Rear tailgate window hand crank kit

[tjmackey1]

Has anyone tried installing a rear tailgate window hand crank kit?
How did it go?
Does it work well?
Will it last?

Thanks for letting me know.

[freeincolorado]

Lots of people swap manual tailgate guts into their power tailgate. I don't know if there is a kit, however.

[Ghinmi]

Short answers:

Yes
Ok
No
NO

I was super careful installing mine & making sure it was aligned correctly. The crank was pretty notchy and just didn't seem to work that well. Sure enough, after a few cranks up and down the gears showed visible wear and slop. I thought it was just a bad unit & tried a second one. Same junk so I just rolled it up and I haven't used the rear window since. I'm going to find an electric one to put in this summer so I can actually use the tailgate. Moral of the story, be happy with your electric window.

[tjmackey1]

Yeah there is a kit, they sell one at TeamGrandWagoneer.

http://www.teamgrandwagoneer.com/parts/Detailed/2703.html

[BamaDrew]

Last time I checked BJ's Offroad has the tailgate handle part. Do you have manual tailgate already? If so, basically all you have to do is take the screws out that are on the outside of the vehicle under the cover on the handle. The lock cylinder and handle are all together as one piece when they are screwed together. I can't remember if there is anything on the other side behind the access panel...having a senior moment right now and I just took my manual tailgate assembly out a few weeks ago to prep for paint. I don't believe there is. It should slide off then.

If you are looking for a manual tailgate regulator and want OEM be sure that you don't wind up like me and get one that has a tooth worn down and binds up. There is an aftermarket regulator/handle kit that Team GrandWagonner sells...manufactured by Crown. Lots of people say that they aren't any good because the handles strip out but I haven't had an experience with one to say for myself. I'm probably going to give one a try. I didn't pay much less for an old OEM one.

As to if I recommend manual, for me I prefer it because my electric regulator was garbage when I got this Jeep and I dislike wiring/electrical nightmares more than anything...present and future. If you have a working electrical regulator with no issues stick with it as long as you can and plan to swap to manual when it croaks if you want to go that route. Just my two cents worth...

Good luck!

[Ghinmi]

If you can find an original you're all good. The new ones are junk, junk, junk.

[TPICherokee]

Yeah there is a kit, they sell one at TeamGrandWagoneer.

http://www.teamgrandwagoneer.com/par...iled/2703.html

DON'T BUY THIS KIT! IT IS CRAP, WE USED TO SELL THEM!! The manufacturer refused to fix the inherent problems so we quit selling them.

[billyrb]

they were based off the earlier model rigs, and the splined shaft won't extend out far enough. You'll use it a handful of times and the crank will strip, as will the splined shaft.

[BamaDrew]

they were based off the earlier model rigs, and the splined shaft won't extend out far enough. You'll use it a handful of times and the crank will strip, as will the splined shaft.

Wow that's pretty junky. You know, comparing the gears in the electric regulator and the manual regulator they appear to be the same...I wonder if you could change out the gear with the worn down tooth with a good one off from the electric regulator....might warrant some further investigation....

[billyrb]

I'm talking about the splined shaft that protrudes through the gate, and not the regulator gears

[tjmackey1]

Darned if I do, darned if I don't... times like this when GW owners start to drink more, if possible.

So I can't find a new switch to replace to one that is shot in the tailgate and the hand crank kits are junk. Any thoughts?

[BamaDrew]

I'm talking about the splined shaft that protrudes through the gate, and not the regulator gears

I know...I was talking about for my situation...since I have an old electrical regulator with decent gears and a manual regulator with a not so great gear then I could perhaps take a gear off the electric regulator and put on the manual instead of getting a Crown piece. I knew people talked about the handle stripping out on those but never knew about the spline shaft and that the part was modeled after early waggy setups.

[BamaDrew]

Darned if I do, darned if I don't... times like this when GW owners start to drink more, if possible.

So I can't find a new switch to replace to one that is shot in the tailgate and the hand crank kits are junk. Any thoughts?

Hand crank kits aren't junk...it's just finding a good one! You might look up Millerluck here on the forum...he was on a mission to get a few manual regulator kits to change out the electric regulators on all his rigs...he's a pretty big fan I think as am I....I've just got to make mine work by trying to change out some of the gears to take care of that worn down tooth.

Ryan provided us with good info on the spline shaft not being long enough on the aftermarket part so if I were you and was wanting to change out to manual I'd post for one in the Wanted forum. You just need to make sure that you have one that has no teeth worn down and doesn't bind up.

I am sure someone else will chime in on the electric switches.

[caionneach]

The following link describes how this fellow scavanged a Blazer tailgate for the manual regulator & handle from a Blazer to fit into his Suburban. Looks like the Chevy boys are having similar problems.

http://coloradok5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=255667

So I wonder if the Blazer handles will fit our units with manual tailgate windows.

I just installed the manual kit from Z&M Jeeps, and for awhile, it worked ok. But the handle came off (the tailgate) in my hand yesterday: one of the washers behind the brass bushing on the handle fell off leaving the brass bushing on the regulator spline. I was able to ease the brass bushing off the regulator spline and put it back on the handle, but the washer is gone. Hopefully it is in the tailgate, and I can fish it out later then reassemble the handle kit.

[serehill]

Fix your electric one.

You can rebuild the entire electrical system. check the homegrown vendors.