Rocky Mtn/Sherpa Rack vs. SSO Full Rack

[Tallman]

I am planning on a rack but haven't found any comparisons of these two. The 3rd Gen forum likes the Sherpas. Any 5th Gen experience with them? It's a huge expense for me. Basic needs:
Lightweight.
Able to carry long things (lumber,20'+ light rowing shells)
The least noise
The least hit to mileage.
I've considered going with replacement bars on the stock rack and one cross bar with feet up front, but the cost (Yakima/Thule is almost that of a full rack).
TIA

 

[Madmartygan]

Hmmm, those Sherpa racks looks very interesting. I wonder why they aren't more common / popular. Hopefully there's some feedback on them!

 

[socalkid]

the 5th gen rack from Sherpa (formerly Rocky Mtn Racks) was just released in the last few weeks so few folks if any will be able to give you their experience with them. as you said the 3rd gen folks love them. i'm not affiliated in anyway, and never met them, but from what i've seen online and through various social media they look to be the real deal. if it means anything, for our 5th gen we're down to either getting a Sherpa or Front Runner, and only leaning towards Front Runner because their CA showroom is 30 min or so away from our house so support after purchase will be super easy...

 

[Bergz]

I'm strongly leaning towards the Sherpa rack myself, and have been emailing with one of the owners on a few questions. All three owners are in their early 20's and have everything on the line with this company. I'm sure I'm a little biased as they are 40 minutes away from me, but so far, these guys will likely get my money as opposed to Gobi, for example...

 

[iRide4Runner]

I have had the Sherpa Crestone rack on my truck for a few weeks now and feel like I can chime in with some input. First off, I have owned a gobi, a rhino rack, and now the Sherpa and I can confidently say this rack is the most versatile and best looking racks of the three. There is little no no wind noise, the profile of the side plates contour the truck perfectly, the thing is just plain beefy. I have not been able to fully load down the rack with weight yet but I am installing a hardshell RTT on the rack tomorrow so I will be back with more feedback toward the end of the weekend. Here are some photos in the meantime!

 

[GabrielM]

I have had the Sherpa Crestone rack on my truck for a few weeks now and feel like I can chime in with some input. First off, I have owned a gobi, a rhino rack, and now the Sherpa and I can confidently say this rack is the most versatile and best looking racks of the three. There is little no no wind noise, the profile of the side plates contour the truck perfectly, the thing is just plain beefy. I have not been able to fully load down the rack with weight yet but I am installing a hardshell RTT on the rack tomorrow so I will be back with more feedback toward the end of the weekend. Here are some photos in the meantime!

Does the fairing or front feet sits on the paint?

 

[iRide4Runner]

Does the fairing or front feet sits on the paint?

My fairing is adjusted so that it does not touch the paint and the edge trim helps with paint protection as well. The feet do touch the roof but the rubber bottoms should not damage the paint.

 

[ridefast]

My fairing is adjusted so that it does not touch the paint and the edge trim helps with paint protection as well. The feet do touch the roof but the rubber bottoms should not damage the paint.

Rack and paint look awesome.

Any chance you can post a few pictures of the front feet. I am really hoping the front feet can sit on the rubber gutter on the roof. It was hinted to me that the front feet are adjustable on where they can sit.
Thanks.

Honestly the only thing holding me back from ordering is the front foot mounting location.

 

[andrew4r]

Does the fairing or front feet sits on the paint?

The SSO kit comes with a transparent wrap you can put down on your roof so the fairing doesn't make contact with the paint.

 

[jdm-v35]

Just took a look at the Sherpa rack. I have the SSO and IMO the SSO is designed stronger. the mounts look 3-4 times stronger than the sherpa and I have had a RTT on top and can tell you for sure it can hold around 600lbs with ease.

If you will not be holding a ton of weight either option is probably fine, but if you plan to load it up heavily, the SSO mounts look much more robust.

The SSO does have about a 12 week wait, but I would do it all over again for the quality and service they provided.

 

[4R4Trout]

The front looks like it might hit the TJM Airtec snorkel for those that have them. Pretty cool otherwise.

 

[arehman11]

I have had the Sherpa Crestone rack on my truck for a few weeks now and feel like I can chime in with some input. First off, I have owned a gobi, a rhino rack, and now the Sherpa and I can confidently say this rack is the most versatile and best looking racks of the three. There is little no no wind noise, the profile of the side plates contour the truck perfectly, the thing is just plain beefy. I have not been able to fully load down the rack with weight yet but I am installing a hardshell RTT on the rack tomorrow so I will be back with more feedback toward the end of the weekend. Here are some photos in the meantime!

Random question, but is your mom named Anne and drive a white limited with a rhino rack? If so she’s friends with my in laws friends and hung out with us on our dock during the weekend of the 4th at the lake. She was telling me about a 4Runner that matches this exact description!

 

[iRide4Runner]

Random question, but is your mom named Anne and drive a white limited with a rhino rack? If so she’s friends with my in laws friends and hung out with us on our dock during the weekend of the 4th at the lake. She was telling me about a 4Runner that matches this exact description!

Yep, thats her! Small world!

 

[john_galt]

Just took a look at the Sherpa rack. I have the SSO and IMO the SSO is designed stronger. the mounts look 3-4 times stronger than the sherpa and I have had a RTT on top and can tell you for sure it can hold around 600lbs with ease.

I'm curious why you think the SSO is so much stronger. From what the few pictures I've seen it looks like the SSO has thicker spacers and a gusset on the mounts. Likely stronger, but 3-4 times?

I sure wish the SSO had adjustable crossbars like the Sherpa Crestone.

 

[jdm-v35]

I'm curious why you think the SSO is so much stronger. From what the few pictures I've seen it looks like the SSO has thicker spacers and a gusset on the mounts. Likely stronger, but 3-4 times?

I sure wish the SSO had adjustable crossbars like the Sherpa Crestone.

Ok, maybe not 3-4x stronger though in the original pictures a couple years ago i think the mounts were a thinner metal. I do still think weak points would be the mounts. front being held up by only one of those aluminum cross bars and rear using the same 1/4" bolts as the cross bars and all bases using rubber spacers. Other than that it looks fine, but I think with other racks that use the same cross bars they mention that though the racks can hold 7-800 lbs, that is distributed weight and not meant to be held by 1 bar. if you're not planning to push the capacity it should be fine.

The sso uses solid aluminum spacers on the roof and 3/8" bolts through the rack rails to secure it which I do think is quite a bit stronger, especially compared to the cross bar mount. I also like the rack cutouts for BD S2's in the SSO rack. The Sherpa does have more adjustment which may be nice. So far I have had the SSO on for I think almost 3 years and it looks just like the day I got it. I put a smittybilt XL on it and use it for camping often.

They are both good options, I just chose the SSO for my needs since I use a full size RTT on it and have 2 people and gear in it when camping. I also have the S2's in the rack which mount perfectly. I don't mount any other gear on the roof other than BD Squadrons on the back, so I have not had any need for adjustable crossbar placement.