While I've never had step bars my opinion is that the bar should always be parallel to the body.

Imagine that you're using the truck for a truck and have enough weight, tongue weight, or combined weight that the truck is level, and the back of the bar is drooping three inches..
That's just hack, and will look like it's falling off.

 

Ok, I agree that the bars should be parallel with the body. So, one question answered.

But, on the horizontal gap, I had been thinking the bar needs to be further out than having the inner edge about even with the door sill. That's because when you get out you want to put the ball of your foot on the bar, so your heel has to have some place to go. But, maybe I'm thinking about it incorrectly, You could extend your outside foot to the step and pivot out, which would allow the bar to be much closer to the truck.

However, I think that means that the bars need to be low enough that your toes can go between the bar and the truck. That way you can get the ball of your foot on the bar and the toes will have some place to go.

Ok, this is helping. Please keep those cards and letters coming in!

 

Gary: on the bars on my truck the horizontal distance is approximately 1.5 inches to the center (inner edge about parallel to the door sill) and the vertical distance to the center of the bar is 4.5 inches.

I have no welding skills, but if I did, I would move the the bar out about 2 to 3 inches and down another 4-5 inches. As my F-250 sits, it is 22 inches from the ground to the bottom of the rocker. The bar only reduces the step distance to about 19 inches, since you step on the top of the bar. For my 5 ft. 5 inch wife, that step is still too big, but she has a knee problem that aggravates the situation. Even without the knee problem it would be a chore for her at that height. I'm considering adding some kind of grab handle.

I have no problem with the height, even though my agility has diminished with age. I just plant my right foot on the the bar, push up and shift my rear over. Gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "hop in".

 

Excellent response! Thanks!

I'm in the shop now trying to figure out how to mock it up in a way we can actually step on it w/o falling, but will take your suggestions into account. Thanks again.

 

Gary, Have you given any thought of grab handles in the cab. this is what I did on mine.

 

I've thought of doing that, but didn't think there was anything strong enough to screw into. How did you do that and where did you get the handles?

 

Back to the step measurements, the steps (body-mounted molded plastic, not tube) on my truck stick out 3" past the outside of the bottom of the door opening. They aren't out far enough to put the ball of your foot on as you get out, but you can either step on it with your heel (and your toe sticking off the step to the outside) or you put your entire foot on it, parallel to the truck. If I were to use them (I never do, they're just in my way) I think I'd put my heel on it.

The top surface of the steps on my truck are 3.5" below the bottom of the cab.
On a taller truck that might not be low enough for shorter people to take full advantage of, but lower than that would start to look odd in my opinion (which is worth however much you value it).

 

90's-> up Econoline's use those type of grab handles (not as curved as the F-Series handles). All of our E-Series cab/chassis squads have them. I use them to pull my **** up into the cab daily . Pull the A-pillar trim and take a look see. The pillar can support it with the proper hardware.

 

I set the driver's side bar up on jack stands and asked my wife to come out and test it for me. After a bit she suggested we align the outside of the bar with the outside of the tires, and move them up. We wound up with the top of the bar 5 1/2" below the bottom of the cab and bed and the outside edge 3 1/2" outside of the truck, which lined it up with the outside of the tires.

Here are a couple of shots showing that:







And, I figured out how to do the new brackets. Both use 1/4 x 4" strap and 3" square tubing. Here's a shot of the front bracket, although it is hard to see the 1/4" plate. I tacked the tubing to the plate and bolted the plate to the frame - it will ultimately be held on with two 1/2" G8 bolts.

Anyway, as I was clamping the original bracket to the tube I knocked the bar off the jack stands, and the subsequent torque snapped the tack welds. Oh well, I got it together enough to know it'll work.

The 1/4" plate of the rear bracket will be attached to the front pivot bolt of the rear spring, and then use a long 5/8" all-thread through the plate and then through an existing hole in the frame above the spring hanger. But you'll have to imagine that for the moment.

 

Gary, They are from a 2000 expedition, rear seat top of door. I mounted them with nut certs. I used the factory fasteners from the donor vehicle. No flex at all. I will send more pictures if you like.

 

Yes, please send more pics. Thanks!

 

Got the front mount welded up today, including welding two nuts on. Here are a couple of views:









But, my plans changed once I got it bolted on. In the following shot I have the Westin bracket sitting on top of my bracket, and I'll put a bolt through the top of the Westin bracket into my bracket where the red arrow is. But, the original plan had been to have the Westin bracket be under my bracket, where the green arrow is. Under gives 6" to the bottom of the cab, and over gives 3". And I think I like over as it looks better. Plus, if the face of the Westin bracket is against the end of my 3" square tube then it can't really flex. But, with it bolted under the top plate of the Westin bracket flexes, and that makes the bar move when you step on it.

 

Gary, what kind of welder do you have?
I have a 120V Mig welder (Hobart Handler 140A). I have been wondering if the 120V is big enough to weld on steel like you are using. Maybe I should have gotten the 240V model

 

I have a Century 110v unit, but it requires a 20 amp circuit. And that 1/4" plate is about the limit it can handle. If I were to do it over again I'd probably go with a 240v welder. But, I've learned that orienting the parts correctly makes a difference. In this case I angled the parts so that I was welding in a vee, and spent a lot of time running the puddle up the wall onto the square tubing on one side and the 1/4" plate on the other. And even then the penetration on the 1/4 plate wasn't as much as I wanted, so I came back and tied that weld to the 1/4" plate with another weld. And, since that weld was close to the edge of the plate on 3 of the 4 sides, there was enough heat to get good penetration.

 

Got the driver's-side rear bracket essentially done today. It mounts to the front pivot bolt of the rear spring, and the nut is in the 3" square tube. Then there's a piece of hardened 5/8" all-thread above that goes through an existing hole in the frame, with G8 nuts and washers either side of the frame and either side of the 1/4" plate. But, if I can find a piece of thick-walled tubing that fits over a 5/8" bolt I'll cut it to length and capture it between the plate and the frame with the all-thread.

And, just like the front mount, the mount that came with the bars rides on top of and against the face of the tube, with a bolt through the top into a captive nut inside the tube. However, that bit will have to wait until tomorrow as I was out of time today and just held the bar on with C-clamps, as you can see. Plus, I need to round corners, etc.




And, here 'tis. The bar ended up 2 1/2" below the bottom of the truck mounted this way with the Westin mounts on top of my tubing. But, the tubing will be drilled to take the Westin mounts below the tube, so I could drop the bar down to 5 1/2" if I wanted. But, I don't think it looks good that far down and it won't be as solid, so I think they'll be left here.

Also, I realized that the rear tires aren't out as far as the front tires. So, lining the bar up with the edge of the tires had it 3/4" further in at the rear than the front. I discovered that before welding the tube on the plate, so I cut a new piece of tubing 3/4" longer and welded that on. And, here's how it looks: