Barn Door for JK factory hardtops

[jscherb]

A few weeks ago I posted that OO had asked me to send them my Tactical Tool Bag so they could sew a sample to determine manufacturing cost (https://expeditionportal.com/forum/...factory-hardtops.127687/page-346#post-3052730). Yesterday a package arrived with their sample in it. My prototype is the one with the lighter color webbing, their sample is the one with the professional quality sewing .

I carry my sample in the Jeep all the time and often hang it on the seat back with its Zip & Go attachment.

I admit to being compulsively organized, so I designed the bag to satisfy my compulsion:


I don't know if this bag will ever be produced, OO sewed the sample so they can estimate the manufacturing cost and what the retail price would have to be. They haven't told me the numbers yet, when they do I'll advise them if I think it might sell at the number they came up with.

They also sent me a sample they sewed of my Overland Overnighter bag that's also in the post linked above. It's also a faithful reproduction of my prototype, except they did it in black and made it a few inches longer (a good improvement).

Unrelated to the above, but since I'm on the subject of sewing, here's what's on my sewing table this morning - two sides and the front of my Bushcraft Rucksack design.

The rucksack isn't a Jeep-specific design, but it could be handy in a Jeep as a survival pack or a hiking pack. What's on the table are only the sides and back, I haven't sewn the other parts yet. There's a pocket on each side along with a small MOLLE grid; on the side at left I've got a large knife (bayonet) and a small knife attached; the pockets are designed to allow large things like the bayonet to slip behind them. Attached to the MOLLE on the other side is a cell phone pouch and a water bottle holder. The back has two taller pockets and a sleeve for holding a hatchet. I'm not doing this to be a product, it's just a design idea I've had in my head for a while and I want to turn it into reality to see if it's useful.

 

[jscherb]

I got away from the sewing projects for a little while yesterday and did a little metal work...

All jerry cans are not created equal - some have a vent that's used to release vacuum when pouring. In the one in these next photos, the vent is sealed when the cap is on but open when the spout is on. The vent hole is sealed by the cap but exposed when the spout is installed:

It's not just a hole - there's a tube inside that goes to what will be the high end of the can when pouring so air flows in but gas doesn't flow out of the vent.

I've got a "Blitz" brand can with no vent that I used for the first time on my Florida hurricane trip and it was almost impossible to pour with the same spout that's shown on the other red can above. To get fuel to flow, you have to continually tip the can back to break the vacuum.

It's a fairly easy fix to add a vent tube. A piece of steel tube is required; I used 3/16" OD steel brake line. I drilled a hole just larger than the O.D. of the tube where it would be sealed by the cap:

The brake line I got was galvanized steel, so I sanded off the galvanization where the tube would be welded to the can.

The tube goes into like this:

I slid the tube in place until it reached the bottom corner of the can, then pulled it back just a little bit. I left it long for trimming after welding and welded it in place.

WARNING: DO NOT WELD IF THE CAN HAS BEEN USED FOR FUEL. IF THE CAN HAS BEEN USED FOR FUEL, FILL IT WITH WATER BEFORE WELDING AND DON'T POUR THE WATER OUT UNTIL WELDING IS COMPLETE

After welding, I cut the excess tube off and ground the end smooth:

I'll touch up the bare metal with some red paint.

One last thing: the cap gasket must cover the vent hole. My Blitz can had an o-ring, so I replaced it with a wide/flat gasket.

If needed, wide style gaskets can be found on eBay, I ordered a few for this project and to replace gaskets on older cans that were starting to crack:

Now it'll pour just like my other jerry and NATO cans that came with vents.

 

[jscherb]

I've got a few minor details to complete, but the Bushcraft Rucksack project is basically done. It's a Zip & Go bag, so it can hang on the back of the seat:

It's a fairly large pack, so when hanging on the seat back means there probably won't be a passenger in the seat behind it.

Full rear view, it's got attachment points to carry a bedroll/tent or whatever on the bottom, and it's got a slot for a hatchet between the two pockets:

It's got a pocket and a MOLLE panel on each side; on this side I've got a big knife (a bayonet, actually) and a smaller knife. Also a good view of the hatchet and the bedroll (actually an Ikea picnic blanket, but it would be nice for sleeping on the ground).

On the other side I've got a water bottle holder and a large MOLLE pouch attached.

The inside is very roomy and includes a laptop pocket.

