Mericas_Meuth
Member
Very nice 
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Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk
GMT800 People - Opinions wanted on upgrades/mods
- Thread starter stomperxj
- Start date
rayra
Expedition Leader
Looks nice but wouldn't it be better if the 'feet' were just as wide / solid as the vertical portion of each brace, for load distribution? Rather than all the weight on the roof being at just those bolt locations?
How much vertical clearance are you getting over the middle two luggage rails? Looks very close. I'm about to rig MkIII of my roof deck and am having trouble finding a reasonable deal on some 3/4" square tubing or maybe some 1/2"x3/4" to make my new cross braces from. Clearance over those middle rails has been a concern in my own roof deck arrangements in the past, how I started off wrong with flat straps in the first place. Since I wanted my deck to sit down within the factory Z-71 rack, to also help conceal my roof-mounted solar panel setup.
www.expeditionportal.com
How much vertical clearance are you getting over the middle two luggage rails? Looks very close. I'm about to rig MkIII of my roof deck and am having trouble finding a reasonable deal on some 3/4" square tubing or maybe some 1/2"x3/4" to make my new cross braces from. Clearance over those middle rails has been a concern in my own roof deck arrangements in the past, how I started off wrong with flat straps in the first place. Since I wanted my deck to sit down within the factory Z-71 rack, to also help conceal my roof-mounted solar panel setup.
Los Angeles -Class Attack Sub(urban), Build / Collected Werks topic - '02 k1500 Z71
Drove up to Vandenberg today to witness the SpaceX Falcon9 / Iridium launch, but mostly because it was to be the first attempt at re-landing the 1st stage on land on the west coast. Closest I could get was about 4.5mi from the launch pad, in the farm fields of Lompoc. Rocket went off without a...
www.expeditionportal.com
Mericas_Meuth
Member
To quote dumb and dumber, "I like it alot". I've always wondered why no one has taken suburban rails and pushed the forward mounting bracket on the Tahoe as far forward as possible... It seems like it'd be easy enough. Even if you just installed the crush nuts (or whatever goes into the roof that anchors the bolts) up to the front of the roof you could have a true full length roof rack like you see on all the 4runners and what not.
I've almost pulled the trigger on some junkyard suburban rails, but I really like these brackets.
Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using Tapatalk
Looks nice but wouldn't it be better if the 'feet' were just as wide / solid as the vertical portion of each brace, for load distribution? Rather than all the weight on the roof being at just those bolt locations?
How much vertical clearance are you getting over the middle two luggage rails? Looks very close. I'm about to rig MkIII of my roof deck and am having trouble finding a reasonable deal on some 3/4" square tubing or maybe some 1/2"x3/4" to make my new cross braces from. Clearance over those middle rails has been a concern in my own roof deck arrangements in the past, how I started off wrong with flat straps in the first place. Since I wanted my deck to sit down within the factory Z-71 rack, to also help conceal my roof-mounted solar panel setup.
Los Angeles -Class Attack Sub(urban), Build / Collected Werks topic - '02 k1500 Z71
Drove up to Vandenberg today to witness the SpaceX Falcon9 / Iridium launch, but mostly because it was to be the first attempt at re-landing the 1st stage on land on the west coast. Closest I could get was about 4.5mi from the launch pad, in the farm fields of Lompoc. Rocket went off without a...
I had the same thought. Im planning a new rack for the burb and will make all new brackets rails and bars from scratch. Mine will be similar but solid between each pair of bolts to spread the load.
rayra
Expedition Leader
A full length basket on a Sub is a ton of space. My deck stops about an inch behind the sunroof and even so IIRC it's 86" down the centerline. At 44" between the factory side rails that's over 26sq'. The unused front area is somewhere around 18-20", front to back. Almost another 6sq'
I've been considering a horizontal tubular 'hoop' coming forward from the deck and around the sunroof / top opening, so I can put a light bar further forward but am thinking it would be better on the leading edge of the existing deck so I can keep light scatter off my hood and windshield. I'm more used to old-skool KC pencil beams up high on a pickup's roll bar, with floods in the grill area. Always seemed like better visibility than the glare-scatter of a modern light bar perched right over the windshield.
Too, such a tubular extension would just vibrate all over the place. Most of my off-pavement driving is washes and washboarded desert tracks. Even the 8-10" front overhang of my existingplywood deck will likely exhibit too much movement with a ~40"-class light bar on its nose.
