Barn Door for JK factory hardtops

[jscherb]

Last week I posted something I called a "Tool Belt for the Roll Bar", it was for hanging Molle pouches and things with tool belt clips. That one was done in tan canvas with brown leather. I thought black on black would look better on the roll bar so I sewed some with black canvas and black leather.

Here's one on the roll bar over the passenger door:

With some stuff on it, the sunglass pouch and the military surplus pouch are Molle and the tape measure has a belt clip on the back.

For the JKU I also made a shorter one to go on the bars above the rear doors:

A couple of pouches on that one, the black one is Molle and the green one has a belt clip:

I also made some specifically sized for the LJ, photos of those are in my LJ thread.

 

[jscherb]

Today's metal fab project...

Earlier this year I made a propane tank/jerry can/ammo can carrier that bolts to the tailgate hinges (in this photo with the propane tank tray, a larger tray is used for ammo cans and jerry cans.

It worked out very well, but it isn't compatible with the Overland Rack I sometimes use...

For times when I want to use the Overland Rack and also carry a propane tank for the stove I needed a different solution. I don't have the rack installed right now, but all I needed to install to get the dimensions correct was the passenger side support bracket, so I installed that and did some mocking up with cardstock. It turns out there's plenty of roof inside the rack/next to the spare for a propane tank.

The cardstock mockup gave me the critical dimensions, so I worked up a design, laid it out on 14-gauge steel and made this:

I've got a few details to finish and I need to paint it, but it's going to work out fine.

 

[OregonJKU]

Today's metal fab project...

Earlier this year I made a propane tank/jerry can/ammo can carrier that bolts to the tailgate hinges (in this photo with the propane tank tray, a larger tray is used for ammo cans and jerry cans.

It worked out very well, but it isn't compatible with the Overland Rack I sometimes use...

For times when I want to use the Overland Rack and also carry a propane tank for the stove I needed a different solution. I don't have the rack installed right now, but all I needed to install to get the dimensions correct was the passenger side support bracket, so I installed that and did some mocking up with cardstock. It turns out there's plenty of roof inside the rack/next to the spare for a propane tank.

The cardstock mockup gave me the critical dimensions, so I worked up a design, laid it out on 14-gauge steel and made this:

I've got a few details to finish and I need to paint it, but it's going to work out fine.

Looks great! We've been wondering how to mount our propane tank. Should be able to run the hose to the stove on the tailgate table.

 

[jscherb]

Looks great! We've been wondering how to mount our propane tank. Should be able to run the hose to the stove on the tailgate table.

The hose easily reaches from there to the stove on the other side of my Trail Kitchen so it would be no problem for the hose to reach a stove on a tailgate table.

 

[jscherb]

Over the past few months I designed and sewed a series of three organizer bags intended for camping/overlanding, (left to right) a vanity/camp bathroom organizer, a First Responder first aid bag and a Kitchen organizer, these are my prototypes:

Overland Outfitters liked the designs and picked them up for their "spring line"; this morning images of their preproduction prototypes showed up in my inbox. These are quick cell phone shots taken at their factory, so they're not the best photos but I'm very pleased with the detail and quality of the bags.

One thing they have yet to do for production is to make the pockets of the First Responder bag out of clear vinyl; finding medical supplies quickly in an emergency is key and clear pockets will help with that. Also the vanity/camp bathroom organizer in their photos doesn't have the mirror in place for the photo but you can see the mirror in the photo of my prototype above.

They should be sending me these bags for testing and verification of the details soon, I'll post more when I receive them.

They're also doing the compressor bag I designed and sewed a prototype of recently but there were no new photos of that one in the email this morning.

 

[bitbckt]

WIll they be producing any variant(s) of your MOLLE/map pocket door panel designs? I use several of their other products and have been very happy with them; I'd buy a pair of those door panels immediately.

 

[jscherb]

WIll they be producing any variant(s) of your MOLLE/map pocket door panel designs? I use several of their other products and have been very happy with them; I'd buy a pair of those door panels immediately.

Glad to hear you like their products!

I've used the prototype door panels in my JKU since I designed them a little over a year ago and they've been very handy.

I didn't know the status so I had to check with the folks at Overland Outfitters before responding. I made the designs available to them soon after I designed them but haven't discussed it with them since.

They got back to me this afternoon and told me these have been on their list to produce but other products have been higher priority. They suggested that if you're interested in getting a set soon, they could work them into the production schedule for you and asked that you contact them through the "Contact Us" link on their web site (https://www.overland-outfitters.com/contact.html#/) or email them at customercare@overland-outfitters.com.

 

[bitbckt]

Thanks! I will happily contact them. Those pointless nets need to go...

 

[jscherb]

Speaking of Overland Outfitters... in case you don't get the Quadratec promo emails, the one that showed up in my inbox this monring has 10% off all Overland Outfitters products.

 

[jscherb]

I got a new toy today - a Cricut Joy cutting machine. It's a very compact device that connects to the computer via bluetooth and can cut shapes out of vinyl or paper, and can also cut iron-on transfers and infusible ink for permanent designs on cloth and other materials. Literally five minutes after taking it out of the box I cut this decal:

I made the decal on the small sample of decal stock that comes with the machine. When I ordered the machine I also ordered a bunch of materials and supplies to go with it and those shipped out the same day but in a different box and that box hasn't arrived yet. When it arrives I'll do a bunch of tests to see what the machine is capable of. Other than making some decals I don't know exactly what I'll use the machine for, but when I have learned a bit more about it and understand its capabilities I'm sure I'll find creative ways to use it for Jeep stuff.

 

[Zeep]

I'll buy one or two from ya. That looks like the correct silver to match my cowl and hood decals.
Perfect size for under the taillight.

 

[jscherb]

I'll buy one or two from ya. That looks like the correct silver to match my cowl and hood decals.
Perfect size for under the taillight.

I made this one a little smaller than the original because the sample piece of vinyl that came with the machine wasn't very big. I will be able to make them in the original 50's size or any other reasonable size as soon as my supplies arrive.

I didn't buy the Cricut machine to make coffee cups, but since the rest of my supplies haven't arrived yet I can't make anything else, so I put my test decal on a cup:

I've got a lot of Jeep logos I can do, here are a few. All of these are replicas of original decals/emblems and can be done in the same size as the originals or sized as needed. The 4 "Jeep" letters, for example, are sized for the embossed Jeep logo on a CJ tailgate.

The Cricut is capable of cutting material up to 4' in length, so hood-side decals can be made. Multi-color decals can also be made; I like the camel train decal on the side of this Mahindra Savari so maybe I'll do something like that as a real test of the machine's capabilities.

 

[MattJ]

Jeff: Can you take a photo of the first-responder bag mounted on your cargo-area drop-down rack? The top would flip open and hang down perfectly off the front of the rack, right? Believe me, I've tried a dozen configurations and locations for quick-access first aid gear, and I think that one would be the BEST!

 

[jscherb]

Jeff: Can you take a photo of the first-responder bag mounted on your cargo-area drop-down rack? The top would flip open and hang down perfectly off the front of the rack, right? Believe me, I've tried a dozen configurations and locations for quick-access first aid gear, and I think that one would be the BEST!

Sure, here you go.


Here's an earlier still photo taken when I had the fridge in the back:

And just for reference...

 

[MattJ]

Awesome - thanks! Such a great solution for keeping the kit out of the way, yet very accessible. And you don't even need to remove it and spread it all out on the ground to find what you are looking for . . . likely in a hurry!