Boonie's Black Bomber Build

Added a few more pictures of the finished product, I would still like to add a switch for the USB charger as it will always be a drain otherwise.

It's Christmas in July! And here is proof!
I found this in the garage, my nephew was being creative.

 

Here is the final product of the wiring extravaganza in the small cubby from last weekend:

 

Once I was done with that project I had another minor one to work on, the noise from the rack bars, I ordered some track inserts to hopefully remedy the whistling noise at higher speeds (60+) So they arrived during the week and it was time to cut and test some pieced inserted in to the first bar.

Here is a link to the product: $1.85/ea.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EZVOZYC/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

They come in 72.5” lengths, so cutting them to just under 47” for the bar length, you have some odd length pieces left over, just use them around tie downs or on the underside of the bars.



Up close shot:



They installed very solid and will take some effort to remove, but I think they also help protect the main bars from getting scratched up. Now to test them out at highway speeds.

 

So I finished up mounting the ARB 1250 Awning on Saturday. I had started making them last weekend but ran out of daylight, Smores were more important...

The brackets are made of 3/16” x 2” flat bar, the long side is 6” and the short side which will be vertical is 4”.



Below is the list of bolts used for mounting the brackets to the Prinsu bars. The ARB awning came with hardware for 4 holes, I doubled that to 8 for overkill purposes and to hopefully slow down those who are dishonest.

8 – 1/4”-20 stop nuts

8 - 1/4” x 3/4” long carriage bolts

8 – 1/4” flat washers



I first slid all of my carriage bolts into place, they actually went on the outboard side of the RTT rails for added stability of the awning.



Here the brackets are still lightly bolted down ready for the awning to be attached.



Closer View:



I put a little electrical tape on either side of the bolts to keep them from sliding out when I went to mount the awning to the bracket. It’s definitely a bit harder to line up 8 bolts, but I feel it’s a little added security.



And through the miracle of TV magic, it’s on!



Behind the curtain look:



And KaBoom! Instant shade! After a few setups and takedowns, it’s pretty quick to get some cover from the elements!



And after a good cleaning of the truck inside and out, it was time to air out the tent.

 

Firestone Air Bag Kit showed up last night, should be installed shortly.

Any good suggestions for Fire Extinguisher mounting locations?

I ordered some Quick Fists, now to put them to use...

 

Haven't had time to update lately, but a list of things happened before out Yellowstone trip in mid August:

-265/75r16 Goodyear Duratracs installed
-Firestone Air Bags installed
-ARB 50qt fridge purchased (still need to mount it better)
-Relentless fab quick fist/hi-lift mount installed
-4 Maxtrax Mounted
-2 Two gallon Rotopacks installed
-One-Up two bike hitch mount installed

A More detailed install of these will follow...eventually!

 

Wow cool build! Very well documented too.

 

Thanks! I've been slacking on the build thread since our Yellowstone trip. But I have some more stuff to add to the thread. I'm looking forward to building a fridge mount and slider.

I just posted my first video to Youtube of our trip and plan to do more videos involving the truck soon as well. Hopefully do some more show and tell of our adventures!

 

Two things,
Kayak cradles and noise reducing inserts on your rack.

Id love to see more pics or closer pics of your cradles you have mounted on your Prinsu.
Looks good!

Also, so far I've used electrical tape to try and kill the trumpet sound coming from the rack.
Did these inserts you got work?

 

I'm not sure the inserts have helped a tremendous amount. I have some extra pieces to mount on a few more bars. But I have the first bar completely wrapped. Some of the noise comes from the emblem cutout in the front deflector.

I'll try and get pics of the cradles as soon as I can. Anything in particular you would like to see or know?

 

Besides just wind noise I haven't noticed any whistles or trumpet sounds coming from any others bars but the wind deflector bar and the 1st bar. Haven't Hwy tested them since the tape. Definitely interested in these inserts tho!
There is definitely a faint whistle on both passenger and driver side, same pitch and volume. I'm thinking a hole or two on the side rails right up front.

As for the cradles, how they mount. Getting some come spring and haven't seen anything mounted on the prinsu yet like this. I see them around town but on Thule bars.

Whenever you have time man! Thx!!

