roof rack or trailer?

[ntsqd]

To my thinking racks with rails are wastes of energy. Anything worth putting up there is worth securing tightly, so why are the rails needed?
I built the rack for my first Sub from 1.125" X .09" wall square tube. The whole thing was 1.125" thick with no rails. The deck panels were mitered at the corners to provide easy access the the rack's frame for tying down items. The only thing that stuck up above the rack was the GPS antenna, and it did so mostly because I ran out of time before a trip to Baja.

I've carried everything from plywood to a couple steel tube 2"X2"X 0.250" twenty footers on it.

 

[Superu]

to name a few reasons

shovel, axe, pull-pal, hi-lift, sand ladders...

Side rails on a rack provide excellent mounting points to securely attach items that you wouldn't want to put inside the vehicle for space or dirt, sand, mud reasons.

Agree with you on the point that all loads should be properly secured, but a rack with side rails can have its uses. :safari-rig:

 

[ntsqd]

All of those things can just as easily be mounted to the side of a rack without rails.

Maybe it's because things are so far apart in the west that I'm sensitive to wind resistance. I spend a large part of any trip on pavement going hiway speeds. If it were on secondary (or less roads) for the bulk of the trip the speeds would be such that it wouldn't matter.

 

[jagular7]

I'd vote trailer. For what computeruser has suggested, I'm actually putting together something along those lines. I'm currently getting new 5on4.5 hubs to use with the smaller spindle, 15x5 trailer rims, some trailer run tires, and I should be ready for a running frame. Short term, I've got a Sears X-Cargo 20cuft rooftop carrier. Its plastic, seals for weather purposes, has locks and extra side clamps to hold the top down. These are referred to as luggage trailers and many motorcycles run these types. Do a internet search for motorcycle trailer and be amazed at the vast amount of designs. I originally was thinking the HF trailer with a couple of camelback trunks. But I had this left-over rear portion of a boat trailer frame to use. So I started with that. Its quite large at 58" front to rear, 44" side to side.

Motorcycle luggage trailer sold for over $500 on Ebay.

It must have been because of the paint job.

After a while, I'll get my buddy in the HVAC industry bend up some sheetmetal for a M416-like trailer.

PS. Just did a trailer search on my local CL. There is a HF that needs assembly for $100. Comes complete...sent an email for it.

 

[biere]

I guess the rocket box is what I am somewhat keeping an eye out for. A small roof top box for trash and dirty clothes and what not.

I saw a mini van the other day with one of those huge roof top boxes on it and while the jeep was not being bothered by the wind that mini van was feeling every little gust.

If the little rooftop box is not enough I will look for a smaller trailer. Right now I have a small utility trailer but it sits lot to the ground and I hate dragging it on stuff. I considered modding it but these days I am more interested in buying something made right from day one instead of me messing with things and winding up with old parts sitting around.

 

[michaelgroves]

As Scott says, a roof-rack is fine if you have just a few light, bulky items up there. Else it's dangerous. And if you can get away with just a few items up there, then a trailer would be overkill.

Trailers can be downright nasty when things get tough on trails - whether it be soft sand, mud, fording a river, picking your way up a rocky incline, or choosing your line through a ditch. And, like roof-racks, a trailer needs discipline, or it fills up quickly with stuff you might otherwise choose to leave at home!