I love projects like these, but there was one thing going through my mind as you emphasized the strength of your rack design: failure points. My disclaimer is that I am not an engineer, I just know enough to ask questions. So each car manufacturer has a load rating for their roofs, both static and in motion. Under extreme conditions (high winds at highway speeds or torsion on the trails, as mentioned), all the materials and connection points are going to be tested, and the weakest point wins, or loses. So the question I raise is do you prefer that failure point to be the roof structure of your vehicle, or rather some component of the rack system? Most people will [hopefully] never push their rigs to those limits, but I think it is a consideration. So, how strong does a rack really NEED to be? Good job sourcing all the bits and pieces for a cool project!
Fair point! That is a question each DIY person has to also answer for themselves. I don't want my rack to fail if I am loading it with typical accessories where many of the shelf options fail. I also am an engineer with a curious mind but not technically trained at all in this area. I share this stuff for entertainment and potentially some kind of motivation for people to research and design their own. This isn't a step by step by someone licensed and professional. A good question to raise though for people trying to design their rack if they choose to go the DIY route.
I'm fixing to ne building my roof rack from 2020 extruded aluminum. 2 years ago I built my bed rack from 14 gauge 1.25 carbon steel square tubing and I have the Smittybuilt XL Tent on it. It's been wonderful and Carbon Steel is heavier but it's more of a piece of mind for me. I'm pretty rough on all my stuff lol😂
If I'm not mistaken I think Sherpa Equipment sells mounting brackets to go from rack to roof, for anyone looking for a cheaper mounting option to your vehicle and. Ot wanting to design and build their own
I think that's a great, well thought out design that really meets your needs, Zac. One of the things that I learned from a couple of serious, hard-core overlanders was that lateral forces wreak the most havoc on a rack. These guys had four mounting feet bolted to the roof instead of the typical two feet bolted plus one just pushing down. They went this route because they experienced significant failures of their traditional rack systems when transporting cargo (not a RTT). Think about it, all that weight being thrown from side to side on a rutted dirt road will take its toll after a few thousand miles. At least that's what happened for them. For utilizing the rack for cargo, I've found the Gobi type of system, with the wire mesh, versatile and easy to rearrange quickly. I'm not sure how heavy duty their components are, however. I think that for a RTT, you have a great system.
Yeah thats very fair. Hard to improve that without dropping the headliner and adding more mounting points but that would be the next step! Haha, you could always connect the crossbars of this rack with spring nuts so they could be moved and removed if someone wanted that customizability. With that much for a GOBI rack I'd personally build some kind of mesh storage setup if that was needed but I see what you mean!
6061 is 6061 it is a specific alloy. There isn't any "difference" from one company to another. The only differwnce in the extrusions would be the amount of material. Some rails are "solid" while others are a variety of "hollow."
You made it MORE DIFFICULT than it had to be. The same company you talked about, SHERPA, also has components to make your own rack. They have model specific "footers" aka rack base or mounts. These work with the 80/20 extrusions. And just to further raz you, 1.5 inch is small. Go big or go home 45mm.😂😂😂😂 The only thing is 45mm doesn't come as double like your 1.5x3. And in reality having a wider bar doesn't make it stronger. Unless you mount it vertical instead of horizontal. 👍👍👍
Yeah all valid haha, I bought all these components to be quick mountable for my DIY roof top tent. I just needed a rack at the time and repurposed them. I would definitely add Sherpa feet in the front to stabilize that cantilevering portion.
Mentioning UpTop, I love them but!!!! This guy is right! I have a saggy tent because of them and even though I have called about it, I get a girl in the office that doesn’t know what she is talking about and have never yet gotten a call back at all!
I have wondered if you could just swap or gnarly crossbars on existing tents. I think it’s doable but I’d go for wider. Like shop around for 1” x 3” extrusions or maybe even 1” x 4” if you can find them and swap them for the RTT crossbars
Not sure why some of the white tones in the video got so blown out...anyway. I realize the title is a little dramatic but I really just want to drive home how doable it is to make a roof rack for your rig even if its not a 4Runner!
