DIY: Ultra Low Profile Custom Rack / Crossbars for OEM TE Roof Rails

[e60ral]

How do you hold those in position in the side rail so you can start screwing in the bolt? Do you slide them in from the end with the backing plate and bolt already attached? The nice thing about the t head studs I linked to is they don't require you to remove the caps on the end of the rails. You just insert and twist.

That's good theoretically until you try getting them into position with your fingers through the slot then holding them in position while you try to thread the bolt

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[Terrapod]

How do you hold those in position in the side rail so you can start screwing in the bolt? Do you slide them in from the end with the backing plate and bolt already attached? The nice thing about the t head studs I linked to is they don't require you to remove the caps on the end of the rails. You just insert and twist.

One crossbar / side is inserted and the bolt is screwed into place, but not tightened. The bar can then be slid into the desired place. Rinse and repeat for each crossbar. Not really that hard. Don't overthink it.

C

 

[Terrapod]

That's good theoretically until you try getting them into position with your fingers through the slot then holding them in position while you try to thread the bolt

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

Damn son...what the hell is your hangup? :wow:

This is a DIY project. R-E-L-A-X Go have a brew or something. You seem a bit uptight.

 

[boyguan]

Rocking home built rails for factory bases. No big deal. Not exactly the rocket science that you're making it out to be. Disassemble a folding RTT and you will find that the whole tent is secured to the aluminum extrusions by 4 - #10 screws! Simply weld some end plates onto some 1 x 2 x 16ga steel tubing, couple extensions to mount the awning, viola.

Only suckers spend $1500 on a rack only to cover it completely with a tent.

do you pictures of what your talking about?

 

[e60ral]

Damn son...what the hell is your hangup? :wow:

This is a DIY project. R-E-L-A-X Go have a brew or something. You seem a bit uptight.

Um, huh? I'm explaining why T nuts will be hard to install with the bar in place without sliding in from the rear. What exactly is your problem, I wasn't even replying to you and no part of my post is remotely rude or "uptight."

 

[Terrapod]

Um, huh? I'm explaining why T nuts will be hard to install with the bar in place without sliding in from the rear. What exactly is your problem, I wasn't even replying to you and no part of my post is remotely rude or "uptight."

Know what...you're right. I got off the phone with a PITA client just prior to reading your post and totally misread it...all while still seeing red.

Total retard move. :loco:

Reading it now...re: the t-slot studs...dead on. Apologies mang.

C

 

[STX4Runner]

One crossbar / side is inserted and the bolt is screwed into place, but not tightened. The bar can then be slid into the desired place. Rinse and repeat for each crossbar. Not really that hard. Don't overthink it.

C

Maybe you talked to a bad client before responding to me too? I'm not overthinking it, just asking as I have some experience with these. If you want some advice, maybe try the ones with springs on them that help hold them in place.

 

[STX4Runner]

That's good theoretically until you try getting them into position with your fingers through the slot then holding them in position while you try to thread the bolt

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

With the T studs I experienced that the first time I tried to use them. I found the best way to use them is put them through your plate or bracket or whatever you're attaching to the rails first, attach you washer and nut but don't tighten down fully. Then I position the plate against the rails and twist the nut until the T head slides into the track on the rails and then I start to tighten the nut. It's pretty easy to hold tension on the T head in the slot to keep it from spinning while you hand tighten the nut. Once you get it tight enough to hold up your bracket grab a socket or box end wrench and tighten down while making sure the T is still engaged in the track. I have found that the aluminum channel our rails are made of is a little soft and the T heads can dig into it a bit, but nothing to worry about. Using this method I can have the brackets I created on and off in no time.

 

[Terrapod]

Maybe you talked to a bad client before responding to me too? I'm not overthinking it, just asking as I have some experience with these. If you want some advice, maybe try the ones with springs on them that help hold them in place.

Nah...Once the rear caps on the stock rails are removed, there is room for fingers to guide each into place. When I test fit, no problemo.

