cage work on the Jeep

[bburris]

I decided on the Llano trip that I needed a cage before I went on another trip. I put it off for too long and now it's the week before Katemcy and I'm doing something that I don't enjoy: taking on a project right before a trip. Oh well, I ordered a pre-bent cage kit from Performance Off-Road Center in Bogart, Georgia last week and it came in on friday. It's 2" .120 wall tube. I don't know if that's standard or what, but it seems ok to me...

It all looks good and comes fishmouthed to fit together really well and all. The front legs are bent to follow the line of the windshield and go through the dash.

The first step was to toss the old sport cage parts in the back of the Jeep after unbolting all the T45 torx bolts Mopar decided to put in it. Fun. Then I got to fold the windshield down for the first time ever... I found something interesting:

http://www.texasoffroad.net/albums/lonestar/Barbie-Jeep-cage/MVC_581S.sized.jpg

So if anyone is wondering, YES, Trendy Jeeps rust just like old ones do. I chipped a lot away with a flathead screwdriver, then I sanded it down and I'll paint it when I find a blue that matches.

I also found some annoying friends from a couple of years ago when Beeville got hit with a plague of crickets of Biblical proportions.

http://www.texasoffroad.net/albums/lonestar/Barbie-Jeep-cage/MVC_580S.sized.jpg

Those are the parts to about four different crickets. I hate crickets like I hate ****roaches.

Another thing I had to do was rip the a/c ductwork out from behind the dash speakers. This was easy enough since I don't have a/c and didn't really care if I tore the tube pieces up or not. The front cage legs run through there.

http://www.texasoffroad.net/albums/lonestar/Barbie-Jeep-cage/MVC_578S.sized.jpg

[bburris]

What the ****, I can't say ****roaches? C0CKROACHES

[bburris]

haha I win

[bburris]

OK, back on track. I got everything ready for it to go in and used a grinder to massage the ends of the legs that connect to the flat part of the center hoop. I got both of those finished after a lot of trial and error. Then Blake and I got the dash bar in place. A couple of sockets worked great to get it level to the dash 1" up. The windshield bar is supposed to go a little further back, but it looks goofy like that so I decided to give myself just enough room to let the visors rotate (just a reference, not like they serve any other purpose). We got all that set in place and ready to go.

Paul was being girly and watching some movie with his wife, so I used my mad welding skilz and tacked the two cross bars in place. :eek: Be ascared.

windshield up:
http://www.texasoffroad.net/albums/lonestar/Barbie-Jeep-cage/MVC_586S.sized.jpg

windshield down:
http://www.texasoffroad.net/albums/lonestar/Barbie-Jeep-cage/MVC_582S.sized.jpg

http://www.texasoffroad.net/albums/lonestar/Barbie-Jeep-cage/MVC_583S.sized.jpg

The problem with the windshield bar being so far forward is that the cage kit was designed for it to be more towards the back of the Jeep so one can use the soft/hard top latches. My top is somewhat shredded these days and I have no intention of repairing/replacing it, so I placed it further forward. After I got things tacked in place, I grabbed the center spreaders and realized that they were cut way too short... Now I need to find ~9 feet of 2" tube to do MORE cage work because I don't want to move the windshield bar back. Booooo...

http://www.texasoffroad.net/albums/lonestar/Barbie-Jeep-cage/MVC_584S.sized.jpg

[AgDieseler]

Sweeeet. :cheers:

[froader03]

I like that. very nice.

****roaches. ha.

[Fredo]

damn mother ****ing stinky ass *****ing mother ****er ****roaches :laughing: