Barn Door for JK factory hardtops

[Matt.H]

Those lights are a great idea! The only improvement I can see is if you could find a wiring harness that was twisted like a land line phone cord so that it would expand or shrink to keep it's form without migrating all over the place.

Pick your number of wires, gauge, length, color etc and order it up:

McMaster-Carr

McMaster-Carr is the complete source for your plant with over 595,000 products. 98% of products ordered ship from stock and deliver same or next day.

www.mcmaster.com

 

[jscherb]

A night-time test of the clip-on campsite lights...

The light inside the Jeep is a small battery-operated magnetic light that a company called Wagan was giving out at Overland West, I wrote about it in this post: https://forum.expeditionportal.com/threads/barn-door-for-jk-factory-hardtops.127687/post-3107079

Those lights are a great idea! The only improvement I can see is if you could find a wiring harness that was twisted like a land line phone cord so that it would expand or shrink to keep it's form without migrating all over the place.

Some might prefer a coiled wire, but I'm happy with the wire I used. A coiled wire that's large enough gauge to handle some power (even the small amount of power these LED's draw), wouldn't coil up as small as the wire I used and wouldn't fit in the small MOLLE pouch I hung on the side of the Trail Kitchen.

Also, a coiled cord would be hard to close in the door; the wire I used closes in the doors very nicely:

Also in the above photo, the wire between the two lights is inside the rack so it's not hanging loose. On the inside, the excess wire is coiled up and kept in check with a short piece of double-sided Velcro, so there's no loose wire inside either.

I've got a camping expedition planned in mid-September so these lights will get a real test then.

 

[jscherb]

Today is the first day of the vendor expo at the Smoky Mountain Jeep Invasion. Overland Outfitters (https://www.overland-outfitters.com/) is using my JKU and my trailer to show their products.

MORryde (https://www.morryde.com/products-cat/jeep-accessories/) is in the next booth, they've got their JLU outfitted with the Trail Kitchen and the other JL items I designed for them.

The two companies are next to each other in many shows so they can both use my Jeep... I've got lots of MORryde products in my JKU (and my LJ):

Trailer company Tentrax (https://www.tentrax.com/) was also scheduled to be here on the other side of MORryde but at the last minute they dropped out. I just finished doing designs for several accessories for their trailers and was going to give them the prototypes here so the could display them in their booth. They say they may just attend the show on Saturday so at least I can turn over the designs to them, even if they aren't an exhibitor.

OO used my trailer and roof rack to bring merchandise to the show. The hotel is very close to the convention center and they have a very strict parking policy about trailers. The Jeep and trailer only had to be in the hotel lot one night, they'll spend the rest of the show in the convention center. Here's how I got around their parking rules:

There's a 10-foot dropoff to a river just behind the trailer so I padlocked the trailer to the Jeep in case pranksters decided to unhook the trailer and let it roll into the river

 

[jgaz]

Silly rules.
Adapt and overcome!

 

[jscherb]

I spent part of the weekend in Uwharrie National Forest in North Carolina at the Tentrax Owners Weekend. My role there was to do a presentation on upcoming Tentrax trailer and RTT accessories that I've designed for them; I also gave a tour of a "well outfitted vehicle for Overlanding" (my JKU), showing how I deal with storage, food/kitchen/water/cooking and the electrical/solar/dual battery system, hopefully to give the crowd some ideas on how they might outfit their vehicles or trailers.

Amazon Guide Joe Flowers gave a very interesting lecture/demonstration of bushcraft techniques - making fires, finding survival materials in the wild, etc. I enjoyed his presentation very much and learned some things.

Both sides of his business card:

He's brought dozens of machetes and knives to the presentation (some can be seen on the floor in the photo above); he's also a knife designer and enthusiast. He led us through some hands-on knife work, making useful campsite accessories with a knife from branches, and we each used (but couldn't keep) on of his Condor Terasaur knives. It was the best feeling knife I've ever held so I'm going to buy one to add to my overlanding gear:

 

[jscherb]

In case you're not following my "downsizing" thread (https://forum.expeditionportal.com/...sign-and-fabrication-time-to-downsize.240135/) I'm getting rid of mold and mold masters, including those for the JK/JKU rear barn door, JL-style grille for the JK and hard shell upper half doors for the JK (and more to come).

 

[jscherb]

I'm working on a proof-of-concept air up/down accessory for a compressor company. The idea is to do all 4 tires at the same time with a hose/valve/pressure gauge assembly - it'll connect to all 4 tires at the same time with a valve for each tire. To air all tires the same, all 4 valves would be opened and one Schrader valve would control all 4 - for airing up the compressor would be connected to the Schrader valve and would air up all 4 tires at the same time and because they're all connected they would all end up at the same pressure. For airing down, all 4 would be deflated through one valve. A pressure gauge would monitor the pressure and since all of the tires are connected, that one gauge would show the common pressure.

