Barn Door for JK factory hardtops

[akpostal]

That came out like gangbusters Sherb.

I really hope you reconsider and license the barn door.

 

[jscherb]

I wonder if you would have time to take the doors off and snap a picture with the side off as well just to see how open it would feel? I'm thinking to myself of a jku adventure in the Serengeti with half doors and roll-down sides all around. With the opera and alpine windows and no obstructions, you've got just about the best rig I can think of right there. You've really designed and executed what a "safari" wrangler trim level could be if FCA let the r&d section go wild.

I don't have time to do that today, I've got to get ready for a trip I'm starting tomorrow but maybe I could get to that in a few weeks when I get back. But I run my LJ on the trail all the time with the soft sides, often with half doors as well so I'll post these photos in the meantime.

What's nice about it is it's very open, but the roof keeps the hot sun from beating down on you all day, and you can very quickly close everything up if weather happens. Also nice that you can open up the Jeep very easily but still have everything on the roof rack, so it's easy to keep the expedition cargo up there. I often store the half doors on the rack to really open things up on the trail - the half door uppers store above the roll bars inside the Jeep and the doors go up top.

It's the best rig I can think of too, that's why I designed the JK Safari Cab the way I did - I put all of my experience with the LJ Safari into the JK Safari design and added a few features and improvements .

Full doors in this shot, but still open enough for the temperature at over 13,000 feet .

EDIT: Maybe these concept drawings I did a while back will help too...

And one with roll-ups that go all the way from the back to the b-pillars.

In the concepts above the rear panel is also removed, there would also be a soft roll-up along the back for these concepts. I did a version like that for the LJ Safari Cab, but ended up liking the version that keeps the rear panel in place and swaps a soft barn door in for the hard barn door. The full soft side version of the LJ Safari:

 

[jscherb]

That came out like gangbusters Scherb.

I really hope you reconsider and license the barn door.

Thank you.

I haven't mentioned this before, but about two months ago I got a call from one of the Jeep catalog companies about the barn door. They had seen it on the forums and thought it would make a great addition to their catalog and something that could set them apart from their catalog competition. The problem is that that this particular company isn't equipped to do any manufacturing, they'd want to receive "finished goods" into inventory - that would mean I'd have to do everything but the selling - I'd have to arrange the manufacturing, work out the packaging, arrange the sourcing and purchase of all of the components and materials, arrange final assembly, etc. And deal with any returns or other issues.

I do have a relationship with a fiberglass company that would be very interested in manufacturing the shell, and a relationship with a hardware company that would be very interested in manufacturing the necessary hardware, so if some company/someone wanted to contract with those companies and then do the final assembly, sales and customer support that could work out, but I'd only be interested in licensing it if I didn't have to make a career out of supporting them.

All that being said, I still don't think there would be enough demand in the market for the barn door to make it worth the trouble to get it into production.

 

[jscherb]

Putting the JK Safari to work this morning doing a little hauling.

 

[Comanche Scott]

Happy and safe travels! :beer:

 

[jscherb]

I started this project about two years ago - the project started with just the barn door, which was to be part of the eventual JK Safari Cab, but also intended to work with the factory hardtop. I built the molds and molded two barn doors and once they were done I started work on the full hardtop. About a year into the project, and long after my design was committed and concept drawings were posted, the Jeep Underground debuted their "Africa" concept. By coincidence, the Africa has a roof that's very similar to the Safari Cab roof, it's got a barn door in the back, and it has side-mounted jerry cans. When the Africa was revealed some people posted that they thought Jeep got their ideas from my postings since my design was posted long before they showed the Africa, but I believe Jeep worked independently to come up with the Africa design - I think the similarities are just a coincidence.

Some of the similarities and differences:

Barn door. The Africa barn door is one piece, and is larger than the Safari Cab barn door. The Safari Cab barn door is two-piece, and works with the factory tailgate and either the Safari Cab or the factory hardtop.

Roofline. The rooflines of the Africa and the Safari Cab are very similar. The Africa roofline is a bit different from the Safari Cab across the back, and this is partly because of the larger barn door on the Africa. The Safari Cab has Alpine windows in the roof but the Africa does not. The Safari has a drip rail all the way around, including over the barn door, the Africa does not have a drip rail over the barn door.

Roof rack. The Safari Cab has integrated roof rack support; the Africa has a drip rail mounted roof rack. The Safari Cab can also support a drip rail mounted roof rack, but I prefer the ZJ Cherokee rack on the Safari Cab for everyday use.