 

[STX4Runner]

Cool. I took the end cap off my rails last weekend and it was a PITA to get back on. I have the original Trail Edition rack with different end caps. Had to tap them back on with a hammer to get them to fully seat. Don't worry, I wasn't hard on them, LOL.

I really like this idea and it's very timely for me. I've been playing around with a bunch of ideas for stuff like this for the stock rails lately. I have the Rhino Rack steel mesh tray just attached to the factory crossbars. Those are pretty weak and I can flex them just by pushing on them, so I like this idea. I just bought some unistrut and fitting that I'm going to make my own cheapo crossbars out of that will be way stronger than the stock ones. I wish I'd thought of or seen this idea sooner. However, I have the old style Trail Edition rack that does not have parallel rails, so I'd have to precisely cut these rails and they wouldn't really be able to slide back and forth on the rails. I'm going to just mount the unistrut on top of the factory rails and hold in place with some bolts and unistrut channel nuts. I'll post pics once I have a chance to get it all put together.

Again, I really like this idea for how versatile it is. You can probably use Front Runner of Rhino Rack accessories that bolt to the channels in their rails.

 

[Terrapod]

Cool. I took the end cap off my rails last weekend and it was a PITA to get back on. I have the original Trail Edition rack with different end caps. Had to tap them back on with a hammer to get them to fully seat. Don't worry, I wasn't hard on them, LOL.

I really like this idea and it's very timely for me. I've been playing around with a bunch of ideas for stuff like this for the stock rails lately. I have the Rhino Rack steel mesh tray just attached to the factory crossbars. Those are pretty weak and I can flex them just by pushing on them, so I like this idea. I just bought some unistrut and fitting that I'm going to make my own cheapo crossbars out of that will be way stronger than the stock ones. I wish I'd thought of or seen this idea sooner. However, I have the old style Trail Edition rack that does not have parallel rails, so I'd have to precisely cut these rails and they wouldn't really be able to slide back and forth on the rails. I'm going to just mount the unistrut on top of the factory rails and hold in place with some bolts and unistrut channel nuts. I'll post pics once I have a chance to get it all put together.

Again, I really like this idea for how versatile it is. You can probably use Front Runner of Rhino Rack accessories that bolt to the channels in their rails.

Yeah...those caps are a pain. I cracked my front driver's side removing it the 1st time. Hoping brown Santa brings the rails soon and I can get cooking on this.

Stay tuned.

 

[jafrush]

Looked at those carefully. Since you mentioned them, allow for my unbiased professional critique:


- Design: Functional, but the raised portion versus the side rails is a design miss. Not diggin it... But as they say "...beauty is in the eye...". Slim and trim would be the way to go here. Now...if there was a nice bevel at the end of the crossbar down to the rail...cool. The straight sides with the 1" raised portion does not make me smile. But I also understand why they did it. (Rago's)

- Material: Steel....because it's easy. Looks like 1/8" to 3/16" sheet steel CNC cut and then bent. Cost of materials = cheap, time to produce = cheap.

- Weight: Curious on the total weight of 4 cross bars.

- Cost: $80 per bar? Why not a set?


Lastly...just curious. Is that your grey 4runner on the home page of their site?

I'm not selling anything. I simply make stuff to help folks. When someone offers up a properly made piece with a reasonable profit margin of 30-40%...then I'll not give them a hard time.

C

Hey, I'm with LFD, I designed the bars.

They're 11 Gauge steel, cut, bent, welded, and powder coated.

Like it's been said, the height is important for carrying larger objects and clearing the factory rails, as well as leaving enough room underneath for wrench access.

One thing you didn't factor into the cost is also the machinery to make the parts. You're not just paying for the material and labor, but there's also $700,000 of fiber laser and $300,000 of press brake, not counting their operational cost, that have to be factored in, as well as dealer margins. Machinery and machine time isn't cheap.

When you look at the actual cost, not just raw material, we felt $80 per bar was more than fair, but to each his own.

Our bars weight 5 pounds each currently. We're looking at aluminum options now for our larger racks, and that may trickle down as an option for bars too in the future.

