xjfan2979

i want to choptop the back half of my jeep behind the rear doors,but im concerned about the unibody holding its shape without caging it.this thing is my dd and my play toy,so if i have to i will cage it,but would i have to?

builtnotbought89'

do you have to no, should you YES! or at very least get some frame stiffeners, & solid front & rear bumpers! you gotta stiffen that thing up 1 way or another or its gonna tweak the body bad over time...

wheeler

builtnotbought is correct, frame stiffeners are your best bet. it'll be the cheapest, lightest and easiest way. get a metal hatch and by welding all the way aruond from the roof to the "bed" and putting in sheetmetal skins it will be strong, also a single hood tied into the frame and welded to the roof right before the hatch goes on would strengthen it alot!

xjfan2979

thats what ive thought that i would cage it my plan was to replace the front and rear bumpers and cage it and tie it into both bumpers,maybe an exo.

builtnotbought89'

I'd really stress the bumpers just as much as the frame stiffeners, cause the factory bumpers are as beefy as a soda can! lol the idea is to keep it square...

xjfan2979

one idea i had was to make a main hoop to sit behind the front seat,add another where the cut would be behind the rear seat,tie the two together,and then run two down tubes to the rear bumper that will have a spare tire mount,and if all else fails use square tubing around the cut area to create mounting points for gussets and a place to weld sheet metal when i cap off the open sections on the original roof

builtnotbought89'

can you weld???

projectmayhem

check out my build on project rock

xjfan2979

oh bumpers are my next purchase,and i can tie a cage into those.one thing though im looking for a front winch bumper that mounts the winch low so i dont lose airflow to the radiator,any suggestions?

xjfan2979

yeah i can weld or atleast i hope i can,i spent alot of money for welding classes...lol

builtnotbought89'

just mounted my xrc8 right in front of the grille with no cooling problems! you dont wanna mount is low or you will loose your approach angle unless you cut & mount it in where the structural cross beam is. lol talk about weakening the body!

builtnotbought89'

hope you didn't take that wrong, but there is a lot of kids that jump in thinking they can get a harbor freight 90amp welder & pull the trigger their first time & poof a cage is gonna appear...

xjfan2979

projectmayhem i like your tube work,thats what i want to do but tube the whole thing,it looks good though

xjfan2979

oh no i didnt take it the wrong way just joking around,but yes i can weld,i just cant design for spit.i got a guy that will help me tube my jeep and even bend the tube,i just wanted to make sure of what i was getting into with this chop top

builtnotbought89'

ya if you can weld a solid cage that mounts at least 6-8 different spots in the XJ it will be better off than is was before the chop! check out this dudes chop a lot of good pics https://www.cherokeeforum.com/f46/tw...hop-top-39343/