**Group Buy: Gobi Racks and accessories**
- Thread starter RiDE
- Start date
MeBe4running
New member
I run a large howling moon RTT on a Gobi stealth with no problems.
More detail's and pictures, pretty please! Pro and cons of ownership so far?
Thanks!
I run a large howling moon RTT on a Gobi stealth with no problems.
Thanks, already pulled the trigger on rack, high lift mount and struts. Man, this stuff adds up quick. In anycase, your picture really make me feel even better. Thanks. Now for the wait. Been researching LEDs... not a good sign. Seems like one purchase just leads to another.
whodat
New member
I have a few questions before I pull the trigger on a roof rack and a roof top tent. As of right now, I am torn between the gobi stealth (if I do chose to go this route, will definately order from you Ride) and baja utility rack. I know for sure with the baja utility I can install any RTT, but from what I'm seeing in this thread, the gobi should be fine to install a RTT.
What problems would you/did you run into using the gobi stealth and a RTT? My understanding is that you need a "flat" surface to have a RTT? I just don't want to spend over 1k for a RTT and find out the GS is ruining the RTT. I really like the gobi stealth, but my main use for a roof rack is a RTT, that's why if the GS doesn't work/cause problems for a RTT, then I'll go with a baja utility.
Also, I read on here that the gobi stealth has a 600# limit and the baja is 300#, is that correct? That's also pushing me towards the gobi. I read on here somewhere that the roof limit is ___ and the rack limit is ____. So even though the rack limit is higher, the roof limit makes the rack limit decreased to the roof limit essentially? If that made any sense? I tried searching, but no luck.
Can you post more pics of the RTT on the GS please?
Thanks in advance guys.
What problems would you/did you run into using the gobi stealth and a RTT? My understanding is that you need a "flat" surface to have a RTT? I just don't want to spend over 1k for a RTT and find out the GS is ruining the RTT. I really like the gobi stealth, but my main use for a roof rack is a RTT, that's why if the GS doesn't work/cause problems for a RTT, then I'll go with a baja utility.
Also, I read on here that the gobi stealth has a 600# limit and the baja is 300#, is that correct? That's also pushing me towards the gobi. I read on here somewhere that the roof limit is ___ and the rack limit is ____. So even though the rack limit is higher, the roof limit makes the rack limit decreased to the roof limit essentially? If that made any sense? I tried searching, but no luck.
Can you post more pics of the RTT on the GS please?
Thanks in advance guys.
jca21
New member
the limit is 300lbs of dynamic weight and 600lbs of static weight.
i believe whilst the vehicle is in motion the max weight is 300lbs because anymore weight may cause the center of gravity to shift higher and raise the chances of a roll over.
if you have more than 300lbs on the roof it may also affect things like braking and acceleration.
the 600lbs static weight limit is when the vehicle is parked and not in motion. that would allow the occupants to sleep on the roof via a roof top tent.
the gobi and the baja should both have the same weight restrictions both static and dynamic
i believe whilst the vehicle is in motion the max weight is 300lbs because anymore weight may cause the center of gravity to shift higher and raise the chances of a roll over.
if you have more than 300lbs on the roof it may also affect things like braking and acceleration.
the 600lbs static weight limit is when the vehicle is parked and not in motion. that would allow the occupants to sleep on the roof via a roof top tent.
the gobi and the baja should both have the same weight restrictions both static and dynamic
jangoforhire
New member
This is very true, Gobi is very willing to work with you, and so is RiDE! I think we probably sent about 15 emails back and forth trying to get the design right for my stealth with some unusual custom light mounts.
So here are the pics. We took a 3000+ mile road trip last summer from Tennessee to Maine. I purchased the stealth for the RTT and corresponded with Paul at Gobi multiple times before making the plunge. He pointed me in the direction of using Yakima snaparounds which worked great (http://www.rei.com/product/673999/yakima-universal-snaparounds-set-of-4) to secure it to the rack. I think some of the RTTs mount differently but for my king size 1.6 m howling moon stargazer ( purchased from Rou who was awesome on www.bundugear.com, former African safari guide) it mounts with a rail and hex bolt setup which lended itself to the snaparounds.
Depending on how big your rtt is will determine how many crossbars to span and snaparounds to purchase. I ended up spanning 3 rack crossbars with six snaparounds but in hindsight probably could have spanned the three bars and just used four snaparounds on the end crossbars only. As you may be able to tell from the pics I mounted mine with tent rails perpendicular to the rack crossbars (in order to span the three bars) with the tent opening up to the passenger side.
