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DIY Overhead Accessory and Rifle Mount

EDH_JL

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State of Jefferson
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2018 JL Sport
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I made this cheap accessory and rifle mount to add a bit more storage capacity to my 2 door soft top JL Sport. A hard sided rifle case took up too much room in the back and I wanted a way to hold my rifle while transiting between hunting spots. In the truck there is enough leg room to have it at your side, not so much in the JL. I used Unistrut for a few reasons: cheap, strong, modular, and light. I can move or remove mounts easily, attach bags, radios, etc to the bar and have it within arms reach and still have plenty of headroom.

Note: hunting shotguns do not fit between the roll cage as they are too long (at least a Remington 870 with 28" barrel). Note2: Since this is California any firearms shown may have since been lost in a tragic boating accident :lipssealed:

I replaced the stock soft top bolts that hold on the drip rail with longer ones which allowed me to mount the flat stock. Take care when drilling the holes because the soft top hinges are pretty close to the bar and the holes need to be offset a bit or it won't close. I bought a slightly thicker bar to account for how close the holes will be to the edge.

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There is a lot of room between the roll cage and the soft top, even without trimming the bolts they aren't even close to hitting the fabric. You can either slot the flat stock or drill a single hole to mount the unistrut, I just drilled one hole to allow the rifle to not be directly above my head but still allow access to the soft top latches. The slotted unistrut also allows you to run a cable lock through the chamber and attach to the bar for a bit more security.

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I used quick fist mounts for the rifle, but after the picture I moved the fore-end strap over the handguard so it wasn't hanging by the barrel. They are OK, but if I find a better mount I will probably switch it out.

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Paint a dark color with whatever flat paint you have laying around, and done. I take the quickfists off when not in use and you can't even tell it's there.
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Flyslinger2

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Mark
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So sorry to hear about your tragic boating accident. There seems to be a rash of that going on lately. I wonder if extreme laws should be enacted to require extensive training prior to using boats. Or maybe boats should be outlawed.

I like the cross bar idea. Mine is a JKUS and 99% of the time my rear seats are folded down and my hard and soft cases fit o.k. Tragically all of my firearms were lost when I performed a jump off of a cliff with my Jeep while doing a reverse 2½ somersault with 2½ twists. They flew out the window. Very sad.

Your bar could hold other accessories as well. I think you have a great idea
 
 



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