I've got most of the parts on hand and I've ordered the necessary hose and hose clamps; as soon as they arrive I'll assemble a proof-of-concept prototype and test it. In this photo: a Schrader valve (left, in brass), a 4-gang valve assembly, 4 clip-on air chucks and a pressure gauge.

 

[jscherb]

The rest of the parts arrived for my proof-of-concept 4-way air up/air down adapter arrived. The hoses are long enough to reach all 4 tires of the JKU with the valves and gauge sitting near the battery (where the portable compressor might be connected while on the trail). It works as expected, which means I can air up or air down all 4 tires at the same time, monitoring the pressure on the gauge. The cheap hose I used is prone to kinking, so I've got to find some better hose, and a smaller digital pressure gauge would be better for this application, but the initial testing suggests this could be very useful not only on the trail but also useful to synchronize all 4 tires to the same pressure so the JKU's TPMS system will show all 4 tires being the same.

 

[Dan Grec]

Are you heading to SEMA again this year Jeff? I'll be there for the first time since 2019.
Should be a great time!

-Dan

 

[jscherb]

Are you heading to SEMA again this year Jeff? I'll be there for the first time since 2019.
Should be a great time!

-Dan

Yes, I will be there again this year. Looking forward to it - hope I see you there!

 

[jscherb]

Every year before I go to SEMA I spend some time "walking the show virtually" on the SEMA Show web site. I make a list of exhibitors I don't want to miss. I can save these booths in the SEMA app so while at the show I can simple tap on that exhibitor and get directions to go there. It's such a huge show this really helps me get to everything I want to see. Of course random wandering around always finds unexpected new products so I'll do plenty of wandering too.

I'm leaving for SEMA two weeks from today; As I do every year, I'll post photos of things I find interesting. Stay tuned.

The web site: https://sema23.mapyourshow.com/8_0/floorplan/?hallID=OO





The app:


If you visit the site and find an exhibitor you think I shouldn't miss, let me know and I'll add it to the app.

 

[jscherb]

How many electrical devices do you need to control? Auxbeam just sent me their latest switch panel to test - it's got 12 circuits plus a handheld remote control plus an app that can control it from a Smartphone.

Switch panel without any labels:

Remote:

I'll test and review it as soon as possible but may not have time to do that before I have to leave for the SEMA show next week. Photos and a full review as soon as I have time.

While at the SEMA Show I'll be meeting with Auxbeam to look at their new products and see if there are any others worth testing and reviewing.

 

[Zeep]

That is literally getting outta hand!

 

[jscherb]

I've been working on a review for the new Auxbeam 12-circuit (they call it a 12-gang, I like the term 12-circuit better). So far I've done a test in install of the control box in my '06 Pickup and my '13 JKU. The control box, being a 12-circuit, is fairly large so there aren't many places in most engine compartments that it will fit conveniently. The Auxbeam-supplied mounting bracket worked fine in the '06 but the bracket is too large to fit in the best place in the JKU engine compartment so I made a custom bracket. I'll turn over the design of the JK/JKU bracket to Auxbeam next week when I meet with them at SEMA in case they want to manufacture it, but I'll also post a pattern for it as part of my review so anyone could make it if they wanted to. It's fairly simple and can be cut from steel sheet with a jigsaw and bent in a vise, so no special tools are required to make it.

I won't get a chance to work on the testing and review until after I return from the SEMA Show so it'll be a few weeks before that gets completed and posted.

 

[jscherb]

Always looking for more storage, I came up with these headrest pockets. It's basically a band that slips over the headrest that has 3 pockets on it - two on the sides and one on the back. For this prototype I attached the pockets to the band using Velcro so I could experiment with different styles of pockets without having to sew a new band, but if this were to become a product I expect the pockets would be sewed directly to the band. Also these aren't final pockets, they're just things I was able to sew quickly for this proof-of-concept, final pockets would look nicer and more tailored.

A couple of shots in the JKU:



With a first aid pouch instead:



Front view:



Coincidentally it fits pretty nicely on the top of the seats in the LJ too.





Removed, you can see the band that slips over the headrest:



What do you think? Good idea or bad idea? Any other suggestions for types of pockets or gear holders of some sort to go on it? Pockets sewed onto the band (less expensive than velcro), or do Velcro like I did with this prototype? Or just do PALS grid (MOLLE) on the back and sides and let people choose their own pockets?