Soft top question (1 Viewer)

[benhoffa]

I have a 1975 FJ that has been covered in Diamond Plate to cover rust. I just bought a rool bar in anticipation of putting a soft top on. This will allow me to use soft top doors which is where the bulk of rust resides.

It has an "aftermarket" rear hatch that is not anything like the FJ40 tailgates. IT originally had ambulance doors becasue I can see the hinge holes that used to be there.

Do I need to buy a tailgate since the one I have on now goes way higher? I attached a picture (I think).

I am kind of at the point where some restoration might be in the works but would like the ventilation of a sot top....

Any help would be great.

 

[lefty b]

From what I can see, unless you want to cut down your existing gate, you'll need to fab or buy something to take it's place. It's tough to tell, but is the plate on the sides not cut where the tub ends and the hard top begins? It looks like you have some cutting to do just to get the hard top off. And you're right, the gate looks really tall.
There are pre-fabbed tailgates out there from simple pieces of flat diamond plate or sheet metal, to fancy ($) ones that have lockable storage in them. You could also fab one yourself, it really depends on your budget and skills. I just got a new SuperTop earlier this year, and my current gate isn't weather tight, so I'm getting ready to make one. For your information, if you are looking at the same top, the gate needs to be at least as tall as the top of the tub (the very top edge, where the inside and outside meet) so the rear window has somewhere to attach to.

Hope that helps. Good luck with the project.


lefty b

 

[jbee]

holy diamond plate!

You can get a 'bolt on' tailgate at lots of places. here's one on ebay.
The land cruiser shops sell them too.

There are factory tailgates out there, but just a few and sometimes $$$ if they are in good shape.

Either way, if you had ambulance doors from the factory you *might* find yourself drilling some holes in the body to make a tailgate fit.

If you're going for a factory roll cage, they're usually pretty cheap, like $100 or less. Should bolt into your 75 in the pre-existing holes.

The scrap value on that diamond plate should more than finance your project!!

 

[SouthBostonFJ40]

Good lord. That's the most diamond plate I've ever seen. It extends above the tub rail onto the hard top. If you remove the top, you'll need to cut the plate down.

ETA: Lefty said it first.

Also, that hatch is homemade.

 

[Charleston FJ40]

I'm laughing so hard at those last two comments!

 

[benhoffa]

Thanks...sounds like I need a new rear hatch......and leave the diamond plate out of it......it is a distinguishing feature

 

[SouthBostonFJ40]

Thanks...sounds like I need a new rear hatch......

I bet you'll need more than just a hatch. That much diamond plate isn't cosmetic, it's structural.

 

[benhoffa]

I pulled off the diamond plate and it is covering really really bad patch work with fiberglass.....I am guessing I need a bolt on tailgate and need ear quarters....just trying to get ideas and suggestion...

 

[SouthBostonFJ40]

I pulled off the diamond plate and it is covering really really bad patch work with fiberglass.....I am guessing I need a bolt on tailgate and need ear quarters....just trying to get ideas and suggestion...

Let's see some pics.

 

[hairy_apple]

Whoa... that's interesting. Hopefully it's not as bad as I think it would be with that much plate on it.

 

[benhoffa]

Here is what lies beneath......

 

[cjgoode]

That is much better then I would have suspected. I saw your truck in the Target parking lot a few weeks ago.

 

[benhoffa]

Thanks...it is better than i thought too....I am not a fan of the diamond plating and trying to decide which direction to go with it

 

[DSRTRDR]

trying to decide which direction to go without it

fixeded

 

[SouthBostonFJ40]

Sooo much better than I would have thought too. Get that s*** off and let it breathe.

 

[JohnnyC]

price of Aluminum is very good... you are rich now!!

its not all that bad considering... in the upper north east we have seen WAY worse

 

[benhoffa]

Thanks....I am probably looking at a Bestop.....The diamond plate goes all the way up past the rear quarter panelsto the windows. I am trying to figure out if I get new rear quarters and a bolt on tailgate, if that would be good enough to replace the hardtop with a softtop......

 

[apeterson]

hahaha... OMG.........

it looks way better to see a rusty cruiser than one with that much diamond

 

[adistler1]

Thanks for pulling that off. It was heartbreaking to look at. I'd rather see a bunch of rust than that stuff any day.

 

[Stumpalama]

I imagine that with that much diamond plate, you can cut down the existing tailgate to match the original tub height. Those plates are just 16ga steel or 3/16" aluminum anyway.

Fix the rust and cut down the diamond plate on the corners to give it some protection when wheeling.