OP
OP
- Thread starter
- #16
Hey guys, figured I'd chime in on the "nerf bar" comments...
When I was growing up around trucks, "nerf bar" always meant a 3" round tube that bolted to the frame and had a step pad on top that gave your girlfriend better access into your truck. Then I went to work for a company called TruckXL that owned RunningBoardWarehouse which was the website that sold more running boards and steps than anyone else in the country. I learned that Westin had a 4" wide oval tube that they called a nerf bar, and it installed exactly the same way that the 3" tubes installed, so I accepted the "nerf bar" name. Iron Cross and Putco both made a full 4" round "nerf bar" and that worked for me because it was just a bigger tube. Keep in mind, all F150 nerf bars since 1997 were mounted to the rocker panel, not the frame, and that kinda bugged me. N-Fab called all of their steps "nerf steps", and they were a 3" cab length tube that hugged the rocker, and had hoop steps welded to them at every door entrance. N-Fab's were all rocker mounted, but they also were super stiff, and when you stepped on them, it felt more secure than any of the frame mounted nerf bars, so I guess I let that slide. Then it seemed like everyone out there was making a step and calling it "nerf" if it was metal and somewhat round. I remember asking our engineer (who had been designing running boards and their brackets for years) why so many things were being called "nerf bars" when they weren't even a tube or attached to the frame. That's when he told me that it's just a marketing term. The original "nerf bars" weren't even installed on trucks, or used as steps. It came from open wheel racing. If you had racecars where the tires were not tucked inside wheel wells, turns were extremely dangerous. If you were rounding a turn and someone was trying to pass you his front tire could get in between your front and rear tires Then if your rear tire hit his front tire, it would launch you car into the air and you'd usually flip. When the tires made contact, it was called a "nerf" because of the sound it made. The "nerf bar" was a tube that went between your front and rear tires to prevent a nerf from happening.
WE WERE ALL WRONG, GUYS!! LOL
Sorry about the extra nerdy explanation, please return to your day. I don't want to get started on sliders.
-Todd
When I was growing up around trucks, "nerf bar" always meant a 3" round tube that bolted to the frame and had a step pad on top that gave your girlfriend better access into your truck. Then I went to work for a company called TruckXL that owned RunningBoardWarehouse which was the website that sold more running boards and steps than anyone else in the country. I learned that Westin had a 4" wide oval tube that they called a nerf bar, and it installed exactly the same way that the 3" tubes installed, so I accepted the "nerf bar" name. Iron Cross and Putco both made a full 4" round "nerf bar" and that worked for me because it was just a bigger tube. Keep in mind, all F150 nerf bars since 1997 were mounted to the rocker panel, not the frame, and that kinda bugged me. N-Fab called all of their steps "nerf steps", and they were a 3" cab length tube that hugged the rocker, and had hoop steps welded to them at every door entrance. N-Fab's were all rocker mounted, but they also were super stiff, and when you stepped on them, it felt more secure than any of the frame mounted nerf bars, so I guess I let that slide. Then it seemed like everyone out there was making a step and calling it "nerf" if it was metal and somewhat round. I remember asking our engineer (who had been designing running boards and their brackets for years) why so many things were being called "nerf bars" when they weren't even a tube or attached to the frame. That's when he told me that it's just a marketing term. The original "nerf bars" weren't even installed on trucks, or used as steps. It came from open wheel racing. If you had racecars where the tires were not tucked inside wheel wells, turns were extremely dangerous. If you were rounding a turn and someone was trying to pass you his front tire could get in between your front and rear tires Then if your rear tire hit his front tire, it would launch you car into the air and you'd usually flip. When the tires made contact, it was called a "nerf" because of the sound it made. The "nerf bar" was a tube that went between your front and rear tires to prevent a nerf from happening.
WE WERE ALL WRONG, GUYS!! LOL
Sorry about the extra nerdy explanation, please return to your day. I don't want to get started on sliders.
-Todd
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