The CheapJeep

[Shaggy]

are you planning on covering those seats and adding some padding... cause i think they will give you one hell of a rough ride

[CheapJeep]

I have seat covers I just need to go pick them up from the store I ordered them from. I think they're the same as Fellar's. Also 5pts. will be installed.

[davido]

We saw those wheels as SEMA.

[Sharpe]

Dont take this the wrong way but that cage looks like it was made by drag racers (which I know it was I'm just making a point). I have little to no experience in both drag racing and offroading so I am just making uninformed generalizations.

Drag car cage:
No frills, protects your ass from 100 mph wreck
Little consideration to ergonomics. Drag racers only spend a few minutes in their cars at a time so the cage doesnt have to fit like a glove
No consideration for storage, since they dont have to

Trail rig cage:
Usually has **** hung on it like spare tires and parts, as well as handles and the like, all of which has to be considered during construction
Has to fit vehicle well. You will be spending hours at a time in said vehicle and having a bar occupying footspace isnt pleasant
Easy enough to get in and out of, since we are always jumping in and out
Storage, it aint a fullsize, so you dont have any to waste. Think ice chests, toolboxes and large bulky items that need cubic feet of space.

I know its already done and I'm sure it will get the job done but that x is going to severely limit cargo capacity. As far as the front bars go, I'm sure some of the other 4 or 5 people who have CJ5's can post pics of their cages, I think they just move the dash bar up to clear the locking levers.

[agjohn02]

if your truely happy with it, then dont worry about what we think. however, if your not, you'll be kicking yourself for not getting it fixed. we're just trying to keep you from riding along looking at it and feeling like you got screwed. we've all had something done before that wasnt done like we wanted it. thats why most of us just do it ourselves if we have the means to do it.

[sasquatch]

pimp. those are fancy seat mounts

[CheapJeep]

Thanks. I'm happy with it and I'll figure out space issues, like I said spare tire mount is going on the X and I have room for a medium sized cooler/tool box behind the seats.
The reason I didn't do it myself was partly because I don't have a tube bender and also because my parent's are extremely anal about me being safe. Which I really don't understand because I could've easily done this myself in our shop. Darryl, Tony, and Bill did an excellent job though and I couldn't have asked for more. They're experts in building chassis and fabrication.
Once we had everthing welded and the seats mounted I sat in there and it's really comfortable for a person of my size. I can easily reach all the shifters, pedals, etc... However if you're over 6 foot I could imagine it would be quite cramped. The passenger seat is fine for a tall person, just not the driver's seat.
I will say that the cross bars that run through the S door opening make it harder to get in and out of but I plan on building a set of sliders that stick out a couple inches to use as a step. I feel secure having the cage designed the way it is and with the seats wrapping around. I rather feel strapped in over being able to slide around.
On another note about what Darryl had said about the front hoop being pushed back, he had originally planned to do something different which I didn't really catch onto...something about the front hoop preventing the motor from being shoved back into the driver/passenger? I think he was talking about building a front hoop that had an extra crossmember that was below the dash, but he mentioned that it would get in the way which I agreed.

[Sharpe]

Well the only person who's opinion matters is your and it sounds like you're happy as a pig in ****. I really dig those seat mounts.

[CheapJeep]

Thanks, I gotta give mad props to Darryl and the crew for their fabbing. It's a helluva lot of fun to work with those guys. They know their **** and have badass rides.

[CheapJeep]

Going down to Bill's shop again tomorrow to finish welding up the front d-shaft, finish cage, gas tank skid, s.s. brake lines, whatever else. I'll take some more pics of what gets done.

[CheapJeep]

Like I've stated numerous times, I sat in the drivers seat and could easily reach all the petals, shifters, etc...no problem. I like having the tube's there, it keeps my left leg from trying to go out in an off camber situation as well as protects my side if I lay it over on anything protruding i.e. rocks, etc.
The cage is in no way "thrown together", I've done plenty of research and know what's going on. I showed up a little late after Darryl had already made the front hoop and tacked it in place, but I've come to like the way it is and prefer having it this way. It couldn't have turned out any better, it's how I wanted it and everything works and is ergonomically correct for me. If I were to build it myself I might have set the front hoop a little closer and made the bend at the windshield, but I really don't care at this point. I'm happy and I can't wait to take it wheelin'.

[CheapJeep]

Once we had everthing welded and the seats mounted I sat in there and it's really comfortable for a person of my size. I can easily reach all the shifters, pedals, etc... However if you're over 6 foot I could imagine it would be quite cramped. The passenger seat is fine for a tall person, just not the driver's seat.
I will say that the cross bars that run through the S door opening make it harder to get in and out of but I plan on building a set of sliders that stick out a couple inches to use as a step. I feel secure having the cage designed the way it is and with the seats wrapping around. I rather feel strapped in over being able to slide around.

[J Cooper]

example... not the best cage.. needs a couple extra pieces that we are gonna put in.. but its simple.. you can jump in and out easily, flows with the shape of the jeep and does it job and has enough room for a fuel cell, ice chest and tool box.

[CheapJeep]

Did you notice the overhead V? I was maybe thinking about putting in bars that run parallel with the body overhead as well, just like with other cages. I don't quite understand your comment "know it all", how is that, because I've said that I'm happy with my cage? It fits me? By the time I showed up my only input was for the X and overhead V. Everything else was already tacked in and I'm not going to waste expensive tubing when it works for me. Is that know it all? Everyone has to start wheeling somewhere, so what I've only wheeled with the club a couple times, highschool muddin', and out at my ranch. That doesn't mean I can't start sometime. I started reading Fourwheeler when I was 5...my dad had 2 XJ's and a bigass burban so it's not like I haven't been around it. If you don't have anything collective to add to the thread then why post? No one else made such derrogatory comments as you have. Maybe some critiquing but I've made my point and acknowledged their opinions. Not everything that people say or feel pertains to every single person or their situation. Just because my rig doesn't look like everyone elses means I need to change it to look like their's. If stuff doesn't work out and ya'll are right I'll change it.

[CheapJeep]

BTW- I've had a thread running on Pirate since last year on my build, at least no one said I needed more triangulation. Most people said good job on the build with a couple questions about stretching the wheelbase more and one or two that were questioning the front hoop, but still were positive.