LAS VEGAS - Greg Henderson is pointing to the front of his latest Jeep build Tuesday morning as another in a long line of passers-by stops and asks a few questions inside the Las Vegas Convention Center's South Hall.
He talks for a minute about the build, smiles, and the passer-by - a large man with wispy white hair clutching a well-worn smartphone - nods and ambles off. Perhaps he noticed Henderson is wearing a kilt. Perhaps not.
"Henderson," another voice says. "What the heck are you wearing?"
"It's called a kilt," Henderson replies. "Don't you know your clothing?"
"Well, I thought it was a skirt."
"No, no, a skirt is when you have something worn underneath," Henderson says with a laugh.
The man, like the creations he builds, is certainly unique.
Today, as the 2016 SEMA show kicks off its 50th anniversary, he is showing off the latest project; a 2014 JK Rubicon Wrangler that Henderson decided would look much better with a 2001 XJ Cherokee front end. He calls it 'Project Pathkiller'.
Henderson, whose previous vehicle designs are renown in the aftermarket world, was asked by myTop earlier this year to come up with something interesting for one of their SEMA display vehicles. myTop is an aftermarket company which retails quick-folding electric convertible soft tops for Jeep Wranglers.
"myTop contracted me as a builder because they wanted something that grabbed attention," Henderson says. "So I wanted to do a nostalgic build because nostalgic builds are some of the most popular."
"The body lines of a JK mimic that of an XJ. And those nostalgic builds that have been done...are all different versions, but nothing unique, so I didn't want to do the same thing as someone else has done and be under their spotlight."
According to Henderson, the project's build time took about four months, with one month spent at the paint shop, and probably would have been done a bit sooner if he wasn't waiting on parts here and there to arrive. But overall the project proceeded smoothly, he says, with the exception of some seating trouble that took a few sets to rectify.
Henderson designed the, uh, call it an XJK, in his Unoffical Use Studio and says he was inspired by the early 19th-century story of Chief Pathkiller, who is generally regarded as the last chief of the Cherokee nation. Pathkiller served as the Cherokee tribe's chief from 1811-1827.
Many from across the off-road world donated accessories for the project including Quadratec, Factory 55, JCR Offroad, JKS Manufacturing, Omix-ADA, RIPP Supercharger, Teraflex, and Truck-Lite.
The vehicle sports Quadratec's Q9500is winch in its front bumper.
"I'm really happy with the way this turned out," Henderson says. "But one thing I want to do, I really want to do axles (to finish off the project vehicle) and make it bulletproof."
"This thing needs to be used."
Pathkiller Glamour Shots:
