Barn Door for JK factory hardtops

[jscherb]

As soon as I start construction I'll start a new thread on my "Retro Rhino" project - I've been working on the design for for the "Retro Rhino" JK grille kit for a while, and I've pretty much finished the design work for one version of it. This concept view is a composite of a JK, the Jeep J12 concept front clip, and a Safari Cab. I plan to make my Rhino grille slightly more "retro" looking rather than the modernized version of the Jeep J12 concept, so this image isn't completely accurate to my design, but it gives a good idea of what the Retro Rhino kit would look like.

This next set of images shows the stock JK, a stock "Rhino" Wagoneer, and two Retro Rhino concepts.

The "Scaled Rhino Grille" concept at bottom right is designed to capture the look of the original. It uses the original headlights/trim rings and "pie plates" but with a slightly scaled down center grille section to better fit the smaller JK. The front panel is wider than the factory JK grille; it's almost as wide as the cowl section of the tub so there's very little taper towards the front as there is on the stock JK. This concept includes new narrower fender flares to accommodateb the wider body.

The "Stock Rhino Grille" concept at bottom left uses an original FSJ grille and the original JK fenders/flares - the front panel is the same width as the original JK grille, and because of that width, there's no room on the panel for the "pie plates". It would use the original FSJ headlight trim rings, although those aren't shown in this image.

The "Stock Rhino Grille" version has basically two new components - the hood and the front panel. The center grille and headlight trim rings would be stock FSJ items; the marker lights would be stock JK items (although repositioned towards the center from their stock JK outboard location).

The "Scaled Rhino Grille" version has many new components - hood, front panel, scaled center grille and flares, and modifications to the stock JK fenders to allow them to spread out wider at the front for the new wider front panel. There are a few other bits and pieces, such as new inner fender liners and some brackets.

Since the beginning of this design project, I've been working towards the "Scaled Rhino Grille" concept, but in the last few days I've been exploring the "Stock Rhino Grille" concept as one last idea before I begin construction.


I'd be interested to hear your reactions to both concepts. And if you think the whole "Retro Rhino" idea is dumb, feel free to say that too .

 

[jgaz]

The "Scaled Rhino Grille" with the pie plates just looks "right" compared to the version using the stock rhino grille.
IMHO.

 

[Zeep]

^^^ So cool

 

[jscherb]

^^^ So cool

Thanks.

The "Scaled Rhino Grille" with the pie plates just looks "right" compared to the version using the stock rhino grille.
IMHO.

Thank you. The scaled version is the one I've been planning to do all along and still plan to do, I just had to pause for a moment while explored the "Stock Rhino Grille" idea by doing a few concept drawings.

 

[jscherb]

When the company that's doing many of my hardware designs saw the JK Safari Cab, they wanted to use it in their SEMA booth to show off the hardware products. Unfortunately they had booked their booth months ago and it wasn't large enough for a vehicle and they couldn't change it, so they couldn't use the Jeep in the booth this year. They decided to feature the Jeep in the booth anyway:

The photo is pretty much life-size. The Jeep has the side mount jerry can holders, the tailgate reinforcement and hinges, a spare-mount carrying an ammo can, and the hinge-mount jack carrier.

 

[jscherb]

Another photo from SEMA today - the JK tailgate reinforcement and HD hinges featured in the new product area:

 

[AFSOC]

I see a lot of jscherb influence on the CJ Sixty Six concept :clapsmile

 

[jscherb]

I see a lot of jscherb influence on the CJ Sixty Six concept :clapsmile

Actually I was disappointed in it. It's very well executed, but what I was expecting was custom parts (hood, fenders, etc) to blend the shape and size of the CJ grille into the body lines of the JK tub. Nope, what they did was drop a CJ-6 tub and CJ-7 front clip on a JK frame (presumably a JK frame, I didn't look underneath), so the only "custom" part is the hood, and it's a hood that would bolt up to any CJ-7. I'm not saying this to take away at all from the craftsmanship and skill with which they did the project, but basically it's a CJ on a JK frame, not a custom CJ front end for a JK like I was hoping for. This is one of the photos of it I took yesterday at the show:

Edit: Checked underneath, frame appears to be derived from an LJ frame.



It does have a hemi in it, that was another disappointment for me, I was hoping to see how they made the stock JK engine compartment stuff work under the more confined CJ front clip.

My CJ kit for the TJ/LJ, the LJ is stock and the CJ grille is stock, the hood, fenders and cowl panel are custom to blend the two together...

The CJ Sixty is very nice and flawlessly executed, but not what I was hoping for.

