Should I install a woodgrain kit? Updated!!!!!

[Mex in the city]

I just got the waggy from the paint shop. My original intention was to install a woodgrain kit and emblems from BJ's, but I kind of like the way it looks without the woodgrain, and I'm seriously considering to install just the emblems. I think it would look great. Not to mention that the woodgrain kit isn't exactly cheap.

What do you guys think?

http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/2268/2781/30668890054_medium.jpg http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/2268/2781/30668890053_medium.jpg

[jeeper54]

It's a personal taste kind of thing, but it does look great as is!:thumbsup:

[CJ the noisemaker]

It's a personal taste kind of thing, but it does look great as is!:thumbsup:X2, I would go with the woodgrain.

[dave townend]

hi looks cool mate but i do think it would look better with wood

[fulsizjeep]

no splinters! :D
It looks great just like that.

[RUparrothead]

Looks great as is, I'd leave it.:)

[HD_JEEP]

I personally like the wood grain to me it makes it stand out more. Without the wood grain to me it looks like a commercial or government truck. :D

I do plan on replacing mine when I get to that point of my build. :eek:

Great looking rig by the way.

[710 Burner]

Sleep on it.
Did you get the wheels from the other Waggie? The color works with your paint.

[Mex in the city]

Sleep on it.
Did you get the wheels from the other Waggie? The color works with your paint.

Those are the waggy's original wheels. The paint color is original as well. I wanted to give it a stock look. It is far from being stock though.

[marshotel]

I like the clean look. I love the straigh lines which are accentuated by not having the wood grain. I think it would look great with badging and perhaps a stripe, like the older cherokee design. Maybe some pinstriping? Looking great either way.

[janie]

Beautiful rig. No wood.

[Tonka J200]

:whistle:

http://i232.photobucket.com/albums/ee184/TonkaJ200/MexJeep2.jpg

[FSJ Guy]

Frank's got the best idea. Even if he has ulterior motives. LOL!

[Seemer]

Looks v. nice. Live with it for a month and then decide..

BTW - what size tires? Any lift?

[G_$]

I think what you have is beautiful. Turbine wheels and the Muscle grill combo - I love it and I am plannign the same combo.

I am a die hard "pro wood" guy. But that really does look beautiful without it.

[fireman91186]

I say go with the wood just to make it stand out. But that striping really looks good on there.

[fulsizjeep]

Burn the wood and go with the Frank stripe! :thumbsup:

[Songman]

I like the wood, but I gotta say I am really digging that stripe. Now if they would just make it for you that says Wagoneer instead of Cherokee.

[freeincolorado]

Looks good. I would leave the wood off.

[joe]

I like it w/o the packing crate.

[3rdelement]

here is a quick photoshop i did with wood....it actually looks better than i thought

http://i385.photobucket.com/albums/oo292/thirdelementdesigngroup/wood.jpg

[Mudwolf]

Nice!!!!!! :thumbsup:




[/quote]

[Songman]

Pretty good Photoshopping. It does look better than I thought. Guess you have a winner either way you go.

[Brizio]

Looks very nice without... A Cherokee trim also looks good on it! :)

[Long&Low]

IMO, the late models NEED the wood grain, the earlier ones can go without.

[grandwag89]

I'm partial to the grain myself but it's just as respectable without it.

[Songman]

I'll probably put it back on my white one when the time comes. But I am having a local vinyl printing place do it for me since you can't find the real stuff... and if you could it would be too expensive to buy.

[stonehengeheels]

Got mine from "The Stripe Man", stripeman.com.

[jaw knee]

No *wood! they look so much better without those fantastic lines being broken up!
*AMC seemed to suffer from sticker syndrome. Instead of any body changes they just came up with more.. sticker ideas.. umm grand wagoneer? ya Steve lets put on some wood stickers,, Cherokee Cheif? or S depends on the sticker..
10-4 anyone? need a sticker.. :)

[Wagonforever]

Personally when I do mine I plan on loosing the wood simply from a cost and duribility stanpoint. I plan on going all black with some silver pinstips where the 60's/70's chrome trim would have been. Any one feel like photo shopping that?:D

BTW How much did your paint job run you?

[The Colonel]

Looks great without but that color really goes good with the wood!

[PCDAD]

IMHO I like the Chero stripe, but think it looks good with the wood as well.

[Mex in the city]

BTW How much did your paint job run you?

It set me back 8,000 pesos, about 640 US dollars at the current exchange rate. Now, the paint shop owner is a friend of mine, and he has painted other cars for me in the past. Actually, he's currently painting another one of my waggies (the one in my avatar). A job like this would normally cost 10,000 to 12,000 pesos. Still, less than 1,000 US dollars.

[Wagonforever]

It set me back 8,000 pesos, about 640 US dollars at the current exchange rate. Now, the paint shop owner is a friend of mine, and he has painted other cars for me in the past. Actually, he's currently painting another one of my waggies (the one in my avatar). A job like this would normally cost 10,000 to 12,000 pesos. Still, less than 1,000 US dollars.

