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Exo Cage design

CanMan

CanMan

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Lake Tapps, WA
Im A noob to this site, and sadly dont even have an XJ YET. But I am designing and planning out throughly exactly everything I will do. This is where the cage comes in. Let me know your thoughts, suggestions, and weather or not I am going overboard.

I will be using 1.75 X .120 DOM tube steel. as far as the bumpers front and rear, I am undecided so far, but have a few in mind. I also plan on using TnT Customs frame stiffners, and going on from there to make the sliders for the rockers. Click on link below:

Exo Cage Design

Thanks to MikeyB for letting me use the picture of his XJ, The one on the trail in the lower section of Rock Gorge in Gilbert, MN.
 
Why do you want an exo? Will you have any sort of internal cage to go with it? You're going to want to do some searching. You've got quite a bit of tube in your design that functions as nothing but extra weight. Besides that, my biggest tip at this point is that you want your tube to come together in nodes. Nodes are where 3 or more pieces of tube all meet in the same place. They're trickier to weld, but it makes for a lot stronger cage.
Billy

PS - Welcome!
 
Well, I have revised and corrected my design, removed some pieces, and made it simpler. I want an exo cause for one, it wont get in the way of people and gear on the inside, it will help strengthen the body, prevent too much of extreme body damage in a roll over. Plus they look cool(which probably isnt a reason to want one). Also they seem simpler to fabricate. The roof part may attach to like a standard drag car 4 point roll cage on the inside, only to really mount some 5 point harnesses and protect my head a little more. I have look at some cage designs on http://xjdb.com, and some are more advanced and some are more simple.
 
XJjeepLess said:
Well, I have revised and corrected my design, removed some pieces, and made it simpler. I want an exo cause for one, it wont get in the way of people and gear on the inside, it will help strengthen the body, prevent too much of extreme body damage in a roll over. Plus they look cool(which probably isnt a reason to want one). Also they seem simpler to fabricate. The roof part may attach to like a standard drag car 4 point roll cage on the inside, only to really mount some 5 point harnesses and protect my head a little more. I have look at some cage designs on http://xjdb.com, and some are more advanced and some are more simple.
Click to expand...

Good. You're correct about a lot of things, except that an exo will be easier to fabricate. If you want it to actually hold up in a roll, you need to put some serious thought into it. You have to compensate for not having any crossbars (like an X or diagonal behind the seats) unless you do tie it into a simple interior cage (which I HIGHLY recommend). Also, keep in mind that even with an exo you will probably still get a good amount of damage if you roll your rig over. Search for C-Rok... he had a nice exo and it did it's job, but he still ended up choppin' the top after a roll.
HTH,
Billy
 
JeepFreak21 said:
Good. You're correct about a lot of things, except that an exo will be easier to fabricate. If you want it to actually hold up in a roll, you need to put some serious thought into it. You have to compensate for not having any crossbars (like an X or diagonal behind the seats) unless you do tie it into a simple interior cage (which I HIGHLY recommend). Also, keep in mind that even with an exo you will probably still get a good amount of damage if you roll your rig over. Search for C-Rok... he had a nice exo and it did it's job, but he still ended up choppin' the top after a roll.
HTH,
Billy
Click to expand...

an interior cage would help with the body? you make no sense at all ....LOL

the C-rok cage is a very good basic design and Im going to be using it on an 01 Im building. It needs a few xtra pieces to make it rigid enough. an additional connection at the B pillar to the pillar needs added. so dodifying the rear door needs to be done and roof to cage diagonal support needs to be added.

Also like on C-roks rig a cage type spare tire carrier will add strength to the sides I will do a write up on the cage as I do it next week.
 
When it comes to a 4 dr i wouldnt even bother, you'll never be able to correctly stiffen the center of the body w/o having as someone said an x style crossmember inside the cab that mounts to the top of the cage and the frame. Plus if you are going to wheel an xj hard enough to warrant an exo cage and care about the doors being on, find a 2 door or another style jeep.
 
mikecooper said:
When it comes to a 4 dr i wouldnt even bother, you'll never be able to correctly stiffen the center of the body w/o having as someone said an x style crossmember inside the cab that mounts to the top of the cage and the frame. Plus if you are going to wheel an xj hard enough to warrant an exo cage and care about the doors being on, find a 2 door or another style jeep.
Click to expand...
Mike, if you tie the cage in through the roof, while mainting an X shape inside, you can pull it off on a 4 door. It's been done bro.
 
I know its been done, but you cant do it w/o going through the roof, ie cutting holes in it. Or you can wrap it around the roofline but that would require keeping the doors off. Seeing as how mine is a dd i dotn want holes in my roof or to have to permenantly remove my doors. Now if you had matching tubing inside and out it would be alot safer(not allowing to roof to be smashed in, as far, when the tubing bends) but not as rigid, catch my drift at all?
 
You could but where you would be exiting the roof, more the likely it would be too close to the pinch seam on the gutters to get that tight of a seal and even with the cage the body will probably flex enough to wallow out the gromit. Just saying I wouldnt do it on my dd. Hell my cb antenna cable that runs out my driver door and along the gutter makes my jeep fill with water when it rains and you think 2 or more rubber gromits wont leak?
 
to go through the roof all you need to do is weld a 4x4 1/4" thick plate to the end of the tubing on the inside then do the same on the outside , drill 4 holes in the corners of both plates and then 4 holes in the roof , silicone bolts and there you go, dont have to cut a big hole through the roof .
 
88rockxj said:
to go through the roof all you need to do is weld a 4x4 1/4" thick plate to the end of the tubing on the inside then do the same on the outside , drill 4 holes in the corners of both plates and then 4 holes in the roof , silicone bolts and there you go, dont have to cut a big hole through the roof .
Click to expand...

Yes but when the body flexes it will rip thoese bolts right out.
 
xjj33p3r said:
Why wouldn't it be possible to run tubing through the roof, but still keep it as a DD?
Click to expand...


That's what I did, but I don't use grommets. My tubes are welded to the sheetmetal.
 
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