To ARB Bullbar or Not to ARB Bullbar

[Babs]

Hi guys,

I was was wanting a Camel Trophy type bolt on front bar, but it seems extremely difficult to find one, and I don't think they would account for the Puma's extended Grille.

I like the fact of not having much weight up front, and retaining that classic look, although it probably would not hold up from an impact with a Roo.

Anyways, the pros for the ARB would be more solid front protection, but the cons would be unnecessary added weight up front.

Would I have to change springs up front to accommodate the ARB bar, and no i'm not going to run a winch (well not ATM at least).

Other choice is leave it as is, which I dont mind, but am extremely concerned with any impact from the Roo's etc.

Any advice would be appreciated, cheers :)

Babs.

[Drover]

I put an ARB bar on several years ago and still not sure. It certainly takes away the classic look but it does offer good protection and a nice place to put the driving lights.

I have an idea to go a TF tube bar but still not sure:confused:

[460cixy]

There solid I got three roos in the row the other night 100kph no dramas

[wannabeexplorer]

Yes, exact same taste and thoughts...
Love the camel trophy style bolt-on bar and no it won't fit.
Those tube style bars aren't as bulky as the ARB, which I like, but offer little protection against animal strikes. Same goes for the 'A' bar.

We drove past 6 dead Roos from Jameson today (and I don't consider that to be wild country). Although as a rule I never drive at night and I take it easy most of the time, Roos do jump about during daytime too and it may not be possible to avoid collusion...
Personally I'll be fitting and ARB bar before heading out to no-mans-land

[lambrover]

I have a tube bar and they do offer protection over the vitals, radiator.

I am however thinking of getting the new ARB bar next year as it has better protection and it is better for clearance then there older bar.

[austastar]

Hi,
get a quote from a panel beater for a roo strike any where on the front. Then reassess the cost of an ARB bar.

cheers

[Babs]

Hi,
get a quote from a panel beater for a roo strike any where on the front. Then reassess the cost of an ARB bar.

cheers

Good point, but its not the cost that i'm questioning. More so the added weight and wether I will have to change spring rate, and obviously aesthetics.;)

[Babs]

If anyone has the tube style bar, some pics would be appreciated and where to buy as well. Cheers. :)

[pushrod]

Hey Babs.. Heres a link to the tubular style bar
They are a good compromise between protection and keeping
Some of the classic look..

Rovacraft Land Rover Defender Tubular Winch Bull Bar | Buy 4x4 Land Rover Toyota Nissan Accessories and Parts Online Store | Expedition Centre Australia by Mulgo (http://www.expeditioncentre.com.au/online-store/vehicle-protection/rovacraft-land-rover-defender-tubular-winch-bull-bar.html)

[carlschmid2002]

I have the bar that Mulgo sells. I don't have my car with me ATM but my profile will have picks.

[Chops]

G'day Babs,
I chose the TJM style bar for mine, as I didn't like the the way the ARB is swept up from the centre. It's fairly heavy I guess, as would be the ARB, but I wanted full frontal protection. I've been unfortunate enough to hit several roo's etc, both day and night, and no, I don't consider I was going too fast.
As has already been said, check out how much a rebuild is, not to mention prescious time without your baby.
You can get from one of the other places a tube type bar which can be modified through the manufacturer to include headlight protection, but it works out to be more expensive and heavier again. However, as these "wings" bolt on/off, you do have an option I guess to use if you know your going country.
As for overall weight on the front end, I have a winch as well, and I don't believe it's dropped that much due to the weight.
There's pics on my build thread if you want to check it out, not sure if it'll show you what you need, but it's there to see if you want.

[JayBoRover]

Hiya Babs. You really get around on this here Forum!:)
I have the ARB bullbar, with a winch, driving lights and UHF antenna. I was a little concerned about the weight up front and what that would do to the driving attitude but my concern was needless. Maybe putting the roof rack and tent on balanced things up, although at the same time I have removed both rear seats out of the D90. Weight differences would impact on my shorty much more than your 110, so I really doubt you'd notice the change with the weight on the front as drastically as you think.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/12/1004.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/08/1556.jpg

[Babs]

Hiya Babs. You really get around on this here Forum!:)
I have the ARB bullbar, with a winch, driving lights and UHF antenna. I was a little concerned about the weight up front and what that would do to the driving attitude but my concern was needless. Maybe putting the roof rack and tent on balanced things up, although at the same time I have removed both rear seats out of the D90. Weight differences would impact on my shorty much more than your 110, so I really doubt you'd notice the change with the weight on the front as drastically as you think.


Hey John,

Are you insinuating I'm a floozy :)

Thanks for the pics, nice rig.

That bar looks quite close to the lights and grille would I be right in saying that?

If so has it posed any problems?

