DJ5x2 Metal Hard Top

I have read through this thread over and over again

https://www.cj-8.com/forum/showthre...quot-Postal-CJ8-Hardtop-idea&highlight=postal

It's been a long term plan to build a hard top out of two mail jeeps and a body tub fell in my lap for a price I couldn't turn down. I am in the process of finding the second one so in the mean time, I am trying to get the first one cut up and ready to fabricate. In my head, I am seeing more of a stretched CJ6 hard top. I want it to be modular so I don't have to take off a 500lb top. I would like for it to be able to be set up in a safari style where the top stays on, but the sides come off. I'd also like to add windows to either side of the rear door. I am keeping the rear barn door and will make it work. Haven't decided on keeping the original piano hinge or going with something else. There's more I'm sure but on to the pictures.

Here's the design layout with measurements


Here are the measurements of the donor top I've already got.


What the tub looked like when I picked it up.


All the windows pulled and ready for chopping



First side cut out. I am trying to save the rain gutter and have it attached to the top. I think that it will make an awesome mounting point with a little reinforcement for a roof rack later on.



Everything cut out except one little piece.

The remnants of a rusted out tub and random metal going to the recyclers on monday


All the modular pieces cut and ready for cleaning up and hopefully some sandblasting prior to welding in reinforcement square stock.


Funny thing about how these are built. Everything was sheet metal including the reinforcing channels. They were made cheaply, but pretty ingenious how it was all put together. My plan is to add 1x2" square stock metal to the edges and add a lip for threaded knobs to hold it all together. Rubber weather seal between pieces and between the body and the sides. Probably some sort of attachment from the rear corners to the body tub so the rear pieces on either side of the door can be removed for a true safari style.

Cool love projects like this.. Subscribed.

Sent from my SM-N910P

These are my questions:

If anyone has a CJ6, can I get pictures or a good description of how the front of the hard top attaches to the windshield frame? On this, it was spot welded and the windshield frame was a part of the body tub. No hinges.

Can I get a measurement from someone with a regular hard top from the top of the windshield frame to the back of jeep. To the very edge. I am trying to figure out my overall length for the top portion and my 8 is still waiting for a windshield to be installed. My measurement in picture 1 were with an old frame that wasn't bolted up just resting where it's supposed to go so I'm not too confident in that measurement.

Anyone have ideas on how to build the lip on the bottom of the sides to match the body tub? I've got some ideas brewing, but would love some outside input.

Anyone see any flaws to my plan or ideas how to improve the design? This has lived in my head for about a year and a half and just now sort of formed ideas and notions are getting piecemealed together into an overall plan.

Thanks for your input!

regular guy said:

Can I get a measurement from someone with a regular hard top from the top of the windshield frame to the back of jeep. To the very edge. I am trying to figure out my overall length for the top portion and my 8 is still waiting for a windshield to be installed. My measurement in picture 1 were with an old frame that wasn't bolted up just resting where it's supposed to go so I'm not too confident in that measurement.
Thanks for your input!

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Here are measurements to get the proper placement of the windshield. I realize it's for a soft top but, this is necessary for proper door fitment.

Thanks. That will help.

Another question I had: Someone had a template for the door surround at one point. It was used to convert square corner full metal doors to round corner ones. Anyone still have it?

Got the corners welded this morning. In the process of cutting the corner supports had one side cut open and needed reattached to be structurally sound. Also started cleaning up the welds from removing the door slider rail on the sides and trying to square up the side panels.

Heres a mockup of what the sides should look like


From my measurements there should be an additional 6 inches between the side panel and the door in which to create the surround for the door. I'm looking at 69 1/2" from the corner of the door opening to very back of the tub. My rear panel and two side panels come to 63".

cool project

Nice project, definitely something different.
My 6 didn't come with a full top but came with a metal half cab when i first acquired it, but i sold it and i cannot remember for the life of me how it fastened on to the windshield.
I will have a look for telltale holes next time i am in the garage, but i am not sure there are any to be honest.

