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Bed rail rack.. opinions?

Discussion in '2nd Gen. Tacomas (2005-2015)' started by TNDrew, Jun 8, 2012.

  1. Jun 8, 2012 at 8:47 PM
    #1
    TNDrew

    TNDrew [OP] Well-Known Member

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    http://www.lowes.com/pd_59876-60889..._s?Ntt=tracrac+aluminum+truck+rack&facetInfo=


    ^^ anybody used this bed rail rack? The wife is hell bent on getting a couple of kayaks so Im looking for better ways to haul them. I saw the tracrac and that shit looks great. I wish I could afford one, this looks a little more my range.

    I have a mech engineer friend who says we could design and build one. Anybody done this? Any luck or links?
     
  2. Jun 9, 2012 at 8:59 AM
    #2
    BTO

    BTO Well-Known Member

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    I designed and built my own canoe rack from sprinkler pipe. I know it sounds cheesy but it works fantastic and only cost me about $20. It might not work for your kayaks.
    [​IMG]
     
  3. Jun 9, 2012 at 11:09 PM
    #3
    forana

    forana Well-Known Member

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    No money, all went to truck...
    if someone can show me how to mount racks on my bed with my BakFlip I'll be your best friend.

    And I don't like the bakflip racks. They are too expensive and ugly.
     
  4. Jun 10, 2012 at 5:43 AM
    #4
    Mr.Schertz

    Mr.Schertz Well-Known Member

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    i lay my kayaks down in the bed of my single cab 5 lugger. I actually stack them on top of each other. Just tighten the down with straps. No extra 300-400 dollars for a rack system.
     
  5. Jun 10, 2012 at 6:06 AM
    #5
    Rackster

    Rackster Well-Known Member

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    Some advice: consider your payload. The cost of replacement should your homegrown system fails vs making a valid claim against a rack manufacturer. I saw many homegrown solutions over the years and many were outright dangerous. You need to be thinking about the guy in front of you at the stoplight and the car tailgating. If things go badly, innocent folks could be at risk. That of course is the worst case scenario. On the lighter side, you need to consider the cost of replacement for your watercrafts.

    If cost for new is too outrageous, I recommend to folks to checkout ebay or CL. You might find what you are looking for within a reasonable drive. If you build your own, over engineer it but be sure you have someone with the technical acumen and ability. It might be ugly, but it has to be strong.

    And, tether your craft to the vehicle front and back, not to the rack!! I see folks making this mistake all the time. It's the safest way to travel.

    Good luck!
     
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  6. Jun 10, 2012 at 6:29 AM
    #6
    PSJ

    PSJ Prerunners Work

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    Great Idea to be able to retain the use your cleats, but I still would consider a couple of bolts/t-nuts on each side to take the stress off the cleats. If you do use your cleats, they now will be doing double duty....:cool:
     
  7. Jun 10, 2012 at 6:45 AM
    #7
    Rackster

    Rackster Well-Known Member

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    Good point. The Achillies Heal for many racks is the fastening system. For one foot design for an early Explorer, flipping the locking nut in the rails track spelled disaster for a few folks. Essentialy the design relied on the break-edge of the stamped fastener as the rounded edge of the other surface could slip through the track of the rail. Crossbars and payloads could be come unstable. Simple little consumer oversight.
     
  8. Jun 10, 2012 at 7:46 AM
    #8
    zul

    zul Professional Goofball

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    HAVE: Bed mat, Tailgate Lock, Color-matched Grille, Weathertech Floor Liners, Avid Step Rails, RokBlokz mud flaps WANT: Rear Plate Bumper, Steel bed cage
    Anyone tried out the all-pro rack? I've been eyeing it for a while now. A few things I dont like from the pictures I've seen: 1) the rack doesnt go all the way to the rear of the bed. There is a ~6" gap between the last strut and the tailgate, so it looks slightly off. 2) The mounting brackets completely cover the two bedside rails from front to back. So you cannot use those in conjunction with the bed rack... I think a better design would have minimal required coverage of the rails to allow for their use.

    Also would it be possible to haul long stuff like Kayaks with the rack bars below the roofline? Could you just use some blocks or something to get it high enough... maybe the big name brands like yakima make something for that...
     
  9. Jun 10, 2012 at 11:30 AM
    #9
    BTO

    BTO Well-Known Member

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    That's awesome work.
     
  10. Jun 10, 2012 at 12:22 PM
    #10
    landphil

    landphil Fish are FOOD, not friends!

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    Thank you. I should have it painted soon.
     
  11. Jun 10, 2012 at 4:01 PM
    #11
    Rackster

    Rackster Well-Known Member

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    Some thoughts:

    Confirm the class of your 8MM cleats if you can. Although your design gets the benefit of your cleats, you might be putting yourself (and others) at risk. You're pretty clever with the rack you made, so if you can't confirm the class and scurity of your fastener, you might want to design something for that. Paint for sure as rust is the number one killer of welds.

    If you have access to a gantry crane and a force gauge, you may want to do some testing to be sure that your emergency planning/theory are intact. Pull up, forward, backwards and side to side. Final note: secure your craft to the truck. To keep the payload centered, the straps you have are ideal. However, you need to secure the payload to the vehicle. In most countries, you are legally required to do so.

    Good luck!
     
  12. Jun 11, 2012 at 11:23 AM
    #12
    teamfast

    teamfast Get busy living, or get busy dying.

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    If you have a 2" hitch you could pick up or manufacture a goal post that would be easily removed. Ill try and find a link.
     
  13. Jun 11, 2012 at 1:07 PM
    #13
    Rackster

    Rackster Well-Known Member

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  14. Jun 12, 2012 at 5:57 AM
    #14
    rachunter

    rachunter Well-Known Member

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    Here is a rack I made for my Tacoma.

    2005_0508misc7050062_913b05dbda2f18ad4714246b960ef2d41fc7860d.jpg

    IMG_0500_7af91797bedd53ebc3adf36f658fe63b93031055.jpg
     
  15. Jun 12, 2012 at 6:02 AM
    #15
    rachunter

    rachunter Well-Known Member

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    I usually haul 2 -12' kayaks or 1 - 17' canoe on this rack. It has been on the road at least 30,000 miles on three different trucks with zero problems. At the time I made it I think I spent like $130 on the metal and welded it up myself, it has been a great investment.

    This is how I mounted my rack:

    Rear mount, I just take out the factory installed tie-downs and use the same holes to mount the rack.
    2005_0508misc7050064_4c6e179f6e2aaeba2fd1f629607fc9a485cf9077.jpg

    Front mount, I use a turn buckle and hook to the Toyota tie downs mounted in their suggested location.
    2005_0508misc7050065_652645d547cc19f97ea6e0c9610ff14d082e0cd5.jpg
     

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