jscherb

Thanks. The next step in the project will be to install the cardboard mockup on the JK to verify the shape and proportions, so that will give some idea of what the finished fenders will look like on the Jeep. I'll post photos when I do that, stay tuned.

jscherb

I've decided not to license the JK Safari Cab for production.

saharaharry

Just curious, as to why you won't license the top for production. Seems to me, by the activity on your thread that it would be a very popular and sought after seller. Especially with that CRAPPY looking one that has just come to market. Or is it more cost efficient to keep it off market?

jscherb

A number of companies have approached me with interest in licensing the top.

One I didn't think had the necessary experience manufacturing and marketing a complicated product like the Safari Cab so I thought the chances of them being successful with it were low.

Another company wanted to make it an option on their very expensive custom Jeeps. Licensing to them would mean that only a very few would be sold and only to people willing to spend six figures on their Jeep. If I'm going to license a product I'd want it to be more generally available, not something that would only be available to an exclusive few.

Yet another company wanted to "cost reduce" it, eliminating some of the modular features, and probably not ever implementing some of the unique features like the roll-up soft sides. Seeing it produced that way would be very disappointing. This company also was interested in selling the barn door standalone as an option for factory hardtops, but they don't have a good history of implementing electrical accessories like the rear wiper and related wiring harness, which I think are key to the barn door.

And two of the big three Jeep accessory catalog companies talked to me at SEMA last fall about it, but they would want to receive "finished goods" into inventory, meaning that I would have to manage manufacturing and production and shipping to them, as well as any warranty issues. I definitely don't want to be in the hardtop manufacturing business. BTW one of those companies wanted to also sell the barn door standalone as an accessory for factory hardtops, but again I'd have to deliver finished goods to them.

And, complicated projects like a modular hardtop can't just be licensed and "thrown over the wall" to the company that's going to manufacture/market it - I would have to spend a lot of time advising them on how to best mold it; how to implement the inevitable changes they'd want to make and where to source and how to implement the various options, such as the wiper and electrical connections, soft sides, windows, etc.

I also don't think there would really be enough demand for a high-end product like this to make it worthwhile to bring to market. Given the fairly small number of these tops that I believe would sell, I'd rather spend my time designing and building something new than spending a lot of time helping a company get the JK Safari Cab into production.

I would be willing to license just the barn door for use with factory hardtops if the right company were interested.

When it comes my fiberglass designs I'd be much more interested in getting some of my others into production, like the flat fenders - they're easy for a company to be successful with, they wouldn't require a huge amount of consulting time from me, they can be manufactured at a price that would make them a popular seller, and at a good price they're something that many Jeep owners would want on their Jeeps.

Sorry for the long answer, but as you can see there are a number of reasons I haven't licensed the hardtop.

Four Low

Glad you gave the "long answer", now I can see your point. The detailed pix and instructions you have given will enable certain DIYers to build their own.
That is a Gift - thank you

Four Low

Back to the Flat Fenders for a moment ; Is anyone other than Kentrol doing the TJ Flatties?
They shut down their fiberglass line a few years ago, and are looking for a buyer, for that product line.
I showed pix of the TJ flats to friends, and they want them.

jscherb

Here's the full story on the TJ flat fenders - a few years back at the SEMA Show I met Tom Troll, then the owner/president of Kentrol. We hit it off right away and he invited me to drop in any time I was in the area. A few months later I was in the area so I stopped in to see Tom. He toured me around the Kentrol facility and we talked Jeep products for a long time. While I was there I showed him some concept drawings for my TJ flat fender design, and he immediately said he wanted to do them. I went home with a pair of Kentrol CJ-2a fenders and TJ inner fenders to use to make the mold masters for the TJ version.

About 8 weeks later when I had finished the master parts I made a trip to Kentrol to drop them off so they could begin their mold making process. I also designed a plug-and-play wiring kit for the fenders that allowed for LED lighting and dealt with the "fast flash" problem TJ's have with LED turn signals so I delivered the drawings and manual for that too.

Several months later I was passing through Ohio again, this time on my way back from an Alaska Jeep expedition, so I dropped in on Tom to check on the progress of the fender molds. They had made progress, but sometime in the intervening months Tom had decided to retire and sell the business. The fiberglass business was a struggle at the time, so he decided it would be best to sell the hard parts business separately and shut down the fiberglass operation. He suggested that I buy the whole company, but I wasn't interested (and still am not) in being in the Jeep accessories business. I completely understood Tom's decisions, and left his shop with my original master parts, which I still have today. So if the Kentrol fiberglass business ever does find a buyer, the buyer won't be getting the TJ flat fenders - they're back in my possession.

The TJ flat fenders would be easy to get into production if a company or someone wanted to do so.

A photo of the TJ flat fenders on a proof-of-concept TJ pickup I did a while back; the pickup bed is based on my Dinoot trailer tub kit ...

Four Low

Thanks for that ! Some good fiberglass products have gone by the wayside, but glad you have the Masters for the TJ flats.

jscherb

A few more photos of the mocked up JK flat fender. This first photo is the back side and shows the mounting flange. On the final fenders the flange will be trimmed about an inch, up to the sharp curved line, but it's been left long so the fenders can be molded with extra material on the inside of the flange for trimming.



A few outside views. The fenders will one-piece fiberglass, and will be very easy and cost-effective to mold.





I hope to install this on the Jeep later this week to check proportions and shape, and once that's done I'll replace the cardboard with something more substantial that a mold can be made from.

BTW I'm planning two ways that these can be installed - they can either be bolted to the Jeep's metal fender, or they can be installed with plastic "push pins" like the ones used to hold the grille in place - with those the fenders should pop off if they came in contact with a trail obstacle (perhaps at the cost of a few broken push pins).

akpostal

Will you be molding rear flares to match?