CrewServed
"That" guy
I heard that. BUT, it's so much fun figuring out how to get it done!I sometimes wish I had just gotten a Tacoma! So much easier to build.
I bolted on a couple more things today. I'd zeroed in on the Thule Xsporter fairly early in the concept stage of my build after considering a custom-fabricated rack. I may still ditch the Thule and fab up a cantilever style bed and roof rack for this rig, but I have to take a welding class first. This build is just as much about learning things along the way as it is about the final product. I've gathered, however, that these overlanding rigs are never quite finished.
Anyway, I chose the Thule because it's got a dynamic load limit of 450 lbs. As I understand it, that means that I can jam 450 lbs. up there, and then knock it around without fear of the whole thing falling to pieces. That, as I've gathered, also means that the static load limit is greater than 450 lbs, which means that an awning, a RTT, and a couple of people will be A-OK up there.
And speaking of awnings, I originally wanted a Rhino Rack Foxwing Awning, but then I realized that the stored length is 2' longer than my bed length, and that means that the rear P/S door would not be able to open if the Thule rack is set lower than cab height. So I started shopping around, and found the Rhino Rack Sunseeker II. This fella is 2 meters long, and is almost exactly the length of the bed.
I was working in heat and humidity today, so I ran into a couple of user-induced errors, but I was able to work through them with no problem.
Here's the War Wagon with the Xsporter and Sunseeker II installed.
A closer look at the Sunseeker in its stowed configuration.
Here's a look at at the War Wagon with the awning deployed.
One issue I did encounter was with the T-bolts that came with the awning. The T-bolts are meant to interface with the rails in Rhino's own racks, so they're a touch wider than the rails in the Thule rack. Observe:
The width of the groove in the Thule rack is a shade under .825".
The width of the T-bolt head is a shade under .850". A little work with a vice and a file, and it fit nicely. Tight, even.
Setting up the awning isn't terribly difficult. The first time I did the test run was a little awkward, but that's mostly because I'd only ever seen it in videos on the web. It's actually quite easy and only took a couple of minutes, even with my befuddlement.
As for the Thule, it feels solid as all get-out. I stood in the bed of the truck and shoved it around, both forward and aft, and then laterally, to see how much play or slop there might be. The mounting clamps have what look like 3/8" dia. bolts pushing into the underside of the bed rails, so I'm not super confident in their ability to hold everything still without causing some sort of failure in that relatively thin piece of sheet metal under there. I'm thinking I'll reinforce the bolts with a flanged nut, or maybe just sandwich a piece of Delrin or some such material between the bolts and the bedrail to spread out the load.