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Trying to Find the Impossible...

J

Jeepdogs

New member
City
Alexander
State
NC
Hi ya'll, I've searched to the ends of the internet (Craiglist, Ebay, Google) & called the usual Jeep resellers for old parts and cannot locate anyone in this whole world that would sell me a sliding rear window for a Type B half hard top for my Scrambler. Although I have an '81 body, the hard top is from a model year that has the holes for a 3-point safety belt. I don't know what year the hard top came from but it does have the holes on either side of the window frame. Currently, I do have the full glass but it is not installed yet. Before I go to the trouble of installing it, I'd love to instead switch it out for a slider.

I'm petting my lucky rabbit foot in hopes that someone could help me out. If the slider wasn't completely across country, I might consider a road trip to pick up the window. 8-) And if the person is willing, shipping is an option, too.
 
Thank you Skidmark for your reply. I saw this one but it is for a 'Type A' half hardtop. Their website states they do not have a 'Type B' option. I really appreciate you trying to find this for me. :-)
 
I guess I need to find out which one I have. I was going to order a slider and didn't realize there was two different types.
 
These were made by CRLaurence
They no longer make the TSW1859, however it MAY be possible to redo the opening in the top to install the earlier TSW1852.

Maybe Matt @CJ8 or some other supplier could provide a complete template of the opening, or you could locate someone with an earlier top and compare the opening to your new glass.

CRLaurence.PNG
 
From what I've read, and please correct me if I am wrong, the 'Type A' window is for half hard tops that do not have the 3-point restraint holes. The 'Type B' window is for later models when Jeep started installing 3-point restraints; therefore the window opening is smaller to accommodate the restraint holes going thru the hard top and then attaching to the roll bar. In my case, my Scram is an '81 and has only lap belts but I purchased a half hard top from an owner who had a later model Scram and therefore, had the cutouts to each side of the window for the shoulder restraints to pass through to the roll bar.
 
FLCJ8 said:
These were made by CRLaurence
They no longer make the TSW1859, however it MAY be possible to redo the opening in the top to install the earlier TSW1852.

Maybe Matt @CJ8 or some other supplier could provide a complete template of the opening, or you could locate someone with an earlier top and compare the opening to your new glass.

View attachment 101750
Click to expand...
Thank you so much for the information. Unfortunatly, I have the later model half hard top. :-( Wonder why you can find the sliders for the 'Type A' window and not the 'Type B' window? Wouldn't there still be a need for both? I would think the only real difference is that one is smaller than the other. Collins Bros. has a slider but it is for a 'Type A'. Hmmm.... Well, I'll keep looking for a four leaf clover that maybe will bring me good luck in finding the slider I need.
 
I have two tops here. I downloading the patterns off of Matt's website and it looks like I have one of each. My luck, the one with the cracked glass is the type B. You learn something everyday on this site.
 
Jeepdogs said:
Thank you so much for the information. Unfortunatly, I have the later model half hard top. :-( Wonder why you can find the sliders for the 'Type A' window and not the 'Type B' window? Wouldn't there still be a need for both? I would think the only real difference is that one is smaller than the other. Collins Bros. has a slider but it is for a 'Type A'. Hmmm.... Well, I'll keep looking for a four leaf clover that maybe will bring me good luck in finding the slider I need.
Click to expand...
From the information I had researched years ago it appears the Type "A" is slightly larger and it doesn't have anything to do with the absence of the seatbelt mount openings.
It appears that the radius at the bottom is different, this is where the Type "B" top could have material removed to accommodate the Type "A" radius.

Maybe Collins or someone can place glass from a older and newer model top on top of each other to see if it's possible.
 
Skidmark said:
I have two tops here. I downloading the patterns off of Matt's website and it looks like I have one of each. My luck, the one with the cracked glass is the type B. You learn something everyday on this site.
Click to expand...
Can you compare the openings to see if the newer top could be easily modified to accept the older Type "A" glass/slider?

Does the seatbelt mount openings correspond to the different style tops?
 
Skidmark said:
I have two tops here. I downloading the patterns off of Matt's website and it looks like I have one of each. My luck, the one with the cracked glass is the type B. You learn something everyday on this site.
Click to expand...
Ohhh, me, too! I've learned more than I should about rear glass during these last couple of days. Of course, the Type B is no longer manufactured. I spoke with a vendor from a Jeep recycler cemetery and he strongly suggested that I do not cut into the hardtop. After thinking about it, he's right. If I enlarge the window opening to fit the Type A glass, I will sacrifice the holes for the 3-point restraints that I hope to install one day.

I spoke directly with CR Laurence Co who made the sliding glass 'back in the day' and they said that the model was discontinued in 2018 and there are none to be had all crusty-n-dusty in their warehouse. After all my research, I believe CR Laurence was the only manufacturer of the sliding glass for Jeeps. And another vendor agreed with this thought and said that it will be a very difficult item to find, especially since it was strictly an after-market item. he said that Jeep never offered it on the sales floor.

