ERMB's D-I-Y Rack System Build

I'd say mine is about 30lbs. I did use a few aluminum bars on mine along with the super strut.

 

Thanks for getting back to me. I ended up taking a stab at making one, it was a little over the weight I wanted at 55 lbs. Mine was a bit longer (64") and I have too many of the unistrut cross bars.


I'm going to try removing the last 4 cross bars and shortening the length of the rack this weekend.

 

Yeah, that's a lot of cross members. If you can find an aluminum material to substitute you can cut down on a good amount of weight. I happened to have a few broken aluminum easels that had useable parts for my application.

 

I've been wanting to build one of these ever since I got my cap a few weeks ago, but finally just took the time to read the whole thread, and I'm glad I did. I absolutely love the DIY design and how damn versatile the unistrut is! One thing I may add to mine is a mesh flooring. I got this particular material idea from Overland Bound. Apparently this overlapping chicken coop flooring is stout as hell, and pretty light. One guy put it on his rack so he can stand and take photos from it, and it doesn't deflect.

https://www.farmtek.com/farm/supplies/prod1;ft_building_materials-ft_mats_flooring;pgha2215.html

 

Interesting product.. I can think of several uses. Thanks.

 

Just remember, don't use it for turkeys.

 

Good thing I'm about to buy ostriches.

 

@danielhfranks @EPH What you guys think about making one?

 

Great thread, guys. Really has me thinking about how I want to add a rack to my cap. Bunch of Q's for those that have done this:

First off, unistrut or superstrut brand or does it matter?

I have an older Jason Industries fiberglas cap on the truck. Jason's website doesn't have much info and nothing listed on weight capacity. The cap does not have any rails or mount points. I cannot tell if there is any reinforcing on the roof of the cap.

I plan on running rails inside the cap to distribute the weight from the rack as well as give me additional attachment points inside for fishing rods, etc. I saw another person had used spring spacers as mounting blocks for the rack, I think that's the way to go for me unless one of you has a better idea? If I run a rack the full length of the cap, should I plan on doing more than 2 mount points per rail? to better distribute the weight? Should I be putting my mounts on just the perimeter of the cap or running some in the field to better distribute the weight? Thinking that if I do 3-3-3 it should be snug and not risk putting too much pressure on one area. If my numbers are right, my rack will add about 50lbs to the cap top.

Curious to see how some of you have configured your racks for actual trips, too. Figure that depending on the trip, this will hold a combination of the Thule box, the shower tube, a vertical kayak rack and/or a hull saddle rack. How difficult is it to swap mounts off the struts? My heavy kayak is about 70lbs, if I do the full length ABS shower tube that's another 60lbs. I'm pushing up to 200 really quickly with the Thule box, too. No plans of a roof-top tent, too hard to get the two dogs up the ladder. I'm not dead lifting an 80lb mutt.

Any issues with long term mounting and these working their way loose? Causing stress fractures in the fiberglas?

Thanks ya'll!

 

It doesn't matter in terms of the brand. At least I don't think. And I'm the one who used the spacers. I think I have 8 spacers total. I've stood on top my shell with this rack and it doesn't move at all. (I'm 6' and about 190lbs) My shell is just a standard shell and doesn't have any reinforcement.
And in terms of spacers I think the 3-3-3 would work better than my 2-2-2-2. The middle of each individual bar will sag a little bit if I put all my weight on it.

 

Thanks! I'm thinking of using these as spacers, and they're stupidly cheap from Rock Auto, only $3.80/pair. http://www.rockauto.com/en/parts/metro,MW10040,coil+spring+booster,1000755

How tall are yours laying on their side? I only see the the 2.5" length dimension on Rock Auto and Metro's websites. Thinking that in order to get some side lights mounted under the bar, I may have to take the rack width out slightly wider than the cap. Shouldn't be any issue since the cap tapers into the center and top isn't as wide as the footprint. Any suggestions on a slightly higher riser? I don't know that I want to double up on the strut to make it taller quite yet.

 

I have 4 that are thicker ones (maybe 3") and 4 that are 2.5". I used the thinner ones towards the middle to account for the curve of the shell. I went to a couple different auto stores and bought different thickness because they are so cheap.

 

Thanks, I think I may just start off with the thicker ones since the top of the cap is fairly uniform. Worst case I can shave them down to conform. 3" should give me enough clearance to run a small LED bar on the sides.

I'm wondering out loud now if I can thread really long eye bolts from the top down to sandwich the exterior bits to the internal (outside two) rails, putting an eye in 6 of the 9 fixed positions on the interior. Theory I'm working off of is that anything that hangs from the eyes will have its weight evenly distributed along the rail and across the whole roof. Thought being I could put a cargo net between the eyes on and sling lightweight gear like sleeping bags.

Then again, I may be over thinking this. I could use the internal rails to hang some quick fists and mount a shovel and axe internally. Lots of options!

 

Subd

 

subd awesome stuff guys!

 

I don't think I ever actually contributed my final product to this thread! Just put it through the first test by taking the truck wheeling with the RTT and the rack help up great. I will say that the decorative side pieces make a hell of a lot of difference, and highly recommend them. I ordered mine online as I couldn't find anywhere local.

https://www.onlinemetals.com/merchant.cfm?pid=1129&step=4&showunits=inches&id=997&top_cat=60

I bought the 72" long one and rounded the edges with my angle grinder and a flap disc.

 

Looks good man. I might need to check this out sometime. Did you use the same bolts combo as ERMB? I'm thinking hex head bolts instead of truss head screws? I'm also looking at 3/8 cone nuts and 3/8 x 16 stainless with 3/8 washers and nylock nuts? Was also thinking of doing the side piece like Samiam so I have slots. I like the use of the lights as well I'm gonna run some of the rear and maybe off sides like yours later.

 

I did use the same screws as him, and I wish I would have used regular bolts instead. It would have been easier to get them tighter. I did use nylock nuts in addition to the regular nuts on each one, so it won't come undone at least.

 

@ERMB Would be proud!

 

Has anyone put one of these on an access cab truck? Have any dimensions? I did some measuring and think I can fab up one thats 3' long x 4' wide with 4 crossbars.

Ive been kickin around the idea of adding one to my truck. We built one for my buddy's T4R and its worked out well.