I have heard mixed feelings from people who have the Prinsu rack. I have heard that that they used to use 3/16ths side rails but now use 1/4 in. to increase strength. Their rails are narrow vertically which I think looks good, but probably reduces strength. I went with the RCI roof rack. It has 1/4 in side rails and seems pretty beefy. I like that the front fairing contours with the top of the windshield. It is also cheaper. Nevertheless, I think that putting a lot of weight on the roof changing the CG and stressing the roof mounting points can be a problem
How about the distance between the top of roof rack and the top of shark fin antenna? Based on the GFC setup, you need to chop off the fin so that you can get your RTT on top without interfering the fin. I’m guessing with 1.5” roofbar you won’t have this problem. Please clarify, thanks for another great video!
No you will most likely have this problem unless you just stagger the mount. The rails come with the fin delete kit though so it’s worth it in my opinion
Awesome work. I'm planning to build one for myself but not as a roof rack. One question I guess is how do you insert attachment points into the T Slots like m8 bolts?
@@OverlandEngineer Yes sir but on your rack you need to slide the bolts in before you assemble the pieces in place. I'm talking about attaching those bolts on and off similar to a Front Runner Rack where it has sort of a key hole on yhe ends of the rail so you can easily insert m8 bolts as attachment points
@@jules9923 I see. I’m not really understanding why you can’t just use a spring nut and then put in the bolt…why do the threads need to be attached? I’d just buy the appropriate length bolt or use an extra washer.
Hell yeah. Question how do you screw into the end of the T-slotted aluminum? The center “bore”, not the T-slot. Attaching the ends of the crossbars to the rails On the extrusion website it shows a cross section and it doesn’t look like the hole is threaded. Is there anything else needed to screw into it? Or will the bolts fit right in as long as we get the right size? (Nvm I see on Tnutz they have tapped ends on the 10series)
Hi, I know this is a year old but I’m curious about your analysis of the strength on prinsu vs Sherpa. I’m looking at sequoia racks which may be different, but the Prinsu lists a 600d/1000s weight rating while the Sherpa is only 300d/600s weight despite costing more. Maybe this changed after your video was made? Hoping to hear your thoughts.
The Prinsu rating you mentioned is for the Prinsu Pro. It’s brand new and a different design where the side rails are made out of an upside down L. It’s made out of 3/16” thick material with another inner layer of 1/8”. So dbl layered.
Lots of companies use little bumpers on 90 deg brackets. Might be an option! I am hoping my tent does not need it and it will cantilever just like a GFC.
@@OverlandEngineer it looks like GFC tent doesn’t need the rack, if that’s the case, are you gonna put your tent on top of your rack, or just the GFC brackets without the rack? Very curious.
@@wanderlostNW @WanderlostNW浪迹西北 Correct, the tent just mounts directly to the brackets. Thats my plan with my tent but since its not done and I want to go on some trips, I took apart my tent and built a rack to mount some stuff I need!
This diy is for people who likes doing diy 😂. Some of us like tinkering, some of us likes buying an already made product and putting it together ourselves, and then some just spend the extra money to have it all done by someone else
I love projects like these, but there was one thing going through my mind as you emphasized the strength of your rack design: failure points. My disclaimer is that I am not an engineer, I just know enough to ask questions. So each car manufacturer has a load rating for their roofs, both static and in motion. Under extreme conditions (high winds at highway speeds or torsion on the trails, as mentioned), all the materials and connection points are going to be tested, and the weakest point wins, or loses. So the question I raise is do you prefer that failure point to be the roof structure of your vehicle, or rather some component of the rack system? Most people will [hopefully] never push their rigs to those limits, but I think it is a consideration. So, how strong does a rack really NEED to be?
Good job sourcing all the bits and pieces for a cool project!