[greenhornet]

I added an xrox bar to our Puma a while back.
A great bar and no need to change springs.
I would buy the same bar again.
Link below where i posted up some photos
Cheers

http://www.aulro.com/afvb/90-110-130-defender-county/115430-xrox-bar-added-puma.html

[Babs]

Had a look at "Pushrods" link, "Chops" TJM bar and "Green Hornets" bar, all really good bars but what I was trying to retain was the factory bumper, just have something (like Camel Trophy style) bolt straight on to it. Where I also got the light protection.

Keep the photos coming its really good to see the other styles that people choose and the reasons why they choose them, someone might have something different I might just like.

Cheers.

Sent from my iPhone using Forum Runner

[Babs]

Here is a forum members trucks with bolt on style bar that I like.


54051



54052

Sent from my iPhone using Forum Runner

[JayBoRover]

Hey John,

Are you insinuating I'm a floozy :)

Thanks for the pics, nice rig.

That bar looks quite close to the lights and grille would I be right in saying that?

If so has it posed any problems?
:D. Good to see you getting the most out of the Forum.
The ARB bar does sit close but has never touched. I can actually remove the headlight shrouds, headlights and the grille without removing the bar, so it is perfect where it is in my opinion.

So you want something more like this:
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/12/996.jpg
This is on my Series 2a. I haven't thought about trying it on the Puma. I have to remove the Puma bar one of these days (to make some adjustments to my winch mounting) and the S2a bar is easy to remove so maybe I could try it and get some photo's of that for you. This just bolts onto the standard front bumper and the S2a bumper is very similar to the Deefer one.

[Leroy_Riding]

Have you considerd the factory 'A' bar and a set of steel headlight surrounds, then paired with the Mantec winch bumper or the similar terrafirma bumper replacement?

offers more protection than nothing, but not as much as a proper bar. . . for looks its the best option but im yet to take a Roo to the front of mine yet. . .

[n plus one]

I added an xrox bar to our Puma a while back.
A great bar and no need to change springs.
I would buy the same bar again.
Link below where i posted up some photos
Cheers

http://www.aulro.com/afvb/90-110-130-defender-county/115430-xrox-bar-added-puma.html

How about a couple more pics of that bar in more natural circumstances? I can't say I like the look of it too much in any of the photos I've seen to date, but they've all been a bit posed rather than just general shots of a truck with on fitted.

It looks like a good product and their other bars look pretty good on other vehicles.

I'm thinking about ditching my old style ARB bar for one....

[greenhornet]

Sure..I will find some over the weekend.
Cheers

[greenhornet]

How is this for starters...its a 'bar'

[Babs]

How is this for starters...its a 'bar'

Ha ha love it.

What do you stock at the rear bar? :)

Sent from my iPhone using Forum Runner

[Chops]

How is this for starters...its a 'bar'

I'm not sure, but this looks like the bar you get the corner wings made to suit,, bolt on, bolt off.

[greenhornet]

How about a couple more pics of that bar in more natural circumstances? I can't say I like the look of it too much in any of the photos I've seen to date, but they've all been a bit posed rather than just general shots of a truck with on fitted.

It looks like a good product and their other bars look pretty good on other vehicles.

I'm thinking about ditching my old style ARB bar for one....

Found these in Natural circumstances...

[Babs]

Found these in Natural circumstances...

Whoah! Good Vid. I bet bet your heart sank when that ran away from you.:eek:

[PaulMc0308]

Hi guys,

I was was wanting a Camel Trophy type bolt on front bar, but it seems extremely difficult to find one, and I don't think they would account for the Puma's extended Grille.

I like the fact of not having much weight up front, and retaining that classic look, although it probably would not hold up from an impact with a Roo.

Anyways, the pros for the ARB would be more solid front protection, but the cons would be unnecessary added weight up front.

Would I have to change springs up front to accommodate the ARB bar, and no i'm not going to run a winch (well not ATM at least).

Other choice is leave it as is, which I dont mind, but am extremely concerned with any impact from the Roo's etc.

Any advice would be appreciated, cheers :)

Babs.



The Camel Trophy Bullbar was made by Brownchurch (http://www.brownchurch.co.uk/generalequipment.html) in the UK.

They only list the non-winch type now -

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/


They say it will fit with Aircon.


Paul.

1989 Arles Blue 2.5TD 110 Hardtop
1999 Epsom Green Discovery II 4.0 V8i 'XS'

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/05/756.jpg

.

[Babs]

The Camel Trophy Bullbar was made by Brownchurch (http://www.brownchurch.co.uk/generalequipment.html) in the UK.

They only list the non-winch type now -

They say it will fit with Aircon.

Paul.

1989 Arles Blue 2.5TD 110 Hardtop
1999 Epsom Green Discovery II 4.0 V8i 'XS'

.