A view of one of the MOLLE sides with nothing attached, also on the lid there are more attachment points for straps to hold a small tent, etc.; similar attachment points are on the bottom holding the bedroll.

I don't have any plans for this to go into production, it's just a design I worked up and have been wanting to sew for a while. I will use it for offroad expeditions, perhaps loaded with survival gear.

 

[pith helmet]

This is a great pack. I have a ‘bug out bag’ similarly filled behind the seat of my truck and the wife and I each have one on the back of our seats when we camp.…not so nice nor big as these though.

 

[jscherb]

The spare tire bag looks great! cannot wait till they have this in production.

The grab handles, finally a decent grab handle. Going to grab a set of these for sure.

Got an update on both products today...

They're working on a preproduction sample spare tire bag and will send it to me as soon as it's done. Hopefully I'll get it next week in time to test on my road and trail trip in the LJ to the SEMA Show in Las Vegas.

They tell me the grab handles are in the manufacturing process right now and they expect availability next month. They say they'll send an email to everyone on their list when they're available; I'll also let people here know.

 

[jscherb]

Over the past several years I reviewed three different multi-switch panels from Auxbeam and I posted about all of them here when I did the reviews. A few months ago they asked if I would write an article for their blog on the different panels and how to choose the right one for your application. I agreed and they posted it in September although I just found out about the posting yesterday. Here it is FWIW, I think everything in the article has been posted here at some point or another but it's all in one place in this article:

Auxbeam Switch Panels | The best way to control your electrical accessories

Fog lights, light bars, camp lights, compressor, fridge, inverter... these days every adventure-equipped vehicle is outfitted with many electrical accessories to enhance the adventure experience. Whether it's a rock crawler or a mall crawler, ATV/UTV or RV, adding electrical accessories is a...

auxbeam.com

 

[jscherb]

Auxbeam asked me for another article; this one is about making custom switch labels for their switch panels.

Making Custom Switch Labels for your Auxbeam Switch Panel

If you need to control an accessory for which Auxbeam doesn’t provide a switch label, making custom labels is very easy - custom labels could be created with a drawing program. DIY labels can be printed on adhesive-backed white labels from an office supply store. The labels pictured below are...

auxbeam.com

 

[jscherb]

Whenever I'm near a surplus store I can't resist going in to see what I might find. Recently I found this a military surplus gas mask bag in one of my favorite surplus stores (Surplus City, a small chain in southern PA).

Being somewhat round, I thought it might be a good place to store my jumper cable/winch extension cables. It worked out just fine, a 16' extension and one jumper cable end fit nicely in the bag:

If you're wondering why only one jumper cable end, that's because all three of my Jeeps have leads installed in the engine compartment, they're stored coiled up on top of the battery and are always attached to the battery terminals.

The lead in the Jeep is long enough to reach the winch when it's installed and to jump another vehicle the jumper cable end gets plugged into the engine compartment lead. The extension is used when the winch is in the rear receiver or if I need to jump another vehicle that's a bit further away.

If I need to jump one of my Jeeps with another of my Jeeps, none of the cables in the gas mask bag are required - the leads stored under the hood of each Jeep can be plugged together for jumping, as I had to do a year or so ago when the battery in one of the Jeeps failed...

I have enough jumper cable ends to keep one under the seat of each Jeep. It takes up very little space under there and with it in the Jeep plus the lead under the hood, I always have jumper capability onboard. I'll just carry the gas mask bag when I've got the winch installed or I expect there might be a need for longer distance jumping.

 

[jscherb]

The other day an email arrived promoting a small butane stove:

It's from Forewinds and costs at $149. It looks like a high-end version of the inexpensive stove I use:

One problem I've had with my stove that seems to be solved on the high-end one is wind - there's no wind guard on the inexpensive stoves and out in the wild that's often a problem if there's a breeze. The high end stove has a wind guard around the burner, which solves that problem.

But you don't have to pay $150 for a stove to solve that problem - I solved it on my inexpensive stove with a homemade wind guard.

It's a simple strip of stainless steel sheet metal, bent to a snug fit around the pot support and pop-riveted where the ends join.

The cheapest I've seen these butane stoves is about $20 (mine was a little more because the main surface is stainless instead of painted steel, but a stove like this Coleman can be made to perform just as well as the $150 Forewinds stove that costs 7.5 times more.

