Backwoods Rambler
Explorer
Simply AMAZING work all throughout this thread!
Any vendors interested in mass producing the JK/JL grill conversion?
Any vendors interested in mass producing the JK/JL grill conversion?
Barn Door for JK factory hardtops
- Thread starter jscherb
- Start date
jscherb
Expedition Leader
Thank you very much. Just trying to outfit my Jeeps to suit my needs better than I could do with products that are on the market
.Yes. There is a person wanting to start a Jeep accessories company and his plan is to have the JL Grille for the JK be his new company's first product. He's in the process of arranging manufacturing for the grille right now.
It's one of three startups I'm helping right now, another one is planning to launch very soon with a line of high quality/high style Jeep storage solutions (bags and more), some of which I've posted prototypes of in this thread (and some I've had to keep secret). The third startup is working to bring the TrailTop trailer topper components (https://www.expeditionportal.com/fo...ar-trailer-topper-building-components.121184/) and a series of trailer kits based on those components to market.
I wish them all the best of luck starting their companies in the New Year.
Backwoods Rambler
Explorer
That’s great! What about the barn door for JK’s and JK’s? Any vendors picking that up? I’ll be buying a JL soon a do my daughter will be buying a JK, and we’re both interested.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
I wrote about vendor interest in the barn door a week or two ago: https://www.expeditionportal.com/fo...factory-hardtops.127687/page-243#post-2565414. The company that approached me at SEMA about it told me they'd contact me after the holidays to continue the discussion. We'll see if they follow up and if they decide to go ahead with it.
The barn door is actually a fairly simple product, the fiberglass shells would be easy to have manufactured, the window could be an RV-style manufactured window that isn't expensive even in small quantities (2-dozen) and the mounting hardware is also easily manufactured. It gets a little more involved when options like the wiper/washer and perhaps a defroster grid are added, but the base barn door wouldn't be hard to get to market.
I haven't done anything for the JL yet. I would like to do JL version of several of my JK designs, and I've got a few new design ideas specific to the JL (enhancements to the JL modular hardtop, for example), so as soon as I have access to a JL I'll do some prototypes.
I also have some JK 2-door product ideas but don't have access to one of those either. I'm considering buying a 2-door JK for have around for a year or so and then selling it on leaving the products I'd design for it installed. Haven't found a 2-dr I want to buy yet, I really want to get a 2012 or later with the 3.6 rather than an earlier 3.8 model but I'm still looking.
Backwoods Rambler
Explorer
Naturally, I'll keep following this thread! Keep up the good work sir!
Sixty8broncosport
New member
I realize this is a late reply, since your post is from April, but do you have a dedicated battery for your fridge? A dual battery set-up is ideal, with the main battery (alternator) recharging the second battery when your truck is driving down the road. to keep it cool and consumption lower, you can do two things: solar panel integrated into your bed cover which can power fans and/or the battery (though power to the battery would would be a trickle charge and more beneficial to run the fans). As a safeguard you can also get a battery disconnect: https://www.batterymart.com/p-top-t...MIz42kvfC43wIVypyzCh1B4gwREAkYBCABEgKf1PD_BwE (several different brands available), if you don't have a dual battery set-up, but keep in mind, the disconnect may or may not effect factory presets.
Sixty8broncosport
New member
It takes away from some drawer space, but what do you think of cutting out another outline of the sink in a piece of wood to mount the sink in one of the drawers when the sink is not in use?When I was at MORryde yesterday I picked up an extra tabletop so I could update the production Trail Kitchen with the prototype sink option. The exact dimensions of the panel had changed between the preproduction kitchen I did the prototype sink option with and the production one they sent me last week, so I asked them for a new panel to cut a sink hole in.
Testing the sink operation; the water source is the 2-gallon Rotopax mounted to the drawer cabinet behind the back seat. The pump starts automatically when the tap is opened, you can hear it running when I open the tap and it stops when I close the tap.
[video=youtube_share;rx70xizTEYU]
The drain on the bottom of the sink is a standard garden hose fitting, so depending on where you're using the sink you can either run a short hose into a Rotopax for "gray water", or if you're somewhere remote and using only biodegradable soap in the sink, just run a longer hose off to the side of the camp site and drain onto the ground.
Not sure if this will be a production option, but here's a cutting board that fits over the sink; it's got a ridge around the bottom that prevents it from slipping off the sink. The faucet swings up out of the way.
When the sink is not in use, it pulls out of the hole in the tabletop and it disconnects from the water supply with a quick-disconnect fitting. All of the parts go in a heavy vinyl bag.
