Smittybilt XRC Armor Rock Guards

Great product. Well built, look and function great. Do not attempt to install without the suggested Rivet Nut Gun. Do not use socket and wrenches by hand.

I've bashed these rockers off plenty of rocks and the powdercoating has held up exceptionally well and has saved my Jeep from a lot of body damage! Not to mention, they give the Jeep a finished look and make it easier to get in and out of a lifted TJ!

Bought these to complement a set of corner guards I bought a couple years ago. Installation instructions are pretty straightforward. I loosened the body mounts on the affected side, then mocked up the slider with some 6" C-Clamps to mark the locations to drill. Once drilled, I attached the slider with the supplied stainless hardware. The first slider went on smoothly. On the second side, the procedure was repeated. The second fastener froze together with the nut about halfway down the bolt. I tried loosening the nut but it was frozen. Upon trying again, the bolt broke in two. Continuing the job, the next fastener froze. Since this one had made it almost all the way down, I left it and continued. The next few attached without problems. The last fastener froze even before the threads reached the Nylock portion of the nut. I tried to loosen it, and the Allen head of the screw stripped. I was concerned about cutting the fastener, as the Jeep had just been painted following a 3-year-long rebuild. I called 4WD for assistance, and they referred me to Smittybilt. The first Smittybilt rep listened to my problem, then said they could ship a replacement hardware pack "from Dallas". After waiting a couple weeks, I called Smittybilt for an update. The (different) rep told me that they didn't ship from Dallas at all, and told me that they would ship a hardware pack via UPS Blue and e-mail me a tracking number. The next day, I had not received a tracking number so I called 4WD to see if they could intervene. The 4WD rep attempted to contact Smittybilt and was unable to connect while we were on the phone. She said that she would e-mail Smittybilt and send me a tracking number that evening. Morning comes and still no update. I found a 4WD related bulletin board and posted my experience there. Within a day, a 4WD employee answered my post and has taken steps to correct the problem - I bought replacement hardware at a local fastener dealer, and sent 4WD a receipt. I have been told that a refund for the fasteners will arrive in the next few days. Afterwards, the hardware pack from Smittybilt finally arrived. The finish quality of the replacement fasteners is noticeably inferior to that of the replacements I purchased, and also to the finish of the XRC corner guards I purchased a couple years ago. The employee at the fastener store advised me to use copper anti-seize on the replacement fasteners. TL;DR Supplied bolts are prone to galling, be sure and use copper anti-seize on each. If there is a problem, getting support will delay your installation by weeks.