MrChuckles

Well guys, I've decided to start a little project. I picked this 1977 CJ5 grill up last Sunday and I'm going to turn it into a wall light. I've seen a couple people that have done this before, and I decided to try my hand at it. The paint was pretty bad looking, but I wanted it it to have a little more character, so I'm in the process of rusting it up nicely.



I started the project by using some 100 grit sandpaper and roughing up edges and random areas of the grill, making sure to bring most spots down to bare steel. I then used 150 grit sand paper, then finally 220 grit sand paper over the entire grill. I finished by using a soapy SOS steel wool pad and thoroughly cleaned the grill.

Now here's the fun part, making the grill rusty. It can sometimes take weeks if not months to attain a nice rusty patina naturally if you leave the steel outside in the elements, but I don't feel like waiting that long, so I found a nice way of flash rusting metal online.

Hydrogen peroxide, white vinegar, and salt. Mix these ingredients up in a spray bottle and spray liberally. Instant rust. You can literally watch the metal rust as you're spraying it.

I sprinkled the grill with salt afterwards to help with the corrosion, and I've repeated these steps for the last 2 days.

I plan to leave the grill outside for a few days in the terrible weather we're having lately in hopes that the rust will penetrate the metal a little better.

I'll post some pictures of the grill as it is now later on today when I get home, and I'll post the write up of the LEDs for the lights when I get to that step.

MrChuckles

Here's the grill after the rusting process.

Flex4

Cool idea

MrChuckles

Thanks! I've seen it done before, but I've never seen anyone distress theirs or explain how they mounted their lights. Once I get the LEDs I'm looking for, I'll post a write up on the installation. I'm thinking of going battery operated so that it won't have a cord hanging down.

centerfieldr162

Subscribed. Keep the thread updated please because this is way cool

Sent from my SM-G900T using Tapatalk

MrChuckles

I sure will! Thanks a lot!

xrayjeeper83

This is cool, but the Jeep lover in me is crying a little bit to see an old grill get messed up lol

MrChuckles

Haha! It came from a scrap CJ5 if that makes you feel any better. If anything, I'm giving it a home on my wall so it doesn't end up as scrap metal. I'm dying to get my hands on an old Willys grill though. I hope to have a grill from each Jeep on my wall one day.

MrChuckles

Alright, just purchased these LED lights online. Warm clear: Set of 20 Battery Operated Warm Clear LED Wide Angle Christmas Lights White Wire: Christmas Decor : Walmart.com
and orange: Set of 20 Battery Operated Orange LED Wide Angle Christmas Lights Green Wire: Christmas Decor : Walmart.com

I'm going with the warm clear lights for the headlights. They're supposed to give off a candlelight type color. I've seen people use bright white LEDs in these projects, but that just seems stupid for an older Jeep grill. The orange lights are obviously for the turn signals. They're both battery powered, so I can tuck the battery case behind the grill.

I've already marked the back glass of the lights. I'm thinking 5-6 bulbs in each headlight, bulbs siliconed in, and 3-4 lights in the turn signals. The rest of the unused lights behind the grill will be removed so that only the headlights and turn signals are lit.

I still need to purchase a diamond coated drill bit so that I don't crack or shatter the glass when drilling into it. However, I'd like to get the lights first so that guessing the size bit I need isn't an issue.

MrChuckles

Well, I started drilling holes into the backs of the lights but I ended up cracking one light pretty bad so I'm just going to order 2 more lights and start again. I'm using a diamond coated hole bit and drilling these holes takes forever! I'll update everyone on the process as soon as the new lights come in.