Jerry Cans. The Africa side mount jerry cans are mounted down low and because of that have to be custom - the cans have an angle cut from the front of them so they clear the fender flares. The Safari Cab side mounts are higher so standard jerry, NATO or Sceptre cans (or Rotopax containers) can be mounted. The Africa cans, because they're custom and on a concept Jeep, are non-functional, although they could be made to carry fuel. BTW the side mount carriers on my Jeep are off-the-shelf items, and bolt to existing bolt holes on the Jeep - no drilling.

Modular vs. Full body. The Africa concept is a full body, the hardtop is not removable. The Safari Cab hardtop is separate from the body, so it installs just like a factory hardtop, but it's also modular, which makes it easy for one person to install/remove and easy to store when off the Jeep. The Africa body is lengthened behind the rear wheels, providing for more cargo space. The Safari Cab fits a standard (non-lengthened) JKU tub. (There's also version of the Safari Cab that can be built for the 2dr JK).

Windows. In addition to the Safari having Alpine windows, the Safari has opening power vent windows on the sides - the Africa side windows are fixed glass just like the factory hardtop windows.

Swappable hard sides/roll-up soft sides. Safari Cab ****** .

I thought it would be fun to take some pictures with poses similar to some of the published Africa photos, so here goes.

For a better comparison, I edited an Africa photo to shorten it back to standard JKU length. It's still got some lift and larger tires than the JK Safari though...

I really like the Africa design, but I'd rather have the Safari Cab with it's extra features .

 

[akpostal]

Thank you.

I haven't mentioned this before, but about two months ago I got a call from one of the Jeep catalog companies about the barn door. They had seen it on the forums and thought it would make a great addition to their catalog and something that could set them apart from their catalog competition. The problem is that that this particular company isn't equipped to do any manufacturing, they'd want to receive "finished goods" into inventory - that would mean I'd have to do everything but the selling - I'd have to arrange the manufacturing, work out the packaging, arrange the sourcing and purchase of all of the components and materials, arrange final assembly, etc. And deal with any returns or other issues.

I do have a relationship with a fiberglass company that would be very interested in manufacturing the shell, and a relationship with a hardware company that would be very interested in manufacturing the necessary hardware, so if some company/someone wanted to contract with those companies and then do the final assembly, sales and customer support that could work out, but I'd only be interested in licensing it if I didn't have to make a career out of supporting them.

All that being said, I still don't think there would be enough demand in the market for the barn door to make it worth the trouble to get it into production.

I would buy one in a heartbeat. Same with the JK rear sliding windows.

Great job on the whole project. Is the roof rack on the JKU Safari cab tied to the roll bar?

 

[jscherb]

I would buy one in a heartbeat. Same with the JK rear sliding windows.

Great job on the whole project. Is the roof rack on the JKU Safari cab tied to the roll bar?

Yes, the roof rack is tied to the roll bar.

 

[Comanche Scott]

I started this project about two years ago - the project started with just the barn door, which was to be part of the eventual JK Safari Cab, but also intended to work with the factory hardtop. I built the molds and molded two barn doors and once they were done I started work on the full hardtop. About a year into the project, and long after my design was committed and concept drawings were posted, the Jeep Underground debuted their "Africa" concept. By coincidence, the Africa has a roof that's very similar to the Safari Cab roof, it's got a barn door in the back, and it has side-mounted jerry cans. When the Africa was revealed some people posted that they thought Jeep got their ideas from my postings since my design was posted long before they showed the Africa, but I believe Jeep worked independently to come up with the Africa design - I think the similarities are just a coincidence.

Some of the similarities and differences:

Barn door. The Africa barn door is one piece, and is larger than the Safari Cab barn door. The Safari Cab barn door is two-piece, and works with the factory tailgate and either the Safari Cab or the factory hardtop.

Roofline. The rooflines of the Africa and the Safari Cab are very similar. The Africa roofline is a bit different from the Safari Cab across the back, and this is partly because of the larger barn door on the Africa. The Safari Cab has Alpine windows in the roof but the Africa does not. The Safari has a drip rail all the way around, including over the barn door, the Africa does not have a drip rail over the barn door.

Roof rack. The Safari Cab has integrated roof rack support; the Africa has a drip rail mounted roof rack. The Safari Cab can also support a drip rail mounted roof rack, but I prefer the ZJ Cherokee rack on the Safari Cab for everyday use.

Jerry Cans. The Africa side mount jerry cans are mounted down low and because of that have to be custom - the cans have an angle cut from the front of them so they clear the fender flares. The Safari Cab side mounts are higher so standard jerry, NATO or Sceptre cans (or Rotopax containers) can be mounted. The Africa cans, because they're custom and on a concept Jeep, are non-functional, although they could be made to carry fuel. BTW the side mount carriers on my Jeep are off-the-shelf items, and bolt to existing bolt holes on the Jeep - no drilling.

