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New roof rack need help

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NCjeepgirl83

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Charlotte, NC/Birmingham, England
OK so I ended up getting a con-ferr roof rack, but I need a little help with it. The paint is peeling and a bit rusted in areas, and my friend who brought it up for me said I should have it sandblasted and resprayed black. Is this something I could do myself, or get someone who knows what they're doing to do, or should I take it to a body shop or something to have done?

Also, how do I get the cross members off the top of my XJ so I can mount this thing? And is there only one size of Con-ferr that'll fit on a 4 dr XJ? Cos mine seems a bit longer than the ones I've seen; however I haven't mounted it on the XJ yet so...

Lastly, how do I put off-road lights on it? I'd like to have 2 in the back and 2-4 in the front, but I don't know how to mount them and I don't see any light tabs...

Thanks in advance guys! :cheers:
 
The best thing you could do would be to sand blast it then powder coat it, but that would take a bit of money.... What i would do is wire brush the rusted spots and where the paint is chipping, then rough it up with some 80grit, and give it a few coats of paint, it should hold up just fine and cost maybe $15 in paint.
 
After reading your build thread, no, this isn't something you can do yourself.

Find somebody with a drill and a wire wheel and take them the rack and a case of beer and ask them to prep it for paint. Somebody with a sandblaster would be quicker, but not necessary. Then you can use a rust inhibiting primer and paint to finish it.

You will need to remove the end caps from the rails mounted to the roof of your Jeep and then slide the bars off.

Then you buy a light kit that includes wiring and take the Jeep to somebody else with the light and another case of beer. They'll most likely run the wiring through a door jam and behind your trim, or through the mounting holes for the factory rack in the roof if they're really motivated.
 
Hehe thanks...god I feel so helpless when it comes to all of this...:confused:

The main reason I got this rack is to put a full size spare on it, but in order to do that, do I need any mounting hardware or just throw it up there and hope it stays in place?

Sorry for all the stupid questions, I'm new to all this! (In case you couldn't tell already...lol)
 
NCjeepgirl83 said:
Hehe thanks...god I feel so helpless when it comes to all of this...:confused:

The main reason I got this rack is to put a full size spare on it, but in order to do that, do I need any mounting hardware or just throw it up there and hope it stays in place?

Sorry for all the stupid questions, I'm new to all this! (In case you couldn't tell already...lol)
Click to expand...

Your going to want to at least throw a tow strap or some rop over it and tie it down so it doesnt move around at all.

-Alex
 
My rack came with the gutter mounting hardware but I want to mount it to the existing factory roof rails. Where can I get the right hardware to do that? I guess that's what I get for buying a product that's out of production...lol
 
If I were you, I'd use the gutter mounting hardware. It's sturdier than the stock bars. I've got a roof mounted bike rack, on gutter mounts. It goes on/comes off very easily, and it's rock solid.
 
you could go with por-15 all you would have to do is remove anything loose. They sell a 6 pack 3 4oz cans of por-15 and 3 4oz cans of blackcote(por15 fades in direct sunlight) it's about $45. it will be more than enough for the roof rack and you will definitely find uses for the rest of it.
 
NCjeepgirl83 said:
My rack came with the gutter mounting hardware but I want to mount it to the existing factory roof rails. Where can I get the right hardware to do that? I guess that's what I get for buying a product that's out of production...lol
Click to expand...

The gutter mounts are far stronger, you should stick with them.
 
I've got the big con-ferr 6" on mine.After seeing the Krenik bros. bent rain gutters from running the same exact rack with bulldog clamps, and talking with them about their experiences with the rack sliding on the gutters, I chose to mount it with con-ferr factory rail mounts.I've run it like this for several years now with 33" spare, hi lift jack, shovel, 6 lights, and camping gear.Nothing has budged.The paint is fading and its getting a bit rusty, so I'll take it to my local powder coaters where they'll sandblast and powder coat it for a 100 bucks and change when I get un lazy.Here is how I did my lights.They are con-ferr light tabs.I also have two on the back and a tab that holds the cb antennae.

original.jpg
 
Looks nice cloudswimmer! I think that's the one I got too, even tho I was looking for a smaller one. Oh well. Mine's gonna be a lot bigger on it than I was hoping for...
 
