BULL BAR ARB or TJM

[mastermanoj Member Find all posts View Profile Close mastermanoj]

Hello Gurus

I am thinking between ARB or TJM bullbar + winch as the prices for both of them are almost the same

ARB has quoted steel BAR + Winch ( Warn Magnum 9000 lbs) fitted $ 2250 incl gst

TJm has quoted steel BAr + ( TJM winch 9000 lbs) fitted $ 2300 incl gst

The situation is ARB's is available on 21st NOv.while TJM's is only available on 07th Dec

TJm is also happy to throw in their air compressor and Heavy duty recovery kit for FREE

IMO Looks wise TJms bar is better than ARbs but dont know how TJM would perform in rough situations specially during winching

Just want some suggestions

[williade Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close williade]

I don't think you need to worry about the performance of the TJM bar. Its a lump of steel! (I know not all lumps of steel are the same *cough*ironman*cough*)

As for it coping with winching. Is it a winch bar or isn't it? If its a winch bar (and judging by the fact that TJM have included a winch in the quote I'm guessing it is) then it is suitable for winching operations.

[pinko351 Member Find all posts View Profile Close pinko351]

Looks like a no brain er! If you have no preference each way, I'd wait and get the TJM including FREE air compressor and recovery kit.

I've had both ARB and TJM bars and neither has suffered from design faults. My latest TJM bar was chosen on my preference to looks over the ARB.

Rest assured both will perform well as a bullbar and winch bar.

Additionally and I'm happy to be corrected, I believe the TJM winch out performed the WARN Magnum 9000 in a certain mags winch test (believe what you will).

Good luck

Pinko

[Brett1979 Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Brett1979]

I've got a decade old base model TJM alloy bar fitted to my Prado and I was involved in an accident recently (yes another one).... Where a lady cut across me on a roundabout from the L/H lane to turn right with no warning whatsoever. I was in the R/H lane going straight through. The front L/H corner of my bullbar hit her driver's side door when she turned across me and immediately smashed her driver's side window due to her door being pushed in. I only hit her at about 35km/h but had no time to stop quick enough to prevent the collision. Her car was also pushed up onto the gutter which popped her front L/H tyre. Her rear door wasn't shutting either as it was bent at the hinges. The only damage to my car was that the alloy bullbar was bent in on the side on the L.H.S by 10mm and on the driver's side the bullbar was pushed out beyond the body of the car by about 20mm. When it happened I thought my L.H.S was going to be all smashed in, but was surprised to see that was the only damage. So the bullbar performed its job. I guess my point is when it comes to TJM or ARB bullbars, they're as good as one another so it just comes down to personal preference of which brand you prefer and which bullbar you prefer the look of. As for functionality, they're both leaders in the Australian market.

Anyway, nobody was hurt. She lived 5 mins away so I changed her tyre so she could drive home. She was shaken up a bit but admitted fault and so forth so she was very good about it. Now if that was a steel bar the collision wouldn't have done anything to it at all except for taking some paint off.

I asked some questions about the old for new replacement of bullbars and my insurance company simply told me if I had a preference of bullbar that I wanted to replace it with since it's an older one, just to let the repairer's know the model of the one I want and they'll organise to have it fitted. The steel bars are about $1,000 cheaper than alloy so should be no problem to have one of those fitted instead, but I'd personally prefer to reduce the weight hanging off the front end of the chassis rails by nearly 30kg if possible since I'll be having a winch fitted as well at a later stage.

[croozza Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close croozza]

ARB all the way, they are alot stronger than TJM. Forget about the winches that both of them are offering, get a Tigers 11 12000 lbs, much cheaper unit and just as good, and as you can tell it has a higher rating on it.

[reida1991 Member Find all posts View Profile Close reida1991]

Had my first introduction to motor vehicle accidents on Saturday. Sadly it seems I'm at fault, even though this licensed driver thought it was safe to pull up for a orange light barely two car lengths from the intersection at 60km/h. Stuffed if I know how this bloke hasn't been killed on the roads. His first comment was "this cars been so unlucky, another person hit me just the other week..."