:eek: Looks like I need to make a run for the boarder!:eek: Bet you got your R12 cahrged up while you where there too.:D

[cajunKen]

I like the wood grain myself, makes our rigs stand out a little more.....

[Mudwolf]

Got mine from "The Stripe Man", stripeman.com.

That's a great price!

[marshotel]

:whistle:

NOW THATS WHAT IM TALKING ABOUT!

[WagoneerinWi]

Sorry to derail this post, but where would one by this stripe?

[billyrb]

Sorry to derail this post, but where would one by this stripe?

I know................. ;)

[jay web]

what about the narrow 79ish woodgrain and trim? somebody photoshop that.

[3rdelement]

post a pic of it, ill see what i can do

[CutterN55]

I think it looks real nice. I have wood and I like it, but I also like it with-out. The thing I do like about the wood is it keeps the trail scratches/door dings down or waayy less noticable.

I am contemplating de-wooding mine, and when I weld in W/T flares, I'm thinking about painting dark green and going with a white stripe in the indent down the side.

[indianafsj]

I would leave the wood off, at least then you could use an automatic car wash, if my paneling sees any kind of water pressure it's bye bye wood. Just a thought.

[crispyboy]

I'm a woodgrain fan myself by I must say the Cherokee stripe (frank's idea) really rocks.
What about a single wood grain strip from a late 70's Wagoneer?
Can somebody photoshop one of these on?

http://www.ifsja.org/forums/vb/showthread.php?t=48582

[eurowag]

mighty fine looking wagoneer but i would opt for the classic woody look as well! will the old mounting holes start showing in a few years? all the best Eurowag:o

[3rdelement]

the best i could do with the pics i could find.
http://i385.photobucket.com/albums/oo292/thirdelementdesigngroup/wd2.jpg

[reece146]

Naked!

[goldhammer]

Prefer no wood on that one, too clean the way it is. But I really do like the idea of Frank's stripe with "Wagoneer" replacing the "Cherokee" lettering. Should not be that big of a change to add it to the mix. -HINT- might sell a few of those....:rolleyes:

Besides., look at the gate in the background......would hate to see that happen with that beauty down the road.

[GWDriver]

I like both. Yeah, the Wagoneer logo would be nice, but the basic stripe design is fine. OTOH, I'm a fan of the original woodgrain............. if you can find it, AND the original wide trim around the woodgrain. Again, if you can find it.

I do like the paint color though. That's real nice.

[jMedia]

the best i could do with the pics i could find.
http://i385.photobucket.com/albums/oo292/thirdelementdesigngroup/wd2.jpg

oooh I like, would the older chrome trim fit on the newer body styles??

[Mex in the city]

OK, I decided to go ahead with the woodgrain kit install. It wasn't cheap, and it wasn't as easy to install as I expected, but I think it was all worth it. The old waggy is now a true head turner.

Here are some pics. Enjoy.

http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/2268/2781/30668890059_medium.jpg http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/2268/2781/30668890060_medium.jpg

http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/2268/2781/30668890063_medium.jpg http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/3/2268/2781/30668890062_medium.jpg

[fulsizjeep]

I resist liking the wood crate look until I see how nice new wood appears. Yours looks great! :thumbsup:

[FSJ Guy]

Who's woodgrain did you use?

The trim looks really nice, actually, even if it's not OEM.

[Mex in the city]

Who's woodgrain did you use?

The trim looks really nice, actually, even if it's not OEM.

BJ's kit.

[jasonthomasfrance]

That looks fantastic! I definitely like the looks of your jeep with that wood grain. Awesome install job. Wow...

Makes me want to get my rust cut out, panels fixed up, painted up and new wood grain!

Keep telling myself: must wait for new engine to be installed. Must wait...

Very nice looking Wag!

[GWDriver]

Looks great, but what I'd really like to see available at a decent retail price is the wood trim in the original width. I've got all of mine with the exception of one piece. The PO came back from a 'back 40 (1000)' trip on his ranch and it was missing.

Great work though. Congratulations.

[710 Burner]

Sharp! Your wood has a nice pattern to it.

[cajunKen]

Saaaaaa-weeeet!

That looks great-nice job on the install!

[FSJ Guy]

BJ's kit.

The trim looks better in your photo than theirs.

I'm not sure about the woodgrain, however. It seems to repeat itself rather quickly.

[Mex in the city]

The trim looks better in your photo than theirs.



Thank you all.

[medinajim2000]

That looks GREAT! Wagoneers are supposed to have wood.

[Creepy 1]

That turned out great!
I've often wondered how a two door would look like that.
Anyone with photo shop skills?

[eromasik]

Great looking job. I meant to ask before, but what paint color is that, and what's it code?

[Mex in the city]

Great looking job. I meant to ask before, but what paint color is that, and what's it code?

That's the stock beige / tan color. Unfortunately, I don't know the exact color name or code. I just took it to the paint shop and told them to paint it in original color. The waggy had the original paint, but it was all faded. So, they took the door panels off and matched the new paint color to that area.

I hope this helps.

[Aceventura]

I like it w/o the packing crate.