And it's my grey 4R on the website, not [MENTION=113833]e60ral[/MENTION].

Feel free to ask more questions. I do like your home made approach, more options are always better for everyone in the end!

 

[e60ral]

With the T studs I experienced that the first time I tried to use them. I found the best way to use them is put them through your plate or bracket or whatever you're attaching to the rails first, attach you washer and nut but don't tighten down fully. Then I position the plate against the rails and twist the nut until the T head slides into the track on the rails and then I start to tighten the nut. It's pretty easy to hold tension on the T head in the slot to keep it from spinning while you hand tighten the nut. Once you get it tight enough to hold up your bracket grab a socket or box end wrench and tighten down while making sure the T is still engaged in the track. I have found that the aluminum channel our rails are made of is a little soft and the T heads can dig into it a bit, but nothing to worry about. Using this method I can have the brackets I created on and off in no time.

the problem is with the second rail, since you can't move the bar or the rails at that point to slide the t-nut in already threaded. did you say that you already have a bracket? how are you getting the second side in?


(also, i guess i need to clarify that none of my posts should be confused as criticizing terrapod's bars, its a nice simple idea. the only reason i mentioned the LFD bars was in response to someone who posted wanting features that they offered, i thought they would want to know about a low-cost, off the shelf product that was available)

 

[boyguan]

Hey, I'm with LFD, I designed the bars.

They're 11 Gauge steel, cut, bent, welded, and powder coated.

Like it's been said, the height is important for carrying larger objects and clearing the factory rails, as well as leaving enough room underneath for wrench access.

One thing you didn't factor into the cost is also the machinery to make the parts. You're not just paying for the material and labor, but there's also $700,000 of fiber laser and $300,000 of press brake, not counting their operational cost, that have to be factored in, as well as dealer margins. Machinery and machine time isn't cheap.

When you look at the actual cost, not just raw material, we felt $80 per bar was more than fair, but to each his own.

Our bars weight 5 pounds each currently. We're looking at aluminum options now for our larger racks, and that may trickle down as an option for bars too in the future.

And it's my grey 4R on the website, not [MENTION=113833]e60ral[/MENTION].

Feel free to ask more questions. I do like your home made approach, more options are always better for everyone in the end!

80 a bar is pretty reasonable considering they are cut for things.

Did you address the issue of front vs rear width? Since it does rise up, how is wind noise affected?

Also my main thing about this type of bar is the ability to bolt on say my yakima snow board clamps. i havent see the accessory for this.

 

[Terrapod]

Hey, I'm with LFD, I designed the bars.

They're 11 Gauge steel, cut, bent, welded, and powder coated.

Like it's been said, the height is important for carrying larger objects and clearing the factory rails, as well as leaving enough room underneath for wrench access.

One thing you didn't factor into the cost is also the machinery to make the parts. You're not just paying for the material and labor, but there's also $700,000 of fiber laser and $300,000 of press brake, not counting their operational cost, that have to be factored in, as well as dealer margins. Machinery and machine time isn't cheap.

When you look at the actual cost, not just raw material, we felt $80 per bar was more than fair, but to each his own.

Our bars weight 5 pounds each currently. We're looking at aluminum options now for our larger racks, and that may trickle down as an option for bars too in the future.

And it's my grey 4R on the website, not [MENTION=113833]e60ral[/MENTION].

Feel free to ask more questions. I do like your home made approach, more options are always better for everyone in the end!

I get it man, more than you know.

Besides, me making assumptions to what your actual overhead is would be unwise and unprofessional. My profession is design and execution. Not just in metal. So...I stand by my critique and professional opinion.

On the business side, things have simply gotten stupid expensive.

Christ...the margins out there have as well. Rampant greed is everywhere. It is one of the reasons I started my own firm a little over 10 years ago. I simply could not tell a client (when working for other firms), that we were doing the best for them. Guess I am too honest.