I'm intending to weld up my own square or rectangular tubing cross braces for the next iteration. And am considering adding a 4th or even 5th crossbrace to help with rigidity. I drive far too fast on the freeway and I'm getting some buffeting front and rear which is working the crossbrace bolts loose over a period of a few months. Next install I'll probably loctite the carriage bolts / nuts that secure the crossbraces to the rack rails.
I've been considering a horizontal tubular 'hoop' coming forward from the deck and around the sunroof / top opening, so I can put a light bar further forward but am thinking it would be better on the leading edge of the existing deck so I can keep light scatter off my hood and windshield. I'm more used to old-skool KC pencil beams up high on a pickup's roll bar, with floods in the grill area. Always seemed like better visibility than the glare-scatter of a modern light bar perched right over the windshield.
Too, such a tubular extension would just vibrate all over the place. Most of my off-pavement driving is washes and washboarded desert tracks. Even the 8-10" front overhang of my existingplywood deck will likely exhibit too much movement with a ~40"-class light bar on its nose.
I'm intending to weld up my own square or rectangular tubing cross braces for the next iteration. And am considering adding a 4th or even 5th crossbrace to help with rigidity. I drive far too fast on the freeway and I'm getting some buffeting front and rear which is working the crossbrace bolts loose over a period of a few months. Next install I'll probably loctite the carriage bolts / nuts that secure the crossbraces to the rack rails.
stomperxj
Explorer
I tried that on a previous prototype set and it doesn't work due to the shape of the roof. The roof isn't flat between the rivnuts. The forward bracket feet are not on the same plane. I'm not worried about the load capacity. 26+ sq inches of metal touching the roof so if I put 300lbs up there each foot has has an average of 30lbs on it which equals about 11 lb/sq in. There's no way I'm putting 300lbs up there for a long trip. Also remember these OEM racks are nearly all plastic.
The center roof clearance will be pretty close. Not sure 100% until I get a rack up there. The suburban guys have it a bit easier with their big flat roof. These Tahoe roofs have a lot more curve to them.
It is crowned but when you place a neoprene spacer under the bracket it shouldnt be too bad. Its a very small amount over the distance between the pairs of bolts. If its too severe when I make them Ill modify them with as large a footprint as I can. I have a brake that will do 1/4", welders and plasma cutter at home and access to a water jet and laser at a buddies shop. My plan is to set the brackets and weld as much of the rails and bars in place so I dont have fitment issues. Im still up in the air on whether to just do rails and crossbars with a removable basket or just do a permanent basket.
I really like those angle rails you made.
For the record I didnt mean from side to side. Just each bracket that has two rivnuts. Or at the very least make the feet bigger
I really like those angle rails you made.
For the record I didnt mean from side to side. Just each bracket that has two rivnuts. Or at the very least make the feet bigger
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ExplorerTom
Explorer
So I’m curious. What type of aftermarket support are you really needing? Drawers- probably one of my favorite things in my truck are not vehicle specific. My Eezi-Awn platform rack, again is not vehicle specific. Lights, not vehicle specific.
Bumpers? If there isn’t anything available, the same cost paid to a local fabricator will get you a bumper of your design instead of some company’s design.
Suspension? There’s a long list of torsion bars that will swap in that have different load ratings. Rear springs- if you don’t have the Z71 springs already, that’s an easy swap.
I’d say it’s more of a lack of creativity.
rayra
Expedition Leader
Very little bolt-on skidplate or undercarriage protection options, for starters. There's plenty of stuff you can hack / modify. But little that bolts right on, especially in the lower budget range.
Which is why I'm (slowly) working on some skidplate options and very interested in stomperxj is doing with design and cutting.
/
I just disassembled my roof rack deck yesterday and here's a couple pics of how low the deck rode inside the Z71 rack. I may have to keep the flat strap at the crown and new saure or rectangular tubing at front and rear, for the next iteration.
front 'clearance'
Real problem in my design is vertical clearance with the bracket groove in the factory rack. I go with tubular cross braces with end tabs I still have the bolts to the side rails impinging in the deck area and needing clearance for tools. I might have to notch the edges of the MkIII deck for clearance for the mounting hardware. A 3/16" or 1/4" aluminum plate would solve that, but I'm too cheap to spend ~$400 for the plate. So another (exterior!) plywood deck for MkIII.
