Cowl hood the right way

[troy5118]

Though I'd share my cowl hood build.

Stripped down to metal.

Marked for the cut.

Cut.

After goofing with the stock hood you relize how flimsy and thin they are. Just cutting and adding strips wont give the hood the strength it needs to hold its shape properly. I used a stick of .25" rod and formed the profile I needed for both sides. These were tacked to place. Next I welded uprights using the same rod to the frame work to support the cowl.

Job well done, reward youself.

Next I used some masking tape to create a pattern.

I cut it out (a little large) and fit it.

After that I ran it through my english wheel to give it some curve and bead roller to roll the shoulders. You don't need these tools to do this but it helps.

 

[troy5118]

Now I'm ready to weld it. I scribed a line with the filler panel where cleco'd and trimed the extra part of the hood off so I could butt weld it.

Welding.

Now to add a filler strip to the back.

Screen.

Skim coating. I did this to the whole hood and used a board sander to knock it down and smooth it out.

Primed. I sealed it with Epoxy and did hit it with high build 3 different times with sanding in between.

I blasted the bottom with lizard skin to keep it sealed and quite. Also you can see the supports I made to support the cowl in the middle. There are 4 total.

 

[jdougn]

That looks nice & clean. One of the best DIY jobs I've seen.

 

[troy5118]

Hope this helps others wanting to do this. These hoods are thin so go slow to help with the warping. If I did it over again I'd probably cut the braces out underneath so I could dolly the panels nice and flat before skim coating.

 

[Lurch]

That thing is BA. Nice work.

 

[kndrewa]

Looks great!
For fun, a shot from inside the Jeep?

 

[troy5118]

Sure thing.

It's 3'' in the middle and 2 1/2" on the outside to give it a little crown and flow better.

 

[FlexdXJ]

Very Nice!

 

[Vanimal]

nice work!

 

[kndrewa]

That's awesome, looks so great!
Thank you for the pics from inside.
Would love to have that view in my rig.

 

[cheapcherokee93]

WOW! excellent work!

 

[Tom95YJ]

Nice work !

 

[XJEEPER]

Well done!

 

[CAJJ93XJ]

where did you pick up your screen?

 

[xcm]

Beautifull work... Its a shame how often this is done the lazy way.

 

[Vanimal]

Beautifull work... Its a shame how often this is done the lazy way.

LOL dont know if it's a shame, i mean most of these things end up on their side or against trees and rocks. at that point, why waste the time to make it pretty, function over form (to keep the engine cooler).
his is obviously well kept in the body/looks department so it's probably worth it for him, but i just assume use pop rivets on mine

 

[xcm]

Function over fashion, I meant no offense. Just enjoy seeing beautiful fab work.

 

[rehberg79]

You have skillz my friend, nice work!

 

[techno1154]

LOL dont know if it's a shame, i mean most of these things end up on their side or against trees and rocks. at that point, why waste the time to make it pretty, function over form (to keep the engine cooler).
his is obviously well kept in the body/looks department so it's probably worth it for him, but i just assume use pop rivets on mine

Remember, most XJ owners do not wheel their vehicle. Then there are others including myself who is not into hard core wheeling. I would give an un-scientific guess that most of those in the two groups mentioned above love to see the sheet metal in a good state of repair which includes making modifications to improve the appearance and at times the function as well.

The OP did a very good job. Form and function is walking hand-in-hand. :yelclap:

 

[Vanimal]

Remember, most XJ owners do not wheel their vehicle. Then there are others including myself who is not into hard core wheeling. I would give an un-scientific guess that most of those in the two groups mentioned above love to see the sheet metal in a good state of repair which includes making modifications to improve the appearance and at times the function as well.

The OP did a very good job. Form and function is walking hand-in-hand. :yelclap:

i think most xj enthusiests on this site do wheel. but to be clear on my previous post, i think he did an awesome job, i've done a lot of body work and that's pretty top notch. I was just just commenting on XCM's post about all the hack jobs out there, which are likely done by people (like myself) who know that it's going to get wasted anyways, given the way they wheel.
I'm not saying he doesnt wheel either, but given the condition of his jeep, he's a little more careful about it