Thanks for the update. looking forward to some photos.

 

Here is the updated pictures. Sorry they are late, our house internet doesn't like uploading to Flicker very well. Anyway, here it is in my friends house shop... his work just got new materials in so he should be able to take a thing of putty home to finish the hood. The whole right side (passenger side) is smooth and pretty much done, all that's left is the left side (driver side) and the bottom of the hood.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10752790286/http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10752822564/http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10752758666/http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10752747606/

I also went ahead and ordered a HoofLift system for my Jeep. I was going to use the things I got from Napa and the worn out shocks off my moms Trailblazer... but my parents ended up trading it in for a 2014 GMC Terrain since the Trailblazer was going to end up having a $1k plus repair and she needed something with better MPGs.... and my dad forgot I was going to use the shocks so he never got any, and since I can't use new shocks (too strong) I just pulled the gun and just bought a kit... It was only $60, about the same price of buying 2 shocks new. Easier than tracking down some worn out used shocks etc. I should be able to pick them up tomorrow since 4 Wheel Parts said it would be about a week and I ordered them 2 Fridays ago.

 

looks awesome!! Want to make one for me?

 

looking good man. takes alot of work and time doing something like that. a good friend of mine did something like that to my 2011 tundra hood. it turned out awesome also.

 

Thanks! Yeah, definitely... I did the "easy" part, which is actually cutting and welding the cowl. But at the same time it's kinda complicated because you have to measure multiple times before you cut it, then you have to find out the height to make it even, measure the side pieces then make sure those are the same slope... A lot of work even before welding it. I probably had about 15-20 hours in just making the cowl itself.

But, I will say, bondo is where it's really time consuming and takes a ton of time & work. In the most recent pictures I posted my friend has put about 24 hours in the bondo/putty work and it's just now getting to where it's pretty much 3/4 done... So anyone who says making a cowl hood is a short and simple task and wanting to buy one cheap from someone who will make an all metal one rather than the alternative of paying $700 for the fiberglass hood (the only one they still make for the XJ, no more metal ones), they have another thing coming. Especially since GOOD bondo work is expensive. I mean it's cheap for me (free bondo work) and anyone who does everything themselves, because normally people just bondo the cowl sides to seal the welds up and not the whole hood to make it flat, but if I were to make one for someone (and my friend did the bondo like mine where it's all smooth), it would be at or over $700 just for the time put into it to make it right. I mean my hood did warp because didn't let it cool enough between welding but even if I did it would still warp and the bondo would have to be on other parts of the hood then just the joints to make for a good bondo job and for it to be all even and smooth without waves.

Which is another reason it's been so long, since I see this friend pretty much every day, he is making sure the bondo work is pretty much perfect because he'll see it all the time and he doesn't want to look at my hood and see a crappy bondo job with waves in it.

 

I cant wait to see this thing painted and on the jeep

 

I can't wait either, it's already been a couple of months but it shouldn't be too much longer... I hope.

Got the Hood Lift and put it on Friday. Loving the way it came out... other than the difference between my hood and the 96 back XJs. I'll have to mod the cowl hood a little bit so I don't have the problem I ran into with this one. Just so y'all know, Hood Lift makes 2 kits for the different years, but I don't like how short the 97+ shocks are (though if you don't want to mod the stock 97+ hood, then this is the kit you need.) I've heard people bend the hoods because of it. Plus I like the longer shocks anyway.

Anyway, I also like how slow it is, most the time when people make a kit, it flies open and with a cowl hood with bondo on it, it wouldn't be good. This kit has great shocks though, all you do lift it up 6" to about a foot and then the shocks take over and lift it slowly and controlled.

The box.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10929732075/http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10929793736/
Box content. 2 long shocks, self tapping screws, and angel ball mounts
http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10929733025/
Measured from the back of the back lip of the hood and marked 10-1/2" (fender) and 27" (Hood).
http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10929733195/http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10929730405/
Put the first mount on.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10930011533/
Then ran into the first snag, but one that is written out clearly in the installation instructions. The ECU needs to be spaced out 5/8", but I didn't have long enough screws for this at the house. So I just unscrewed the 2 screws on one side and loosened the other and moved it down as far as I could on the bracket and drilled new holes and spaced it out with some nuts. still needs to be spaced out a little, but with it moved down, it doesn't hit unless the hood slams.

The bracket with the holes moved down.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10930011863/
the ECU unscrewed.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10930012543/
Before I added the nuts for a spacer, Hood closes and works fine unless the hood is slammed.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10929735205/
Nuts added.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10929873654/
Here is the problem I was talking about, the 97+ hoods have a divot on the driver side like this and the bracket needs to screw a screw on one of the holes in here. So for this hood I just put a nut and a longer bolt in it (needs to be 1" long to work right without going through the hood skin.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10929870214/http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10929792866/
Passenger side mounted.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10930009203/http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10930008453/
Shocks put on, and done.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/10929791076/

I'll have more pictures and a video of it opening in the daylight probably Wednesday.

 

Looks good... ive been trying to figure out what i wanna do as well... figure ill need a cowl style hood when i do a engine swap but didnt wanna pay out either... although i think im gonna go off the OEM raise... just cut at the top of that... should be easy to get the angle and wider which will be needed the for the engine swap... good deal!

 

Yea it looks really good man. Cant wait to see the finished product.

 

Thanks! Yeah, I was thinking about just cutting along the OE rase like I had seen a lot of the ones made.... But I wanted to be different then everyone, plus I didn't want it to be that wide.

Thanks! I can't wait either.

 

subbed for sure, you definitely have made me want to try some sort of variation of this!

 

Have an update. Actually got almost all the puddy done, all thats left is sand down and smooth out the passenger side beside the cowl and the very center body line. Everything else if pretty much smooth as glass. Then the underside needs to be done and it'll be done besides paint.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/11409307765/http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/11409312426/http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/11409336156/http://www.flickr.com/photos/100936816@N02/11409327685/

 

I have been watching your build an what a awesome job you are doing.

I may have missed it but I have two questions if you don't mind:
1. What was the dimensions in two places at the back of the hood that that formed the wedge shapes, it looks like about 3"?

2. What was the dimension across the front of the hood that forms the cowl?

 

Thanks.

1. I honestly don't know, I don't think I ever measured them and I just threw away those pieces a couple weeks ago so I can't measure it. I might try to measure it sometime after christmas when i go to my friends house. But I don't think it's quite 3", but I could be wrong.

2. Again, I don't think I measured it, if I did I never wrote it down. I'll try to measure that too next time I'm over there.

 

very nice work.. i wanna do something like this then take e.fans and face them up to blow hot air off the motor.