Mounts for a roof rack

Hey all,

I'm just starting to add some mods to my taco, and I'm starting with adding crossbars and a basket to my ARE shell. The problem is, I can't seem to find exactly what parts I need to add crossbars. I'm new to this, so I might not be looking in the right place. If you look at the attached pic, I'm trying to find mounts that can be added to the railings on my shell. I just can't seem to find them anywhere.

If anyone has any suggestions on where to look or links they can send, I would appreciate it! Any/all tips are welcome, I'm brand new to "builds" so I need all the help I can get.

Thanks!!

 

They appear to be Yakima tracks

 

So would that mean that they’re only compatible to Yakima cross bars or is it more about just whatever crossbars fit?

 

That I’m not sure. You could probably get the threaded metal inserts from Yakima (or make some yourself) and then mount whatever you want.

They are just a simple threaded small rectangular piece of metal

 

I have the same tracks. I’m a Yakima guy so here is a list: Yakima Landing Pad #4, 2 pairs; 4 Yakima Skyline towers; 2 Yakima round bars or Aero bars at the length of your choice. I use round bars in 58” for 3 or 4 kayaks and the 66” bars for 4 or more kayaks. The Skyline towers use different adapters for round or Aero bars so don’t forget those. Keys are optional and expensive, the whole damn set up is expensive but very strong and stable and Yakima has so many configurations for anything you want to carry. There are a few other brands that will work in those tracks but I don’t know all the parts and such. I hope this helps.

 

yeah that helps a ton. Good to get specific names of parts. Thanks!!

 

Agreed, those look like Yakima tracks but Thule uses the same size as do a couple of others if you don't want to use Yakima products for some reason. Joe covered it pretty well. I've got the older round bars on mine (66" for the extra real estate*) but if I were doing it today I'd use one of the aero bars, not for the noise reduction but because the attachments don't rotate on them (ex. kayak saddles are bad about rotating when pushing a long touring boat onto them).

*I sometimes carry multiple boats or a combination of cargo box or rack, boats, bicycles, fishing rod tube, etc. The 66" bars are about as wide as the truck at the fender flares so it's also convenient for hanging things on them such as a small lantern, sleeping bags (when drying/airing them), solar shower bags, etc. I've also secured the rod tube under the bar so that I could fit more junk on top. You can always cut them down if you decide they're too wide.

 

I would go Aero bars if I could start over again. The round bars corrode and split the plastic covers. All my stuff is Craigslist finds and you can find great deals if you have patience. And yes my kayak pads do rotate sometimes when loading or unloading. Go Aero because Yakima is moving away from the round bars. Thule is another fantastic company but I don’t know their gear, both companies have great product. For new Yakima gear you are looking at about $400 for towers, cross bars and adapters, stuff lasts forever though. Cheers.

 

agreed, I’m going to keep an eye on Craigslist and this forum to get a used setup so I can save some money. Thanks for the tips !