1981 cj5 spare tire carrier help

[money pit]

Ok I had a tire carrier rack that came on the jeep it broke, after a lot of web work looks like it was used back in the day(80s) but bad design . I dont want to spend 450 buck on a bumper holder. So what should i buy ,it looks like the rear gate m38 holder, ? my gate is solid ;no hinges . what do you guys think . This is a daily driver summer toy. Thanks for help

 

[tarry99]

Are you just looking for just a tire carrier or one that can store a pair of Fuel cans or maybe even an ice chest on top? Lots of options to think about first.
Do you do any fabrication work and can weld?
I'm looking at that rear cross member above that hitch as a perfect place to attache a carrier at its base and then tie in the top to your non-opening tailgate.........all the weight is carried by the cross member. Just some food for thought!

 

[money pit]

well I was looking to just put back the stock one . There was a swing style with two jerry cans one on each side of the spair tire that was mounted to the two corners of the jeep way to much weight and it was very weak at the swing and rusted and broke .Would like to get to the snaps on the back thats why i thought the rear mount M38 style would work . But just dont know what was stock and what did it look like ?

 

[mtnwhlr]

The stock one just bolted to the two holes in the middle of the body and the two above them at the top it was solid and did not move.

 

[money pit]

Thanks for help the one I see on line is square I would like to put The one from the M38 jeep its bumped out a bit dos any one know if this will bolt up or be close to working ,Thanks for any help

 

[bondo258]

If you want to make the carrier you have stiffer, make it a Y with one leg down, like a CJ7 carrier was built. less flex at the top that way. Do you have a reinforcement plate on the rear, also? fender washers won't do the job.

The single crossbar design seems pretty bad, I can see why the original failed. Maybe duplicate the side carrier of earlier CJ's?

The CJ7 carrier can be duplicated without a hinge fairly easily. it will handle 33 inch tires max. Remember to fab reinforcement plates for the bolts, and the top bolts go above the rear wheelhouse, the bottom should be next to fuel filler.