DIY Aluminum Front Splitter

[swcrow]

I want a front splitter badly, but the prices are quite high and I'm not in a position to outright purchase one. That said, I have access to CNC machines and operators, band saws, aluminum distributors, powder coaters, retired maintenance warrant officers and time, sooooo.....I'm making one.

I'm going to update this as I go, but wanted to kick-start it here. I'm looking at local aluminum folks, but will order from here if I can't get a sheet near me:
https://www.mcmaster.com/89015k18(rough guess of measurements)

I'll take pics of my mock-up and the process as I roll through, but thought this would be a fun "see if I can do this" thread.

Stay tuned....I'll update as I go.

 

[golfare]

Cool, that would be a good solution and more durable than acrylic! Are you thinking you're going to draw a cardboard template and cut from there? Maybe where I'd start is trace your bumper underside on a piece of cardboard and cut that out to the line and offset it out 3/4" or so and put the cardboard shape on the car to see how it looks.

 

[swcrow]

^ cardboard is exactly where I'm going to start..only on one side at first. I'm not sure if I'm going to do a more rounded front end or follow the curvature of the bumper......

 

[golfare]

Very nice. What size piece of aluminum are you going to buy to start off with? The link didn't seem to work right.

 

[swcrow]

Very nice. What size piece of aluminum are you going to buy to start off with? The link didn't seem to work right.

Not sure yet... Thinking I'll start with 8' x 1' x 1/8"

 

[NopeR]

Can't afford $100-ish lips from maxton?

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[Dragk913]

Can't afford $100-ish lips from maxton?

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Maybe he wants a functional splitter and not a cosmetic lip?

 

[Chogokin]

Unless the lip is fairly long...I'm pretty sure they are all cosmetic.

 

[swcrow]

Can't afford $100-ish lips from maxton?

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Eh.

I love aero fabb, but not the price. Bigger thing is I want to really TRY and make one... Plus I can make it cheaper. I grew up around classic cars and the old guys who fabbed everything and I guess I'm in that school of thought.

It might suck and then I'll be forced to buy one.

 

[D.Gage]

���� Good luck man, I made a skid plate for my Jeep a few years ago and it was very rewarding when the project was finished.

 

[swcrow]

So a tad discouraging.

Powder coating is making the cost of this effort bump the ceiling of where I wanted to be. Quotes of 100-150, with 80 for the aluminum alone. Now I'm faced with making this to see if I can do it...OR.... Buy one.

I can get it painted for cheap though.....

 

[golfare]

Depending on what type of finish you are going for, perhaps you could use 3M rattle can undercoating. It would give you a crinkle type finish and that stuff is pretty durable.

 

[swcrow]

Depending on what type of finish you are going for, perhaps you could use 3M rattle can undercoating. It would give you a crinkle type finish and that stuff is pretty durable.

Actually...I'm glad you reminded me about that. On my stg III B5 Passat, I used truck bed lining for my votex kit.....darn easy to put on and you can recoat if it ever scrapes/chips.



Game back on!

 

[golfare]

Can't afford $100-ish lips from maxton?

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The maxton splitters cost $250-ish on amazon and ECS. I think this project has some potential

 

[GTI Jake]

There’s a good YouTube video on this, I’m planning to do the same eventually (in my free time)

I can’t find the video to save my life for some reason, but it’s by Justin aka The Fabrication Series on YouTube

When I build mine it’ll be chassis mounted, quick release, and strong enough to be functional on the track. Not in a big rush to do it, as I’m always working on everyone else’s stuff so my cars always on the back burner