roof rack

[WildernessJeep]

How many surfboards?? The stock rack will carry about four with no mods other than pads.

 

[nozzleboy352]

Id say anywhere from 3 to 6 on a given day. The racks just seem flimsy and Id hate to put thousands of dollars on it just to have it blow away in the wind. any recommendations?

 

[WildernessJeep]

Yakima makes good stuff, and two 48" bars with pads bolted to gutter mounts should do the trick. Personally, I'd just carry them on the factory rack. I carried my windsurfer/canoe up there all the time with no problems.

What year factory rack are we talking about?? Some years came with a "half rack", which only came halfway down the roofline. Mine was a full rack, so I could get the rails about six feet apart. Like I said, no problems, just strap 'em down, off you go. Plus, nobody will steal a factory rack, so you can just leave it up there. A yakima is going to have to be watched.

How the hell do you ride six surfboards at once???

 

[nozzleboy352]

ha well only ride one at a time. but depending on conditions maybe bring a couple for back up. and when you do that with a couple other friends it starts to add up. lol I remember once for 3 of us I think we had 8 in the back of a truck. A little over kill? maybe, but hey better to over pack and have your quiver there than wish you had brought the other board and be screwed. so you think the factory rack will do? is there anything I could do to just reinforce it, that flimsiness scares me.

 

[badron]

I did pull my rail lose twice but both time I had massive loads up there and was twisting her bad on trail. Both times I was asking for it. Use you head and the stock rack is more then up to most jobs. Really did not mean to bad mouth the stock rack.

 

[WildernessJeep]

6-8 longboards will be pushing the factory rack, and if that's what you are doing, you are right to look into an aftermarket rack.

You can carry 4 shortboards on the factory rack, no problems, as long as they are strapped down correctly, your rack is in good condition, and is being used properly. Just move the rails as far apart as you can get them, put some pads on them, and strap down the boards. I never liked using rachet straps on my fiberglass toys because they are actually too strong, and can crease your toy.

You never answered, do you have the full roof rack, or the half rack???

 

[nozzleboy352]

oh sorry never saw the question about the full or half rack. Im not really sure which I have, I thought they only came with one. How can I tell which one I have?

 

[WildernessJeep]

Do you have rails that go the entire length of the roof, or do your rails start just behind the drivers doors? They all go to the same place in the rear.

 

[nozzleboy352]

alright I have full racks. they go the entire length of the roof, Id assume those are better

 

[WildernessJeep]

Yeah, like I said, 4 shortboards, no problem. Regardless of how many boards you ride at once.

 

[nozzleboy352]

haha thanks man appreciate the info

 

[Blaine B.]

I use the factory roof/luggage rack for my kayak. It is a little scary at times. The kayak is extremely light (about 40ibs), but since it is a 17 ft touring kayak it tends to try to swing around a little bit in the wind at highway speeds and it bounces around (from the bars flexing) a good bit when I go over bumps. Even when it's tied up at the front and back. Luckily, I only have to go about a mile to get to one of the local water holes.

I don't think I would even try to carry two at a time on the factory rack. All that Yakima and Thule stuff seems pretty expensive for what it is. I may try to make something myself when the weather gets a little cooler.

If you get the newer roofrack crossbars (from a 99+ Cherokee or whatever) they are way more sturdy and don't flex like the older crossbars do.

That's what I did. They are thicker, bigger crossbars.....more sturdy too! And I think thye are a bit more aerodynamic, which also helps!

 

[nozzleboy352]

ok cool. do I need the complete rack or do the crossbars just slide on the the tracks I have now?

 

[Blaine B.]

Well if you have the rails after like 91, they will just slide on without modification. You do have to loosen the torx screw at the end in order to slide out the endcaps.

 

[WildernessJeep]

Back when I had a factory rack, I found loads were much more stable if you put them towards the edge, rather than in the middle. It looks a little weird, but the span isn't as stressed.

 

[Ecomike]

I tried the newer crossbars, mid 90's version, but don't know the exact years, and found that the newer cross bars would NOT slide properly in the older, circa 1985 to 87 model rails, but was pleasantly surprised to find that they newer rails fit the oldest bolt hole pattern in the roofs left by the old rails. If you get the JY cross bars from a newer jeep, get the newer rails that match them.

ok cool. do I need the complete rack or do the crossbars just slide on the the tracks I have now?

 

[Blaine B.]

x2. Mid 90's rails all the way up to 2001 are the same, however. Just the crossbars are different.

Here are the crossbars I speak of. I think Grand Cherokee's always used these, actually. So that'd be another option for a source of these as well!

 

[Ecomike]

The newer OEM crossbars are definately supperior to the old OEM crossbars that were on my 1985 Cherokee Pioneer. My 87 and 89 jeeps already had the newer crossbars, not sure if the were prior owner JY pull & upgrades or the origonal stock crossbars on the 87 & 89 Chreokee & Wagoneer.

 

[JTwthaXJ]

Hey WildernessJeep, do you have anymore pics of your rack? Or can you post any plans if you have them? I have been wanting to build something very similiar to yours and mounting it in the same manner, but being able to look at someone else's plans may help. Thanks

 

[WildernessJeep]

I don't have any plans. I just "built it". PM me with your email and I'll send you pictures of the fabrication process.