Cabin Roof Rack Idea

Hello,

I'm posting this to see if it's useful for others.
At the moment of writing this, both Prinsu & upTop have discontinued their roof racks for the XtraCab model. I confirmed with both companies. So that lead me to this idea.

I already had the Yakima OverHaul HD Truck Rack with side molle panels. My issue was that the large molle panels create a 55" crossbar spread which most Roof Top Tents don't support such a wide mounting option. Yakima does make a smaller molle panel but that would look awkward on a 6ft bed.

So I decided to look for a solution that could fix both my 55" crossbar spread issue while simultaneously adding a storage capability to the top of the cabin. This is where I decided to add a third Yakima HD Bar to the top of the cabin. It is being held by Yakima's BaseLine Towers and BaseClip BC 171.

I then added the Rhino Rack Pioneer Platform 107" x 58" model. I only had to fabricate some simple mounts out of 2" wide and 3/16" thick plain steel. I stole the idea from Rhino Racks Pioneer Heavy Duty Attachment Plate Kit. It's just a piece of metal with two holes so that you can attach two channel nuts going in opposite directions. One being mounted to the Pioneer Platform and another to the OverHaul Rack.

Now I can store things on top of the cabin and I can mount any RTT. And instead of having a platform on top of the bed, and then another platform on top of the cabin, I only have one singular platform that seamlessly stretches across both.

The only thing left is to add a wind fairing or a light bar to fill the gap in front of the platform. I could move my rack forward to eliminate that gap, but I like it being centered to the bed. So adding either accessory to the front will make it flush with the windshield.

Hope this helps others looking for cabin roof rack solutions.

 

Thanks for posting. I haven't seen that many people do something like this. Make sure to keep an eye on how the bed and cab flex since you've now tied them together. I doubt you'll have much of a problem, but you may consider some sort of bushings between the platform and the front bar.

 

What kind of bushings do you recommend?

What kind of issues do you think I can potentially come across? Damaging the rack, the cabin or both?

 

I’m not an expert but I would not use the truck like this, the bed is solid mounted to the frame and the body is on rubber bushings, I would imagine a big bump or driving off-road will damage something eventually

 

This is why I like TW. I learn a lot on here.

Would removing the third crossbar that is on top of the cab fix the issue? The platform can hang freely over the cab the way lumber racks do. I can reinforce it to try and help with any potential flex.

The only reason why I want the storage capability on top of the cabin is for a Roam box that holds my recovery gear. So no more than 50lbs. And maybe something on the other side every now and then. I'm just getting tired of moving my recovery box around in the truck bed, especially since I've only used it once.

The top of the bed does have to be clear for toys and material. So keeping a box up there semi-permanent is not an option.

 

Agree with post #2 there could be a potential issue. But I would do some tests... I'd detach the platform from the cab bar but leave both in place. Then go do some slow crawling on uneven terrain with a friend observing the set up to see if you're getting a lot of flex in the platform from the bed. If you're seeing big or uneven gaps between the platform and the cabin bar you know you have issues. If it seems to stay put on the cross bar as you twist the truck over terrain then push it a little farther to see what it does...

Frames and body shouldn't flex disproportionately, but I know I see my bed wiggle a little at highway speeds, even if its a small amount. If it does flex and twist you might soften it with a rubber mount and lash the platform to bar in a different manner that allows it to move while still supporting the weight of a box.

Cool concept I hope it works. keep us posted.

 

This is exactly what I would recommend. If you don't have a friend, just find a place to flex out the suspension, measure the gap at the front bar before flex, then during flex. Then find some sort of bushing mount that can move as much as the difference between your measurements.

 

I wouldn't even waste my time testing that setup, there's a reason you don't EVER see this type of rack on pickups, especially 4WD ones. The frames have some flex, especially when off road or being jacked up. During articulation it's significant. It would be cost and weight prohibitive to build a rigid frame that didn't flex, one of the reasons real pickups have seperate beds. Unibody pickups are more car then truck so they can get away with a one piece body. You rack will be the rigid area of a system that not designed to be rigid, the first victim will be the new rack which will be forced to flex along with the chassis, something it's not designed to do. Good luck if you go through with it, you're idea of the overhang is a good one and often seen on ladder racks and campers, you'd be very hard pressed to find a system like you're considering successfully used on a typical pickup.