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Review: Tuffy Overhead Security Console for JK Wrangler
January 4, 2020
Categories: Review
If you spend much time at all reading Jeep internet forums, you know that CB and ham radio mounting and security in our Jeeps are big issues for a lot of folks. Let’s face it, the bad guys want our stuff! Tuffy Security Products manufactures a solution ideal for radios or whatever else you choose to use it for with their JK Single Compartment Overhead Console.
If you spend much time at all reading Jeep internet forums, you know that CB and ham radio mounting and security in our Jeeps are big issues for a lot of folks. Let’s face it, the bad guys want our stuff! Tuffy Security Products manufactures a solution ideal for radios or whatever else you choose to use it for with their JK Single Compartment Overhead Console. From the Tuffy website and verified, the console has:
I was immediately impressed when the product shipped to my home. The console was shipped well packed in Styrofoam, and even though the box was partially crushed on one end and I was nervous the product was damaged, it was in perfect condition. It comes with all hardware needed for installation, and the quality of the product is apparent at first glance. Installation is easy as there are only a few steps. If you have a hard top you will want to remove the freedom panels, soft toppers will want to release the windshield clamps and open the front portion of the top. Pop the plastic trim around the footman loops and remove the outer footman loops. Install the Tuffy security windshield header making sure the tab extensions that support the front of the console are parallel with the ground and replace the plastic trim.
- Single lock operation incorporating a high security 10 tumbler double bitted key
- A pre-punched hole for CB mic
- Convenient latch for holding the door open
- One swing-away door
- 4″ speaker grill cutout holds 5 1/4″ speaker
- Durable textured powder coat finish
I was immediately impressed when the product shipped to my home. The console was shipped well packed in Styrofoam, and even though the box was partially crushed on one end and I was nervous the product was damaged, it was in perfect condition. It comes with all hardware needed for installation, and the quality of the product is apparent at first glance. Installation is easy as there are only a few steps. If you have a hard top you will want to remove the freedom panels, soft toppers will want to release the windshield clamps and open the front portion of the top. Pop the plastic trim around the footman loops and remove the outer footman loops. Install the Tuffy security windshield header making sure the tab extensions that support the front of the console are parallel with the ground and replace the plastic trim.
Everything you need, minus tools, is in the shipping box. The instructions are well written.
To get started, remove the footman loops.
Next, install the console windshield header.
Snap the plastic trim back in place. Notice the position of the console support tabs.
Remove the soundbar.
Here is a view of the rear console support bracket under the soundbar.
Remount the soundbar and mount the console to the front supports by sliding the unit over the front tabs as far as possible. Install the rear and front mounting bolts, replace your top, and you’re ready to go!
View of the rear of the console, mounted with the soundbar installed.
Finished install.
The console appears to be very well designed and manufactured. I recommend that you mount the support bolts with the nuts down to avoid contact with the top panels or soft top. The security box slides rearward to allow easy access to the freedom panel latches and locks into position with a nifty slide locking mechanism.
Out on the trail, there are no rattles or squeaks and there aren’t sharp edges to bang your head into. I find no faults with the design and installation of this product, and recommend it for its intended use.
If you are looking for a quality security solution for your exposed CB radio or other small devices and items, you won’t be disappointed with Tuffy Product’s Overhead JK Security Console.
Brian Hoag
Brian has been 4 wheeling since 1976. He first learned at age 7 that "The best things in life are dirty" in a brand new 1958 Jeep FC-170 on his aunts Nebraska farm. That forward control pickup seemed like it would go anywhere and he was hooked, even though he didn't know it yet.
Jump forward to 1972... Brian's first duty assignment in the US Air Force was as a vehicle operator assigned to the USAF Survival School at Spokane, Washington. Part of his duties required hauling equipment and transporting vehicles to a remote training area in northern Washington national forest locations, and he often would be asked to take radio equipment to a mountaintop radio antenna site. The road was awful, or at least seemed that way in a 1967 6 passenger Dodge Power Wagon with 45 lbs of pressure in the tires, but it also hooked Brian on backcountry 4x4 exploration.
Brian's first 4x4 was a used '76 Ford F150 pickup. It didn't take very long to figure out that the long wheelbase of the pickup didn't work well on the narrow Colorado trails near his home, so he traded for a brand new 1983 Chevy Blazer S10. The S10 was a nice vehicle, but it wasn't a Jeep, and that was what Brian ultimately wanted. Well, it didn't take long to move over to the Jeep brand, and Brian has been the proud owner of 7 Jeeps of one sort or another over the years.
Brian has been 4 wheeling from Mexico to Alaska. After moving from Colorado, he ended up in southern Nevada where his current home is completely surrounded by public lands with thousands of miles of back roads and trails to explore.
He looks forward to sharing some of the best 4x4 trails in California's Death Valley National Park, and southern Nevada's mountain and desert locations
