keep the belt centered well. Will tackle that soon. I may try some heat on my scrap flare pieces to see if I can melt the edges smoother. (EDIT: dont bother smoothing much. Just use door-edge guard to cover)
FYI the OEM rocker plastic holds a TON of debris. I bet you anything in ten years we are going to be seeing them rust out down low..
I am overall happy. I am going to fab up some mud flaps. Downside to this mod is it leaves the front of the rear bumper open to catch debris.
Front mudflap area.
some pics
Added 'door edge guard' and some generic mud flaps to finish it all off.
No more holding dirt and mud!