What tools do you have? Unless you have a CNC router a LOT of things are out of the question. Bars are just not going to happen either, theres a lot more to metal work than you think.
A simple thing to make would be a bash guard. Aluminum would work well, and you would probably be good to go with 1/4", should be beefy enough for ya.
We really need to know what you have at your disposal before we can make some real suggestions.