Another thing that may or may not be a production option - seems to me there are maybe some times when you'd want to use the kitchen but not the sink, so I made up a stainless steel cover that goes over the sink tabletop, covering the hole.
Preproduction versions of the Power Panel and Kitchen Battery Charging Options are almost ready for testing at MORryde, this photo is of my prototype Power Panel (the MORryde version isn't bright red). The Power Panel has two USB outlets and two power outlets (one for the fridge and one for the sink pump), as well as both a volt meter and amp meter. The battery is sitting in a MORryde ammo can tray, which is has been in production for the JKU for a while. The sink pump in my installation is mounted under the battery to the mounting grid of the ammo can tray.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
I've found the drawers to be extremely useful for food, kitchen supplies like pots, utensils, etc., and other gear so personally I wouldn't want to waste that space for storing the sink. Also the sink is wider than the drawers that I've built, so the sink wouldn't fit in a drawer a panel with a cutout; it might fit diagonally in the large drawer, but it would take up pretty much the entire drawer. For me the sink storage bag to be perfect - it holds the sink and all of it's hoses and accessories like the cutting board and I can stow it wherever makes sense in the Jeep given whatever other cargo I'm carrying at the time.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
There are at least four styles of door connector for the front doors - from 2007 through 12/17/2012 a black connector was used and there are 2-circuit, 10-circuit and 14-circuit versions depending on the power features the Jeep has, and JK's built after 12/17/2012 have a gray 14-circuit connector. The connector pins are mostly* compatible between all the housings for all years, so to convert from whatever your doors have to whatever your Jeep has all you need is new connector housings for the door side.
My 2013 JKU was built in the last days of December 2012 so it's got the grey 14-circuit connectors. The half doors I recently picked up have black 10-cicruit connectors (right connector in the photo below), so they're not compatible. But the good news is that the 10-circuit connectors in my half doors are populated with 8 wires, which means the door wiring harness supports power locks and power lock switches as well as the door ajar indicator, so if I just swap the 10-pin plug housings for the 14-pin housings, I'll be all set to install power locks and install lock switches in the doors.
The 14-circuit blue connector is not uncommon in MOPAR vehicles after about 2004, so a little searching in the local u-pull junkyard got me a pair for $4.00 (the MOPAR connector kit has an MSRP approaching $100 each I believe). There are a number of MOPAR vehicles that have these connectors (not necessarily used for the doors in these vehicles), and a search on the MOPAR connector repair kit site linked below will show a list - I got these plugs from a 2008 Dodge Nitro, in that vehicle they're used to connect the rear doors.
* Definition of "mostly": the 10 center cavities on the later model gray 14-cavity housing require narrow pins while all of the early model pins are wider. Four of the 8 pins in my old 10-circuit plugs snapped directly into the new housings, but for the other four I had to swap the old style wide pins for the new style narrow pins. For those positions I used the narrow pins that came with the plugs I got at the junkyard, I just removed the old wide pins from the wires and soldered the narrow pins in their place.
The connectors and their pinouts can be found here: http://connectors.dcctools.com/home.htm.
I plan to implement power locks in my half doors, more on that shortly.
My 2013 JKU was built in the last days of December 2012 so it's got the grey 14-circuit connectors. The half doors I recently picked up have black 10-cicruit connectors (right connector in the photo below), so they're not compatible. But the good news is that the 10-circuit connectors in my half doors are populated with 8 wires, which means the door wiring harness supports power locks and power lock switches as well as the door ajar indicator, so if I just swap the 10-pin plug housings for the 14-pin housings, I'll be all set to install power locks and install lock switches in the doors.
The 14-circuit blue connector is not uncommon in MOPAR vehicles after about 2004, so a little searching in the local u-pull junkyard got me a pair for $4.00 (the MOPAR connector kit has an MSRP approaching $100 each I believe). There are a number of MOPAR vehicles that have these connectors (not necessarily used for the doors in these vehicles), and a search on the MOPAR connector repair kit site linked below will show a list - I got these plugs from a 2008 Dodge Nitro, in that vehicle they're used to connect the rear doors.
* Definition of "mostly": the 10 center cavities on the later model gray 14-cavity housing require narrow pins while all of the early model pins are wider. Four of the 8 pins in my old 10-circuit plugs snapped directly into the new housings, but for the other four I had to swap the old style wide pins for the new style narrow pins. For those positions I used the narrow pins that came with the plugs I got at the junkyard, I just removed the old wide pins from the wires and soldered the narrow pins in their place.
The connectors and their pinouts can be found here: http://connectors.dcctools.com/home.htm.