Another idea... the Forewinds stove comes with a sturdy carrying case:

The case is nice but seems to add a lot to the size of it for storage; I made a storage bag for mine out of heavy arctic vinyl. Arctic vinyl is very thick so it provides good protection, it doesn't get stiff in in the cold and it's available at Joann Fabrics. It's compact and because it's soft it doesn't rattle or make any noise when stored. And it's simple to make, anyone who can operate a sewing machine can make it.

 

[Zeep]

Jeff, where did you source your cable, and cable ends?

 

[jscherb]

Jeff, where did you source your cable, and cable ends?

I found a guy on eBay who makes up cables (https://www.ebay.com/itm/182740798170) and sent him specs and drawings for what I needed. He gave me a quote that made sense so I had him make up all the cables for me. He's in upstate NY too so I went to pick up the cables; he got them mostly right but one correction was needed which he made when I picked them up. I would definitely use him again if I were to do another project requiring cables like these.

 

[jscherb]

Today a package arrived from Overland Outfitters, in it was their first preproduction sample "SpareHopper" bag. There are a few minor corrections/improvements I'll ask them to make but for a first sample it's very nice.

It'll be on the Jeep for the trip to Las Vegas and back for SEMA to give it a bit of testing.

They're thinking of doing it for the first release in this fabric but in black. I think the olive drab of this sample looks really good too so I'll probably suggest they do them in both colors.

Also in the package were a couple of their new (and very soon to be released) leather grab handles for the JL/Gladiator. I asked them to send me a few so I could install them in MORryde's JL at SEMA. I'll do some photos of those from SEMA.

 

[DCH109]

Awesome.
My feedback.
Olive Drab they should release this color at the same time.
On the trail, black gets far to dusty and ends up being brown very quickly. It just look dirty after 1 mile. (my current bag is black and I like it very little)
The olive drab will not show the dirt as much and will look better over all.
That is my opinion though.

 

[jscherb]

Over the past several years I reviewed three different multi-switch panels from Auxbeam and I posted about all of them here when I did the reviews. A few months ago they asked if I would write an article for their blog on the different panels and how to choose the right one for your application. I agreed and they posted it in September although I just found out about the posting yesterday. Here it is FWIW, I think everything in the article has been posted here at some point or another but it's all in one place in this article:

Auxbeam Switch Panels | The best way to control your electrical accessories

Fog lights, light bars, camp lights, compressor, fridge, inverter... these days every adventure-equipped vehicle is outfitted with many electrical accessories to enhance the adventure experience. Whether it's a rock crawler or a mall crawler, ATV/UTV or RV, adding electrical accessories is a...

auxbeam.com

I guess Auxbeam is happy with the article I wrote for them about their switch panels because they've asked if I'd do another article for them - this time about LED headlights. A while back I installed their 25,000 lumen H13 bulbs in my JKU and I really like them, I posted about them here. This time they asked for a comprehensive article covering the various types of LEDs, the decision points for choosing LEDs, installation notes, etc. They'd like me to also cover what I'd call their "look at me" lights (lights that have extra features that don't improve visibility but do add "bling" to the vehicle). To do that they're sending me a couple of pairs of lights with extra features. The first pair below has "halo" turn signals/DRLs which require additional wiring connections and the second pair has a rotating RBG halo and a few other features including Bluetooth control and no extra wiring - they're plug-and-play.

These lights don't fit in with my vision for any of my Jeeps, so after using them to write the article I'll probably make them available if anyone wants something like this for their Jeep. There are other forums where these lights would be very popular but I doubt there would be much interest in them here so I probably won't even post about them here when they arrive.

 

[jscherb]

Awesome.
My feedback.
Olive Drab they should release this color at the same time.
On the trail, black gets far to dusty and ends up being brown very quickly. It just look dirty after 1 mile. (my current bag is black and I like it very little)
The olive drab will not show the dirt as much and will look better over all.
That is my opinion though.

I agree and will make that point to Overland Outfitters.

And anyway I think the O.D. looks really good, even on my black Jeep where I've had a black prototype bag I sewed for quite a while.

BTW here's a photo of my black prototype, it washes easily - spraying it with the garden hose gets most of the dirt off and after the winter when it's got lots of road salt on it I spray it and give it a quick brushing...

One more point about keeping it clean - I keep it on when I go through the automatic car wash. When the attendant pressure washes the dirty parts of the Jeep before it goes through, I ask him to spray the bag, aiming down so the spray doesn't get up under the lid, and then it goes through the carwash. Gets pretty clean that way too.