Fair point! That is a question each DIY person has to also answer for themselves. I don't want my rack to fail if I am loading it with typical accessories where many of the shelf options fail. I also am an engineer with a curious mind but not technically trained at all in this area. I share this stuff for entertainment and potentially some kind of motivation for people to research and design their own. This isn't a step by step by someone licensed and professional. A good question to raise though for people trying to design their rack if they choose to go the DIY route.
Just watched this again and learned new "stuff." Thanks!
Keep it up 💪🏽
I'm fixing to ne building my roof rack from 2020 extruded aluminum. 2 years ago I built my bed rack from 14 gauge 1.25 carbon steel square tubing and I have the Smittybuilt XL Tent on it. It's been wonderful and Carbon Steel is heavier but it's more of a piece of mind for me. I'm pretty rough on all my stuff lol😂
If I'm not mistaken I think Sherpa Equipment sells mounting brackets to go from rack to roof, for anyone looking for a cheaper mounting option to your vehicle and. Ot wanting to design and build their own
I think that's a great, well thought out design that really meets your needs, Zac. One of the things that I learned from a couple of serious, hard-core overlanders was that lateral forces wreak the most havoc on a rack. These guys had four mounting feet bolted to the roof instead of the typical two feet bolted plus one just pushing down. They went this route because they experienced significant failures of their traditional rack systems when transporting cargo (not a RTT). Think about it, all that weight being thrown from side to side on a rutted dirt road will take its toll after a few thousand miles. At least that's what happened for them.
For utilizing the rack for cargo, I've found the Gobi type of system, with the wire mesh, versatile and easy to rearrange quickly. I'm not sure how heavy duty their components are, however. I think that for a RTT, you have a great system.
Yeah thats very fair. Hard to improve that without dropping the headliner and adding more mounting points but that would be the next step! Haha, you could always connect the crossbars of this rack with spring nuts so they could be moved and removed if someone wanted that customizability. With that much for a GOBI rack I'd personally build some kind of mesh storage setup if that was needed but I see what you mean!
Great vid; I've been looking at doing a DIY roof rack for my Tacoma. How did you mount the rack to the roof?
I got a Tyger auto platform style roofrack for under a grand. Things solid as a rock. Kudos for the creativity though!
6061 is 6061 it is a specific alloy. There isn't any "difference" from one company to another. The only differwnce in the extrusions would be the amount of material. Some rails are "solid" while others are a variety of "hollow."
You made it MORE DIFFICULT than it had to be. The same company you talked about, SHERPA, also has components to make your own rack. They have model specific "footers" aka rack base or mounts. These work with the 80/20 extrusions. And just to further raz you, 1.5 inch is small. Go big or go home 45mm.😂😂😂😂 The only thing is 45mm doesn't come as double like your 1.5x3. And in reality having a wider bar doesn't make it stronger. Unless you mount it vertical instead of horizontal. 👍👍👍
Yeah all valid haha, I bought all these components to be quick mountable for my DIY roof top tent. I just needed a rack at the time and repurposed them. I would definitely add Sherpa feet in the front to stabilize that cantilevering portion.
Mentioning UpTop, I love them but!!!! This guy is right! I have a saggy tent because of them and even though I have called about it, I get a girl in the office that doesn’t know what she is talking about and have never yet gotten a call back at all!
I have wondered if you could just swap or gnarly crossbars on existing tents. I think it’s doable but I’d go for wider. Like shop around for 1” x 3” extrusions or maybe even 1” x 4” if you can find them and swap them for the RTT crossbars
😂
Not sure why some of the white tones in the video got so blown out...anyway. I realize the title is a little dramatic but I really just want to drive home how doable it is to make a roof rack for your rig even if its not a 4Runner!
I have heard mixed feelings from people who have the Prinsu rack. I have heard that that they used to use 3/16ths side rails but now use 1/4 in. to increase strength. Their rails are narrow vertically which I think looks good, but probably reduces strength. I went with the RCI roof rack. It has 1/4 in side rails and seems pretty beefy. I like that the front fairing contours with the top of the windshield. It is also cheaper. Nevertheless, I think that putting a lot of weight on the roof changing the CG and stressing the roof mounting points can be a problem
Great vid bro #4runnerlife 😅 always work to do when u own a runner!