 

[AgentOrange76]

The Morryde tailgate hinges are on my short list of things I want for my Jeep. I didn't know you were the one who designed them until recently, but knowing the other projects you've done I know they'll be a solid product I trust instead of a "well, this might work...." product. I'm hoping to have them before the summer. I would get the jack mount also and get the jack off my hood. That opens up my hood and part 1 of my plan to daily drive it with no windshield. Part 2 would be to either make or buy quick disconnects for the roll bar/door surround units either with knobs, wingnuts or cotter pins. Part 3 is full soft doors. With this setup I could drive with no windshield and carry everything I need to have a dry front cab in about 5 minutes when a rainstorm pops up. I've been checking their website and the hinges seem to have made it to a couple of the retailers they link to but they are different prices so I'm not sure if they're different products. I know I read some stuff about wide swing versions, not sure if those are the ones they are selling or not. It will be nice to get the tailgate closing properly again, it sags quite a lot because my brother used to sit on it while it was open....

SEMA is definitely super cool, but often times the stuff is much too flashy for my tastes. Still gets the idea and drool factory churning though.....

 

[Koabean]

I ordered the Morryde tailgate hinges fron Retrofit Offroad to replace some shot stock ones ('05 LJ) that the swing stops had busted off of, leading to great annoyance. Showed up today, and wow, they are beefy. Installed in about an hour all-in, including my general stupidity and resulting adjustments. Two thumbs up, five stars, 10/10, etc.

 

[Jeff Patterson]

Mine work quite well.

 

[jscherb]

I ordered the Morryde tailgate hinges fron Retrofit Offroad to replace some shot stock ones ('05 LJ) that the swing stops had busted off of, leading to great annoyance. Showed up today, and wow, they are beefy. Installed in about an hour all-in, including my general stupidity and resulting adjustments. Two thumbs up, five stars, 10/10, etc.

View attachment 373454

View attachment 373455

Mine work quite well.

Thanks for the nice comments about the hinges.

It's always fun to run into something you've designed where you didn't expect it, yesterday I spotted a pair at SEMA on a J8 Jeep built by Jankel (http://www.jankel.com/jeep-j8), they're a high-end builder of military Jeep solutions. I didn't get a photo of the entire Jeep, there were too many people clustered around it at the time. This picture shows the hinges on the J8 tailgate, which is different from the consumer version tailgate.

 

[jscherb]

The Morryde tailgate hinges are on my short list of things I want for my Jeep. I didn't know you were the one who designed them until recently, but knowing the other projects you've done I know they'll be a solid product I trust instead of a "well, this might work...." product. I'm hoping to have them before the summer. I would get the jack mount also and get the jack off my hood. That opens up my hood and part 1 of my plan to daily drive it with no windshield. Part 2 would be to either make or buy quick disconnects for the roll bar/door surround units either with knobs, wingnuts or cotter pins. Part 3 is full soft doors. With this setup I could drive with no windshield and carry everything I need to have a dry front cab in about 5 minutes when a rainstorm pops up. I've been checking their website and the hinges seem to have made it to a couple of the retailers they link to but they are different prices so I'm not sure if they're different products. I know I read some stuff about wide swing versions, not sure if those are the ones they are selling or not. It will be nice to get the tailgate closing properly again, it sags quite a lot because my brother used to sit on it while it was open....

SEMA is definitely super cool, but often times the stuff is much too flashy for my tastes. Still gets the idea and drool factory churning though.....

I don't spend any time looking at the blinged-out ridiculously-lifted Jeeps on 24" (or larger) wheels, that's a bit too flashy for me. But I always come away from the show with a few new ideas, and not ideas I steal, but ideas inspired by seeing something someone else has tried to do with a show Jeep or new product but I just don't think they've got it right, or components I see that could be part of a more comprehensive product specifically designed for Jeep use.

 

[jscherb]

A few more photos of the Jankel "J8" I spotted at SEMA with the HD hinges. It's actually not a J8 despite looking exactly like one - it's a JKU conversion. They're not allowed to sell J8's to the public but because they believe there's a market for a J8 style Jeep in the consumer market, they do conversions.

 

[jscherb]

A couple of new hardtops I saw this week at SEMA, both by a company called Cliffride. The first one is a JKU top with a raised roof and Alpine windows. It's got a recess at the front for a light bar (not sure what the recess looks like if you don't want a light bar). Has a glass liftgate on the back.

The designer of the above top recognized me even before I introduced myself; he said he follows my projects on the forums .

He also did this JK-styled TJ top: