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Simple XJ Trail/ Half Doors

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YoungAndJeepin

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Nor Cal
I've picked up a full set of doors from a fellow NAXJA member knucklehead 61, who I'm sure is well known on these forums and has an AMAZING big red rig.
I ventured to his home with my dad and he allowed us a small tour of his rigs as well as his shops. Anyways, back to the doors, I plan to cut a good piece out starting from the bottom of the window frame. I will keep the upper frame, as I plan to make some button-on skins made of the type of material soft top door windows are made of. Also, the gap which I will create between the 2 skins of the door i will do my best to mig a filler piece all along it. As for the handle/lock mechanism, I haven't quite figured that out yet. I will need to do the removable hinge mod as well. No problem, however, I have ALL POWER WINDOWS AND LOCKS so i will need to cut and splice connectors to EVERY wire in EVERY door i think they're are almost 20 wires in just the driver door! :looney:
After it all I will spray them matte black and call it a day. I plan to spray all the gold pieces on my jeep matte black as well (fender flares, bumper endcaps, and the lower parts of the body)

I will keep my original doors fully intact (besides the hinge mod) with the ability to still use all the buttons.

I think this will be a cool first project :scottm:
 
If you keep your original doors, will you really ever use your soft windows? They will probably not be clear enough to really see out of for front doors.

I have seen the original latch rods modified so the inside door handle still works. Ditch the outside handle because you can reach inside.

My half door was below the top of my thigh while driving, and sometimes it made me uncomfortable. Protect your hips and legs.

I have heard that there is already a quick disconnect for the door wiring, as if Chrysler did not want to pay UAW workers to pull wire from the switches, through the door opening, to the fuse block. It is worth a check before you cut anything.

Chrome doesn't get you home, but it gets you laid. Matte black sucks.
 
Here are the doors stripped of their internal components and all marked up where I'm going to cut them.
2014-01-21_17-45-07_981_zpscy2zalf9.jpg
 
you may want to reconsider the front cut on your front doors. Leave the mirror mount so you can still use factory mirrors and be legal.
 
On the way home from picking the doors up, one of the mirrors snapped off and I don't want to go and buy a new one. I will mount small circle mirrors on a small rod that will link to the side of the door.
 
bought a sheet of 36x48 inch 18 gauge steel sheetmetal from reliable hardware to mig to the top after i cut. $40. I could have gotten away with with 48x24 inch but I will have plenty extra for some other fab work. This stuff is tough to cut with tin snips I need to invest in some air shears. These doors will take a long while to complete, sorry about that. In the end I think they will be sweet. Any suggestions on some time of connector thats disconectable and can hold like atleast 16 wires? something that might look like a radio plug in thing? It just won't be possible to jam 32 Bullet connectors in the door hole on the driver's side. I'm even nervous about smashing just 5 of them in the rear door with just power window and lock buttons.
 
Ouch, in the future, find a metal supplier local to you. $40 for a 4x3 sheet is pretty steep. Look at the half doors cal did for the KOH race jeep. It's along the body line and the guy that does them used a 1" piece of angle iron to do the corners. I've got a set, really nice. Also it makes it easier for half doors to start with manual doors. Then you only have a speaker wire to worry about.
 
For my rear doors I just got standard 6 slot quick disconnects from RadioShack. Takes less than 1 min to pull the rear door, and that involves pulling door stop pin, disconnecting the wires, and lifting off hinges. I keep the water seal boot on there, so I didn't splurge for a weather proof connector or anything.

For the fronts, there are so many wires with power everything that I just disconnect from the kick panel. I keep the appropriate size socket and a short extension in the console, to fit the nut on both kick panels. Takes 5-10 mins per door to feed the 3 bundles of wires in.

Saw someone who used a disconnect out of a WJ that they mounted in the A pillars. Spliced it into the jeep-side wiring, and spliced the connector to the door-side wiring. Looked pretty clean. Could try that.

I think there was someone trying to use those connectors that hard mount and are spring loaded- where basically the are connected when the door is closed, but not when open. Didn't see it finished. Sounds expensive and difficult.
 
markw said:
Ouch, in the future, find a metal supplier local to you. $40 for a 4x3 sheet is pretty steep. Look at the half doors cal did for the KOH race jeep. It's along the body line and the guy that does them used a 1" piece of angle iron to do the corners. I've got a set, really nice. Also it makes it easier for half doors to start with manual doors. Then you only have a speaker wire to worry about.
Click to expand...

The doors i am cutting up are manual doors. The doors i have on my jeep have all the power buttons. I'm not replacing my doors, these half doors will be quick and easy put ons to go offroading or summer driving. The stock doors with all the butttons are required to run the windows and locks and such
 
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