I posted this in my build thread also, but I was pretty excited about it so I figured it deserved its own thread for those who don't browse my build thread.


I never liked Gobi's solution to mounting the Hi Lift Jack on the side of the Stealth Rack and I have been looking for a store bought solution for quite a while. I ended up coming up with a homebrew solution that I think is pretty darned nice.

The parts I used are all readily available, nothing custom, and all reasonably priced! All parts were purchased from McMaster-Carr. (McMaster-Carr)

2- Rod-Mount Block-Style Sanitary Clamping Hangers (Part #3063T14)
2- 316 Stainless Studs - 3/8"-16 Thread - 1.5" Long (Part #98865A525)
One pack of stainless 3/8"-16 Wingnuts (Part # 93575A031)

I used some 3/8" zinc plated washers under the wingnuts that also, you can get these pretty much anywhere if you dont have any laying around.

I opted for all stainless stuff which bumps the price a bit, if you were wanting to save a few bucks, going with zinc or cad plated hardwear would work pefectly fine as well.

The studs line up perfectly with the holes in the Hi Lift as you can see; that is just a plain old run of the mill 48" Hi Lift. Everything is super solid and strong. I have some aerosol plasti dip that I plan on spraying the beige colored plastic with to hide it a bit better.

I really like that solution...my problem is that I want to include an ARB 2500 (8') awning and the Hi Lift...I have the 5' Hi Lift.

My goal is to space it about 4 feet or so apart...I just hope that having 2' of awning sticking out either side of the brackets, is too much.

I drew up these brackets, and have most of the pieces....the only thing I'll think change is 1/2" bolt sticking up (picture threads from stop collar up), to welding a nut on the bottom location on the angled plate, and thread the bolt through only when needed...no sense in having that bolt sticking up when you don't have the Hilift on. I'm planning on using an aluminum 4 wing knob to hold it down, with a thru hole, for 1/2" threads (MMC # 61135K37) and the pipe collar has flat spots for welding to the 1/4" plate itself (MMC#9746T4). The stop collar is MMC# 9414T11

You see the profile of the awning/bag/ and bolt holes to connect it to the bracket. I'm planning on removing the foot of the Hi Lift, and keeping that in the bag with the rest of my recovery gear....it may be a little less tempting for a stranger to remove if it's missing a crucial part. I'm sending the spec in to the fab guy and have some of these brackets bent up..and I'll weld up the rest.

Good job solving that problem..

Attached Images

 

The HiLift doesn't chew up the finish on the Gobi when mounted like that? Without any insulation, I would think the finish would be marked and that there is the potential for rattle noise...no?



On Edit: Corrected grammer ;)

Hi-Lift rattle noise is more due to the lift carrier rattling along the beam; not the entire tool rattling against the rack.

I'm still working on figuring out a good, quiet and reusable solution to keep the carrier from rattling.

I have noticed that with it mounted along the side of the rack, it will flex the rack when you hit a good bump. And I already have it mounted as far back as possible. going to experiment with putting the carrier in between the two mounting points next in order to distribute the weight better between mounting points.

Okki

It has absolutely zero contact with the rack when mounted like this. Those brackets I used are very solid and only the santoprene contacts the tube on the rack which not only protects the finish but it insulates vibrations and gets a very good grip on the rack.

Also, not sure if it is because my Hi Lift is pretty new, but I have no rattles or noise. The carrier is pretty solid with the handle keeper on there.

As far as I can tell with my gobi mount, The only rattling noise I get is the base of the lift. I plan to pull it off and replace the cotter pin with a shear pin, and keep the base in my box when not in use.

@Titanpat57 , I really like that idea you have with the mount. Do you plan to put something on the other side of the rack as well? I just feel it would almost be aesthetically too heavy on one side with a lift and awning.

@SOcalTRAIL , Looks good man. Truck keeps coming together nicely as well, and I love that rear bumper. How's progress on the aux fuel tank coming?

Thanks man.

I'm kind of stalled out on the aux. fuel tank for the time being while I button up the rest of the rear bumper project, then I am re-doing my rack mounted LED's and have some re-wiring to do so I have my work cut out for me!

Just my fat ass and a gas tank to balance things out (I'm putting the HL and awning on the passenger side)

I would leave the Hi Lift up there during trips that would require recovery....a few times a year...as far as the awning it would get used more than that.

You guys and your creative fabrication skills really make me envious!

Socal,

What roof box is that in the photo? It appears to be one one large box. What are the dimensions?

The only Gobi box I have seen is only 22" Long x 14" Wide x 4" Tall and hinges along the 14" side.

Link to what I saw: http://www.gobiracks.com/Acc/Gobi%20...%20install.pdf

The Gobi box in the link is too small and doesn't really allow fitment of slightly longer gear like a hatchet or pruners, etc. in addition to basic recovery stuff that I want to put in it. And $150 each isn't a good value compared to the following.

I have been close to buying one or even two of these Deflecta Shield / Lund ATV tool boxes that measure 32" long x 12.75" wide x 6.5" tall. Approximately, $130 delivered. Deflecta-Shield Challenger ATV Storage Boxes 288272 - PowerSportsPlace.com

But at 6.5" tall it will take my truck over 6' 8" tall, which seems to be a magic number for a lot of parking structures.

Really interested to find out what tool box that is, and hope you didn't custom make it!

You guessed it, I made the box.

See post #98

SOcalTrail's 2011 Trail Edition Beast Build Thread

I hear ya man. You gonna redo the front wiring in prep for the new light setup you were dropping hints on while you do the rear?

I hear ya. Mine just stays mounted for the time being. I'm ready for some warmer/dryer weather to get out and camp and get to actually use my awning.

@FactoryRide , Are you using the Gobi mounts? It's on my to-do list to mess with mine some more over the weekend and I may end up tossing the base in my recovery bag in the rear. I already did the electrical tape around the base of the handle, the electrical tape around the base of the beam where the base plate gets secured with the pin. I've got the hi-lift handle keeper (should have gotten the Daystar one). For the moment I'm using a nylon strap to keep the carrier from rattling along the beam. I'll take some pics of this over the weekend.

Do you have yours mounted so the carrier is outside the mounts, or in between the mounts?

Mine is a brand new Hi-Lift Extreme.

Okki

You betchya, I ordered my new light bar last week with a custom optic config. It will put out roughly 14,500 lumens with a combo of spot and flood using 5Watt emitters, that makes for over 2x the output I had from the 4 Rigid 6" bars. I should have it ready to install by the middle of next week!

Arrgg. Custom....

On the bright side. I have looked up a several places that may be able to order a custom tool box.

Any rational why you went with 3.5" tall instead of the 4" of the Gobi box, or some other height?

On my baja rack I think I could do around 45" long x 4" to 4.5" tall and around 20" wide.

Regarding the hi lift mount. It looks like a great place to put the jack. I priced out your part numbers and it looks like $57.64 prior to shipping.

This had me confused because I thought the Fourtreks mount was only around $50, but I just looked it up and see that it is $105. So this is a decent savings for DIY.

Hi-Lift Roll Bar Mounts 1.75