HF has been building off road parts and full builds since 1998, and with one custom Xterra Bumper, a company was born. After that XTerra owner posted to a few forums, the phone started ringing off the hook. It wasn’t long before Chris and his brother saw the value in the Toyota based off-road market and started building armor. Chris says the move from custom builds to production runs was a lesson in attention to detail, worker management, and a bit of trial and error.
At first glance, the Hefty Fabworks operation may look like any custom fab shop. However, the difference with HF is in the details. Usually a new product starts as an initial one-off prototype, either on a company rig or a willing local test mule. At first glance, the Hefty Fabworks operation may look like any custom fab shop. However, the difference with HF is in the details. Usually a new product starts as an initial one-off prototype, either on a company rig or a willing local test mule.
Instead of building each item as it’s ordered, HF generally runs a set of the same item through the shop in order to ensure quality and timeliness. Once the final design is determined, a production run is scheduled. This is one reason that the usual lead time for orders is 8-10 weeks, especially since each item ready to be shipped is already sold. It is possible to have an item ship sooner only if it happens to be in stock.
Some additional details about how the crew at Hefty Fabworks ensure a long lasting, quality product every time:
- All parts for a given piece, for example a bumper, are cut and placed into one bin
- Parts are hand sanded at each step of the process
- The HF crew calibrates their computerized steel bender before each run, as heat & humidity can affect how metal is bent
- After welding, each area is ground smooth, then once again hand sanded
- A local powder coat shop handles each HF part, so the quality is always top notch.
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The foam wrapping on the run of bumpers I saw waiting to ship was out of this world. Chris tells me that they add extra foam padding and shrink wrap for certain parts of the country that are known to throw items around. There is no doubt that when an items leaves the shop, it’s as prepared as possible for the journey to the new owner.
Although HF also builds for Nissan and Ford, we really love their work on Toyota based vehicles. Bumpers, sliders, and armor are all top items for our vehicles – and Hefty has all of the latest models covered. You can order directly from the Hefty Fabworks website, or find a local dealer near you. You can even find HF gear at Toyota dealerships around the country.
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