Hybrid cage questions

BigClay

BigClay

Knower of useless ZJ things
Joined
Sep 24, 2008
Location
Winston-Salem
About to put a hybrid interior/exterior cage on my ZJ. My question is, where the tube comes through the sheet metal, how do you seal it up to keep water out? I still have a full interior and don't want to gut it yet, so I don't want rain to come pouring in. The ZJ is a unibody, so I am not sure how much the body is going to flex around those points. Do they make rubber gromets that big? Any advice, opinions, expreience would be apprciated.
 
one old trick would be to use ruber hose and slit it, then feed it around sheetmetal.

99NCXJ (Justin) built a hybrid cage for his XJ. I think he just siliconed them back up but mentioned the roof moves.

Lastly (my choice), you could always weld the sheet metal back to the tube and seal it. Then it wouldnt move or leak
 
Good suggestions Ben, thanks!
 
What I've seen done before and it looks trick as hell is to use roof penetration "boots" on either side then use a aluminun ring on oth side to attach the boots to the shete metal.
Think along the lines of an oversized shifter boot. If you allow a couple inches either way you can compensate for flex....
 
Well ive seen ppl use rubber boots that are used on roofs and cut them but they look bad i thought... Id think RTV sealer if it were me... just my .02
 
Plate it on either side and seal it with silicone. Bolt through. weld tube to the plate on either side. You'll have to take out your interior then put it back in.
 
a rubber boot for flexibility and windshield Urethane. The Urethane would be strong and resist tearing and remain flexable at all temps.
 
If you're looking for sealants - might try out heating duct sealant. The stuff is made to be extremely flexible and stretchable, and dosn't break down w/ temp changes.
it goes on with the consistency of buffalo snot but dries to be kinda like silicone. Would be hard to make "pretty" but definitely would seal.

Will these holes be in the roof (horizontal hole) or sides (vertical)? I had this same issue on mine on the sides where the horizontal bar behind the seat goes through the B-pillar to connect to the main B-hoop. I never got around to putting anything on there, been surprised how little water actually comes through.
 
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