jscherb
Expedition Leader
No, they are not available at this time.
Barn Door for JK factory hardtops
- Thread starter jscherb
- Start date
No, they are not available at this time.
Comanche Scott
Expedition Leader
In the board rooms across all the awning companies, I can see CEOs smacking their foreheads...
That is simply awesome! :beer:
That is simply awesome! :beer:
unkamonkey
Explorer
There were a lot of things that were figured out long before we were born like window shades.
It is a good idea Jeff.
It is a good idea Jeff.
02rangeredge
Adventurer
I swore I'd seen smittybilt had something very similar?
jscherb
Expedition Leader
Thank you very much. I blame Donny (rubicon91) for this project - recently he scored a killer deal on two awnings and I'm jealous so I ended up making my own
.Seriously though, this idea came to me last week when I was walking through an Ikea store - I spied their Busktoffel blind (http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/60353697/) and the "rattan look fabric" struck me as a really nice match for the Spice color of the Safari Cab. This blind also has a very nice full length aluminum frame; it's 48" wide, and only $26.99. The project idea was immediately hatched and I bought a blind. I spent the next few days coming up with a design that would turn this home window blind into a useful and desirable Jeep accessory and Monday and Tuesday I spent a few hours implementing the design. I think it will be useful at lunch on the trail, I'll test test it in the real world very soon.
I'm always on the lookout for things that can be re-purposed into useful Jeep accessories... I bought something else the other day that I think could have a lot of Jeep applications, I'll post about it soon.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
We can debate whether the Smittybilt "Safari Hardtop" is similar or not; it does have a taller roof Alpine windows (even if they are plastic). It's not modular, doesn't have a barn door, doesn't have amenities like a drip rail (I hear bad things about opening a door in the rain with that hardtop); doesn't have opening windows.
Anyway, I had nothing to do with the Smittybilt product.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
In case anyone wants to build their own DIY Awning...
First I built a shell to mount and house the blind. I used some steel angle from a cheap bed frame I picked up in the trash; I welded two pieces together to form a "u" channel and then welded ends on the channel. The shell provides a rigid mounting for the shade, it provides a way to mount the assembly to the Jeep and it provides a place to mount the support rods. This doesn't have to be metal, if you don't have welding capability the shell could be built from 1/2" plywood.
The Ikea blind comes with mounting brackets that are spring loaded and allow the blind to be easily installed and removed. I bolted all three of them to the inside of the shell. As they come from the factory they're "L" shaped; I cut one leg of the L off to fit them in the shell.
First I built a shell to mount and house the blind. I used some steel angle from a cheap bed frame I picked up in the trash; I welded two pieces together to form a "u" channel and then welded ends on the channel. The shell provides a rigid mounting for the shade, it provides a way to mount the assembly to the Jeep and it provides a place to mount the support rods. This doesn't have to be metal, if you don't have welding capability the shell could be built from 1/2" plywood.
The Ikea blind comes with mounting brackets that are spring loaded and allow the blind to be easily installed and removed. I bolted all three of them to the inside of the shell. As they come from the factory they're "L" shaped; I cut one leg of the L off to fit them in the shell.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
At each end of the shell I made an adjustable socket to hold the support rods. The rods are 5/16" fiberglass driveway marker poles I picked up at Lowes for $3.98 each; I welded a nut and a coupler nut to the bracket that the rod can slip into. The reason I used both is that if I needed to secure the rod in place I could put a hairpin clip through the rod between the two nuts and that would prevent the rod from moving in or out. So far I haven't found the need to do that but if I find it needs to be secured better in the wind I can add the clip later.
You don't need to be this elaborate with the mounting of the support rods; if you made the shell from wood the rods could slip into wooden blocks with holes in them. They really only need to be adjusted the first time you set up the awning so they don't have to be adjustable the way I did them, if you made them from wood blocks you could just use wood screws to attach them to the shell at the proper angle that first time. They do need to be at an angle because the fiberglass rods flex a bit - if the holes for the rods re horizontal the awning will droop down.
To protect the awning assembly from the elements, I sewed a cover out of tan color coated Cordura fabric. I sewed in a full-length zipper. Coated Cordura fabric is available on eBay for about $6.00 per yard; I made the cover from a scrap I had left over from another project. You can use any fabric you want but it would be best if it were waterproof like the Cordura.
To mount the assembly to the Jeep I put two holes in the bottom of the shell for mounting bolts. I filed the holes square so they capture a carriage bolt, which makes it possible to put a nut on the bolt without a wrench on the inside. I made holes in the Cordura cover with a soldering iron; because the fabric is nylon the soldering iron melts a nice hole through that won't fray - the melting seals the edges of the hole.
I mounted the awning to the Cherokee roof rack I've got on my Safari Cab so I made up a pair of mounting brackets that clamp around the oval crossbar. They consist of a piece of 1"-wide 14-gauge sheet metal bent in a long "U", two blocks made from a scrap of Trex plastic decking material with an oval shape cut out of them and two bolts to clamp around the roof rack crossbar. These are secured to the awning assembly with the carriage bolts. Depending on where you plan to mount the awning your mounting brackets will need to be different. I'm also going to mount it to the back of my Garvin Wilderness rack, I'll use different brackets for that and I can post photos of them when I do that.
