Barn Door for JK factory hardtops

[jscherb]

Is that the same material you are going to make the soft sides with?
Looks like great quality!

It's very different. The fabric I'm going to make the soft sides from is the exact same fabric used for factory soft tops - it's primarily polyester and it's got the factory "denim" texture. This new Cordura fabric is nylon and has a more pronounced weave texture. Being polyester, the factory fabric is more heat sensitive than the Cordura nylon fabric, which is why it's not a good candidate for heat-pressed logos. The nylon fabric is less sensitive to heat, and much stronger than the factory fabric, although slightly less UV resistant. Cordura nylon is a very high quality/very strong fabric; it's used in many military applications; I used it for my tilt-up camper project (in a different color) and it was very nice to work with:

Another possibility would to embroider in an UV stabilized thread. More money, and traps dust, but very classy when clean.
I had custom logos done for the headrests of another build at a place that does ball caps, jackets and such. Came out great, and the total was about $80-ish including the design costs.

Early in the project I discussed embroidery with the sign shop and their opinion was that because of the size of the logo it would be difficult to embroider, and being on the back of the Jeep and constantly subject to road spray/salt here in upstate NY it would attract dirt and would rarely look clean.

 

[Zeep]

Those roof rack tie in brackets just reminded me of the CB mount you fabbed for your Lj some time back. I realize your usually going in three directions at a time.
If it's not to much trouble, could you post up, or PM me with some layout plans, that I could use to duplicate that radio mount. The location is the same that I used, but the simplicity of removal and install really caught my eye. (As usual, with all your mods.)
Thanks!
Zeep

 

[jscherb]

Those roof rack tie in brackets just reminded me of the CB mount you fabbed for your Lj some time back. I realize your usually going in three directions at a time.
If it's not to much trouble, could you post up, or PM me with some layout plans, that I could use to duplicate that radio mount. The location is the same that I used, but the simplicity of removal and install really caught my eye. (As usual, with all your mods.)
Thanks!
Zeep

I think this is all I've ever posted about the LJ CB mount: http://www.expeditionportal.com/for...u-outfit-this-custom-LJ?p=1556722#post1556722

It's pretty simple to duplicate - look at the photos in that post and use some cardstock to experiment with the shape and bends until you end up with something you like.

 

[jscherb]

There's no drilling on either the Jeep or the Safari Cab to install the brackets to tie the roof rack to the roll bars - the brackets bolt up to existing holes Jeep has conveniently provided in the roll bars, and connect to the bolts that secure the roof rack in place. The only mod to the Jeep was making holes in the roll bar covers for the bolts.

Front:

Rear. This is also a nice view of the Alpine windows.

 

[jscherb]

Checking the fit of my rack basket on the JK Safari. It mounts to the ZJ rack crossbars.

Next I'll try out the roof top tent.

 

[jscherb]

The other day I posted that I was looking to redo the Safari logo spare tire cover because the Rugged Ridge fabric did not stand up well to the heat pressing process when the logo was applied. I found Cordura nylon fabric in Coyote Brown that was a good match for the Spice color of the hardtop, and I dropped a sample off at the sign shop for them to test in their heat press.

Picked up the sample yesterday and it's fine. They pressed some white scraps of the decal material onto it and there's no sign of heat damage, so I've ordered enough of the fabric to sew a new tire cover.

 

[Comanche Scott]

How is the adhesion with the coarse material?
Have you tried to peel/scrub on it?

 

[jscherb]

How is the adhesion with the coarse material?
Have you tried to peel/scrub on it?

It seems very permanently bonded. No amount of scraping with a fingernail will dislodge it or even show any signs of damage.

 

[jscherb]

I installed the roof top tent to see how it looks with the final Safari Cab and to do a final test of the roll-bar tie-in brackets for the rack.

It's nice to be able to throw a tent on top of the hardtop without an exocage style rack or any other special hardware.

 

[jscherb]

Checking the view from the bedroom :

Tent packed up and ready for travel.

 

[Comanche Scott]

That tent also makes a very nice awning over the back.
Great news on the logo for the tire cover. :beer:
Worse case it could have been silk screened, or painted on with vinyl paint. But the transfer is so much easier and sharper.

 

[jscherb]

That tent also makes a very nice awning over the back.

Yes it does. And even though I'm 6'6", I can easily stand under the tent and access the back of the Jeep. And there's no interference between the barn door and the tent ladder, they clear each other just fine. The tent I have is available with an optional changing room, I don't have that option but I've done a quick "digital installation" of it in this photo. Seems like a really good option to enhance the usability of the Jeep/RTT setup.

Great news on the logo for the tire cover. :beer:
Worse case it could have been silk screened, or painted on with vinyl paint. But the transfer is so much easier and sharper.

I'm looking forward to sewing the new tire cover. I've never been happy with the disfiguration the heat bonding process caused to the Rugged Ridge tire cover, so by sewing a new one I'll end up with a crisp, perfect logo on a nicely matching cover. I'm guessing the fabric will be in by the end of next week; first thing I'll do is cut out the main circle and drop that off at the sign shop to have the logo bonded on.

 

[jscherb]

I've been wondering what steel smoothies painted to match my hardtop would look like so I "installed" a set with my paint program...

 

[Jakes01234]

When is this roof going into production??
I need to purchase a hard top and this is currently the only options peaking my interest..

 

[Comanche Scott]

I like the idea of the Spice colored wheels, but think the smoothies need a more rugged/large tire or maybe just a solid black side wall, to look good.
Of course this is just my personal opinion.
Wonder what your stock wheels would look like with the hole areas done in Spice?

I continue to be impressed with your "paint program" abilities! :beer: