Always glad to help. Looking forward to final pics.

 

Two things here:

1. Unpopular opinion, but I like the kink in the JL grill. I think it does something for the front end. The rest of the JK looks more like the JL than any previous generation and I think the kink suits the style.
2. When can I buy those door hinges?? I NEED them. DESPERATELY. I like the idea of the mounting plate on the hinges as well, maybe not so much for gas cans but that's gotta be a handy spot for something. As usual, awesome stuff!

 

I agree. Haven't posted any photos of that project recently but I have been working on the mold master and I am incorporating the forward angle into the grille.

I'll email the company and see if I can find out when the hinges will be going on sale.

If you figure out might be good to mount on them, let me know. I haven't turned over that design to the company yet, and may not, depends on why applications people see for it.

 

I heard back from the company - sounds like the HD door hinges will be released to production next week. I'll be meeting with them on Thursday and a final review of the hinges to approve them for production is on the agenda. I should have more info after the meeting.

 

The company that's selling the 2dr factory hardtop slider window kit sent me this photo that one of their customers sent them. The dog is happy to get some air!

 

Another 2 door with the slider kit installed.

 

The hardtop slider looks great on those 2-dr's! Thanks for sharing those pics. One thing I was curious about is why they're only listed as available for the 2011-2018 JKs. Did the hardtops change enough that it wouldn't work with 07-10 JKs as well?

 

Yes, there's a big difference in the size of the windows between the early and late model factory hardtops. This photo shows two side panels from my 2dr factory modular hardtop project - the one in the foreground is an 07-10 factory hardtop side panel and the one in the back is am 11-17 side panel. I've drawn lines on the photo to highlight the difference in the window sizes. The early and late model 4dr factory hardtops have the same difference - the earlier ones have smaller side windows.

The slider kit works with the later model larger windows and won't fit the early model hardtops. The company has done slider kits for the late model 4dr and the late model 2dr. The next one they'll do, if there's enough demand, is probably the early model 2dr. I don't know where they are on that decision, but if they decide to move forward on either the early model 2dr or early model 4dr I can work with the window and hardware suppliers to get them into production fairly quickly.



BTW the early and late model hardtops have different rear liftgate widths as well - the liftgate on the early model is the same width as the tailgate and the liftgate on the later models is wider.

 

I finally had a few minutes to put together a prototype for the Ammo Can Air project.

Background: I've wanted to do something with on board air for a while, so in November at the SEMA Show I talked to a compressor manufacturer about the project and they provided me with a sample compressor and air tank. I've got several ideas for permanent mounting of the compressor in the Jeep, but first I wanted to do a portable solution, partly to get some experience with the compressor to help me with the design of the other mounts and wiring.

For this first prototype I've mounted the compressor on a base that fits inside a Fat50 ammo can. There's enough room in the can for the jumper cables to connect the compressor to the Jeep's battery and a 25' coiled air line.





I haven't done a cover to protect the wiring yet but that's part of the plan.

It's wired with a pressure cutoff switch - the switch is closed up to 115 psi, then it opens and shuts the compressor off. When the pressure drops below 90 psi, the switch closes and the compressor starts up again. When it's first connected to the battery it'll run a few seconds until pressure is built up in the hose and then it will shut down until air is used. In this video it's already been powered up and pressurized, so the compressor isn't running as the video starts. As I put air into the tire the compressor starts up:


For an initial prototype I'm pleased with it, but I believe the compressor performance is being limited by the jumper cables. I bought an ultra-cheap set at a surplus outlet just to have something to get started with and when I cut the ends off and stripped the insulation I was shocked to find what's probably 16-gauge copper wire at the core. No way you'd ever pass enough current through that to jump a car, and even passing the 20+ amps that the compressor requires will cause significant power loss, so next I'll be doing some voltage and current measurements and replacing the cables with something appropriately sized to the compressor's needs.

It works as it is though and shows a lot of promise, now on to the finer details.

 

Along with the compressor that the company at SEMA provided me for testing, they provided a 2-gallon air tank. I've set up the tank so it can be connected to the ammo can compressor with a short air hose so I can test performance with and without a tank. Once I swap the joke jumper cables for some wire that can carry the necessary current I'll do more testing and then decide about on-board mount designs for the compressor and maybe the tank.



I've got some heavier cable on the way so testing will resume as soon as I replace the joke jumper cables.