roll cages

jeepeater2003

Member
Joined
Mar 21, 2005
Location
raleigh
hey all

i am going to be building a cager pretty soon here. its a 93 wrangler.
what size tubing did you guys use or recomend?
also, i want as much triangulation as possible, correct?
how can i notch it when i don't have a tubing notcher? just cut it with an angle grinder or what?
i will tie it into the frame as well and probly the seats
also, can you show me some pics of yours, and how it ties in to the frame

tyler
:beer:
 
jeepeater2003 said:
hey all

i am going to be building a cager pretty soon here. its a 93 wrangler.
what size tubing did you guys use or recomend?also, i want as much triangulation as possible, correct?
how can i notch it when i don't have a tubing notcher? just cut it with an angle grinder or what?
i will tie it into the frame as well and probly the seats
also, can you show me some pics of yours, and how it ties in to the frame

tyler
:beer:
Click to expand...

1 - 1.75" Dom or 2" DOM would be fine.
2 - That is a can of worms I don't want to open but you definitely want strategically placed triangulation to support any impact forces correctly.
3 - Grinder will work fine

If you need laser cut places to use as floor plates and plates for the tie-ins to bolt to the cage let me know. I have them all in stock here.

Let me know if there is anything else we can help you out with.

Andy
 
Maybe try building some sliders or a bumper first then moving onto a cage so you'll have a little more experience before starting something so important. Do you have a bender?
 
Yeah, if you don't have the "Best" skills, practice some on skids, bumpers, etc... The only reason I mention this, is because your post sounded like you may not know exactly what you are getting into...

IF you do a search on Pirate, I did a pretty nice TJ cage a little while back, that you could use for some ideas...
 
a chop saw and a grinder work fine for coping, but take forever.

Triangulation is important, and tips, well, design (not build) most of the cage then triangulate where necessary. don't ask me where until I can see most of the untriangulated cage design.

Most importantly, practice on something a little less cirtical first. Your head may thank you for it later.



Rob
 
The route I am gonna take is purchasing http://www.tennesseeoffroad.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=873 so I have the bent pieces, I will only need to add straight pieces and tieing into the frame after that, I think in the end it will be much easier than starting from scratch. Also summit sells the smittybuilt cage kits which look about the same.
top_yj.jpg
 
actually, i like that idea, i don't know why that didn't come to mind. ill probly just buy a kit like that and weld it in and hook it up to the frame, thanks lee.

tyler
 
I think I'd stay away from the Smittybuilt cage, just based on what I've see out of their bumpers and nerf bars. Stick with an off road shop's kit, like the Tenn. kit or similar.


Rob
 
Ive had the TOR cage. Its nice b/c of price and simplicity, but IMO its not designed to handle a multiple roll situation - no question asked its better than anything stock and will no doubt hold up to a flop or a single roll, but again IMO for you anal retentive, I dont think it would hold up to a good barrell roll or end over end. Just an example, you see there is no triangulation holding it from twisting. Ive seen axles get ripped off from a single barrell roll and an add-on to stock cage crumble like paper. Its all in the design so much material. Ive got a couple good books on chasis engineering, its the little things that are commonly overlooked which usually lead to failure.
 
Studnuts, I will agree with everything you just said about the lack of bracing and triangulation, But the thing I look at with it, is all of the bracing and triangulation that you would need to add to it should not require any bends, All of the bent pieces you will need come in the TOR kit. I think braced up and gusseted it ought to be a fairly good cage, not the best, but very good.
 
Heres something to get you started, just popped up on PBB:
http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=386480

The only thing I didnt see which one of my books goes over pretty good is gusseting. It says that plate steel should not be used for gussets as it increases the can-opener effect and is more prone to ripping and kinking the tube. A tubuler gusset should be used instead.
 
Yeah, most people put the plate gusset square in the middle of the joint, which would tend to crumple/tear the tubes... defeating the purpose of the gusset. If you need to use a plate gusset, it gets applied to the *sides* of the tubes, at a tangent.
 
A thread I made quite the long time ago on this subject with a few replies... http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=218599&highlight=gusset And when I think about it now, the point of a sheetmetal gusset really is just to add more weld area, if there is a chance of the tube tearing at that point...you should have used thicker/larger diameter tubing. One of my chassis books brings this up and also suggests putting the gusset in the middle of the tube. Either way, I would prefer a tube gusset.
 
Well I guess I need to rebuild my shit......I used 2 plate gussets in 2 corners.....in the middle of the tube.............dammit man. :gay: :beer:
 
buggybuilder said:
Well I guess I need to rebuild my shit......I used 2 plate gussets in 2 corners.....in the middle of the tube.............dammit man. :gay: :beer:
Click to expand...

thats cause your a :gay: Bring it over, we can cut it up and start from scratch. You bring the booze, ill sit around and watch.
 
Damn, i used plate gussets on the middle of the tube also.. oh well. Anyone want a Cruggy? :lol:
 
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