Posts by Chief57

I'm pretty close to having my fender flares and side steps sprayed with one of those pickup truck bedliner products. Just bought the side steps used, and they're pretty beat. First comes JB Weld.

I'm specifically looking at one called Superliner, which is a competitor of Rhino-liner, Herculiner, etc. The guy is in north Dover near Cheswold. I was quoted $150 (if I don't mind waiting a bit). I saw one DEJA rig at the Jeeps for Joy in December with the flares sprayed, and I thought it looked good. Does anyone have experience with these products? Is there one to avoid? Big question: Is the do-it-yourself product version that you see at your local auto parts store as good as the professionally sprayed version? It's about half the price. Jim

Joo is correct. The half door pins are probably only about half the length of the hinge hole they fit into. The good news is that makes them easy to pull out. The bad news is that makes them easy to pull out. Jim

Captain just stopped by and together we struggled to get the top on. I think we both got an education! I couldn't have done it without him. The top isn't in as good a condition as I thought it was in, so I think I need to keep an eye out for a new one...or maybe a better used one.

Would anyone be interested in helping me put on a Bestop soft top onto my 98 TJ? I've never done it before and wouldn't know where to start. Just took off the hard top that came with it. It's in my garage (warm and dry), and I can provide music, beer and pizza. Am in Magnolia. Jim

As Jethro Bodine said to Uncle Jed, I'll commence to put my oversize brain and fifth grade education to work on this....and if I come up with something I'll let you know. Jim

Guys,
I'm not sure it's clear to everyone that my concern is stealing the doors themselves, not stealing stuff from the jeep or the soft top.

No, unfortunately the pins don't allow for nuts, like the full hard doors do. I just finished fiddling with the doors, and it was pretty easy to put the latches on. (They come with the doors, but in a separate plastic bag with hardware.) Plus, adjusting them to fit the door frame was not a big deal either.

I called Quadratec this afternoon and spoke with a guy named Frank who said there are no locks (like the Tuffy one Slimer showed above) for the Bestop soft half doors. He said Quadratec gets lots of requests for them and brings it to Bestop's attention every time the rep visits, but they've never seen fit to address it. Neither has Tuffy. Jim

Slimer, you're on the right track! I didn't realize those Tuffy locks existed, so I'll look into whether or not they are also available for the soft doors. They look a little more sophisticated than what I was proposing.

I just got home with my new doors and slapped them (without the paddle handles) onto the Jeep and -- voila! -- they don't seem to fit right. So, I guess I'm forced to read the directions that came with them. Hopefully there is some adjustment I can make so they'll be aligned in the door frame correctly. It's always something....

Yeah! Just received my Bestop soft half doors from Quadratec a few minutes ago. I think I'll be happy with them, but I'm concerned about one thing -- theft. I'd like some ideas from peanut gallery on what I can do to theft-proof them. One thing I was thinking about was have a small metal ring welded to the frame, and then somehow use a cable to tether the door (via the loop) to someplace on the Jeep. It would sort of be like the fabric door stops, only serving a different purpose. Am I barking up the wrong tree or what?

http://www.quadratec.com/produ…es%2F36033%2F36033-lg.jpg

Any other thoughts on these doors are also appreciated. Jim

Quote from luis

1-888-370-7962
woodfin inc jeep junkjard
lower DE.

Just a clarification.....Woodfin Inc Jeep is located in Chesterfield County, Virginia, between Richmond and Petersburg. That's about 4/5 hours from Dover. Just called them.

Boyd's Welding in Camden (Rising Sun actually) has that type of metal, I believe. They recently cut and welded a front bumper from box (2x4) metal and I thought it was done well at a good price. Their stuff is inside, not exposed to the rain.

Great job everyone! I'm not sure which was more fun -- the actual parade or hanging out with DEJA friends and decorating our rigs. Jodie, great job organizing it!! As I passed the reviewing stand on Loockerman St, it was nice to hear the announcer give DEJA a nice plug and have the crowd give us a big round of applause.

Now if I can just get all this Scotch tape off my rig!

C'est magnifique! Tres bon! Hats off to the videographer and editor, too.

Keith_C, yes thanks I think I've got this picture posting thing down. As for the welded rings, you must remember I'm mostly a poser, not a crawler. I'll try not to put myself in a position where I have to test the strength on those welds!! Jim

Jerry, I don't want to prolong this forum thread longer than necessary, but you made me think of something....what about air shocks? I never read any forum posts about using air shocks, yet they are adjustable. I've only had one experience with them -- many moons ago when I thought it would be cool to raise the rear end of my 68 Cougar. Why won't air shocks work on a lifted Wrangler? Jim

Thanks, all. This is good stuff.

OK, it's time for a little sidebar topic: I don't know what "BB" means. (I understand that BL means body lift.)

Also, I'm running 33 x 10.50 tires.

When I first started using the DEJA forum a couple of months ago, someone said that my lift was an economy lift. I've never known any other lift, but I believe it. Going over small bumps on a regular paved street is jarring. I guess the upshot of all this is that I need to replace the cheapo 2" suspension lift (totally?) with a higher quality 3" suspension lift, and then maybe add in a 1" BL for good measure. Seems like that's a common plan. Right?

Well, I thought I had a 2" suspension lift. After reading all the various replies I ran out to the garage and tried to identify it. All I can see is this on one of the shocks: Skyjacker Hydro 7000. So, I've based my initial post on the thought that I didn't want to get rid of an existing suspension lift. I just wanted to complement it.

I see from everyone's input that I need to stay clear of a 2" body lift, and I should go with a soft compound product if possible to absorb shock. That about it?

My 6 cylinder auto 98 TJ currently has a 2" suspension lift. A recent picture is below. I think I'd like to add a 2" body lift, but I need a little schooling on the subject. I'm not a rock crawler at heart, but my guess is that a 2" body lift will give me a little extra clearance (piece of mind) in case I want to do some trail rides with the club. But I know it can't be as simple as slapping on some coil spacers. What key parts are affected by a body lift? Steering? Tranny? Hope this isn't an old stale subject for you guys, but I leafed through the forum and didn't see any posts on this subject.

<img src="http://www.delawareja.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=8958&g2_GALLERYSID=14dd62ef685024e3c01f4f71506fa4bb" alt="Jeep front side view1" />

My "plum" TJ.

Pilot and copilot checking out the new front bumper.

My spiffy wooden rear deck gives me two tiers of storage.

Ok folks, here... (drum roll please)...is a picture of my Wrangler inserted into a forum post. I feel like I've finally escaped from the Matrix! Posting a picture has made me giddy....YJRosco, thanks!