I think I’m going to try to DIY a low profile full length roof rack
 

Has anyone done this as a one off for themselves before? have a friend who will do the welds. Was gonna go just make a bunch of measurements, look at some other racks for ideas and then hope to get all the metal from Home Depot.

If anyone has done this, suggestions are welcome.

I had someone build me one... I guess it could be considered a one-off or a DIY.

After seeing the process I think I could have did it myself if I used the roof with the factory rack removed as a jig so you can clearance the roof correctly.

To be honest I kinda want to change it out or build another one that doesn't have any light bar mounts so its flat from end to end.

We used steel, and I would re-build it with aluminum if I could. The weight being placed in the highest location is noticeable at highway speeds.

Build a wind faring... it's very necessary at highway speeds. From a noise and vibration standpoint, it can make driving without very annoying. You can even feel & hear the cuffing of air on the roof

https://i.imgur.com/7W8LaMZ.jpg?1
https://i.imgur.com/9gUlynv.jpg?1

Not the best picture, but there are some spacers and diy gaskets made to elevate the rack from the channel in the roof, and a gasket cut on both ends to help weather proof.

https://i.imgur.com/9xBwAxn.jpg?1

I can take better pictures later if needed.

Wow that looks great man. Thanks for the info. I’ll go with aluminum. Any issues with heavy loads going on alum vs steel? Shouldn’t ever have more than 300lbs tops in it so alum should be fine right?

I stood on it when it wasn't on the truck, it's pretty stout, but I never have that much weight on my rack when in use.

I drive in the dunes so I try to keep my roof load light for performance... folding table, traction pads, shovel, high lift, maybe a pelican case loaded with campsite or cooking gear is typical for me. More or less helps me manage the clutter inside of the SUV for large items.

Depending on what and how much you need, I think trying to source consumables from home depot would also be a mistake… their prices are not cheap. I would find a welding wholesale shop or something that can assist in buying material stock. Maybe someone else can help you here.

i built one out of 8020 aluminum. not very fancy but it gets the job done
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/classi...ml#post2977246

@Dropzone

That's rad man, I like that a lot.

I’ve always like that extruded T bar building material, but I never did a project with it because it’s usually pretty expensive. Looks like you paid about $4 per foot? Is that a good price for this stuff?

I'm interested....

I keep seeing ads on Craigslist for guys who will custom build a rack for you. It's not as expensive as Gobi or Baja Racks, but it's not cheap either.

The rack is upside down in this photo, but it was custom built and I got it on craigslist for like $250

Really wish I had the time, the knowledge and the tools. I'd custom build them and sell them.

https://vgy.me/uFl5th.jpg

I sort of looked into this. I don't know how to weld, so that was a barrier. That said, going to HD and picking up some steel will not be a cost effective approach. You'll probably want to go to a scrap yard, much more choices and cheaper.

I looked into 80/20, and I priced out a DIY rack similar to the prinsu, with more crossbars, and an extruded side rail with Gamiviti mounts.

I ended up purchasing a prinsu rack instead. Honestly, the Prinsu is great, its lightweight, holds my RTT plus gear safely, and its adequate. If i were going to do this again, I'd probably go more the DIY 80/20 direction. tnutz.com is MUCH cheaper than the official 80/20 online sites. And while the prinsu rack is great, I know a heavier, thicker DIY'd version would have been a lot stronger. I'm positive "stronger" isn't necessary, but the prinsu rack DOES deflect slightly. I like things that are overengineered to the point of ridiculousness.

Look up gamiviti DIY roof rack mounts, took me quite a while of research before I tracked those down, but they looked super easy to use in different rack applications. If I ever do a DIY rack for a 4runner, it will probably be a combo of welded aluminum, 15 series extruded aluminum, and gamiviti mounts. Be aware, unless you can weld yourself, you're probably going to end up still spending quite a bit of money. The aluminum options I priced out all ended up over the cost of a prinsu rack. I'm pretty sure welding an entire roof rack together is NOT an afternoon's worth of work.

Hope some of that is helpful. If it wasn't clear, I'm actually very happy with my current rack choice, it was a good choice, very cost effective (one of the cheaper rack options out there) and its well built. But its not perfect, and this is sort of where I've landed if I had more time, to do the best version of a roof rack for me.

Thanks, some of the material was used. I suppose $4/ft is about right. I got it through a few sources. I think total I was into mine for about $200. I have hauled ladders and lumber on it.
Probably weighs about 35-40 lbs

I was thinking about making one identical to the Prinsu rack. You would need access to a fab shop to cut out the aluminum side panels for you (I do), but the material cost would be nothing, and then buy the extruded aluminum cross bars pre-tapped and anodized for $150-$200.

I decided I don't really need a roof rack at this stage so I took my stock one off. Maybe some day.

Old thread, but interested to know how well this rack worked out for you. Noticable weight difference, noise level, or anything you might change if you could?

Love this. Didn't know you can find metal fab shops on craigslist to build custom racks. Is there a reason no one does tubular aluminum racks?

The racks in this thread look great! I've got nothing constructive to add except low profile racks look so much better than the tall basket style racks IMO but I can see where the utility of both come in handy.

I've got a prinsu, and I chose it to mount my RTT exclusively. Seldom do we remove the tent and I wanted a rack with bars extending the entire length of the roof to support the tent. I will say there's a trade off with low profile designs. It's quite difficult to get my forearms between the roof and the rack when trying to tighten or loosen the RTT. The front bolts have to be tightened by my wife, I cant reach them. Something to consider if you'll ever run a RTT.