Modular vs. Full body. The Africa concept is a full body, the hardtop is not removable. The Safari Cab hardtop is separate from the body, so it installs just like a factory hardtop, but it's also modular, which makes it easy for one person to install/remove and easy to store when off the Jeep. The Africa body is lengthened behind the rear wheels, providing for more cargo space. The Safari Cab fits a standard (non-lengthened) JKU tub. (There's also version of the Safari Cab that can be built for the 2dr JK).

Windows. In addition to the Safari having Alpine windows, the Safari has opening power vent windows on the sides - the Africa side windows are fixed glass just like the factory hardtop windows.

Swappable hard sides/roll-up soft sides. Safari Cab ****** .

I thought it would be fun to take some pictures with poses similar to some of the published Africa photos, so here goes.


I really like the Africa design, but I'd rather have the Safari Cab with it's extra features .

I think you are very right on this, in all aspects.
The Africa top was also not removable. Maybe it was to gauge how the public would react if they built an SUV based on the upcoming truck platform. Like the Excursion is to the F250, only on a much smaller, and awesome-er scale.

There have been a few designs and prototypes done, and with no intention of "Blowing Smoke" or going all "fan boy", certainly the Safari is the pinnacle of the group. That doesn't mean some company won't pay you millions of dollars in royalties to license the concept. But until that time, I don't think we'll see anything this nice on an affordable price level.

 

[jscherb]

...There have been a few designs and prototypes done, and with no intention of "Blowing Smoke" or going all "fan boy", certainly the Safari is the pinnacle of the group.

Thank you.

 

[jscherb]

I did about 800 miles in the new JK Safari yesterday, I'm doing a last minute road trip/shakedown cruise. The top performed up to expectations, here are a few impressions from the trip so far:

- It's quieter than the factory hardtop. Probably this is because of the insulated headliner, I don't know of any other reason it would be quieter.

- Visibility out the back is much better than the factory tops (hard or soft). The opera windows on the back really add to visibility when lane changing or merging, and not having a wiper motor or third brake light obscuring the rear window improves visibility a lot.

- Speaking of the wiper, I did quite a few miles in hard rain yesterday, and the wiper pattern on the back window provides excellent visibility. Good view behind and of the lane to your left.

- And speaking of hard rain, all of it stayed outside the Jeep. No leaks.

- The power vent windows are the big surprise for me - I used them a lot. Flow-through ventilation is greatly improved when they're open, with the HVAC on the outside air/vent position, when I open the rear vents I can feel a big increase in air flow out of the dash vents. Having the vent windows powered is really handy, this is now one of my favorite features of the top.

- One problem I had to fix - I hadn't tested the rear washer before I left and on the road I discovered it wasn't working. I removed the washer nozzle at a gas stop and poked it with a paperclip - something had clogged it. Now it's working great, provides a nice stream of washer fluid to the back window. (The nozzle is in the barn door, next to the wiper, so it's not visible in any of the recent photos - it's hidden behind the spare and sprays upwards).

 

[jscherb]

I was asked today whether or not I put a defroster grid on the barn door window, or if I ever considered putting heating elements on any of the other windows, like the rear Opera windows or the roof Alpine windows. I'll answer it here...

The barn door wiring harness includes the factory defroster connection, so if I ever decide to put a heating element to that window I'm all set. I haven't added a grid to the barn door because I never use the rear defroster on any of my other vehicles, they're all garage kept so I rarely need to defrost them. For the same reason I doubt I'd ever want grids on any of the other windows either.

The first barn door built did get a defroster, my friend Tom and I built it for his Jeep and he decided he needed a defroster. Here's a work-in-progress shot taken back when we were building his barn door:

BTW we made a wider barn door for Tom's JK, it's a 2013 with the wider hatch, in the photo above you can see how the barn door upper is wider than the tailgate. The Safari Cab barn door opening is the same width as the tailgate. The barn door molds can make either width, it's just a matter of trimming to the correct size.

 

[jscherb]

One more observation from my road testing today - it was 98 degrees and very sunny outside today where I was driving. The insulated headliner really does a good job - if you reach up and feel the headliner it isn't even warm, which means heat from the roof isn't being transferred to the cabin.

 

[jscherb]

Parked next to this one during a stop today today. He's got a lift and larger tires than mine, but both Jeeps are about the same height due to the taller Safari Cab.

 

[jscherb]

I found another use for the vent windows this morning... I needed 10' of molding, which would have fit inside the Jeep, but it was only available in a 16' length, so...