I plan to implement power locks in my half doors, more on that shortly.
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Sixty8broncosport
New member
I know the thread has moved away from the barn door lately, but thoughts on making the rear window roll up and down like the 80-90's Bronco's or every year 4Runner? Frame can still be removable if needed, but window tucks away for air flow or for extra length for trips to the hardware store. Love the feature in my 4Runner.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
Since the barn door is an upper that attaches to the factory tailgate, there's no place for a roll-down window to roll down into.
An opening window could be done by using a slider of the type used in the back of pickup cabs. The slider in my Wrangler pickup cab opens from the center; a window of the same design could be installed in the barn door with no problem.
The other option would be to build a one-piece full barn door that a window can roll down into but for many reasons I decided that a separate upper that attaches to the tailgate was a better way to go.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
Came across another magazine mention of the Trail Kitchen - the current issue of 4-Wheel & Off-Road has an article entitles 20 New Parts & Tools You Will Want featuring new things from the SEMA Show. The photo they used is from the SEMA New Product area, there was a Trail Kitchen on display on a table there...
jscherb
Expedition Leader
Today I sewed another prototype tailgate panel, this time with heavy leather straps and reinforcements. The panel itself, just like the earlier prototypes, is 18-oz. (very heavy) cotton duck fabric.
The basic panel:
With Molle pouches:
With a prototype Sherpa bag and a Molle pouch:
And with some clip-on tool belt pouches I found at Lowes:
I like the leather a lot more than webbing so I've recommended to the startup company that they use leather straps/reinforcements for the production panel.
The basic panel:
With Molle pouches:
With a prototype Sherpa bag and a Molle pouch:
And with some clip-on tool belt pouches I found at Lowes:
I like the leather a lot more than webbing so I've recommended to the startup company that they use leather straps/reinforcements for the production panel.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
Continuing with my factory half door upgrade project...
Assuming the Jeep has power locks, there are several ways to convert factory half doors to power locks. Door wiring harnesses that have the wires and plugs for the power locks are needed, these are available from the dealer and other sources. Or the existing door harnesses could be upgraded by inserting pins in the proper cavities in the door plugs and running wires into the door.
Also needed are power lock actuators. I've read that the factory full door power lock actuators can be bolted into the half doors without any problems, but they're expensive - the fronts, which are available aftermarket, are roughly $60 each but the rears, which are only available as factory replacement parts, are about twice that.
I tested to see if inexpensive aftermarket lock actuators are compatible with the factory wiring. I connected a $5 aftermarket actuator to the door harness plug for the lock actuator and the actuator worked fine. I only have one of those actuators on hand, so I ordered a pair to install in the doors.
I also tested a junkyard PT Cruiser power lock switch ($5 at the u-pull) - it's plug-compatible with the JK switch and looks virtually identical. It works fine. In this photo I'm comparing it to the switch in my full door, if I remove the printed word from the switch it will look exactly the same as the factory JK switch, and it could also be installed with the factory bezel, which is available: https://www.moparpartsoverstock.com...r--Right-Side-Switch/10133654/68185910AA.html.
In this video I'm testing the switch and the actuator.
I haven't decided where in the doors I want to mount the switches but that's the next thing I'll do.
Assuming the Jeep has power locks, there are several ways to convert factory half doors to power locks. Door wiring harnesses that have the wires and plugs for the power locks are needed, these are available from the dealer and other sources. Or the existing door harnesses could be upgraded by inserting pins in the proper cavities in the door plugs and running wires into the door.
Also needed are power lock actuators. I've read that the factory full door power lock actuators can be bolted into the half doors without any problems, but they're expensive - the fronts, which are available aftermarket, are roughly $60 each but the rears, which are only available as factory replacement parts, are about twice that.
I tested to see if inexpensive aftermarket lock actuators are compatible with the factory wiring. I connected a $5 aftermarket actuator to the door harness plug for the lock actuator and the actuator worked fine. I only have one of those actuators on hand, so I ordered a pair to install in the doors.
I also tested a junkyard PT Cruiser power lock switch ($5 at the u-pull) - it's plug-compatible with the JK switch and looks virtually identical. It works fine. In this photo I'm comparing it to the switch in my full door, if I remove the printed word from the switch it will look exactly the same as the factory JK switch, and it could also be installed with the factory bezel, which is available: https://www.moparpartsoverstock.com...r--Right-Side-Switch/10133654/68185910AA.html.
In this video I'm testing the switch and the actuator.
I haven't decided where in the doors I want to mount the switches but that's the next thing I'll do.