The impact was on the front left of my Sovereign bar. You can see the small bit of alloy below the indicator has bent and there's a small dent underneath. The black plastic has popped away near the wheel and popped part of the flare off as well. The impact was at 15km/h. This is enough indication to me that a steel bar of any kind is better than an alloy one, which did its job none-the-less, much like what Brett has to say. Sadly, I''l have to wait to save the money after paying for the morons rear bumper, which might I add is in a terrible mess.

I'm glad I had a bullbar, regardless of what type!

[Steve M Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steve M]

Im finding that a lot now, friggn people just about locking up at intersections and especailly ones with safety cameras, they cause more bloody accidents then without, people think there going to get pinged for an orange light. Yes you can but not if your going to cause an accident doing so. Dont sit so close people say.....I always leave a decent gap but when idiots decide 2 metres before the line there going to stop and even though you planned on stopping you were allowing for that gap to be there, I would have liked some of these so called experts to come along with me for a day when I was driving semis and show what dickheads we had to put up with through the day, and they always blame the trucks. This bloke is going to do the same thing one day and have a semi or b doubl up his clacker for stopping like that........*ickheads and yes I have ran up some ones rear once in 27 years of driving and that was in my car for exactly what happened to you, only the car in front of me decided to stop in the middle of the intersection on Parramatta rd Granville at 5 in the after noon.......mooron, did no damage to his as he had a towbar and mine was just a headlight cracked.......

[reida1991 Member Find all posts View Profile Close reida1991]

Im finding that a lot now, friggn people just about locking up at intersections and especailly ones with safety cameras, they cause more bloody accidents then without, people think there going to get pinged for an orange light. Yes you can but not if your going to cause an accident doing so. Dont sit so close people say.....I always leave a decent gap but when idiots decide 2 metres before the line there going to stop and even though you planned on stopping you were allowing for that gap to be there, I would have liked some of these so called experts to come along with me for a day when I was driving semis and show what dickheads we had to put up with through the day, and they always blame the trucks. This bloke is going to do the same thing one day and have a semi or b doubl up his clacker for stopping like that........*ickheads and yes I have ran up some ones rear once in 27 years of driving and that was in my car for exactly what happened to you, only the car in front of me decided to stop in the middle of the intersection on Parramatta rd Granville at 5 in the after noon.......mooron, did no damage to his as he had a towbar and mine was just a headlight cracked.......

I would have to agree Steve, my experience has really pissed me off and made me reconsider the way I trust other drivers. No surprises it happened in the ACT though... :S My dad has been a driver for nearly 30 years on and off. He often talks about how people don't understand that heavy vehicles don't pull up like your average camry. The biggest gripe he has is when coming up to a red light, only to have someone cut into the space in front of him, effectively shortening the stopping distance by a minimum of 6m.

The obvious need for frontal protection for country driving should really have to be the only need for a bull bar. For me to have to rely on my bull bar to protect my vehicle in the city is really disheartening to say the least. I'm just glad that no one was hurt due to the incompetence and poor spatial awareness of this individual. Trust no one to do what is safe.

[Steve M Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steve M]

Feel sorry for you having to cough up $$ to pay for some one elses stupidity, at least its a cash job and not an excess having to be paid then the insurance company ramping up your costs the following year. There have been times when I felt like using the bullbar for things it wasnt meant for, both on the trucks and the 4wd and times when it would have been the other persons fault but couldnt be bothered with the issues that come with it and definately dont want to hurt some one purposly thats for sure. I wouldnt want a 4wd with out a bullbar just for the fact of the idiots on the road. I prefer my wife to drive the prado then the car she has just for the fact of more protection but the little buz box uses half the fuel which she obviously prefers. My whinge is the ones that dart from the side street pull out in front of you then hit the right hand blinker while theres that much traffic coming the other way you know there not going to get out of the way, see it every day here on the Northern rd, pull out from KFC, Dans grog shop, and bang straight out in front of two lanes of traffic hurtling down at supposidly 70 more like 80/90 and jump in the right lane to do a u turn grrrrrr Brainless........ Cheers Steve

[reida1991 Member Find all posts View Profile Close reida1991]

Anyway, I'm in the same boat with choosing a new bar. It'll cost me $900 excess and the insurance company advised me that my premiums will not go up for a first time claim at fault, win I'm leaning strongly towards the ARB deluxe bar at the moment, purely because it has everything I'm looking for. I don't think the Sahara offers the same level of protection without the headlight loops, although I may stand corrected. Do TJM offer colour-coding? I like the look of their bar. What is the price of the winch mounting cradle you have to buy separately? Has anyone had experience with claiming a new bar through insurance, as in how much of a choice do you get? Will they opt to repair bar damage if they can? If you refer to my photo above you can see the sort of damage it's got. I noticed it has lifted on this side and popped the flare from its mounts, so I suspect the mounts may have bent.