My tent is high, if I remember about 12-14 in from the rack base to the top. I just barely cleared my garage when pulling out. I mounted it before our trip and drove around town to check it before the journey. As far as the mounting goes that nearly ended my marriage
. I would highly recommend setting up a pulley from the ceiling to mount this thing. The tent itself is not as heavy as you would think just very large to pick up and we used a moving blanket to slide the tent up the back of the rack onto the truck. For obvious reasons I wanted the tent mounted as flush to the rack as possible which is another reason I went with the snaparounds. The problem was miminal clearance for our hands under the gobi to screw the nuts on the bolts which was good for aerodynamics but bad for mounting. We had major issues as the bolts have to be aligned perfectly through the two end holes of the snaparounds and needless to say this was nearly impossible as we would mount one end of the tent only to have the other ends bolts come out of the snaparounds and this went on and on and on. My wifes smaller hands and wrists were the only way to set the bolts and screw the hex nuts in to place. 4-6 hours later we succeeded. I have since mounted a Racor mount in my garage which I'll post a pick of later (http://www.amazon.com/Racor-PHL-1R-HeavyLift-4-Foot-Cable-Lifted/dp/B0009I8AO6). I have been too busy at work to go camping but judging by how crazy easy it was to remove the tent after the trip with the pulley lift I would HIGHLY recommend using a similar setup if you go the snaparounds route. That being said I am considering buying some standard Yakima or similar crossbars with standard brackets to mount permanently to the underside of my tent just because it was such a pain in the arse to mount. Yeah that will be higher but I don't think it will matter. Then I can just hook up the Yakima mounts to the gobi side rails and go.
As you can see I have the sunroof rack insert which I put a Bigfoot storage bag full of our camping chairs packed at an angle for possible better aerodynamics which worked really well. For our next trip I will probably look into buying or making a larger fairing to cover the tent in the front.
As far as wind noise it was increased a little but not bothersome. We drove close to 4000 miles at least over 80mph for long periods. We drove through major rain storms as well and nothing moved or shifted. I am running stock limited suspension and did notice things were a little squishy as far as handling, and braking was decreased, but nothing scary. A lot of that was probably from the fact that were majorly loaded down with gear. Another thing I would recommend if you are running the stock suspension is something like a rear airlift kit to level the truck out (http://www.amazon.com/LIFT-60809-Se...6IBU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1335372250&sr=8-1). I lost count of all the angry headlight flashes I got because folks thought my brights were on. I will be putting that kit in before our next journey.
The tent is totally awesome. My wife, myself, and our 1 yo son slept our first night in a huge thunderstorm and not one leak. Others at the campground on the ground were soaked with rain runoff into their tents. We felt bad for them for a second. Anywhere you go expect a lot of curious questions.
As far as tent choice from what I remember from my research there were in my opinion two categories. The higher end mucho expensive tents with Eezi-awn likely the tops and then the still good but less expensive tents, like the ARB and others. I looked at Hannibal, Eezi-awn, and howling moon because from what I remember they all used tent material similar to the Eezi awn. I liked the ARB rtt but it was not big enough for our needs. Also, the prices seem to boil down to tent material and build quality. The Eezi awn tent we wanted at the time was out of stock in the USA, so we ended up going with the howling moon. We only tested in cold weather but like I said no leaks in the rain and great breathability. The howling moon has a king size 3 in mattress. I would rate comfort at 10. We left our sheets and blankets on during the trip which was nice. So just unpacked and we were ready to go.
As the rack load goes I remember reading about higher loads around 800 or 900 static when I was researching here on the forum last year, but don't quote me.
In the future I will probably also look into putting the rtt on a trailer so we dont have to break down camp if we want to go wheelin'. Then the Gobi would get all of our gear. Hope this helps, sorry for the novel. Questions welcomed.
MeBe4running
New member
So here are the pics. We took a 3000+ mile road trip last summer from Tennessee to Maine. I purchased the stealth for the RTT and corresponded with Paul at Gobi multiple times before making the plunge. He pointed me in the direction of using Yakima snaparounds which worked great (Yakima Universal SnapArounds - Set of 4 at REI.com) to secure it to the rack. I think some of the RTTs mount differently but for my king size 1.6 m howling moon stargazer ( purchased from Rou who was awesome on Bundu Gear - The finest South African Safari Equipment in the world, former African safari guide) it mounts with a rail and hex bolt setup which lended itself to the snaparounds.