NCjeepgirl83 said:
Looks nice cloudswimmer! I think that's the one I got too, even tho I was looking for a smaller one. Oh well. Mine's gonna be a lot bigger on it than I was hoping for...
Click to expand...

I had the smaller 4" one up there before this one, and with the spare up there have used every square inch of this bigger one to an advantage over my smaller one.If you do multi day camping trips your going to like the bigger one, plus the bigger one looks cooler to me than my smaller one did.I just realized con-ferr is no more, so you'll probably have no choice but to use the gutter mounts that you have.
 
here's my setup. Not a con-ferr rack (a Blackout), but it's mounted to Thule crossbars and feet into the factory rack track. The basket is through-bolted on the rails, so it's not going anywhere.

btw, Blackout racks come unpainted, so mine was prepped with a etching spray and 3 coats of POR-15 (primer and chassis-coat black) to keep the rust away. I've had to touch up a few spots, but only because I did a lousy job painting it the first time. Also here's how my lights are setup in case you care.

jeep055.jpg


Alexandra075.jpg


jeeplights014.jpg
 
cloudswimmer said:
I've got the big con-ferr 6" on mine.After seeing the Krenik bros. bent rain gutters from running the same exact rack with bulldog clamps, and talking with them about their experiences with the rack sliding on the gutters, I chose to mount it with con-ferr factory rail mounts.I've run it like this for several years now with 33" spare, hi lift jack, shovel, 6 lights, and camping gear.Nothing has budged.The paint is fading and its getting a bit rusty, so I'll take it to my local powder coaters where they'll sandblast and powder coat it for a 100 bucks and change when I get un lazy.Here is how I did my lights.They are con-ferr light tabs.I also have two on the back and a tab that holds the cb antennae.

original.jpg
Click to expand...

looking good...where did you get that shovel mount??
 
gijosiahh said:
looking good...where did you get that shovel mount??
Click to expand...

Thanks, the shovel mount, hi-lift mount, and tire mount are all from wilderness products.
 
They are great racks and will definately stand up to some abuse. But I would absolutely not powder coat it. POwdercoat looks great and requires little mntc until it gets chippad and some water gets in there. Rust and all kinds of uglyness can fester under powder coat, hidden under the hard surface. I would media blast it, prime it very well and rattle can flat black it or have it rhino lined. The rattle can treatment will require some touch up over time, but it is quick and simple.

If you are going to mount your spare up there i would absolutely mechanicly fasten it to the rack. I just got some first hand experience about what happens to roof racks and the stuff in them if you get in a wreck. (See thread "AAh! The unthinkable.......")
 
CJ's98XJ said:
They are great racks and will definately stand up to some abuse. But I would absolutely not powder coat it. POwdercoat looks great and requires little mntc until it gets chippad and some water gets in there. Rust and all kinds of uglyness can fester under powder coat, hidden under the hard surface. I would media blast it, prime it very well and rattle can flat black it or have it rhino lined. The rattle can treatment will require some touch up over time, but it is quick and simple.

If you are going to mount your spare up there i would absolutely mechanicly fasten it to the rack. I just got some first hand experience about what happens to roof racks and the stuff in them if you get in a wreck. (See thread "AAh! The unthinkable.......")
Click to expand...

I would disagree with the powder coating., Been running Con-Ferr racks on various vehicles since 1990.All of them powder coated by Olympic powder coating in Santa Ana, CA.The finish is very hard and I've never had a chip or rust problem on the racks after they were powder coated by olympic.My bumpers have the same exact finish also, and I've just touched them up with krylon semi flat when rock bruised..Look at my front bumper earlier in this thread, its over 2 years old now and looks as good as the day I picked it up from olympic.Everything has lasted beautifully up to the point I sold the vehicles. I do live in So.Cal though where the weather is mild.
 
My conferr rusted too. I coated it with por, 3 coats of rust primer, then 3 coats of semi gloss black. My Custom 4x4 winch bumper had the same problem with power coating. Guess you should'nt wait till it gets bad, but I don't have a garage and wont paint in the driveway in the winter.
 
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