You don't need to be this elaborate with the mounting of the support rods; if you made the shell from wood the rods could slip into wooden blocks with holes in them. They really only need to be adjusted the first time you set up the awning so they don't have to be adjustable the way I did them, if you made them from wood blocks you could just use wood screws to attach them to the shell at the proper angle that first time. They do need to be at an angle because the fiberglass rods flex a bit - if the holes for the rods re horizontal the awning will droop down.
To protect the awning assembly from the elements, I sewed a cover out of tan color coated Cordura fabric. I sewed in a full-length zipper. Coated Cordura fabric is available on eBay for about $6.00 per yard; I made the cover from a scrap I had left over from another project. You can use any fabric you want but it would be best if it were waterproof like the Cordura.
To mount the assembly to the Jeep I put two holes in the bottom of the shell for mounting bolts. I filed the holes square so they capture a carriage bolt, which makes it possible to put a nut on the bolt without a wrench on the inside. I made holes in the Cordura cover with a soldering iron; because the fabric is nylon the soldering iron melts a nice hole through that won't fray - the melting seals the edges of the hole.
I mounted the awning to the Cherokee roof rack I've got on my Safari Cab so I made up a pair of mounting brackets that clamp around the oval crossbar. They consist of a piece of 1"-wide 14-gauge sheet metal bent in a long "U", two blocks made from a scrap of Trex plastic decking material with an oval shape cut out of them and two bolts to clamp around the roof rack crossbar. These are secured to the awning assembly with the carriage bolts. Depending on where you plan to mount the awning your mounting brackets will need to be different. I'm also going to mount it to the back of my Garvin Wilderness rack, I'll use different brackets for that and I can post photos of them when I do that.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
One final detail is at the end of the shade - I drilled holes in the end bar of the shade and screwed eye bolts into the holes. The support rods go through the eye bolts, and hairpin clips go through small holes I drilled in the fiberglass support road to prevent the shade from sliding up the rods.
The Ikea shade I used wouldn't protect from rain; the fabric is porous and rain would leak through it - I chose it for the color and because I wanted this to be a sun shade. You could choose a shade with a different fabric if you wanted some rain protection, or you could use this same shade by replace the fabric with a water resistant fabric.
My costs for this project were:
Ikea blind - $26.99
Fiberglass driveway marker poles - 2 @ $3.98 each
Zipper for the cover - about $10
Hairpin clips from Tractor Supply - $1.29
All of the other materials were leftover scraps from other projects and most of the metal for the shell was from a discarded bed frame.
That's all there is to it and I think I've shown enough detail to build one. And as I said you don't have to make the shell out of metal or make the support rod sockets adjustable like I did, everything could be made from wood and it would work just as well.
The Ikea shade I used wouldn't protect from rain; the fabric is porous and rain would leak through it - I chose it for the color and because I wanted this to be a sun shade. You could choose a shade with a different fabric if you wanted some rain protection, or you could use this same shade by replace the fabric with a water resistant fabric.
My costs for this project were:
Ikea blind - $26.99
Fiberglass driveway marker poles - 2 @ $3.98 each
Zipper for the cover - about $10
Hairpin clips from Tractor Supply - $1.29
All of the other materials were leftover scraps from other projects and most of the metal for the shell was from a discarded bed frame.
That's all there is to it and I think I've shown enough detail to build one. And as I said you don't have to make the shell out of metal or make the support rod sockets adjustable like I did, everything could be made from wood and it would work just as well.
Comanche Scott
Expedition Leader
Another benefit to the sunshade is it will handle wind a bit better than a solid cloth.
Awesome write-up! Thanks for doing this. I'd like to make one for the Scout, as a "winter rainy day project."
Awesome write-up! Thanks for doing this. I'd like to make one for the Scout, as a "winter rainy day project."
jscherb
Expedition Leader
Another benefit to the sunshade is it will handle wind a bit better than a solid cloth.
Awesome write-up! Thanks for doing this. I'd like to make one for the Scout, as a "winter rainy day project."
For use in windy conditions, I plan to add paracord tie-downs from the end of the awning (last photo) to stakes in the ground. I'll probably just put a loop in the end of the paracord and loop it over the eye bolt.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
A few weeks ago I found a Garvin Wilderness Rack on Craiglist that I was able to buy for $150 including the optional jack and shovel mounts. It's designed to mount to the windshield hinges and to the rear of the tub, but since the Safari Cab roof rack rails are tied to the roll bars, I don't need the Garvin supports (which is good, because the rack only came with one of the four supports).
Over the past few days I mounted the Garvin to the Safari Cab's Cherokee roof rails. I used Surco Cherokee rail adapters and everything bolted right up.
I also made up brackets to clamp my roof top tent's crossbars to the Garvin so the RTT can mount directly on top of the Garvin. This will be nice because there will be about 18" of usable rack space in front of the tent.
Over the past few days I mounted the Garvin to the Safari Cab's Cherokee roof rails. I used Surco Cherokee rail adapters and everything bolted right up.
I also made up brackets to clamp my roof top tent's crossbars to the Garvin so the RTT can mount directly on top of the Garvin. This will be nice because there will be about 18" of usable rack space in front of the tent.
