Another of the projects I was putting off was the creation of a transmission cover. It’s really nice to be crossing these small projects off the project list. It’s not a thing of beauty, but it will do for now.

It turns out that the bad hood I had from one of the jeeps I purchased has been a great source of foldable, flat steel. So, I used a chunk of it to fold together a cover.

Before doing any cutting, I used some cardboard pieces to create a mockup. Here’s a look at most of the pieces in place (I actually had more, but removed them, then realized I hadn’t taken a pic, so I threw a few of them back on ..)

Here’s a pic of the flat steel from the hood:

Next, I drew some basic lines that I used as an outline for cutting and bending the piece. Then, I used a cutting wheel to create a rough cutout of what I wanted. Boy I wish I had had a cutting wheel for my first jeep! That little 4.5″ cutting wheel has been invaluable.

Once I did a rough cut, I made an initial bend (note the clean working space .. lol):

Because of the odd and curved shapes, I cut a little, tested it, cut a little and tested it again. Once I was convinced it would work, I sanded it down and made some additional folds:

After testing it some more, I made the last fold and riveted it in place.

With it finished, I drilled the holes necessary to mount the rubber boot on top and to attach the cover to the body.

All that was left to do was to paint the piece with Herculiner to match the body floor. By this morning the paint was dry, so I installed the cover:

And, from the other side:

Once I grab a rubber dual boot for the transfer case shifter (if any one has one of these, I’m open to a trade or cash!),  I’ll create a small piece to complete the cover.