Cheers

[Brett1979 Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Brett1979]

TJM can colour code their steel bars. The TJM T13 Steel Deluxe bar actually won an overall strength and features test consisting of 13 different bull bars overall. It looks similar to ARB's Deluxe bar and to the untrained eye you can't spot any significant differences without running your eyes over it for for a proper look and mainly noticing the horizontal slot on the front of the bar. TJM's "T" slots for a highlift jack mount are also a noticeable difference. It really comes down to personal preference of the brand and which bull bar "you" prefer. If you drive to the conditions when off the beaten track your chances of hitting wildlife is significantly reduced compared to someone who does 120km/h at dawn where kangaroo's are commonly found. Even if they hit a 5ft tall roo with a steel bar at 120km/h their car most likely won't be drivable afterwards.

Alloy compared to steel has a stronger strength to weight ratio. Alloy weighs 1/3 the weight of steel but is half as strong. Just costs a lot more.

[Corigator Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Corigator]

Yes you can but not if your going to cause an accident doing so. Dont sit so close people say.....

Steve, you can get pinged in NSW.

A mate was fined going through orange. Cop said law has changed. You have to stop if it is possible.

He complainef bitterly but the law is the law.

They both departed and at the next intersection he hit the brakes on the orange light.

Well the cop drove up his bum and wrote off the police car. - There is some justice in this world.

[reida1991 Member Find all posts View Profile Close reida1991]

Steve, you can get pinged in NSW.

A mate was fined going through orange. Cop said law has changed. You have to stop if it is possible.

He complainef bitterly but the law is the law.

They both departed and at the next intersection he hit the brakes on the orange light.

Well the cop drove up his bum and wrote off the police car. - There is some justice in this world.

That's a classic!


Brett, do you mean by "T13" a T15 Steel Deluxe Bar as per the website? There doesn't appear to be any fog light provision on these bars.

http://www.tjm.com.au/#gen_view_sc1.php?sx=SX16250301

Cheers

[Steve M Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close Steve M]

I should have worded it better, "you must stop if safe to do so" I got pinged a few years back for an orange in Windsor NSW, he reckons I had time to stop and was going to quick around the corner, I laughed at him, you got to be F***n kidding me havnt you, I was on the line when it went orange, I was also in a lifted hilux which was loaded with fire wood and you reckon i went to quick around corner !!! If I was going so quick I would have been on my side as the road cambers to the left as you turn, anyway he booked me told him Id see him in court, i would have torn it up in his face and dropped it at his feet only he was the type he would have pinged me for littering as well. Wrote into the place you pay the fine and explained the situation along with photo's of the intersection, wet road (it was raining) (got to love camera on mobile phone) They obviously had some brains and could see what I was explaining so got off it. It is the same points and money as a red light fine. Dont get me wrong not saying coppers are assholes or anything as Id rather be doing the job Im doing then the jobs they have to do, but when its purely to get the numbers up for the night or there having a bad day, then it pisses me off. Have driven high performance cars before both V8's,tubo'd, bikes, and truck for a living and been pinged once for speeding (108k on the bruce highway,100zone) and truning right where I shouldnt have when I was on my p plates which was 27 years ago, plus the orange light fine which I got off (luckily) dont get me wrong I speed (always roughly 5 k over limit) so I class that as speeding myself, and probably a bit of luck here and there has gone my way as well, if I get pinged for 5k over then I cop it sweet as I no I was doing the wrong thing. Regards Steve

[Brett1979 Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Brett1979]

That's a classic!


Brett, do you mean by "T13" a T15 Steel Deluxe Bar as per the website? There doesn't appear to be any fog light provision on these bars.

http://www.tjm.com.au/#gen_view_sc1.php?sx=SX16250301

Cheers

I've since found since that the T13 isn't available for the 95 series Prado anymore.