Roll Bar

I would like to put a real roll bar on my Cj5. Right now it has what looks to be a roll bar bolted on to marine wood I assume the PO put in to cover a rusted tub.

To be effective I would guess a roll bar has to be welded to the frame. This is beyond my skill level. Can I buy a roll bar ready to weld on? I can cut holes and find a local welder. What should I do here?

 

Welding the roll bar to the frame would be unusual and probably not very helpful. The factory and aftermarket rollbars simply sit on top of the fender wells.

Sometimes a roll cage is welded or bolted to the frame.

 

there are (or used to be) kits available to tie in the factory roll bar to the frame. realistically, though, i'd opt to create a full cage along with such a kit, meaning using a front hoop, with bracing connecting the front hoop and original roll bar. the front hoop runs up the outer edge of the dash and along the inside of the windshield frame.

for decent protection, you'd want to tie it to the frame, rather than have it sit on top of the rear wheel wells.

a decent welding/fabrication shop should be able to do it without the kit.

 

There's more to this.

When you weld the rollbar/rollcage to the frame, you will make the frame more rigid. The Jeep frame is meant to flex separately from the body. Be sure you know what you're doing before you change the chassis dynamics - the rollbar or rollcage will still protect you in a slow rollover even if it isn't welded to the frame. However, you need to make the body solid enough so that it won't crumple into a pile of rust if you roll over. If you worry that the body isn't strong enough for the rollbar, you have a problem with the body, not the rollbar.

 

i suppose it could be argued around and around as to what works and doesn't.

i have a 'glas body, so rust isn't an issue. however, by "floating" the roll bar, and front hoop, through the body, and tying them into the frame, doesn't make the frame appreciably stiffer. the body still floats on the rubber mounts, and the roll bar/cage now offers some protection. granted, if the seats aren't tied into the frame, they aren't doing as well as if the seats are tied into the roll bar/cage, like a race car.

if i wanted to be 100% safe, i'd never drive it or start it, and i'd leave it parked in the driveway.

my opinion is that the front hoop/cage/tie-in with the rear roll bar/tied into the frame offers me (and my passengers - my kids) some more protection in a low speed roll vs. the factory "sport bar". i have zero faith in the windshield providing a whole lot of protection to the front seat occupants in a rollover. not in a high speed accident.

 

I agree. I'm not wild but mild on the trails and slow on the road but I still want it safe. Doing front hoop with tie in to sport bar and frame this month.

 

don't think I've ever seen a cage/rollbar seperate from being bolted to the body....
seen plenty of damage from rollovers too
not that it can't/won't happen
if done right, I wouldn't worry about it

 

I was thinking of getting one of these Kentrol Sport cages...
http://www.jeep4x4center.com/jeep-CJ5/roll-bar-cage.htm

As mentioned above, The frame flex issue... I've heard that somewhere before... Something about the steel used to make the frame was chosen and designed so it would flex somewhat.
If you bolt on cages, rock sliders, or box in the frame to make it rigid, what will happen? Cracks?

 

FWIW I tie mine into the frame. I also make the mount so that it uses a shackle type mount under the bar and spring bushings between that the the tie in leg. Still lets it flex a bit but saves my head in the event of a rollover. I'll gladly sacrifice flex for safety.

 

I picked up a full cage second hand, and it bolts to the fender and the front floor boards. I wanted to tie it into the frame, but i realized 2 things,
1) the only place where it would be easy to tie into the frame is the passenger side foot well, the rest are either hindered by the through the floor pedals or the fact that the top of the wheel wells are a good distance from the frame.
2) For a low speed roll over, All i really need to do is reinforce the body where the bolts come through the floor/wheel well by backing it with some steel plate to spread the load out a bit. I'm not building a nascar here.


Anyway, I'm not sure who build my cage, but its made out of fairly heavy wall tube, well placed gussets, had beautiful welds, elegant bends for just the right shape, and fit like a dream, even under the hard top . And all that for the cost of gas to go pick it up! Frees parts are the best parts!

 

I am in the process of attaching my roll bar to the frame. I don't think my bar is race tough but I think tough enough for the situations I get into. I used a 4wd hardware front hoop, a stock intermediate rear bar, some schedule 40 pipe and lots of effort to get mine. I think it turned out very well. I don't go for the jungle gym look...

jeep roll bar pics

here is how it came out;


frame tie ins;

 

that's very nice!

that's what i mean by having the seats attached. keeps the occupant with the cage, rather than the tub. far better, imo.

also, looks like the body will have some independence from the cage, allowing it to flex/float.

again, very nice.

 

What about a sport bar out of YJ, that will not fit will it ?

 

I have the front hoop and spreader bars on mine and tied into the frame

 

I am currently building a cage based on the "sport cage". I have already fabbed up the brackets that mount to the dash. They made me a little weary so I am also running tube from the bracket to the floor. I will tie it all into the frame later, once I get the suspension to take the flex that would have originaly been handled by the frame. On a 30 year old CJ5 like mine, the frame , as well as the body has some issues when in comes to the stuctural integrity of the metal. Frame flex vs. no frame flex is a whole other can of worms...and a big one.Opinions vary greatly on this subject. If you are going to tie your cage to the body just be very sure of the condition of the metal and if you are tying it into the frame your susp. should be fairly flexy. That's just my unofficial $0.02.