Aftermarket roof rack rails?

Can anyone recommed an aftermarket roof rack upright that:

• Mounts into the factory roof rail that is bolted to the roof
• Accepts a reasonable size round tube from a non-factory roof rack

I want to make a roof rack that uses aftermarket uprights (is that the right word?). I want to do my own thing with the rack itself because I don't like any of the current offerings. I looked at the Thule and Yakima web sites but they don't show good images of the parts. If you can recommend a model from either vendor please do...or another vendor.

Thanks

r@m

If you're looking for round crossbars stick with the Yak. Thule uprights accept their rectangular tubing crossbars, which is what I've got. I don't have the part number anymore, but as I recall there was only one Thule upright that fit the Jeep rails.

I have the yakima round rails on my jeep, but they mount to the rain gutters not the stock rails. I think you are better off having racks that mount to the rain gutters anyway because they seem to be more sturdy than the stock plastic ones, and they are still easy to adjust.

exactly ditch the factory bars

Sorry guys - I should have been more clear in what I want to do...

I want to ditch the entire factory rack except the rails/sliders that the uprights move in. I'm ditching the factory uprights and just using the "track" part that is bolted to the roof.

So, I need new aftermarket uprights that work with the factory slider portion. I don't wna tto get into gutter mount stuff at this time. Or did I misread what you are suggesting?

Thanks!

r@m

i believe that both Thule and Yakima have what you want. I know for sure that Thule does and maybe it will fit round bars. Thule is starting to make alot of their products able to fit both square and round bars. I would suggest going to the websites and seeing what fits your year.

Get the square bars, to match the lines of the XJ. I just don't think round bars on an XJ look right.

I'm looking for a new rack as well, but I want to replace the rails that are attached to the roof completely. Has anyone seen a rack that would do that?
Attaching to the roof and the gutters would be best, but if it can only bolt to one of the two I would like it to use the stock rail location in the roof.

Check out www.farmboydesigns.com , they have exactly what you guys are looking for.

Yakima and Thule used to make exactly what you want (I would suspect they still do). However, the stock rack rails are WEAK. If you are going to mount any kind of rack or weight up on top, you need to mount it to the rain gutters.

Michael

Root Moose said:

Sorry guys - I should have been more clear in what I want to do...

I want to ditch the entire factory rack except the rails/sliders that the uprights move in. I'm ditching the factory uprights and just using the "track" part that is bolted to the roof.

So, I need new aftermarket uprights that work with the factory slider portion. I don't wna tto get into gutter mount stuff at this time. Or did I misread what you are suggesting?

Thanks!

r@m

Click to expand...

2xtreme said:

Yakima and Thule used to make exactly what you want (I would suspect they still do). However, the stock rack rails are WEAK. If you are going to mount any kind of rack or weight up on top, you need to mount it to the rain gutters.

Michael

Click to expand...

I disagree on the gutters, at one time I thought they were a very sturdy. My expierence is probably more partial to the trials I run. I run lots of rocks and end up with a lot of flex. On the Rubicon, I felt my gutters flexing, and soon after my gutter mounted rack failed. Luckily I was able to pull off some of the weight to get off the trail without it falling off.

When wheeling with my FB rack, I can't even feel the rub rails moving at all. Someday I'll have an interanal cage and then I'll be able to tie my rack into that.

Tha last thing about gutter mounts, most of the companies designs put the rack rather high, about 6" above the roofline. On my FB rack, the top rail is only 6" above the roofline. The biggest complaint about RR's is the COG. The tighter the rack the better your COG.

I've got Yak towers mounted on the factory rails, with the round Yak bars on the towers. Have had them since '95, and they've held up to lots of stuff over the years: 5 mountain bikes, two canoes, ski holders, and a basket case full of firewood, storage boxes, and other such junk over the years. If I recall correctly, the folks at Yak "rate" them at 150lbs; I've probably had as much as 200 or more on the roof at times; but never when heavy wheeling. Also, I keep my spare in the back, not on top. Would recommend the the Yaks anytime (but I'm partial, they're the 3rd set I've bought - even have one on the wife's Honda Odssey minivan..)