Lund 6″ Step Bars, Installation How-To and Review
by Jimmy Chambers
This is my review of a set of Lund 6″ Step Bars, Part#22368715 on my 2008 Dodge Ram 1500 QuadCab.
I should start by mentioning the awesome customer service at Lund International. Before I had even received my bars, I got an email informing me that some hardware had been omitted from my package and that it would be next day aired out to me. Next morning, I received the package as promised.
The install is pretty straight forward. My truck already had factory
bars on it, but they are 4″ and are located too far under the truck to
be used safely with the doors closed to wash or wax the roof of the
truck. This is no longer an issue with the 6″ Lund bars.
Factory bars
New Lund bars
The
Lund bars are heavy even though they have an aluminum frame. This is a
good thing because they are plenty sturdy. The also have 4 brackets per
side vs the OEM only having 2. This evenly supports the bars all the
way across so there should be no sag over time.
The brackets and
bars can be assembled with only a couple of tools. All that I needed was
a 3/8″ ratchet and a deepwell 7/16″ socket, a ½” socket, a 7/16″ wrench
as well as a 5/32″ allen wrench.
The mounting brackets are a 3
piece design for the Ram. Each of the 8 brackets uses 5 nuts and bolts
to secure them to the truck.
There are already holes in the truck so no drilling is required.
I
installed all 4 brackets on one side and laid the bar on them to line
them up before final tightening. A personal step that is not in the
instructions, it makes it easier for me to align everything that way.
Then
it is just a matter of sliding the 8 square headed bolts into the slots
on the bottom of the bar, and after laying the bar on the brackets,
aligning them with each bracket. Once lined up, you can adjust the bar
in or out to a position of your liking. I installed mine out as far as
the slots would allow. Once you get it adjusted in or out and you adjust
how far back from the front wheel well that you want them to sit, it is
time to install the 8 washers and self locking nuts to secure the bars
to the brackets.
Now all that is left is to remove the
protective film from the chrome and you are ready to step up into your
truck on a nice wide set of bars that have a nice soft rubber non-skid
surface on them.
My review of the Lund 6″ Step bars:
Pros:
-Aluminum Frame: Sturdy but won’t rust.
-6″ wide for a better area to step on.
-Nice non-skid rubber on top. Not plastic like many others.
-Easy installation. The kits are truck specific so they fit very nice.
-Nice looking chrome finish.
-Customer service is very good (as mentioned above).
-Nice, heavy mounting brackets are very sturdy. OEM quality.
-Packaged very nicely so that even if the box gets banged around in shipment, the product inside is well protected.
Cons:
-Open slots underneath can allow dirt and road salt to accumulate over time.
-Even
though the frame is aluminum, the brackets and bolts are not. This
leaves a possibility for rust to occur later down the road, but only
time will tell.
-I think that a nice spacer for the front brackets
between the truck and the bracket would be a bit nicer instead of the 5
washers per side that are used in the kit. It doesn’t affect the
install, just more parts to keep up with.
All in all, a very nice
product. These are heavy, sturdy bars that will hold up to 350lbs. The
install is straight forward, if you read the directions all-the-way
through before starting. Took about 2 hours to install, and this
included removing the OEM bars first. I would rate them a 9 out of 10. I
would highly recommend this product to anyone who needs a nice set of
bars for their truck. The finish on them is very nice and the real
rubber pads give a really good grip, even in the rain, unlike inferior
bars with plastic pads. This is a very nice product for the money. I can
honestly say that Lund makes a quality product.
For more information on these and other quality Lund products, look here: www.lundinternational.com/.