Vertical mounting of EW jerry can holder?

[jsmoriss]

What do you think? The jerry can fits in there pretty tight, and the construction looks like it might hold...

https://www.expeditionexchange.com/jerrycanholders/

I also have an AT jerry can holder, but the Wedco is really loose in there, so I'll have to add padding. It also sticks out a bit more...

js.

 

[Beowulf]

Where were you thinking of mounting this?

I would shoot John or Ho an email and see what they think.

 

[jsmoriss]

Where were you thinking of mounting this?

I would shoot John or Ho an email and see what they think.

Ho didn't think it was a good idea. :-D

The mounting location is between the tire and the carrier's hub/spindle. Here's a picture of the area...

Maybe the EW jerry can holder would work... especially if I add a strap to the center. Then again, I don't want 5 gals of gas falling off my truck. The nice thing with the EW is it's low profile when no can is mounted.

I just received the AT holder, and no doubt it's more than capable, but it's really made for a Scepter can. The Wedco flops around a bit. I'll have to add some padding and do something about the strap -- you can open the jerry can unless you flip it around. Even then, it's possible with a little elbow grease.

js.

 

[Beowulf]

How about one of the nato mounts from Rovers North or Atlantic British? Although not as stylish as the EE units, they are perfect for running a Wedco vertically.

http://www.roversnorth.com/store/p-14859-jerry-can-holder-20ltr-galvanized.aspx

http://www.roverparts.com/Parts/GJC003.cfm

http://www.roverparts.com/Parts/BR1013.cfm

 

[Martyn]

The AT can holders were originally designed for the Scepter cans. The Scepter cans are slightly larger than the WEDCO version so there is some space between the can and the holder.

The gap can be cushioned by adding some felt strip, this also stops the metal to metal contact.

After Scepter stopped exporting to the USA last January we looked at a redesign of the holder, but there are some factors in play here.

When the WEDCO can is full of fuel and in the sun it expands in the holder and the fit becomes very tight. So reducing the dimensions of the holder would not be useful.

Most of our owners who use the WEDCO can reverse them in the holder to get a secure fit. Some of the put a small spacer on the bottom of the holder to raise the can up and get an even tighter fit.

There is a re-design in the pipeline to improve the fit, but either way there is going to be some play between the can and holder to allow for expansion.

 

[24HOURSOFNEVADA]

I too would not recommend mounting the EE vertical. Think about how awkward it would be to secure the strap while holding a full can. Also think about the stress induced onto the security strap. It just wasn't designed to be used that way.

If you must have vertical, I'd go AT with some sort of insert. They are bomber (And look good).

Or you could do what my father is doing. He bought six EE can holders and mounted them to a sheet of 3/4" plywood as a template. Once he achieved the desired design along with his required spacing, he then bought a sheet of 3/8" aluminum and transfered the template to the aluminum. The next step is to tap the drilled holes, so that no hardware hangs down below the sheet.

The only thing to remember is be sure to add drain holes for obvious reasons. So far, the template fits the rack (ARB FJ Cruiser) very well and just completed it's maiden voyage from the OC to Reno without a single issue.

 

[jsmoriss]

A tough decision - I have both and there are good arguments for using either.

The EE holder is much lighter -- 14 lbs with an empty can vs 26 lbs for the AT -- and on this kind of tire carrier (not an A frame) it makes a difference. Also, when there's no jerry can on the truck, the EE holder has a much slimmer profile. The holder is mounted low enough that denting hoods when parallel parking is a concern, and the AT holder would stick out all the time.

On the flip side, the AT is a lot stronger. The weak link on the EE holder when mounted like this would be the clasp. It's spot welded in several places, but probably not enough. Two bolts on either side of the clasp (4 total) could be added to strengthen it. Also, a cinch or ratchet strap could be used to take the weight off the clasp - something like this:

The downside to straps is they relax when wet. The ratchet strap might be the better option between the two.

As for mounting the can onto the EE holder, it _would_ be a little more difficult / tricky. Hard to say before I've actually tried it, but the basket part of the holder is sized perfectly, and once I lay the butt of the can in the socket, it shouldn't be too difficult to slide the ratchet strap back on and close the metal strapping.

There's also a small fitment issue with the AT holder. I would have to either get a straight metal strap from AT and bend it myself to fit a Wedco better, or cut & shape one myself. Some sticky closed-cell foam padding would take care of fitment in the holder itself, so that's fine, but to avoid rattling from the metal strap, I would need to replace the original.

So, I'm leaning towards the EE... What do you think?

js.

 

[jsmoriss]

So it's decided, I'm going to use the EE jerry can holder. The base is 5 1/8" wide by 18" tall. I'm going to mount it on a 5 1/8" by 23" alum. plate 3/8" thick. Then I'm going to bolt the bottom and center-ish section of the plate to the tire carrier. I need a thick plate because the top section will be free-standing. No choice. Then I'm going to modify the jerry can clasp and add some small 10-32 bolts to re-inforce the tack welds. And as an extra security feature, and to take the weight off the clasp, I'm going to keep a strap around it like this:

Call me nuts, but when there's no jerry can, it'll make for a nice low profile mount. That's a big plus for me. I could have done something with the AT holder, but not without replacing the molded steel strap.

js.

 

[Antichrist]

I can't tell for sure from the photos, but it looks like the EE holder would be in your way if mount the fuel cans on your roof rack. On your roof rack the cans are most easily used if you don't remove them to use. Just fill them in the horizontal position then, to refuel, just use a siphon tube to get the fuel from them. It looks like the EE holder would make that harder. Saves lifting 30-35lb cans on to the roof rack.