best way to mount a rack

[drewbbie]

k so here it goes ive had my cherokee for about 2 years now and the rack wich i made (copy of a confer) i mounted it to the stock roof rack mount points (big mistake) as now when i go down fire raods my rack is ratting like crazy its coz the screws that hold down the track have striped ok so i pull my rack off and undo the track 5 out of the 6 bolts come out easy enuff the 6th bolt is in there good i finaly brake it free and i find out its striped so out comes the drill and yah so my ? is wich is the best way to mount the rack my buddy has done his on his gutars but now its pulling his gutters to crap so if any one has some idea id like to hear them

thanx DrEw

 

[2xtreme]

The gutter is the best way to mount it.

The gutters will handle far more weight and stress from a rack than you would ever want.

If your friends gutters are damaged due to the rack it has to do with how the rack is held on to the gutters or due to external damage. All TRUE safari racks are mounted to the gutters and they hold tons of weight.

Michael

 

[drewbbie]

any pics of this type of rack?

 

[againstherwill]

I'd post some pic but then it put this thread in the den.

 

[Fergie]

Yakima 1A mounts.

Fergie

 

[drewbbie]

wow 4 mounts i like that but at the same time i dont haha on one hand the more that holds the rack down the better but on the outher hand i could see that it would stiffen the roof and coz its sitffer then the roof its self i could see it pulling at the gutters thats y im torn between going with 4 mounts or 6 mounts

 

[drewbbie]

ive been doing some reserch and figard out to go with 3 mounts on each side were did u get the mounts from ? and were they pricey? the outher thing i was wondering is would it be better to bolt them down with some short of a rubber bushing in there or just weld them in ?

 

[Starscream]

ive been doing some reserch and figard out to go with 3 mounts on each side were did u get the mounts from ? and were they pricey? the outher thing i was wondering is would it be better to bolt them down with some short of a rubber bushing in there or just weld them in ?

Depending on rack size and weight, you can get away with 2 on each side. For instance my Surco is 50"L x 45"W and I use only two crossbars. It works well, but my tire was weighing down the flooring, so I slid my stock crossbar under it to hold it better.

You can get those Yakima mounts from Yakima or other retailers. Google around until you get the best prices. They are pricier than other mounts, but you get what you pay for.

Welding would be stronger, but bolting with rubber bushings would work fine as long as you check them every once in a while to make sure none have backed out.

 

[JoesXJ]

new they're about $120 for 2 pairs and that doesnt include the bars which are about $50 each. Your best bet would be to look at ebay if you go the Yakima route, I've seen em go for about $40 for 2 pair.

http://search.ebay.com//search/search.dll?from=R40&satitle=yakima+1A

 

[Fergie]

Actually, my 1As only cost $30 for all 8. I got a killer online deal.

I designed mine to sleep on, and to be able to hold several people on, incase we need a better view.

And, punctuate your posts. I dont like reading them 3 times to understand what info you need from me.

Fergie

 

[dmillion]

I dont like reading them 3 times to understand what info you need from me.

If the writing is so bad that I can't understand it in one read-through then I don't bother.

 

[fizassist]

Nice, Fergie! Where'd you get the metal mesh (and how much does it weight?).

I have an oly tophat with 3 wide gutter mounts per side, and it is rock solid. I was thinking about getting some expanded steel mesh to spread out the weight of people standing up there.

 

[2xtreme]

The rack will not provide any significant stiffening to the body of the jeep (no matter how many mounts you have).

cross bars have a weight limit per bar (approximately 150# per per bar depending on the company). This is how you should determine how many crossbars you use.

Michael

 

[LINDON C. GAMBLE]

The missionary position is the easiest way to mount the rack. Seriously though, I have mine mounted to factory rails. Like they said personal preferance. Gutters are stronger.

 

[Fergie]

I got it at my local metal shop.

It was $60 for a 4'x8' sheet.

Although akward, I can lift the whole rack by myself with no issues.

Fergie

 

[Ramsey]

while shes sleeping

 

[GSequoia]

Those Yakima mounts are awesome, I picked up four when that deal was going around

That said a rack can be plenty strong bolted directly to the roof. With this you gain some side clearance and obviously if you tear off rain gutters you don't have to worry about the rack.

The key here is getting new nutzerts. The factory rack is held not by nutzerts but by well nuts; these are rubber mounted so they don't leak. The problem lies is that the rubber A: isn't strong and B: rots through after some years. You want to get slightly larger nutzerts and preferably a nutzert tool to install them and you'll have good service.

Search Mod Tech for Nutzert posted by Farmer Matt - there is some very good information there including a source for said 'zerts.

Also - I second Fergie's post; gotta brush up on the writing skills, I almost didn't read this post. Internet shorthand is probably the most frustrating thing to attempt to read through while trying to answer a technical question. It is fine for bullshitting with friends (although I still prefer real English writing) but hellish when you are trying to describe a problem/idea.

Sequoia

 

[drewbbie]

k cool that helps me out alot, when i had it mounted to the roof it was fine . till the bolts that held the track down stripped and when i would go on fire roads it would rattle. i think im going with the gutters this time tho. maybe when i build the cage ill just mount the rack to the top of the cage.

 

[raneil]

Yakima 1A mounts.

Fergie

Help me out a little here, Fergie. I confuse easily! :laugh3:

The top of the mount pictured here looks quite different from the pictures of the 1A on Yakima's website. What am I missing?

http://yakima.com/home.html

 

[IndianaXJWheeler]

Im looking into the olympic top hat rack but i had read that people were having problems with the mounting brackets, anyone here have one or had any problems with them? any comments would be great!
-Matt