Best Family Cage and Pix!

[chuck]

How well do these clear an original hardtop with wiper motor cover?

The BCB cage was designed to clear both.

 

[Cvcoda]

Mine from Virga was made to fit both.


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[kholding]

West Coast Broncos cage.

 

[Cortez]

KHolding - that is one sweet rig!

 

[kholding]

Thanks Cortez. It's been a fun build. Lots of help from everyone here on Classicbroncos!

 

[FlogginHarvey]

KHolding - that is one sweet rig!

Ditto. Love that ride

 

[Crush]

This a an old kentrol cage i boight years ago and just recently used. I modified it a bit. Added bars from the center hoop to the wheel tubs and moved the spreaders from the center hoop to front hoop from the outsides to the center. I also had to shorten the height of the front hoop and raise the height of the family section

 

[englewoodcowboy]

There are lots of options for cages out there and you have to be careful and really put thought into your intended use, street use, safety for that what if moment, looks, off road use where it will be used often bumping off obstacles etc. The basic old school roll bar provided protection in a roll over for the front passengers only so long as the tub it was attached to was healthy. Next bump is the family roll cage, it provides a little more body rigidity and provides a rear hoop for the rear passengers. Then you go to the next step of a 6 point, this gives even more protection but with compromise, it means dealing with glove box interference, foot well intrusion, some have been carefully bent to provide easier access and less intrusion while others are more robust providing seat mounts, door bars etc. If you go the latter route, you need to tie it to the frame to truly be solid as others have mentioned. My personal bronco has a custom cage from Nicks Trix, it is non intrusive and tucked as I plan on leaving the top on so I wanted protection in the unfortunate event of a roll over but I also wanted 3 point seat belts. Now the cage is well built however I would not rely on it if I were an off roader and was going to be using the cage literally as they do in that world, it is not tied to the frame and I would certainly want seats tied into it etc. So there are many different levels of protection and needs out there. For my customers right now, they are street cruisers so we are using Krawlers Edge cages which is a 4 point rear but has 2 upper bars that tie into the windshield frame. Its biggest bonus for me is it leaves the eagress wide open and if something failed on the AC and I had to pull the dash, I do not have to pull the top and cage to get the dash out. The windshield frame offers no support but also having the DOM tubes tie into it will lessen the chance of it folding in on the passengers which is sufficient for my present customers needs as well as it makes the windshield rigid for running a soft top or bikini top. Bottom line is really put the thought in and get the result you will be happiest with. There are many options out there and all are good for their intended design, just make sure you pick an appropriate design to meet your intended use. If you go full on off road and tie the cage to the frame you get a very rigid vehicle but it also rides that way...

 

[AZ73]

There are lots of options for cages out there and you have to be careful and really put thought into your intended use, street use, safety for that what if moment, looks, off road use where it will be used often bumping off obstacles etc. The basic old school roll bar provided protection in a roll over for the front passengers only so long as the tub it was attached to was healthy. Next bump is the family roll cage, it provides a little more body rigidity and provides a rear hoop for the rear passengers. Then you go to the next step of a 6 point, this gives even more protection but with compromise, it means dealing with glove box interference, foot well intrusion, some have been carefully bent to provide easier access and less intrusion while others are more robust providing seat mounts, door bars etc. If you go the latter route, you need to tie it to the frame to truly be solid as others have mentioned. My personal bronco has a custom cage from Nicks Trix, it is non intrusive and tucked as I plan on leaving the top on so I wanted protection in the unfortunate event of a roll over but I also wanted 3 point seat belts. Now the cage is well built however I would not rely on it if I were an off roader and was going to be using the cage literally as they do in that world, it is not tied to the frame and I would certainly want seats tied into it etc. So there are many different levels of protection and needs out there. For my customers right now, they are street cruisers so we are using Krawlers Edge cages which is a 4 point rear but has 2 upper bars that tie into the windshield frame. Its biggest bonus for me is it leaves the eagress wide open and if something failed on the AC and I had to pull the dash, I do not have to pull the top and cage to get the dash out. The windshield frame offers no support but also having the DOM tubes tie into it will lessen the chance of it folding in on the passengers which is sufficient for my present customers needs as well as it makes the windshield rigid for running a soft top or bikini top. Bottom line is really put the thought in and get the result you will be happiest with. There are many options out there and all are good for their intended design, just make sure you pick an appropriate design to meet your intended use. If you go full on off road and tie the cage to the frame you get a very rigid vehicle but it also rides that way...

^^^^^^^ Might want to put that in the FAQ section. One of the best write-up's I've seen, and add in Nothing Special's comments too

I had mine custom made at a local shop. They built off the factory roll bar that wasn't square in my Bronco (so watch for that if it's applicable to you).

Some things to think about ahead of time:

• grab handles for all 4 seating positions (I didn't do this and really wish I would have)
• stereo speakers (I wish I had tabs on mine to mount speakers in the top front corners)
• clearance for top (pretty obvious, but also, will the soft top bow clear the back cage to fold down flat? Mine doesn't, which isn't that bad, but I'd prefer if it did)
• seat belt provisions (I have my shoulder harnesses attached to the 'cage, and the seat belt retractors are bolted to the mounting feet)
• dome lights (I have aftermarket lights zip-tied to my 'cage which gives good flexibility, but mounting tabs might be nicer)
• wiring? (I don't know if it's feasible to run wires through the 'cage, but if you can it would be cleaner than running dome light and speaker wire on the outside of the tubing)
• air tank? (I've heard of people putting fittings in a cage that was drilled and welded to act as a tank for an on-board compressor. I don't know if this is a good idea or a horribly bad idea, but if you're going to think about it you should before the 'cage is welded together)

Also there are some clearance issues that may or may not be no-brainers:

• people's heads (duh!)
• wiper motor
• emergency brake pedal (I can't get at mine at all)
• window cranks (probably not a problem unless you move the front down-tubes back far enough to clear the emergency brake)

 

[Vin218]

For my customers right now, they are street cruisers so we are using Krawlers Edge cages which is a 4 point rear but has 2 upper bars that tie into the windshield frame.

This is an interesting option, do you have any pictures of this setup? How are you mounting the bars to the windshield frame?

 

[AZ73]

This is an interesting option, do you have any pictures of this setup? How are you mounting the bars to the windshield frame?

yeah, I went to their site and they don't even list a cage.

 

[Yeller]

Said it before and saying it again. As a fabricator if I hadn't built my own and had special needs due to my unique build I'd have a bailie Bilt. I can confirm it fits both soft and hard tops and with the straight spreaders you can leave the headliner in your hard top too. And due to the design no need to tie to the frame. It also does a great job of stiffening the body and frame so it drives more modern as well.

 

[englewoodcowboy]

I will try to get CLarence to chime in. He has the links to the cage photos.


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[Crude dude]

I cant believe Proto Fab hasnt been mentioned at all. Maybe its because I live near them and friends of the family but I think their stuff is amazingly well built and thought out. I bought a family cage of theirs and he modified it for me so I dont get the stink bug look, we cut two inches out of the rear hoop so it slightly slopes downward. Ill try to post pictures.