backdoc94

I looked at making my own but the strut system I purchased for about $60 was well engineered so I went that way. You could probably do it for half that much but what is your time worth? It works well but you have to be careful of the door opening too fast. My door now opens past 90 degrees thanks to bending the hinge stops a little bit. I added a piece of rope to keep the door from over extending.

aznme1

I definitely don't mind putting in the time or effort toward the Jeep. A successful mod is always very rewarding. I just can't really afford to mess up a mod and start over again. I also live in an apartment complex who won't allow people to work on their cars or even wash their cars in the parking lot. They say it makes the complex look cheap. Pfffft. LAME! So I gotta stick to small and more discreet mods.

I've seen the one from JeepSwag and I swear I could get those parts individually for less than $70. I guess what I'm exactly interested in is a writeup from anyone who has done the JeepSwag setup and then I could just find those parts and learn the ins and outs from someone who's already done the install.

Oh well. Slowly but surely, and cheaply until I can do otherwise.

TurkeyFreer

I really like the Woods kit, but it seems pricey...Have all of his prices gone up? I need to get the EVAP kit and was going to get the tailgate shock too, is it really worth $89.00?

LemonTwist

I second the comment on Woods tailgate shock. His has the most sturdy mounting to the tailgate of all, and the shock sits perfectly level. The install is very clean and works great. Best part is that he has thought through everything, so no mistakes, wasted parts, or trying to attach to thin metal in the tailgate.

Sunburst-Kid

I was in the same boat... needed something to hold the tailgate open but I didn't want to go the way of the tailgate-shock for two reasons. 1. I wanted something less intrusive to the tailgate. 2. I don't always want my tailgate to open fully, like when I've parked too close to something and just need to get into the back to grab something.

So I came up with this simple and cheap mod:
I took an 18oz Estwing Rubber Mallet, PN# DH-18N ($16 @ HomeDepot) and cut the rubber down to size with a hacksaw. First I cut off an entire portion for the overall length and then I cut out a piece from the side, to make an angle in the mallet similar to the angle on the tailgate. Then I cut off most of the wood handle. It fits great and I store it by wedging it between the hardtop of the roll-tube. This mod only took about 15 minutes and is a great cardio workout (read: cutting the rubber mallet with a hacksaw)