[NFADUDE]

I vote fading the TJ accent line out. Having it run all the way like a TJ could interfere with the usage of CJ stripe kits. Lol I'm still liking the TJ Renegade.

[jscherb]

Originally Posted by Bobs85Reny

I agree with leaving the tj hood accent. I think it would also help if you decide to do a highline version. It could be used as your cut off template.

Bob,
Actually that's not how I'd make a highline hood. Just cutting off a normal-height hood at that line would leave a simple cut fiberglass edge, which isn't very strong and would be prone to cracking.

My design for the mold involves flange mold boards that bolt on to the mold. In the illustration below, at left a full-height hood is being molded, the flange mold board bolts on the the bottom edge of the hood mold (top edge as shown since when molding the mold would be upside down like this), and fiberglass is laid around the corner of the edge made by the mold board. This provides a lot more strength along the edge of the part, and also provides a very nice finished look when the hood is open. It also moves the trimming to the inside of the flange rather than a highly visible line at the outside of the hood, so the hood pops out of the mold with a perfectly straight bottom edge rather than one that has to be trimmed and then worked to get a perfectly straight line.

On the right, a highline hood is being molded, and there's a different flange mold board in place. This one goes down to the accent line on the hood, and again serves as a form for a lip to be molded.



That's one thing I don't like about most DIY highline jobs where a factory hood is cut - in almost every case that I've seen, the person leaves an unflanged sheet metal edge that's very prone to damage.

In the same way, a flange board would be used at the back of the hood mold, to form a nice flange there as well, but there would also be a second flange mold which would reduce the length of the molded hood back to the original CJ length.



So with the flange mold boards as describe, I will be able to make four versions of the hood in the one mold:

- TJ length, normal height
- TJ length, highline
- CJ length, normal height
- CJ length, highline

The CJ length versions of the hood would be useful for people who wanted to use factory CJ fenders on their TJ, or who wanted to use commercial metal CJ flatfenders or something like that.

And with a similar mold board at the back of the fender mold, the custom fenders I'll be making could also be made in either TJ-length or CJ-length using the one fender mold. A nice side benefit of that is that the mold could be used to make fenders that would be a direct bolt-up to a CJ-7 or CJ-8 but with a TJ-sized wheel opening so a CJ owner could install them to run larger tires.

[jscherb]

Originally Posted by NFADUDE

I vote fading the TJ accent line out. Having it run all the way like a TJ could interfere with the usage of CJ stripe kits. Lol I'm still liking the TJ Renegade.

I considered three ways to deal with the accent line:

- Fading it out very quickly, perhaps within 2" of the tub.
- Fading it out about halfway
- Running it all the way to the front just like on the TJ

The accent line is step is pretty small, and shouldn't really affect decal application, but if any of the above were to affect decals, I would think it would be the middle option, which would have no accent line for the front half of the hood and an accent line in the back. So in for the RENEGADE letters, REN would be on a flat surface, ADE would be on a stepped surface, and EG would be on a transition surface. Not sure that would really look the best.

By late next week I expect to be posting photos of the completed hood so it won't be long before everyone can see how the accent line looks.

[FLCJ-8]

Originally Posted by jscherb

Bob,

On the right, a highline hood is being molded, and there's a different flange mold board in place. This one goes down to the accent line on the hood, and again serves as a form for a lip to be molded.



That's one thing I don't like about most DIY highline jobs where a factory hood is cut - in almost every case that I've seen, the person leaves an unflanged sheet metal edge that's very prone to damage.

Not to trying to speak for others, but, I took what Bobs85Reny was saying to be what you said. He just used less words and no pictures

I don't think the ones following your threads are the average DIY's, we have come to expect perfection in your designs and builds.

[Bobs85Reny]

Thanks for the detailed explanation. What i was implying was by having the ridge there it would be easier to make the flange follow the ridge. But looking at your drawing of how you plan on making the flange it looks like that wont make much of a difference. If you were to eliminate the ridge my vote would be to fade it sharp within the first few inches.

[NFADUDE]

I hadn't considered how a fading Hood accent would effect decal lettering, in that case perhaps a full TJ style accent would be best as then the entire decal would be over the ridge.

[Rubikahn]

Originally Posted by NFADUDE

I hadn't considered how a fading Hood accent would effect decal lettering, in that case perhaps a full TJ style accent would be best as then the entire decal would be over the ridge.

Agreed, only concern would be how that ridge accent would actually look on the CJ hood.

[jscherb]

Bob,
Could you measure the height of your Renegade letters for me please? I want to print some out full size to do a mockup on the hood under construction. Thanks.

[Bobs85Reny]

Originally Posted by jscherb

Bob,
Could you measure the height of your Renegade letters for me please? I want to print some out full size to do a mockup on the hood under construction. Thanks.

No problem i will do it when i get home

[jscherb]

Originally Posted by Rubikahn

Agreed, only concern would be how that ridge accent would actually look on the CJ hood.

Except that I'm not building a "CJ hood" .

I'm also not building a hood that "looks like a CJ in the front and a TJ in the back and 'blends' somewhere in the middle." Which is why I rejected the idea of fading out the accent line when I did my original design work.

My goal is to use elements of both the TJ and the CJ designs to make the hood a unifying piece of the entire Jeep design, rather than make it a transition from one to the other or a copy of one or the other.

So when I post photos of the finished hood, you should expect to see something more like a union of the design cues, rather than an intersection/transition of them, although the design does favor the CJ a little more than the TJ.

If I do my work well, you could say the CJ begins at the grille and the TJ ends at the front of the tub, but there's no single place where there's a "transition" between them - everything flows naturally, as if the TJ were originally designed to go with the CJ hood.

Stay tuned, hood work is in progress.

[Bobs85Reny]

Letter height 4.25"

[jscherb]

Originally Posted by Bobs85Reny

Letter height 4.25"

Thank you!

[Bobs85Reny]

Here is a pic if you need it to help for mockup each side has a different distortion to contour the hood

[jscherb]

Originally Posted by Bobs85Reny

Here is a pic if you need it to help for mockup each side has a different distortion to contour the hood

Very helpful, thanks!

[Bobs85Reny]

Here are some closeups driver side