Expedition Bed Rack Build - 56k warning...

Awesome setup.

 

Wow that looks sick. Keep us posted.

 

Seriously, who's on 56k? Does that even exist anymore?

That design is fucking beautiful, I would be very interested in purchasing!

Those welds are clean!

 

Looks awesome can't wait til its done.

 

I want one!

 

I can't wait to see the final product!!

 

WOW MAN! that is a great design! looks like it'll turn out great! i am jealous! god i wish i could weld

 

Wow , great rack

That is nice work .

 

I will say the same as everyone else awesome design and it's looking great. Can't wait to see the final product.

Note - in your original post you stated with the tent on there you didn't want it to be higher than the cab. Looks like it is going to be now. What changed that? Just curious.

 

Thanks for all the comments! I'm having the skins cut this week, so more progress should be made this weekend. Unfortunately, I have ZERO amount of time through the week to work on it...


Some of you have inquired about purchasing one of these, and I appreciate that, but due to time (lack of it), I won't be producing these.


BUT....... What I can do, if there is any interest, is produce a set of PDF drawings for this rack that you could hand to a local fab shop and have them build you one.

After I get the rack finished I'll update the model to the exact measurements that we used, and get a set of prints done for it.

I'll post them up for anyone that's interested in having one made locally, or anyone that wants to produce these.


Also, if anyone is local to me (Northwest Arkansas), I can PM you Curtis' contact info if you're interested in having him do some work for you.

Sorry if my wording was a bit off, I meant that I wanted the rack to be below the top of the cab, so that the tent wouldn't stick up too far above the roof and kill fuel mileage. The way it is right now, I have plenty of room for the sub frame and Pelican cases below, and with the tent all bolted up, it will only be ~6" above the roofline.







What is everyone's thoughts on color for this rack? I'm going to have it powdercoated after it's finished, and am thinking of doing the same color as the bumper/tube work on that big jeep I pictured earlier.
That's called Storm Gray Metallic. Another color I'm considering is an Argent. Which is what Warn uses on their winches, and is pretty similar to roof racks made by ARB.

Whatever color I go with, will also be the color of the custom front and rear bumpers I have planned for it, as well as the frame sliders.

Let me know your suggestions!

 

what size tubing and wall thickness did you use?

 

i think something like argent or a shade of sliver or grey would look nice with the black.


have you thought about having a custom top made for it?


also, what's it weigh?









..

 

I believe it's in my original post, but I used 2" x 0.120" tubing for the main structure. The inner is to be made from 1" x 0.083" tubing.
Skins are 1/8" and the rails are 2" x 2" x 1/4" angle.

Haven't really thought about making a top for it. The tent will stay on from Spring to Fall, so that will cover up a lot.

I have, however, thought of making attachments that can be installed when the tent is not needed. Such as a roof rack basket for more storage, or an attachment that will let me haul a couple canoes.

I'm also going to be working on a mount for my shovel/axe/hi-lift.
The rest of my recovery gear will be stored down low, in the bed of the truck.

 

clean!

Your welds are on point!

 

I would go obnoxious with a bright orange but that is just me.

PDF's of the design would be awesome. I would have to modify to fit the wider 2nd gen and also the mounting point (stupid plastic bed) but the basics are there.

Just awesome is all I can say.

 

why didn't you make it so that when the tent is on (and in the folded position) it would be under the roof line (6" lower then it is currently)

even that 6" above the roof line i think would create a decent amount of drag

if you're going to leave it, i'd look at mounting a roof rack fairing just at the front of the tent to help deflect the air over over the roof rack smoothly


eitherway, looks like it's going to be a hell of a bed rack

 

That is bad ass man nice work

 

Watching people fab their own shit makes me

Sick work man. Can't wait to see it finished.

 

Couple reasons actually.

First, if you look at my renderings you can see that the Pelican cases are quite large. Having the rack at its present height, allows for the cases and required sub frame to sit just slightly above the bed rails. That keeps the bed space open underneath, and will allow me to carry a larger piece of gear if needed (extra tire or something...)


Secondly, it's hard to tell from the pics, as tube structures can be a bit deceiving when viewed from any angle, BUT, that top hoop nearest the rear window is perfectly level with the Rubber Molding that surrounds the glass.
Therefor, in it's current build state, visibility via the rearview mirror is completely unobstructed. I suspect similar results when the rack is completed and the pelican cases are not being stored.

If I were to drop the whole thing down 6", it would be the top bars right in the middle of the back glass.


That's just my thoughts on it. Anyone who builds one of these can customize it to suit their needs.
Keeping the entire tent below roofline would be ideal for highway mileage, but I don't forsee too much of an issue with 6" above roofline, and well back from the front of the truck.




As for weight, calculations say it should weigh around 180lbs when complete.
I don't know what it weighs in its current state, but I do know that my wife was not able to lift one side of it (removing it from my truck to sit in garage).
However, I was able to unload it by myself.... Though it wasn't pretty.

 

I'll take a set!