Thanks Paul, it's perfect :) :) :)

Sent from my iPhone using Forum Runner

[samuelclarke]

The Camel Trophy Bullbar was made by Brownchurch (http://www.brownchurch.co.uk/generalequipment.html) in the UK.

They only list the non-winch type now -

http://www.brownchurch.co.uk/images/LR26NM.jpg


They say it will fit with Aircon.

.

Going by their website they say it will fit with a winch, I'd imagine you would just need a close to standard winch mount bumper. Looks good!


"Nylon coated bush bar, to suit defenders. This product includes spot lamp mounts, and will fit vehicles with a winch such as the Warn 9000i. The bush bar will also fit vehicles with A/C"

Here's the Terrafirma bar I've got on my Defender. Had a couple of roo strikes so far and holding up fine, however if that's the main reason for getting a bar I'd got with an ARB one.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/

[PAT303]

The camel trophy bar on a winch bumper would go well,I've never hit a roo so went with a MM tube bumper and winch mount,I've got a different slant on things as I've always thought avoiding hitting something was better than protection so I've kept the weight down on the TDCi by just going the bumper. Pat

[n plus one]

Going by their website they say it will fit with a winch, I'd imagine you would just need a close to standard winch mount bumper. Looks good!



Here's the Terrafirma bar I've got on my Defender. Had a couple of roo strikes so far and holding up fine, however if that's the main reason for getting a bar I'd got with an ARB one.

http://samuelclarke.com/media/misc/my110/safara-frostymango-fnq.jpg

We talking big skippies or just the tiddlers? Interested, as I'm seriously considering moving from my ARB to a Terra/Rovacraft bar.

[samuelclarke]

We talking big skippies or just the tiddlers? Interested, as I'm seriously considering moving from my ARB to a Terra/Rovacraft bar.

Biggest hit on the front bar was a female grey around 1.2m tall - the others have been smaller greys or wallabies. I've also had a big roo come from the side into the rock/tree sliders and only left a small dent on the door.

The Terrafirma winch bar is well made and strong...I haven't been able to damage it in the few years I've had it. However, I don't know how it would go with a big roo (1.5m tall or more) hit as I've got no personal experience with hitting any (some close calls, but thankfully nothing yet!). I think the Defender would still be drivable, but I reckon there'd be some damage to the wings.

Hope that helps a bit! :)

[newhue]

wouldn't one of those Camel types just fold back onto the grill and body work anyway. Isn't the strength in an ARB style in the mountings and the triangular centre uprights. The original LR bumper bar is not much, and if some grill type bar was bolted to it than it may look the goods but doesn't achieve much more than that.

Perhaps if you don't drive much after dark, and where roos tend to hang out, maybe there is no real need for a Camel type after all.

[PAT303]

After attending many motor vehicle accidents I'd say eight out of ten so called ''bullbars'' fold back onto the bodywork,also many people said the animal they hit bounced forward and went under the vehicle pulling the steering wheel out of their hands causing them to crash or came over the bonnet and into the screen also causing them to crash.I'll stand by my avoidance theory. Pat

[GlennWA]

Thanks for the thread.

Am in similar circumstances myself in deciding a bullbar. Just got back last night (this morning:eek:) from a trip to WA after picking up the car early last month. (thread soon)

From my five and a half weeks of ownership and near on 9000 km another consideration apart from the roos is protection of the wings and headlights from scrub and sticks on narrow tracks. Still don't like the ARB too much and it seems to reduce the approach angle and I have already come close to nudging the bumper on rocks.

Are the front runner bars still available?

[PAT303]

Glenn,I bought my winch bar direct from the UK delivered to Newman for half Oz price. Pat

[newhue]

Not sure what this guy hit, but it doesn't take much to write off a Defender, even with an ARB bar. As Pat said, it's how you drive really, not what protection you have.

Damaged 2008 Land Rover Defender 130 Dual Cab Chassis (http://www.manheim.com.au/damaged-vehicles/3536536/2008-land-rover-defender-130-dual-cab-chassis'referringPage=SearchResults)

[schuy1]

Looks like he hit it on the drivers corner, which is a bad place in any 1's book. And whatever he hit was pretty big by the look of it, see how the bar has rolled back at the top? Hit was up high maybe shunted a truck or beast. Looks similar to mine after hitting a brahman bull 1 morning! :D But they repaired mine.
And as to avoidence, well a lot of accidents happen because peoples natural instinc is to avoid an impact, and results in lose of control Unless you are travelling slowly. The safest is to center skippy/ daisy/Fernando in the bar, be aware that anything over 60-70 kg is gonna hurt no matter what you have on the front and at any moderate speed.
As with most things, If you travel in animal strike zones, SLOW DOWN!!! Cause the next cow you hit may be MINE! :O
Cheers Scott