+1

[BigOlWoody]

does anyone have any pics of the woodgrain on their waggy from stripeman.com? I would love to see how it looks

[lars667]

You did a great job installing that kit, it's very nice! What did you do to align all the trim properly without messing things up? I just received a kit from BJ's myself, but I'm afraid of putting the trim on in a... not very nice way. Is there a method minimizing risk of failure? ;-) I guess masking tape is a given.

[Mex in the city]

Well, this was my first kit install, and I did it all by my self. It took me about 10 days because I worked on it whenever I had 2 or 3 hours available, and installed 1 or 2 panels at a time. And every time I had to wear my work clothes, pull out tools, installation manual, kit itself, etc.

It would have been easier to have a helper, but since I didn't really scheduled my installation sesions, this was not possible. So, here are my tips:

1. Try to do install it all in one or two shots.

2. Have someone available to help you.

3. Use masking tape as indicated in the instructions. COMPARE LH to RH TAPE HEIGHT AND POSITION!!!!. I didn't do this since is not in the manual. I ended up with a 0.5 inch difference LH to RH height. You won't notice it because it is covered by the trim, but I had to spend a lot of time making sure that the trim looked OK.

4. I used A LOT of windex (two full bottles) when installing the vinyl. This is because I made a lot of mistakes and the windex dries off, so you need to remove the vinyl and re appply windex and then re install.

5. Before installing the woodtrim, make surre you have some crazy glue and a good gardener pruner like this:

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Corona-3-4-inch-Bypass-Pruner/1551135

I had to cut ALL the segments before installation. Cut them to the right length AND ANGLE and see how they fit before removing the backing tape.

6. You really need a heat gun. Specially on the trim. Make sure it's in low heat mode, otherwise, you will burn the trim. Ask me how I know.

[lars667]

Thanks for your nice writeup, I'm sure others will find that useful too. So your wood trim kit wasn't pre cut? You had to cut them yourself, piece by piece? :) Strange, my kit came pre cut. And you had to apply extra glue for the trim?

Again, nice ride :)

[Mex in the city]

It all came precut, vinyl and trim. The trim however, came precut at least 0.5 inch longer, every piece. So I had to cut them to the right length AND angle. Watch the angles carefully, since not all of them are 45°.

Don't forget to post pics of your rig after installation.

[FSJ Guy]

What did you need the heat gun for? :confused:

[COLOFIREMAN]

Something about a nice clean mild lifted GW with wood that makes me smile in the morning.:thumbsup:

[lars667]

What did you need the heat gun for? :confused:

I fear it's for the wheel arches. I didn't think of this before, but looking at the kit, it's evident that the trim needs to be "molded" to fit the arches, as the trim bits are all straight as arrows that way... This will be a daunting task...

Mex: OK, I checked the kit now, and you're right: the pieces are too long. Good thing, since some of them also were cut with reverse angle in one end, making it neccessary to cut the other way. Hopefully they're all long enough. And of course, some of the angles are a bit off, since the shapes aren't rectangular. I didn't think of this before, but again I thought everything was plug 'n' play...

[FSJ Guy]

YIKES!!

So this "pre-cut" kit need to be RE-CUT and the trim needs to be bent around the wheel wells???? :eek:

[Mex in the city]

I fear it's for the wheel arches. I didn't think of this before, but looking at the kit, it's evident that the trim needs to be "molded" to fit the arches, as the trim bits are all straight as arrows that way... This will be a daunting task...

Mex: OK, I checked the kit now, and you're right: the pieces are too long. Good thing, since some of them also were cut with reverse angle in one end, making it neccessary to cut the other way. Hopefully they're all long enough. And of course, some of the angles are a bit off, since the shapes aren't rectangular. I didn't think of this before, but again I thought everything was plug 'n' play...

Right, you need to bend the trim around the fenders. Also, all the trim pieces that go horizontal are glued to an almost flat surface, but the ones that go horizontal have a lot of bents to conform to the body lines. If you don't heat the trim before bending it, it will not seat completely on the surface, specially in the angles. Again, ask me how I know ;)

[JMRedwine]

Got mine from "The Stripe Man", stripeman.com.

Did you cut it yourself?

[3rdelement]

can you please post pics that are larger? it looks great though!

and try and get this angle if you can. ;) i wanna see what it would look like on mine.
http://i385.photobucket.com/albums/oo292/thirdelementdesigngroup/wood.jpg

[Saltyfeather]

Got mine from "The Stripe Man", stripeman.com.

How did the Stripeman stuff come out ? Need more data !!:D

Pics would be nice !!

[Tripwire]

I too am distressed by the "heat gun method" _ for that price i was assuming they were pre bent...

I am saving up right now to buy the complete kit....Perhaps I should bail on my idea and just reuse my woodgrain:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

Can someone else whos done it chip in along with the most helpful tips already submitted? more close up photos would be a plus.

Im gonna plop down a couple grand on a paint job and dont want crappy wood on the outside:rolleyes:

I think the guys at BJ's did a rig....wonder if it was a DIY project or pro done

TRIP:drivin: