Hinged RTT bed rack design

[SDDiver5]

Awesome man I dig it. And thanks for your build thread on TT. Fun read. I just spent the last hour reading through it. Your bed cage/suspension sounds/looks pretty ************...and it still looks pretty stock.

I've been looking at all types of vehicles to get when my truck finally dies. Was never thinking I would want a tundra but now I kind of do haha.

D

 

[JIMBO]

:sombrero:-I have two new/unused 100lb gas struts-

Thx! Its been a long time coming. I bought the tent last June! But it all came together nicely.

RTT will be mounted most of the time. I dont see a reason to take it off. However, I will build a single pulley and hand crank system in my garage and that is how I will remove it if I need to haul big stuff in the bed.

Hinges are on the passenger side. I am going through great pains to manage weight and CG on the Truck. So my gas/water is mounted just behind the cab (6 jerry cans total), two f/s spares laying flat between the wheelwells, and gear boxes/firewood near the tail gate. The RTT weighs 180lbs and the rack is probably another 30-50lbs. I did not want that kind of weight mounted high. So we mounted as low as we could while still fitting two spares under it. Since it is so low, I need a way to access my gear without crawling under the rack. Hence the hinges.

I blew my budget by a couple hundred so I decided to wait on the gas struts. My thought was that I could just muscle it up for now and use a kick stand.... no way man! Its way too heavy. But after I get the struts installed, it should be eazy peazy. Also, when the tent is pitched, I can still lift the rack and access my gear which is cool.

I'll sellem to you both, for $50 bucks, plus shipping-

They are 36" extended and about 20" collapsed, they're 10mm ball mounts-

If you're interested, PM me and I'll give mfg details-

:costumed-smiley-007:wings: JIMBO

 

[155mm]

That's awesome; glad it turned out so well!

Post up picks of it open, once you get the struts installed.

 

[pray4surf]

Gas Charged Struts

When you get ready to add the struts, a trip to Vista CA http://www.liftsupportsdepot.com/ and they'll get you setup. I had help from Brandon there, we went through trial fitting many different strut 'strengths' before finding the "Goldilocks" struts for my application.

 

[osidepunker]

Awesome man I dig it. And thanks for your build thread on TT. Fun read. I just spent the last hour reading through it. Your bed cage/suspension sounds/looks pretty ************...and it still looks pretty stock.

I've been looking at all types of vehicles to get when my truck finally dies. Was never thinking I would want a tundra but now I kind of do haha.

D

Thx man! Yeah I still need to update the build thread with the new RTT and rack. I would definitely recommend a tundra. They are super reliable and they can take a beating. They carry more gear than a taco or 4runner. True they dont fit the trail very well, but then again neither does a powerwagon...

:sombrero:-I have two new/unused 100lb gas struts-

I'll sellem to you both, for $50 bucks, plus shipping-

They are 36" extended and about 20" collapsed, they're 10mm ball mounts-

If you're interested, PM me and I'll give mfg details-

:costumed-smiley-007:wings: JIMBO

thx for the offer! I am still researching exactly what kind of struts I need and where to place them. If yours are a match, I will hit you up!

That's awesome; glad it turned out so well!

Post up picks of it open, once you get the struts installed.

Thx! I will definitely post pix of it open

When you get ready to add the struts, a trip to Vista CA http://www.liftsupportsdepot.com/ and they'll get you setup. I had help from Brandon there, we went through trial fitting many different strut 'strengths' before finding the "Goldilocks" struts for my application.

Perfect! Ill bring my truck in and show em and see what they think.

 

[osidepunker]

In case anyone is wondering how strong the rack is...

 

[JamesDowning]

So that's why your shocks are monsters.

As for the gas strut, you will want to mount them so that they are as perpendicular to the RTT base as possible when the rack is in place, and then somewhat close to parallel when the RTT is at the raised/nearly 90 degree position (but you don't want them actually parallel, otherwise they will have no holding force to keep the RTT raised). Do a quick lever arm calculation based on the center of the RTT as the CG, and the mounting point of the strut, and the distance they are from your hinge. You'll want the strut to have a little less torque around the hinge than the weight of the RTT, that way it doesn't try to spring up all on its own as soon as you release those destaco latches. I can probably make a quick sketch for you if it would help. (I don't check this site very often though, so your response may get missed if I forget to check back here.)

That rack really came out great, congrats! Love the truck too.

 

[osidepunker]

So that's why your shocks are monsters.

As for the gas strut, you will want to mount them so that they are as perpendicular to the RTT base as possible when the rack is in place, and then somewhat close to parallel when the RTT is at the raised/nearly 90 degree position (but you don't want them actually parallel, otherwise they will have no holding force to keep the RTT raised). Do a quick lever arm calculation based on the center of the RTT as the CG, and the mounting point of the strut, and the distance they are from your hinge. You'll want the strut to have a little less torque around the hinge than the weight of the RTT, that way it doesn't try to spring up all on its own as soon as you release those destaco latches. I can probably make a quick sketch for you if it would help. (I don't check this site very often though, so your response may get missed if I forget to check back here.)

That rack really came out great, congrats! Love the truck too.

Thx!

When the rack is horiz do I have to mount the struts vertical? That will get in the way of my bed space. I thought I could mount them horiz...

Going to make calls and source struts next week. Awning and MTB mount will be fabbed in the next week or two.

 

[bmwags]

Sick truck bro! I had a 2010 Tundra and it was awesome.

I now have a 2012 Ford with a 5'6 bed. I'd love to make a rack similar to yours. Would you be willing to share more pics to help me fab up something similar?

Thanks dude

 

[osidepunker]

Sick truck bro! I had a 2010 Tundra and it was awesome.

I now have a 2012 Ford with a 5'6 bed. I'd love to make a rack similar to yours. Would you be willing to share more pics to help me fab up something similar?

Thanks dude

thx! Absolutely I can help you out! I wont have The Truck back until this weekend (hopefully). What kind of pix do you need?

 

[bmwags]

No rush at all.
If you had a stock list (what size tubing) and just some pics of the base, and the mounts you used to attach to the tent.

I don't think I'll be as ambitious with the opening, but I'd like a solid rack. I have concerns about the Thule Xporter and think I may just have to fab something!

Thanks a ton!

 

[osidepunker]

No rush at all.
If you had a stock list (what size tubing) and just some pics of the base, and the mounts you used to attach to the tent.

I don't think I'll be as ambitious with the opening, but I'd like a solid rack. I have concerns about the Thule Xporter and think I may just have to fab something!

Thanks a ton!

for the bedcage, the tubing is 2" main tube and 1.5" secondary with dimple plate gussets, all round .120

for the rack, the main tubing is 2" square and the lateral support tubes are 1" round, all .120

Hinges are hard welded with studs, nothing fancy and the latches are welded compression latches, not sure which brand.

The RTT is attached to the rack using the system that comes with a tepui tent; extruded aluminum track and tension plates/bolts. They will attach to any size load bars, but you may have to change the bolt and or plate size.

ummm thats everything off the top of my head. Let me know if you need any gaps filled in

 

[osidepunker]

The Hinged RTT Rack is a huge success! The rack was designed by me and DMZ Fab and Race Prep did the fabrication. The electric actuator is a 12vdc 2000lbs 14" actuator from Progressive Automations in Vancouver. Pix or it didnt happen: