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Rear Bumper, Should I get one with Tire Carrier?

3K views 22 replies 13 participants last post by  lindel 
#1 ·
I just bought a 2004 Jeep Wrangler Sport (6 cylinder) and I need a 2" receiver for towing an ATV, and figured I'd just buy a bumper with it on it. I plan on keeping a relatively close to stock tire size on my jeep, although it will definitely get some new wheels and maybe some all terrain tires (maybe slightly bigger).

I like this:

Smittybilt SRC Classic Rear Bumper w/D-Rings, Hitch & Tire Carrier, Textured Black 76651D (87-06 Wrangler YJ & TJ) - Free Shipping

and was really looking for something in the 300 to 400 range and I definitely like the added tow hooks.

My question is, is there a point in getting one with a tire swing? It seems those are more for putting oversized tires on, that would otherwise be difficult or add more strain to the stock tire mount. It seems it would be an inconvenience to have to unlatch the tire swing to open the tailgate. Is there any benefit in having an after market tire swing other than supporting a very large tire size? Otherwise I'll just try to find a bumper similar to that one without the swing.
 
#2 ·
I just bought a 2004 Jeep Wrangler Sport (6 cylinder) and I need a 2" receiver for towing an ATV, and figured I'd just buy a bumper with it on it. I plan on keeping a relatively close to stock tire size on my jeep, although it will definitely get some new wheels and maybe some all terrain tires (maybe slightly bigger).

I like this:

Smittybilt SRC Classic Rear Bumper w/D-Rings, Hitch & Tire Carrier, Textured Black 76651D (87-06 Wrangler YJ & TJ) - Free Shipping

and was really looking for something in the 300 to 400 range and I definitely like the added tow hooks.

My question is, is there a point in getting one with a tire swing? It seems those are more for putting oversized tires on, that would otherwise be difficult or add more strain to the stock tire mount. It seems it would be an inconvenience to have to unlatch the tire swing to open the tailgate. Is there any benefit in having an after market tire swing other than supporting a very large tire size? Otherwise I'll just try to find a bumper similar to that one without the swing.

I personally like the way that bumper looks but a lot of Jeepers don't like Smitty because their product is manufactured in China. I don't know what the quality of their steel parts, like welding quality etc which is important.

I have the Rokmen rear bumper and currently using the stock tire carrier for 33's. I like the swing carrier which I plan on getting in the future.
 
#11 ·
I like the way this bumper looks! unfortunately it doesn't come with the receiver, I might be better off just buying the receiver and then getting the bumper later or something, was just trying to weasel my way into a bumper with the wife since she knows we need the receiver to pull the ATV! :).
 
#3 ·
Everyone I know that had purchased a Smittybilt swing arm tire carrier regretted it soon after. The latches start to fail, crappy or no bearings in the pivot joint, rattling getting worse over time. Its a lot of money to spend on something that you'll just use until something better comes along. Good items come along a Craig's List every now and then.
 
#20 ·
The latch on mine wore out after about 8 months. I removed the swing gate and put the tire back on the stock mount. Re-engineered the 3rd brake light for the 2nd time. I won't be buying Smittybilt again.
 
#4 ·
I have the Smitty classic with tire carrier it is strong the latch is beefy but the gosh darn thing rattles to hell and back and its made in China.

It works, but I am working on replacing it. I will probably go with the ORFab tire carrier and just pop off the swing arm on the bumper.
 
#6 ·
If you plan on going to bigger tires like 33s or bigger then, yes, I would recommend a tire carrier. However, some brands have the carrier and bumpers sold either together or separately. If you plan to wait a while before buying bigger tires, buy one of these bumpers that are available like this and add add the carrier later.

Recommend avoiding smittybilt, they tend to be a hit or miss in many departments especially the bumpers
 
#8 ·
You're right that you don't need the tire carrier with stock tires or just slightly larger ones. If you get into a heavy wheel and tire package you'll want to take that weight off the tailgate.

Unfortunately you don't have a lot of tow rated options that are in your price range. Let me know if you have any other questions about any Bumpers you see or if you'd like a quote on any of them!

-Ryan
 
#9 ·
thanks for all the info, extremely helpful, I'm not looking to pull a lot of weight (2000 lbs max), but the price range could go up, if it had too, I'll just wait a bit to buy the bumper.

I'll definitely stay away from that bumper, thanks for the feedback on that!

I'll probably end up with 30s or something eventually and some different rims, so I'll probably just stick with just the bumper!
 
#15 ·
Update:

After a response from the dirtworx fabrication guy, I ordered one of those.

This was the response:

These are all hand fabricated so they're not going to have an official d.o.t. tow rating on them but they are made with real class 3 hitch tube and are rock solid and capable of handling far more weight than your Jeep is rated for. I've been towing with them for many years.

Now I just need to figure out what to cover it with since it's raw metal, maybe I'll linex it.
 
#17 ·
Yeah, I'm not pulling a lot of weight, so it's not a huge concern to me, frankly 2k was probably a high end I'll never hit. We also have a honda pilot that can tow 5k, so anything heavier would just be towed with that.

I got a quote from a local shop to do a textured powder coat which will be between 140 and 150 so grand total..

bumper = $150
shipping = $79
powder coating = $150

$379

works for me, and I think the quality will be a little better than what I can find for that same price anywhere else.
 
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