Any help would be appreciated. I am digging out my old windshield frame this week and will be using it to figure out the attachment method. I got a little more done yesterday, mostly removing rusted metal and prepping the top for welding in square stock for the attachment of the sides. I am still trying to track down another postal body tub so I can get all the parts I need.

Sweet project

This may help you figure out some things, it's a Jeep SE metal top for CJ5 up to 1975. The attachment to the w frame looks like simple overlap and some screws. I think once you get a 1975 earlier CJ windshield frame there with what you have , it'll work out. The main thing will be putting that w frame on a scrambler, and then also the hope is that that DJ5 top shares same dimensions as this top at those surfaces.

Thank you for the pictures. Man I would love to have the rear windows out of that thing!

When I cut the top off the body, I left the internal frame of the windshield as a potential starting point. (sorry for the crappy pic


The DJ5's "windshield frame" was a piece of square tube with a skin of sheet metal spot welded on. Then the front lip of the top was spot welded on top of that. I think that once I get my old windshield frame from the shop, I'll be able to figure out a method of attachment that doesn't require drilling holes in the front. I'm concerned about the potential for water leakage. I have the clamps to attach to the inside of the frame once I get the front lip figured out.

Just a fabrication puzzle to figure out.

Set of these?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/LAND-ROVER-DEFENDER-REAR-QUARTER-LIGHT-CLEAR-WINDOW-KIT-/370495909353?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item564346ede9

That's exactly what I want!

regular guy said:

That's exactly what I want!

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No need to search around for some used windows that might or might not fit, most auto glass places can cut custom flat windows for you out of safety glass and provide the gasket to mount the glass in. When I did the LJ Safari Cab, I took paper templates down to a local auto glass place and had them cut safety glass for me to match the templates. It wasn't very expensive.

For my current JK fiberglass hardtop project, I'm doing prototype windows in plexiglass, and when I'm ready to have the final glass windows made I'll bring the plexi windows to the glass place for them to use as templates.

What do you think about Lexan as a window material? Will it scratch, not be safe, etc?

regular guy said:

What do you think about Lexan as a window material? Will it scratch, not be safe, etc?

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It's fine to use in a hardtop, but I doubt you'd be happy with it long term, it'll scratch. If you check the prices you'll probably find that Lexan/plexiglass isn't really much cheaper than getting safety glass cut.

I recently did a fiberglass JK Barn Door for a friend and he got the safety glass for less than $100, and that price included the gasket. It was a pretty large piece of glass and quite a few feet of gasket.

Right on. I'll be pricing the safety glass then.

Jscherb, were you the one with the templates for converting square door openings to round? Could I get those from you?

regular guy said:

Right on. I'll be pricing the safety glass then.

Jscherb, were you the one with the templates for converting square door openings to round? Could I get those from you?

Click to expand...

I did a thread about the door fillers many years ago: https://www.cj-8.com/forum/showthread.php?10056-Door-corner-fillers-for-Postal-tops&p=346063. That thread is about adapting standard round-corner CJ doors to a World Cab that requires square-corner doors, so the corner fillers you'll need for your project are different, but the same technique could be used. I also did fillers to fit round corner doors on the CJ10-derived half cab for my Retro Wrangler pickup, those are a bit more elaborate. They're in this thread somewhere: https://www.cj-8.com/forum/showthread.php?18796-OT-Retro-Wrangler-Willys-Pickup-(long)

A little more about the price of getting safety glass windows cut, all 7 of the windows in my Safari Cab are flat safety glass installed with rubber gaskets; the glass place charged me about $350 to cut the glass for all 7 windows and the rubber gaskets were included in the price.

Thank you for the threads. Exactly what I remembered seeing at some point. Your method should be able to be adapted to my application, it'll just take some figuring out.
It definitely sounds like safety glass is the way to go. I've already found replacement window gaskets for the original windows, but I'm not sure if they're safety glass or not. I would assume so, but you know how assumptions go.

Thank you for the help. Reading through your projects is what gave me the idea that this could be done and was worth doing. I love me some Land Rover Defender 110s but at $25k at the bottom and difficulty of finding replacement parts, it kind of kills that. Plus, I really love jeeps so in the end it all works out.