[Anand]

Originally Posted by gdvan01

You Sir...are a bad influence.

Yet he told me that I was the bad influence!

[007Tacoma]

Originally Posted by gdvan01

You Sir...are a bad influence.

My wife says the same thing... but she isn't really complaining as much as making an observation.

[007Tacoma]

Originally Posted by Anand

Yet he told me that I was the bad influence!

[LFD_Off_Road]

Originally Posted by mteolus

Next year for me. I am still amazed that nobody has copied the open access for the winch yet. But that's good for LFD.

Shhhhhh ;)

[uh0h50]

I installed my LFD 3/4 rack late November 2019. I removed it this past weekend due to concerns regarding the metal spacers and use of silicone as a water seepage preventative (concerns really developed after seeing a recent thread regarding rust development at the mounting points on a member's 4Runner).

Thread can be found here. Looks like he fixed his issues.
Destroyed Factory Roof Mounting Locations

The vehicle is my daily driver, is parked outdoors (no garage), non-salty climate, etc. Rack had very minimal use. Is this something to be concerned about? I'm no designer/engineer, but perhaps a revised, better alternative to the provided metal spacers should be considered? a la Sherpa Equipment Company's use of chloroprene rubber spacers that are fully enclosed.

edit: This post is not in any way a bash on LFD. I love their products and their communication is absolutely topnotch. I just wanted to express some long-term use concerns and see if there is any potential revisions to the spacers. I absolutely believe that these can be improved upon. But please let me know otherwise.

[LFD_Off_Road]

Originally Posted by uh0h50

I installed my LFD 3/4 rack late November 2019. I removed it this past weekend due to concerns regarding the metal spacers and use of silicone as a water seepage preventative (concerns really developed after seeing a recent thread regarding rust development at the mounting points on a member's 4Runner).

Thread can be found here. Looks like he fixed his issues.
Destroyed Factory Roof Mounting Locations

The vehicle is my daily driver, is parked outdoors (no garage), non-salty climate, etc. Rack had very minimal use. Is this something to be concerned about? I'm no designer/engineer, but perhaps a revised, better alternative to the provided metal spacers should be considered? a la Sherpa Equipment Company's use of chloroprene rubber spacers that are fully enclosed.

edit: This post is not in any way a bash on LFD. I love their products and their communication is absolutely topnotch. I just wanted to express some long-term use concerns and see if there is any potential revisions to the spacers. I absolutely believe that these can be improved upon. But please let me know otherwise.

The spacers are not just something we do, multiple other rack companies use the same thing. We didn't invent that part ourselves.

My 2012 Trail has had aftermarket racks (ours and other brands) on it for most of its life and has no rust issues in the roof. It actually did have a leak with the previous rack though (which used rubber spacers) that we fixed when installing our rack.

A side note, I've actually seen threads in the past here where people have had leaks from stock side rails as well.

I think what it boils down to is anytime you have a hole in the roof (and every one of our 4Runners do from the stock side rails) there is the potential for a leak to occur. Every leak I've seen has been pretty obvious, either from wet carpet, wet headliner, or water behind the plastic interior trim (and I could even smell a difference when water leaked into mine following a rainstorm). When you notice a leak, fixing it promptly is the best bet.

[LFD_Off_Road]

We got the first set of bumpout sliders installed today! We added these to the website, and also added some .120 wall DOM options for all the sliders as well in addition to the .185 wall DOM sliders.

[007Tacoma]

Originally Posted by LFD_Off_Road

We got the first set of bumpout sliders installed today! We added these to the website, and also added some .120 wall DOM options for all the sliders as well in addition to the .185 wall DOM sliders.

I love this so much!!!

[Anand]

Originally Posted by LFD_Off_Road

We got the first set of bumpout sliders installed today! We added these to the website, and also added some .120 wall DOM options for all the sliders as well in addition to the .185 wall DOM sliders.

There is something about the bumpout w/ top plates that is really appealing to me... Maybe it's because I've stepped "through" my current sliders before...

Definitely not being influenced by Mr. Bad Influence above me though... Really, I'm not...

[mteolus]

Nice sliders and congrats on 100,000 views.

[LFD_Off_Road]

Originally Posted by mteolus

Nice sliders and congrats on 100,000 views.

I hadn't looked at that number lately!

[MidniteTRD]

for you guys looking for a good long term rack sealant, i would encourage giving Loctite PL Marine sealant a look. comes in a 10oz. tube that requires loading it into a caulk gun. you can find them at big box hardware stores. i used this sealant when building my teardrop camper and its SERIOUS stuff - extremely viscous, sticky, and dries to an almost solid, but slightly flexible set. the only drawback is that it'll be a PITA to deal with if you ever need to remove the thing you sealed with it....thus the recommendation for long term use only.

[gdvan01]

Originally Posted by 007Tacoma

I love this so much!!!

There ya' go again...can't take you anywhere...

Originally Posted by Anand

There is something about the bumpout w/ top plates that is really appealing to me... Maybe it's because I've stepped "through" my current sliders before...

Definitely not being influenced by Mr. Bad Influence above me though... Really, I'm not...

mm-hmm...

[batex]

What prompted added this sliders made form .120 DOM as opposed to the .185 DOM tubing? Trying to decide why and how I would choose one over the other.

I don't plan on serious, hard core rock climbing at this time, but do what a fully capable, protected vehicle capable of handing the moderate off road stuff on the trails of western North Carolina and to know the protection there for the few times I get into the serious rough stuff. I also want sliders for easy step access to the roof.

Thanks

[Anand]

Originally Posted by batex

What prompted added this sliders made form .120 DOM as opposed to the .185 DOM tubing? Trying to decide why and how I would choose one over the other.

I don't plan on serious, hard core rock climbing at this time, but do what a fully capable, protected vehicle capable of handing the moderate off road stuff on the trails of western North Carolina and to know the protection there for the few times I get into the serious rough stuff. I also want sliders for easy step access to the roof.

Thanks

I'd wait for an actual answer from LFD, however, my lay person understanding is that the .120" DOM tubing is what many (most? all?) other manufacturers make their sliders out of, so if you want them to "only" be as durable as the other's, get the thinner wall tubing.