My Jeep FC170 (Forward Control) "Patina Rod" project

[1x1_Speed_Craig]

I think I found a couple different (very affordable) Jeep Commander Limited "Saddle Brown" 2nd-row leather seats locally. I'll call first thing on Monday to confirm. I hadn't thought about brown seats for my FC project, but I think this would blend beautifully with the patina on the cab, and the rest of the gray FC interior.

 

[sseaman]

I think the brown seats would look great.

 

[oxfordcherokee]

Brown seats with a real cowhide headliner would be awesome!!!

 

[1x1_Speed_Craig]

I think the brown seats would look great.

Brown seats with a real cowhide headliner would be awesome!!!

Thanks, guys! That's good, because...



For less than a pair of cookie-cutter aftermarket Mastercraft suspension seats, I actually found a complete set of 2006 Jeep Commander seats (front seats, 2nd row AND 3rd row, including front seat belts & retractors) LOCALLY in the rare "Saddle Brown" color. This is the only pic I have so far. More to come once I get them home. I'm not sure yet if I'll use the front seats or the 2nd row for my truck. Time will tell...

I also have a co-worker who has a side business doing custom leather work. While I won't need all of the seats for my truck, a couple of them may very likely donate matching leather panels for things such as matching sun visor covers, arm rests/door pulls, etc.

 

[1x1_Speed_Craig]

$161.28 got me some 2nd- & 3rd-row 2006 Jeep Commander seats today. The front driver seat was torn, so I didn't get the fronts, but I found a 70K-mile matching set at a different local yard (picking them up tomorrow). I'll most likely was up using the middle section of the 2nd-row seat with the coming-soon front buckets. We'll see...

2nd-row middle section has a flip-down arm rest with "soft eject" cup holders, and integrated seat belts.

3rd-row seats may end up being leather donors for sun visors, arm rests, etc. I'm not quite sure yet.


Just to get a feel for how the seat color will blend with the FC cab's patina, I set the (boiled linseed oil treatment) Super Hurricane cylinder head on it. I love the look of them next to one another.

 

[bfr]

Those look great. Can you get measure the third row for me? Width and depth of the base, height of the back?

 

[1x1_Speed_Craig]

Those look great. Can you get measure the third row for me? Width and depth of the base, height of the back?

Just measured tonight. 3rd-row seat = 43"W x 35"H x 27"D (base track is only 20"D, but overall "footprint" with seat tilt is 27")

 

[1x1_Speed_Craig]

Interior updates...

I picked up my beautiful 2006 Jeep Commander passenger front seat. The salvage yard guy who pulled the beautiful (when I looked at them) seats punched a 1" x 1" L-shaped cut in the base of the driver seat (GRRRR). They're trying to locate another, and make things right, which I do appreciate. More info to come Monday, hopefully.

I did separate the sections of the 3-piece Jeep Commander 2nd-row fold & tumble seats to test-fit them in the FC170 cab, and see how the color looks; they are a GREAT fit in an FC, and infinitely more comfortable than the stock low-back FC seats. Note that I'll be using the wider, matching Commander *front* seats for my FC since I'm flattening my engine tunnel for more interior space; this was just to test for aesthetics.

If you do own a FC150 or FC170, and swap sides L-R with the Commander 2nd-row seats, the shoulder bolster clears the B-pillar, and the lower back cutout clears the engine tunnel/hood. There are already holes in the seat bracket that align pretty much perfectly with the stock FC cast floor brackets. With some very minor fab work for the brackets, keep this seating option in mind. I'm actually going to sell this set, as I still have the 3rd-row set to use for "donor leather" pieces.


The "Saddle Brown" leather looks GREAT with the patina!

 

[glockrocket17]

Man Craig this is looking awsome. I hope to see it in person some day if you are out and about since I live in the grand rapids area too. I am debating looking at replacement front seat options for my 02 Grand and wonder if the Commander front seats would work for me.

 

[K2ZJ]

That's awesome. Did you just guess on those seats or had you seen them before and knew about the curve and thought it might fit well?

 

[1x1_Speed_Craig]

Man Craig this is looking awsome. I hope to see it in person some day if you are out and about since I live in the grand rapids area too. I am debating looking at replacement front seat options for my 02 Grand and wonder if the Commander front seats would work for me.

Absolutely! Good to run into someone else from GR.

That's awesome. Did you just guess on those seats or had you seen them before and knew about the curve and thought it might fit well?

Dumb luck, mostly. I knew the seats would be narrower based on pics I had seen. I didn't expect to switch the left & right positions for such a great fit, however. Basically, I was experimenting, and bought all the seats because 1) I wasn't certain which ones I'd use in my own truck, and 2) They were local, and only optional (translation=relatively rare) in the Saddle Brown leather, which I definitely wanted.

 

[1x1_Speed_Craig]

I got the front axle pulled, and sold. The steering parts will help put another FC170 owner's truck back on the road. I decided I'll cut the frame behind the cab, add casters, and use the front half of the frame as a rolling dolly that will hold the cab while I do sheet metal repairs and modifications. The smaller footprint will also allow me to get Maeve's Cherokee into the garage, and out of the weather.

After disassembling several Jeeps over 15 years, this one snags the "Most Interesting Engine Pull" award (dropped out the bottom).

I ordered a set of Warn hidden mount "frame extension" plates today. My plan is to build an integrated custom winch mount/front bumper/front body mount using these as the basis. For $40 each, they're well worth the savings in fabrication time. I'll start saving my pennies for a Warn 16.5ti winch, but it'll take a while (spendy!).

 

[1x1_Speed_Craig]

Bed is now removed (and also the rear wheels/tires after taking this pic), and the steering column/box is all unhooked and ready to be pulled. Progress!

 

[1x1_Speed_Craig]

Mid-engine wanna-be!?!

I cut off the frame behind the cab, reused a Class C hitch as a makeshift rear crossmember (and will likely reuse it again in the back of the Super Duty frame when I'm further along), threw in some Jeep Cherokee spring/U-bolt plates, and some used casters. This now allows me to roll the cab around the garage to work on it, and will help maintain the structure of the cab while I do floor pan repairs/modifications.

It's a tight squeeze, but 12-year-old Maeve's XJ now fits in the garage. We'll gain a foot once I get the riding mower (in front of the FC cab) pulled out of storage.

I got my driver seat (again, from a 2006 Jeep Commander) for FREE. Weller Auto here in Grand Rapids couldn't find a replacement seat after their parts puller guy tore the base of this seat during removal, so they just ended up giving me the seat. I'm very pleased with their service, and will definitely deal with them going foward. I can get new OEM replacement seat covers at the dealer, and plan to do just that.

I also gave my leather-working co-worker my set of FC arm rests, and a leathr cover from one of the extra seats I picked up. He's making me some Saddle Brown leather arm rests (and soon to be sun visors) that'll match the seats.

Here's a Craigslist find from last weekend. The woman's late husband used to own a towing business. I'll work these cool hooks into the build somehow.

 

[joejeep92]

Awesome looking truck man. Have done a few J series but now I'm going to have to find a FC...