Fold Down Tailgate

06TJX

06TJX

#1
#1
Fold Down Tailgate
So I decided to take on this project as a quick something to do that would be under $50.00. My plan is to use 1/4"-20 Rivnuts, coupled with grade 8 hardware and a set of heavy duty Stanley hinges from Lowes. So Far I have picked up the Rivnuts, hardware and hinges for the project:

Gate Hinges: $5.98ea
Rivnuts: 25 for $12.35
Misc. Hardware: $11.00

I did some measuring last night. The Tailgate is 37.5" wide, so I decided to split that and put the hinges centered in the middle of each half. That ended up at 9 3/8 from each outer edge of the tailgate.

I covered the lower part of the tailgate and the cross member with painters tape and made some measurement marks. Thats as far as I made it last night.Here are some pics:

Tailgate factory hinge.jpg

Tailgate w tape 2.jpg

Tailgate w tape.jpg

Tailgate w tape measurement.jpg

I plan on taking the upper hinge apart and putting a cotter pin setup in the existing pin hole that holds the halves together. The lower will just be the two halves so I don't have to repaint right now. I have not figured out how I will mount the support cables on the inside yet, but will probably use the existing holes for the insta-trunk and some more rivnuts, as I have a ton lying around from when I put the factory steps on.

Any comments or suggestions are welcome!
 
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06TJX

06TJX

#2
#2
So I didn't get much done last night...I made a rivnut tool, and got the 1/4"-20 rivnuts in the top hole for the inst-trunk.

Tailgate Location of rivnet for cable.jpg

We'll see if its strong enough....more this weekend.....
 
97TJGUZZY

97TJGUZZY

SUPPORTER
#3
#3
i want to take a look at those rivnuts in person, i have never used any of them, they look cool.

PS: I like your new sticker on the back. Congrats!!
 
GREASEMONKEY

GREASEMONKEY

#4
#4
Junkyard time!
Get a set of S-10 tailgate straps, and the mounting bolts, and we can make ya a bracket for the tailgate side. They should be perfect length, and will be sturdy!
 
06TJX

06TJX

#5
#5
Yeah...may try to do that this weekend. I also know that Autozone or one of those carry the straps as well... Brooks, I will bring it up with me sat. You can see it in action then :) I'll have the little man with me, but he wont care :)
 
jeeplj

jeeplj

#6
#6
It looks good so far.. makes the tailgate much more functional like this setup.

I did this on a TJ I had a while back and put a CJ tailgate on there. I just used the CJ tailgate hinges and they worked out pretty well. Cut access holes inside that channel in the body back there, and made a backing plate for the bolts to go through the body. The backing plate helped spread all the weight over a larger area. Also made some anchors for the tailgate cables by using a piece of 4" angle iron with a bolt head welded to it to hold the tailgate cables.

I'll see if I can dig up some pictures..
 
06TJX

06TJX

#7
#7
Yeah. I do have a concern about the weight distribution on that small piece of sheet metal under the gate. I am looking at getting a tramp stamp to help with the weight
 
jeeplj

jeeplj

#9
#9
a couple of pictures

cj tailgate on a TJ..

I made a backing plate by welding a couple of nuts onto a plate and then used that inside that back channel.

bracket3.jpg bracket6.jpg Image06.jpg bracket3.jpg
 
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