Grille guard / bull bar for the F53 chassis ?

[AC Orange]

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Wondering if there is any type of grille guard / bull bar available for the F53 MH chassis ? Since it would bolt to part of the frame structure, maybe something is out there that would fit a range of coach bodies.

I'd really like something to protect the front end of my MH in the event of a collision with a big four legged animal so I wouldn't be left on the side of the road with radiator damage. Also, it would be a great mounting point for some badly needed additional lighting.
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[Scarab0088]

Best luck on your quest...we, Outlaw owners (Class A Toy Haulers) have been looking for this exact thing for years - no luck.

Maybe it is a question of the variety of front caps from many makers, since the front end would be different for RVs from most makers.

One owner had a system built to carry a Segway. See:
http://www.irv2.com/forums/f121/outl...ml#post1450702

Safe travels

[rapid rick]

I made one using 1&3/4 .095 wall roll cage tubing. My prototype was to go on the outside of front cap&grille,but I did not like the look, so I mounted it directly behind the front cap. I had to space bars as to not interfere with air flow thru grille bars, horizontal bars are directly behind grille bars,the only thing that is seen by a very keen eye is the vertical connector bars that are a foot apart. Mounts to the front of the frame rails using tubing and heavy angle, center mounting bar is removable. Fiberglass will take a hit but all major components including battery and radiator should survive, well,depending on what gets hit.Took about 8-10 hours to fab and install.

ps I bent the tubing to contour the front cap before welding it up.

[AC Orange]

Originally Posted by Scarab0088

Best luck on your quest...we, Outlaw owners (Class A Toy Haulers) have been looking for this exact thing for years - no luck.

Safe travels

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I see what you mean about locating something off the shelf. I'm truly surprised that there isn't a few somethings out there. They make about a gazillion of these things for every SUV & pickup truck imaginable. It seems like a great potential for one of those manufacturers to gear up for.
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[AC Orange]

Originally Posted by rapid rick

I made one using 1&3/4 .095 wall roll cage tubing.
.........Fiberglass will take a hit but all major components including battery and radiator should survive, well,depending on what gets hit.Took about 8-10 hours to fab and install.

ps I bent the tubing to contour the front cap before welding it up.

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Not a bad idea mounting behind. Certainly cheaper to replace a fiberglass nose cap. And at least you wouldn't be stuck in who-knows-where.
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[rapid rick]

You can also try places like big rig chrome, you might be able to adapt a grille guard that fits a peterbilt or mac but Prepare yourself they are not cheap.There are several big rig supply places on line that carry different styles, all made to go on in front of grille. I just found it easier and cheaper to make my own from scratch rather than try to retrofit something that was not made to fit my rig. I also have not put my hands on a actual guard on a big rig to see how strong they are, so for me the $100.00 & 8+or- hours of fabrication was the obvious solution. To pay someone to build it, I'm not sure if that would be cheap either.

[AC Orange]

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Depending on what part of the world you're in you could buy something that would likely fit or at the other end of the spectrum, they're completely illegal :

Bull Bars Banned : Bull-bars Banned - Farmers Weekly

Whitlock Bull Bars : Motor Homes Archives - Whitlock Bull Bars

Protectabar : Mitsubishi – Product Categories – Protectabar

Obviously the foreign built products would be cost prohibitive because of shipping.
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[rapid rick]

Originally Posted by AC Orange

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Depending on what part of the world you're in you could buy something that would likely fit or at the other end of the spectrum, they're completely illegal :

Bull Bars Banned : [URL="http://www.fwi.co.uk/business/bull-bars-banned.htm"]Bull-bars Banned - Farmers Weekly
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There is another perfect example of a law made by morons without a lick of common sense. I can not picture a cyclist being hurt less by a motor home without a bull bar,matter of fact I can barely picture the cyclist surviving, with or without the bar. I'm all set, mines hidden behind the front cap, so I'm legal even if I take a wrong turn and wind up in australia.

They look good on the front of the motorhome in pics,don't ya think?

[AC Orange]

Originally Posted by rapid rick

There is another perfect example of a law made by morons without a lick of common sense. I can not picture a cyclist being hurt less by a motor home without a bull bar,matter of fact I can barely picture the cyclist surviving, with or without the bar. I'm all set, mines hidden behind the front cap, so I'm legal even if I take a wrong turn and wind up in australia.

They look good on the front of the motorhome in pics,don't ya think?

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I kept trying to picture how a bull-bar could cause such damage. Maybe if it was some kind of crazy "Mad-Max" affair with sharp pointy things jutting out ? But then you'd think that maybe they would've gone a bit further and made a list of acceptable types. You've probably got the right idea with protection behind the fiberglass nose piece.

BTW, you're right about the way those look in the pics. I was picturing something like that with a couple of good quality driving lights mounted.
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[Mike and Cha]

Although anything is better than nothing I'm not sure how much good it would do. I know that the front caps of most MH's with no reinforcement , would just cave in if hitting a large animal. Having seen many cars/trucks that hit wild animals on the road, even though the animal usually died, it still won, as most of the vehicles either had major damage or were totaled. I can't imagine what would happen to the rest of the MH with that sudden stop, or what it may do to a car you rear ended someone.