I guess my next step is to try a glass shop but another Jeep person has already poo-poo'd that idea and said it'll probably never work correctly (leaking, etc.) and besides, where are they gonna get the metal channel, locking mechanism, etc. Sure, they can cut the glass to fit but glass companies don't have the rest of the parts to make it. I take solace in knowing that without the slider, the Scraminator is more secure, for sure.

So, bad day for the Scraminator. I've gotta explain to her she's not getting a slider. What 'cha gonna do? LOL
 
FLCJ8 said:
From the information I had researched years ago it appears the Type "A" is slightly larger and it doesn't have anything to do with the absence of the seatbelt mount openings.
It appears that the radius at the bottom is different, this is where the Type "B" top could have material removed to accommodate the Type "A" radius.

Maybe Collins or someone can place glass from a older and newer model top on top of each other to see if it's possible.
Click to expand...
Thanks so much for this information! I had given up the idea of ever finding one to fit. I see the dimensions on CR Laurence's website but I'm under the impression, like you said, the type B is different...for instance, I think a Type A is pretty much a rectangle with rounded edges and Type B has a shorter length on top and longer length on bottom...so it would be shaped as a Trapezoid...look at me and all my big words today. hahahaha
 
Jeepdogs said:
Thanks so much for this information! I had given up the idea of ever finding one to fit. I see the dimensions on CR Laurence's website but I'm under the impression, like you said, the type B is different...for instance, I think a Type A is pretty much a rectangle with rounded edges and Type B has a shorter length on top and longer length on bottom...so it would be shaped as a Trapezoid...look at me and all my big words today. hahahaha
Click to expand...
So, look at the last 2 pictures on this website:

• https://gr8tops.com/shop/jeepmodels/scrambler-cj-8/cj-8-half-hardtop-replacement-slider-window#

These pictures show a mini diagram of Type A and Type B. The information on these two drawings are useless in my opinion because it seems to show the same thing (except one has dotted line arrows and one has solid line arrows) and no real measurements.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I've found the Type A window on the below websites and all of them show different dimensions. LOL
• https://www.crlaurence.com/crlapps/...51&History=30587:21770:1351:1389&ModelID=1651
• https://collinsbrosjeep.com/81-83-cj8-rear-window-slider/
• https://gr8tops.com/shop/jeepmodels/scrambler-cj-8/cj-8-half-hardtop-replacement-slider-window#
 
There’s a guy named Jay Newsome at jeepsalvage.com (or something similar) in Statesboro Georgia that has a boneyard full of old Jeeps, if he is still in business -he may have the aftermarket part you’re looking for.
 
Purchase the top in Central VA, swap the glass, then sell yours. Not new, but looks to be in good shape from the pics.
 
What we really need is someone who has both the old and new panes of glass. Lay them on top of each other and see what the difference is. I have an 81 top that I will be adding seat belts to- I doubt a window 1/4” wider on each side would interfere with the seat belt holes.
 
Maybe this will help. I just climbed up into the storage loft and measured the window opening on my 81 top about 16” up from the bulkhead. This is where the seat belts should come through, this matches the indent in the top and my roll bar. The window opening at this point is 47”. The seat belt bolts in the roll bar are 51” apart. That means there should be 2” from the center of the seat belt holes and the inner edge of the window flange. Should be plenty of room
 
Randyzzz said:
What we really need is someone who has both the old and new panes of glass. Lay them on top of each other and see what the difference is. I have an 81 top that I will be adding seat belts to- I doubt a window 1/4” wider on each side would interfere with the seat belt holes.
Click to expand...
That's exactly what I was trying to get across.
I remember years ago a discussion years ago on the fact that the seat belt mount holes had no bearing on the window opening size. I never pursued it any further as both styles were available at the time the.

Hopefully someone that has both style tops can compare the openings to finally put this to rest.
 
FLCJ8 said:
That's exactly what I was trying to get across.
I remember years ago a discussion years ago on the fact that the seat belt mount holes had no bearing on the window opening size. I never pursued it any further as both styles were available at the time the.

Hopefully someone that has both style tops can compare the openings to finally put this to rest.
Click to expand...
My measurements on an 81 top seem to indicate that seat belts work no problem with the 81 window, so opening a later model top to fit the early window should have no effect on the seat belt pass through.

Now the overall shape of the window might make it a bit harder than just “ cutting the hole bigger”. If the late model had a more trapezoidal shape, there might be areas that would have to be filled too.

Again- no real answer unless someone has both pieces of glass and can overlay them.
 
I ordered two side windows for an Alaskan Postal from here. They are beautiful.

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