Disclaimer: Dont mind my awful headliner or my crappy seats. Interior is the next "big ticket" item on the list, but in the meantime I have other smaller things to work on.
Previously, I kept my spare and daily "bring-along" ****e under a home made cargo cover. It was 3.4" lywood supported and bolted to the wheel wells, then two small legs on the sides. This was good and was a reasonable solution for a while. I got sick, however, of everything shifting under there and when I hit bumps everything would THUD. I always worried a little bit too that the cover wouldn't hold in an accident or what have you. The main advantage was everything was out of sight, and it gave a nice place for the dog to ride.
This is a "nice" pic from when i first did the cover. It grew to have a ton of crap under it and wasnt nearly as clean or organized.
Bulleit liked it though....
Disadvantages included cutting down my interior cargo space by allowing me to put nothing aside from the tire and any tools in the "Under cover" area. When we went camping, coolers and such had to go on top which was dangerous and took up a TON of room. I always got to thinking "how is the vehicle THIS full with only 2 people going on a camping trip, even with a bunch of our stuff already in the camper." Also, it made zero sense and was no use to fold down the rear seat with the cargo cover because it split the area in half horizontally.
I saw the Evil Twin tire carrier a while ago on an FSJ specific site, but never pulled the trigger. I finally did, knowing this would make a big difference. The man got the tire carrier and a set of grab handles over to me in a moments notice.
I actually repainted and re-wrapped the grab handles to match my interior color and some paracord I already have on my steering wheel, which is super close to the dash color. I put them in and then painted the bolts to match. A word of caution. His instructions talk about the risk of breaking drill bits and its real. I snapped like 3. Also, I think its because I went with the upper mounting location but there was some interference for the bolts. I got it all to work but had to adjust some things. This is not a reflection of the product, just the size of the screws used and the location i chose for them. They came out awesome. The wife digs them because now she has something to hold on to during my 'crazy driving' and its really handy to have something to hold while getting in and out. I see most of the mounted low but they are a lot easier to reach mounted high.
Moving on to the rear...I got resistance from my wife on this since ever mentioning this project. I mocked it up and to be honest, she hates it. Long story short she says it makes it look like a truck (i know, i know) and not a classic car. We all act tough, but i seriously value her opinion on this stuff. I hemmed and Hawed about it before drilling the remaining holes. However, once I stared at it and realized what it truly offered, I was sold. I now have a super secure mount that uses the space more efficiently (leaves more floor space than laying it down) and it also creates a little nook behind it that is big enough for almost all of my bring along crap except the big toolbox and water. Alot of people were like "you dont need a full size spare!!!" But I often, as you all have seen, goon trips a few hundred miles from home and wheel on those trips, so a full size spare is an important piece of kit for me.
Here's the junk I stored under my cargo cover. (1) harbor freight tool kit (i dont leave expensive tools in the truck, this is in there 24/7), my offroad tool/parts toolbox (giant metal one), (1) 33" spare, (2) tarps, (1) set of jumper cables, (1) blanket, (1) lug nut wrench, (2) hatchets, (1) machete, (1) box o' spare fluids , (2) rolls of TP (this comes in handy alot), (1) case of bottled water, and a spare jacket and a spare fleece pull over (Mom used to tell me "always bring a jacket!" and living in Northern Nevada, you never know when you'll need one!). All that crap lived under the cargo cover. And my 2 ammo can speakers lived on top.
Here's the mocked up tire carrier with a 33x10.50 tire, from a few different angles. My rear seat moves maybe 1/5" forward and back when latched in, so i actually got the tire as close to it as possible, which left about an inch to the tailgate. There is DEFINITELY enough room for the 33, i'd even say you could probably fit a 34. Theres about an inch to the tailgate, and maybe 1.5" under the tire to the floor.
Here it is with a bunch of stuff tucked NEATLY behind it. The tire wrench, the small tool box, the jumper cables, a tarp, and a blanket. The heavy toolbox is next to it, and the hatchets are under the rear seat. I simply need to come up with a solution to strap down the big tool box (which in turn would secure the sharp tools under the seat), or upgrade to a different box. I'm thinking a few footman loops should do the trick, and i can fit more stuff in there like my necessary fluids. Then, the only item of consequence that is missing would be the water.
In mocking it up, as mentioned above, it dawned on me that I can now usefully fold the rear seat forward. HOLY CRAP! It's amazing. There's so much room for activities!
Also, in my opinion, any loss of visibility even with the 33, is negligible.
So, as soon as I noticed all the above I told the wife to pound sand. This is a super practical, super useful, super safety increasing modification. All bolted in:
So there you have it. I dig it. It's useful, I think it looks good, and it increases safety. All thats left is to figure out a tie down system for that heavy metal toolbox, and to bolt down my speakers. There are already holes under them in the wheel wells from the cargo cover, so i'll go with that most likely. Only issue there is they currently are removable and can be positioned outside the vehicle for beach or camping trips, so i'll maybe try to figure out some quick release system for them.
Also, I ordered a rampage spice colored tire cover, hopefully the spice (a wrangler color) is close to the dash pad and accents inside and wont look dumb.