Depending on how big your rtt is will determine how many crossbars to span and snaparounds to purchase. I ended up spanning 3 rack crossbars with six snaparounds but in hindsight probably could have spanned the three bars and just used four snaparounds on the end crossbars only. As you may be able to tell from the pics I mounted mine with tent rails perpendicular to the rack crossbars (in order to span the three bars) with the tent opening up to the passenger side.
My tent is high, if I remember about 12-14 in from the rack base to the top. I just barely cleared my garage when pulling out. I mounted it before our trip and drove around town to check it before the journey. As far as the mounting goes that nearly ended my marriage
That being said I am considering buying some standard Yakima or similar crossbars with standard brackets to mount permanently to the underside of my tent just because it was such a pain in the arse to mount. Yeah that will be higher but I don't think it will matter. Then I can just hook up the Yakima mounts to the gobi side rails and go.
As you can see I have the sunroof rack insert which I put a Bigfoot storage bag full of our camping chairs packed at an angle for possible better aerodynamics which worked really well. For our next trip I will probably look into buying or making a larger fairing to cover the tent in the front.
As far as wind noise it was increased a little but not bothersome. We drove close to 4000 miles at least over 80mph for long periods. We drove through major rain storms as well and nothing moved or shifted. I am running stock limited suspension and did notice things were a little squishy as far as handling, and braking was decreased, but nothing scary. A lot of that was probably from the fact that were majorly loaded down with gear. Another thing I would recommend if you are running the stock suspension is something like a rear airlift kit to level the truck out (Amazon.com: AIR LIFT 60809 1000 Series Rear Air Spring Kit: Automotive). I lost count of all the angry headlight flashes I got because folks thought my brights were on. I will be putting that kit in before our next journey.
The tent is totally awesome. My wife, myself, and our 1 yo son slept our first night in a huge thunderstorm and not one leak. Others at the campground on the ground were soaked with rain runoff into their tents. We felt bad for them for a second. Anywhere you go expect a lot of curious questions.
As far as tent choice from what I remember from my research there were in my opinion two categories. The higher end mucho expensive tents with Eezi-awn likely the tops and then the still good but less expensive tents, like the ARB and others. I looked at Hannibal, Eezi-awn, and howling moon because from what I remember they all used tent material similar to the Eezi awn. I liked the ARB rtt but it was not big enough for our needs. Also, the prices seem to boil down to tent material and build quality. The Eezi awn tent we wanted at the time was out of stock in the USA, so we ended up going with the howling moon. We only tested in cold weather but like I said no leaks in the rain and great breathability. The howling moon has a king size 3 in mattress. I would rate comfort at 10. We left our sheets and blankets on during the trip which was nice. So just unpacked and we were ready to go.
As the rack load goes I remember reading about higher loads around 800 or 900 static when I was researching here on the forum last year, but don't quote me.
In the future I will probably also look into putting the rtt on a trailer so we dont have to break down camp if we want to go wheelin'. Then the Gobi would get all of our gear. Hope this helps, sorry for the novel. Questions welcomed.
Fantastic! Thank you very much for making the effort to write and post you experiences with your RTT so far. It is greatly appreciated! :cheers:
Having seen that mounted the way it is and your personal experiences I'm leaning closer to a purchase of a Howling Moon RTT. Many thanks amigo!
1engineer
Moderator
The static and dynamic limits are different because, for example, if you have 300 lbs on your roof and hit a big bump, the 300 lbs can quickly turn into an equivalent of 600+ lbs or more (i'm keeping it simple here). For an experiment, go stand on your rear bumper and check bumper height. Then without jumping, just bend your legs a little and spring up onto your toes and back down and see how far your bumper went down. You standing on your bumper = static. You jumping on your bumper = dynamic. Blame Newton.
No problem. Glad to help. It was a pain to mount with the snaparounds initially but using a pulley type lift I hope will be much easier. I also went to lowes and purchased some thin 90 degree socket ratchets that hopefully will free my wife up from having to help install it. Also, you may want to put some tape or other stuff on the crossbars of the rack to protect it from the tent rails scratching it. I'll try and post my lift and tent storage when I get home from work. We did have an awesome trip and loved the tent. Can't really beat a real flat bed camping in the great outdoors imho.
Michigander
New member
Yah, I didn't realize this was the group buy thread, sorry for the hijack RiDE!
MeBe4running
New member
I love my physics lessons from 1engineer! That is a GREAT way to put it!
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