Hi can you mention what app you used on your tablet to do the designing in your video please? Cheers
Dude, why don't you make a roof-top camper out of the stuff. I'm currently designing my own now.
How about the distance between the top of roof rack and the top of shark fin antenna? Based on the GFC setup, you need to chop off the fin so that you can get your RTT on top without interfering the fin. I’m guessing with 1.5” roofbar you won’t have this problem. Please clarify, thanks for another great video!
No you will most likely have this problem unless you just stagger the mount. The rails come with the fin delete kit though so it’s worth it in my opinion
Awesome work. I'm planning to build one for myself but not as a roof rack. One question I guess is how do you insert attachment points into the T Slots like m8 bolts?
Like you want the threads facing out? I think some carriage bolts slide in the channel and can face outward depending on size.
@@OverlandEngineer Yes sir but on your rack you need to slide the bolts in before you assemble the pieces in place. I'm talking about attaching those bolts on and off similar to a Front Runner Rack where it has sort of a key hole on yhe ends of the rail so you can easily insert m8 bolts as attachment points
@@jules9923 I see. I’m not really understanding why you can’t just use a spring nut and then put in the bolt…why do the threads need to be attached? I’d just buy the appropriate length bolt or use an extra washer.
Hell yeah. Question how do you screw into the end of the T-slotted aluminum? The center “bore”, not the T-slot. Attaching the ends of the crossbars to the rails
On the extrusion website it shows a cross section and it doesn’t look like the hole is threaded. Is there anything else needed to screw into it? Or will the bolts fit right in as long as we get the right size?
(Nvm I see on Tnutz they have tapped ends on the 10series)
Almost all profiles can be "tapped." Or just get the tool and do it yourself. That's what I did for the 12M bolts on my 45mm profile pieces.
What app on your tablet are you using I’ve been trying to find an app like this to draw out my design for my rack system.
It’s just a basic note taking app! Nothing too crazy
Southern style offroad use 1/4" side rails and their extrusions are 1x3
Oh good to know! Did know they made racks.
Hi, I know this is a year old but I’m curious about your analysis of the strength on prinsu vs Sherpa. I’m looking at sequoia racks which may be different, but the Prinsu lists a 600d/1000s weight rating while the Sherpa is only 300d/600s weight despite costing more. Maybe this changed after your video was made? Hoping to hear your thoughts.
The Prinsu rating you mentioned is for the Prinsu Pro. It’s brand new and a different design where the side rails are made out of an upside down L. It’s made out of 3/16” thick material with another inner layer of 1/8”. So dbl layered.
Besides these 4 GFC brackets, is there any supports towards the front end rack to avoid any wobbly? 🙏
Lots of companies use little bumpers on 90 deg brackets. Might be an option! I am hoping my tent does not need it and it will cantilever just like a GFC.
@@OverlandEngineer it looks like GFC tent doesn’t need the rack, if that’s the case, are you gonna put your tent on top of your rack, or just the GFC brackets without the rack? Very curious.
@@wanderlostNW @WanderlostNW浪迹西北 Correct, the tent just mounts directly to the brackets. Thats my plan with my tent but since its not done and I want to go on some trips, I took apart my tent and built a rack to mount some stuff I need!
@@OverlandEngineer that makes sense. Thanks for your comments, very helpful!
What is your engineering background?
None of this stuff should cost that at all!
You saying roof racks or which stuff are you referring to haha
Parts , labor, time, and brain power...that's triple the cost for one.
This diy is for people who likes doing diy 😂. Some of us like tinkering, some of us likes buying an already made product and putting it together ourselves, and then some just spend the extra money to have it all done by someone else
So just go buy one and stop watching diy projects!
Sooooo, it’s not a diy build. F’n google…