As I said before, I am not selling anything (I have no desire). This is a simple DIY solution. If it can save some of those out there a couple bucks, but also have a slick, pro-fab'd looking rack...the better.

We're all trying to get a nut. There's just far too many that want ALL the nuts and then everyone else's too.

C

 

[e60ral]

80 a bar is pretty reasonable considering they are cut for things.

Did you address the issue of front vs rear width? Since it does rise up, how is wind noise affected?

Also my main thing about this type of bar is the ability to bolt on say my yakima snow board clamps. i havent see the accessory for this.

are you using the yakima buttondown aero?

if so instead of using the universal mounting bracket that comes with them, just have the bolt in step 5 go directly through the LFD bar and add a nut and washer/lock-washer. worse case you would have to drill a hole on the bars if it doesn't match up with existing holes (i think they were 2" on center, [MENTION=136636]jafrush[/MENTION] can confirm)

and the rails are pretty parallel, there are no issues if you use these or make your own cross bars. the factory crossbars are identical length and slide back and forward. (i think maybe it's the rail mounting points that are not parallel?)

 

[jafrush]

I get it man, more than you know.

Besides, me making assumptions to what your actual overhead is would be unwise and unprofessional. My profession is design and execution. Not just in metal. So...I stand by my critique and professional opinion.

On the business side, things have simply gotten stupid expensive.

Christ...the margins out there have as well. Rampant greed is everywhere. It is one of the reasons I started my own firm a little over 10 years ago. I simply could not tell a client (when working for other firms), that we were doing the best for them. Guess I am too honest.

As I said before, I am not selling anything (I have no desire). This is a simple DIY solution. If it can save some of those out there a couple bucks, but also have a slick, pro-fab'd looking rack...the better.

We're all trying to get a nut. There's just far too many that want ALL the nuts and then everyone else's too.

C

Hey, everyone's allowed an opinion. I was just saying there were reasons behind the design, some of which may not be immediately apparent (we're also using the same crossbars with the full replacement racks as well) and we really are trying to be fair with the pricing.

Like I said, I do like your idea. I'll be following along to see how it works out.

 

[STX4Runner]

are you using the yakima buttondown aero?

if so instead of using the universal mounting bracket that comes with them, just have the bolt in step 5 go directly through the LFD bar and add a nut and washer/lock-washer. worse case you would have to drill a hole on the bars if it doesn't match up with existing holes (i think they were 2" on center, [MENTION=136636]jafrush[/MENTION] can confirm)

and the rails are pretty parallel, there are no issues if you use these or make your own cross bars. the factory crossbars are identical length and slide back and forward. (i think maybe it's the rail mounting points that are not parallel?)

The rail mounting points are likely not parallel, and on the '10-'13 Trail Editions, the side rails are not parallel.

 

[STX4Runner]

the problem is with the second rail, since you can't move the bar or the rails at that point to slide the t-nut in already threaded. did you say that you already have a bracket? how are you getting the second side in?


(also, i guess i need to clarify that none of my posts should be confused as criticizing terrapod's bars, its a nice simple idea. the only reason i mentioned the LFD bars was in response to someone who posted wanting features that they offered, i thought they would want to know about a low-cost, off the shelf product that was available)

What I'm working on is stuff that's only on one side. But I think you could still use my method on crossbars if you have them bolting to a plate like the OPs. One where the fasteners that go in the track on the rail are accessible.

 

[boyguan]

are you using the yakima buttondown aero?

if so instead of using the universal mounting bracket that comes with them, just have the bolt in step 5 go directly through the LFD bar and add a nut and washer/lock-washer. worse case you would have to drill a hole on the bars if it doesn't match up with existing holes (i think they were 2" on center, [MENTION=136636]jafrush[/MENTION] can confirm)

and the rails are pretty parallel, there are no issues if you use these or make your own cross bars. the factory crossbars are identical length and slide back and forward. (i think maybe it's the rail mounting points that are not parallel?)

The issue is that i need to also raise the yakima bar cause if you do 4 snowboards 2 would be upside down and most likely be too close for the roof