If I didn't want to keep my rooftop solar less noticeable, I'd invert the brackets and make the deck flush with the top of the factory rack rails. The greater standoff from the roof skin ought aid in reducing the heat transfer into the vehicle. But with a black vehicle, all that glass, it probably doesn't matter much. The solid deck certainly does seem to help a lot when underway.
Nice part about stomper's design is you can make the deck as tall or as wide as you want.
Which is why I'm (slowly) working on some skidplate options and very interested in stomperxj is doing with design and cutting.
/
I just disassembled my roof rack deck yesterday and here's a couple pics of how low the deck rode inside the Z71 rack. I may have to keep the flat strap at the crown and new saure or rectangular tubing at front and rear, for the next iteration.
front 'clearance'
Real problem in my design is vertical clearance with the bracket groove in the factory rack. I go with tubular cross braces with end tabs I still have the bolts to the side rails impinging in the deck area and needing clearance for tools. I might have to notch the edges of the MkIII deck for clearance for the mounting hardware. A 3/16" or 1/4" aluminum plate would solve that, but I'm too cheap to spend ~$400 for the plate. So another (exterior!) plywood deck for MkIII.
If I didn't want to keep my rooftop solar less noticeable, I'd invert the brackets and make the deck flush with the top of the factory rack rails. The greater standoff from the roof skin ought aid in reducing the heat transfer into the vehicle. But with a black vehicle, all that glass, it probably doesn't matter much. The solid deck certainly does seem to help a lot when underway.
Nice part about stomper's design is you can make the deck as tall or as wide as you want.
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ExplorerTom
Explorer
It doesn’t have anything from the factory? My Expedition and Explorer has one for the transfercase and the gas tank. Sure they aren’t super beefy like the ones a buddy just put on his 100-series, but I’ve gone all over the place, occasionally beating those plates up, and never had any issues.
rayra
Expedition Leader
They do. A cheesy 'chin plate' made from a fibrous resin. Then a large flattish 3/16" aluminum plate under the front diff and engine pan. And then a foot-square steal plate under the transfer case.
Then there's the 'huge tract of land' that is the 32gal HDPE fuel tank. Huge flattish bottom flush with the bottom of the frame rails. No protection. Myself an few other GMT800 owners have been talking design ideas for crafting a plate under that tank. Will either take a lot of structure to take the weight of the vehicle in a high center, or more likely a compromise / compromised design that just adds a 3/16" aluminum skin to the bottom of the tank. As a second skin / double hull, something that can take strikes from road debris, branches, ladders on the freeway, that sort of crud. I think I can make such a thing that can be mounted using the tank straps themselves. Way better than the nothing that is there now.
I'm also in a crude prototype stage for making some CV boot protection, plates mounted to the lower control arms which will shield the boots from brush from the front and below. Got into the thin sheetmetal phase before I got sidetracked on some home improvement projects before the weather got hot. About to pick up on that work again in a couple weeks.
eta bunch of notes and pics here
www.expeditionportal.com
And a shot of the plastic chin plate that has to go / be improved
Then there's the 'huge tract of land' that is the 32gal HDPE fuel tank. Huge flattish bottom flush with the bottom of the frame rails. No protection. Myself an few other GMT800 owners have been talking design ideas for crafting a plate under that tank. Will either take a lot of structure to take the weight of the vehicle in a high center, or more likely a compromise / compromised design that just adds a 3/16" aluminum skin to the bottom of the tank. As a second skin / double hull, something that can take strikes from road debris, branches, ladders on the freeway, that sort of crud. I think I can make such a thing that can be mounted using the tank straps themselves. Way better than the nothing that is there now.
I'm also in a crude prototype stage for making some CV boot protection, plates mounted to the lower control arms which will shield the boots from brush from the front and below. Got into the thin sheetmetal phase before I got sidetracked on some home improvement projects before the weather got hot. About to pick up on that work again in a couple weeks.
eta bunch of notes and pics here
Los Angeles -Class Attack Sub(urban), Build / Collected Werks topic - '02 k1500 Z71
DAMN, that's expensive. Honestly, what are you going over that needs a deflector there? I go through some pretty crazy ********, off trail and on, and never once had a boot rip, or anything else there. I understand it happens, but now with the miles and miles off road and it never close to...
www.expeditionportal.com
And a shot of the plastic chin plate that has to go / be improved