 

Ok @LEXICON sorry for the late response, I finally got some daylight to take some pictures. These are the cheapy Amazon kayak cradles,

$100 TMS Kayak Roof Racks for 2 Kayaks - Dual Universal Fit Carriers Include Two Sets of Straps for Cars, Trucks and SUVs - Easy to Mount J-Bar Style Carriers for Kayaks Canoes Paddleboards and Surfboards

https://www.amazon.com/TMS-Pairs-J-...TF8&qid=1480837545&sr=8-3&keywords=kayak+rack

They're not the highest quality, but they are simple and work well. I made new bottom plates for mine out of 1 1/2" x 1/8" thk. flat bar, drilled two holes, done! That helped keep the racks flat to the Prinsu bars. I thought about making a second flat bar to go on top to make them really level, but it's not worth the time since they sit relatively level as it is, and a kayak doesn't have a straight side. Also, the foam pads are starting to tear after only a dozen or so trips and being fairly careful not to slide the kayaks in the cradles too much.

Here are the parts, flat bracket in the lower right.


Assembled.


On the Prinsu bars.


Side view, you can see the top doesn't sit entirely flat, but the bottom plate helps with that. We didn't have any issues with the mounts coming loose on our Yellowstone trip (3000+ miles), the only thing I will probably end up upgrading are the straps that come with the cradles. We had one start to come loose after some brutal side winds in Idaho, but we noticed it and pulled off to tighten it back up and it didn't come loose again.


And the underwhere shot!

 

Excellent!! I'm a visual person and this helps me greatly!
I appreciate the effort and info. The winds we get are EXTREME 90+kmh
And the kayaks up there concern me..

I'm excited for spring!!

As for wind noise, I taped off the little holes on the side rails that aren't being used and the whistle is gone. Had a major whistle (trumpet sound) that I thought was the rack, taped off everything possible including the logo and it turned out its a turd gen issue with the weather stripping on the door windows..

 

Glad to hear! I haven't tried covering the holes on the side before, so I will try that next!

 

Ya! If it's just a faint whistle you hear on both sides that fixed it. Instead of tape, I think ill find matching bolts to just insert and tighten for a finished look.
Cheers!

 

Sorry this is out of order, but I realized I took pictures but never posted them. I had a leak in my Snugtop canopy and found it leaking through one of the bolt holes for the Yakima tracks, so I removed the Prinsu rack, then removed the Yakima tracks to find a lot of dirt and grime had collected under the tracks, as well as very little silicone sealing the holes shut to keep water out.



Once the tracks were removed, this is what I found. You can see a ring from the plastic/nylon washers and very little silicone.





I cleaned up the surface and carefully took a razorblade to remove all the silicone, then used a

$32 3M 5200 (06500) Permanent Bonding and Sealing for Boats and RVs Above and Below the Waterline Waterproof Repair, White, 10 fl oz Cartridge

3M 5200 sealant to seal the nylon washers and holes up





This took about half a day to do, I was really taking my time and making certain all the bolts were down snug and that the Prinsu rack went back on and was aligned.

 

Nice write up. I have a 2011, the rear most feet on the rack stopped me dead when I tried to install mine. Where I had to drill, the airbags were right up against the channel. No way around it. I talked to Zach, he offered to make me new sides 11/4" longer. Problem solved. Just need some good weather and time to get it installed. Any problems installing the Plusnuts? What sealer did you use?

 

I used this stuff to seal up around the plus nuts:

$32 3M Marine Adhesive Sealant 5200 (06500) Permanent Bonding and Sealing for Boats and RVs Above and Below the Waterline Waterproof Repair, White, 10 fl oz Cartridge

https://www.amazon.com/3M-5200-Adhe...coding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=KPVNP1R3ZDHAB2E5C32C

And used this for the rack bolts, I put some on the threads on the bolt and plusnut.

$9 Rectorseal 31780 1-3/4-Ounce Tube Tru-Blu Pipe Thread Sealant , Blue

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004QXT134/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_28?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Keep the headliner down and be VERY careful when you install the plusnuts, that way you can visually check the plusnuts going in, that they don't pinch or grab the air bag or airbag fabric. I had to unbolt part of my airbag bracket to get the holes drilled.

 

Thanks. I am taking the headliner out when I do mine. Can't believe people drill blind.