FSJ convertible--hey, Scotty!

[bignblue]

I'm STILL kicking around the idea of convertiblizing (sp?) my Chero sometime early next year. I'm ripping out the old, stained/ripped/funky carpet now and considering spraying Rhinoliner or the like in its place. How much work is this? How much MONEY is this?

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'78 Chero WT
401/4bbl/TH400/BWQT
44s F&R
"Jeep: the toughest 4-letter word on wheels"

[ClarkGriswald]

Rhinoliner or any of the professionally done coatings is pretty expensive.. better to do a good prep job yourself and use Durabak, or Herculiner (herc is sold at K-mart) I have samples of both and they are pretty much the same stuff as far as I can tell. But durabak has many more colors and also will mix custom colors for a pretty penny.. if you dont mind black, go to K-mart and buy Herculiner. Supposedly a gallon ($100) does a normal 6 foot truck bed.. an extra quart is needed for an 8 foot bed.. you can put this stuff on yourself with the brush\rollers that come with the kit, or spray it with a one inch tip.

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88 Grand Wagoneer
D44's front\rear
Warn 20990 Lockouts
AMC 360
TF 727
NP 229 (Funky)
Custom Hacking Via S.P.A. (Standard Polish Archetecture)

[porkchop]

I used the Herculiner on another of my 4X4's and it was easy to use (just don't get it on your clothes). You can buy this stuff at K-Mart like Clark said, and now they sell it at other places like Napa and a few other parts stores. Also there is more than black available now, red, gray and white. I bought mine for $79. I just had to add in my $.02 worth.

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'67/'79 Wagoneer mix
"Old Timer"
Body of a 33 year old
Heart and legs of a 21 year old.
Spirit of a 1 year old.
360,TH400,QT,D44's F&R
SOA 32X11.50's

"I regret that I have but only one paycheck to give to my Jeep."

[scotty]

a friend of mine did his tj that way-no carpet,rhino lined the whole tub.actually, i think he did use the herculiner. at any rate,it turned out real nice.

one of the first thinks i did was rip out carpet.i got no use for it in mine-all it does is hold mud/water/general funk so that it rusts,stinks,looks bad and is in general unpleasant to be in. i just have plain simple painted floors. after i get her good and muddy,i just take all my stuf out of it,and spary the mud from the back forward and out the drian holes in the front floor boards.

i had origianlly cut my roof off in such a way that i though it would be fairly easy to reattact it in the winter,but i had to cutit up and haul it off due to lack of somewhere to store it. i really love the convertableness of it,open air wheeling with no doors is awsome-why should we let the cjs have all the fun?

i can see the affects of carpet in my most recent aquisition: a 77 camaro body on a 77 blazer frame. it had carpet in it,and that was pretty much the only thing keeping your feet from dngling out hte bottom.it has been wheeled pretty extensivley by everyone thats owned it,and you can tell tht it was rode hard and put away wet(carpet) more than once.



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scott
85 grand wagoneer
258 with motorcraft 2bbl/904/twin stick dana 300/dana 44/welded amc 20
38x15.5 gumbo mudders
snorkel/dual batteries/onboard air/"custom" convertable
3 inch body lift/mostly stock suspension/"modified" fender openings
custom front/rear bumpers and brushgaurd

possible small block chevy "test" swap in near future

[bignblue]

Thanks for the replies, fellas. The reason I'm kicking this around is that I want to weld in two roll bars that will also act as supports for the fabric top I'm gonna make (yeaahhh, right!) and I LIKE having carpet. I'd really like to find the stuff that Nissan uses--it's a really short thick pile with tiny loops, and it holds up forever. Plus, if I use velcro tabs at strategic locations I can lay the carpet over the liner...when it gets dirty, I can pull it up and clean it at the laundromat. Am I dreaming here?

Like I said, this project is still very much in the planning stages...any and all ideas are welcome. I've got plans for the tailgate and interior panels too: can you say "lockable storage space?"

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'78 Chero WT
401/4bbl/TH400/BWQT
44s F&R
"Jeep: the toughest 4-letter word on wheels"

[Baker]

Go to Lowe's or Home Depot, I'm sure they have astroturf to match your seats.

[scotty]

yeah-that would be cool-some tough indoor/outdoor type of carpet that is easily removeable.just take it out and powerwash it at the car wash. or even just take it out before you go 'wheelin. i like the storage idea- i carry spare radiator hoses,some chain,and a couple of other things in my tailgate. i carry an obsurd amount of spare stuff and tools,so i need every inch of available space. especially since i have recently moved the gas tank to the bed...

i,too, am planning on making a new soft top before winter(yeah right).hopefully ill get it done before its too cold!




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scott
85 grand wagoneer
258 with motorcraft 2bbl/904/twin stick dana 300/dana 44/welded amc 20
38x15.5 gumbo mudders
snorkel/dual batteries/onboard air/"custom" convertable
3 inch body lift/mostly stock suspension/"modified" fender openings
custom front/rear bumpers and brushgaurd

possible small block chevy "test" swap in near future

[bignblue]

I figure I can gut the tailgate (if I go with a plastic rear window), remove the speakers from the trim panels (they'll be relocated to the rollbars) and replace all those trim panels with thin sheet-metal. If I spray the ?-liner on the inside of the now-exposed body panels (to cut down on noise and aid in waterproofing)and fab new *hinged* doors with cylinder locks I'll just about quintuple my original "out-of-sight" storage (read under the seats and in the glovebox). Also, I have empty space under the rear cargo area--what went here? Gas Tank? Spare tire? Anyway, if it's dead space I can use it a la the Taurus station wagon--one more storage bin! When I get done with this thing it'll be a rolling Snap-on tool drawer!

On the topic of the removable hardtop, how hard was that to cut? I'd imagine you would have to line both cut edges with rubber stripping or something to act as a weathertight seal if you put the hardtop back on. How did you plan on re-securing the top? How much did that sucker weigh?

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'78 Chero WT
401/4bbl/TH400/BWQT
44s F&R
"Jeep: the toughest 4-letter word on wheels"

[scotty]

because of the nature of my beast,i wasnt to concerned about making a wethertight seal,and i reasoned that i could simply put some sheetmetal over the cuts. i cut from the bottom of the rear window straight ove on the rearmost pillar,and yes,the tailgate sticks up higher than where i cut. i cut the middle pillar straight across as well. the pillar behind the front door is still there. i removed the front most brace and cut the roof from the pillar up to the windshield,then reattached the brace up further, by the front door pillar. whats left is basically a roof from the extreem rear,to the extreem front,with 4 pillars still attached to it. and a wagoneer that now somewhat resembles a pickup with no roof overhead. it is completely open,yet still has the window frames on the doors(when the doors are on). i felt that the window frames would look funny if i left them on and cut the front door pillar off. it also maybe offers alittle protection in the likely event of a rollover. probably not much,but alittle. i plan on turning my roll bar into a full cage ass soon as i can.

it was a b**** getting it off by my self,and i needed someone to help me carry it around back. it wasnt horribly heavy,2 people carried it fairly easily,but golly,it sure wasnt light!




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scott
85 grand wagoneer
258 with motorcraft 2bbl/904/twin stick dana 300/dana 44/welded amc 20
38x15.5 gumbo mudders
snorkel/dual batteries/onboard air/"custom" convertable
3 inch body lift/mostly stock suspension/"modified" fender openings
custom front/rear bumpers and brushgaurd

possible small block chevy "test" swap in near future