I've always wondered....

[Dirk Funk]

What is the purpose of those steel cables that go from the top of your front bumper to your roofrack that I see on jeeps and things? I'm sure alot of people do it cause it looks cool, but there has to actually be a purpose, right?

[Lou]

For the longest time, i thought they were ...like.. safety wires just in case roof rack mounts failed.

But just recently, I heard them referred to as 'brush wires'. Kinda like brush guards?

[Ivan]

They are meant to deflect tree branches away from your windshield while trapesing through the forest. I've been wary of them for fear of the branch being a weee bit too solid, and thereby ripping your roof rack off.....

I think Beezil had some for a while, but he mostly used the wires to hang his undies on, to dry.... :D

[xjblue]

interesting, I havn't heard of or :eyes: anyone who has done that.

[GSequoia]

I recently saw it on a Mitsubishi, I was wondering if it was for laundry or what...looked kinda silly! (then again, it was a Mitsu, so I figured it was just to keep the front of the car lifted :))

[Hunter-Lynchburg,Va]

i think it comes down to how much you care about your paint. around here we have a lot of trees, i see a few guys who use them and they say they hellp some. when i first saw them i kinda thought it was a land rover thing and i wouldnt understand.

Hunter

[Beezil]

I think Beezil had some for a while, but he mostly used the wires to hang his undies on, to dry

LOL....

nope, that wasn't me, I don't have a problem with branches or scratches, IMHO its "bring it awn!"

I do know that the ridiculos mod was done by XXXXXXXXX.....what a poseur!

[XJ_MAC]

I made a set and hooked them to my bull bar and the front of my safari rack. The flex of the XJ body caused them to almost pull the roof rack off. Actually popped the end caps off the crgo rails.

[bgcntry72]

This is a trick often seen on Rovers. They use cables to deflect branches and things up and over the vehicle. The unibody flex of an XJ however, renders these things useless unless you travel a heavily wooded, flat, paved, road through your favorite densly wooded area.
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[Safari Ary]

Originally posted by bgcntry72
The unibody flex of an XJ however, renders these things useless unless you travel a heavily wooded, flat, paved, road through your favorite densly wooded area.
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Unless you incorporate heavy duty springs that keep the line taught, but still allow it to extend when absolutely necessary. Where I wheel I could use these things(lots of small brush and tree limbs that extend over the trail) to prevent my "pinstriped" paint job from becoming "keyed" ;) And for those that don't care, more power to you, but mine's an '01 and I'd like to keep it looking somewhat close to a vehicle that's only 2 years old(ok, who am I fooling??:D ) Seriously though, I'm probably going to incorporate them into my rack when I build it, because I will actually use them, unlike some people I know..... Peace

Ary

[bgcntry72]

All well and good, but make sure you anchor those buggers down. A flying broken length of twisted strand cable can really ruin your day should you or anything you place value in cross its path.
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