which of the three racks?

[Uncle O]

never seen that rack without the tubes. very stealthy and clean. is it hard to attach things to it? also really like that extra support bar in the back. could be very useful when it comes to storage or attachments.

 

[yellowskeeter]

Very easy to put accessories on. It has slots built in the square side rails where you can attack anything from risers to handles , light bar mounts , etc......If I recall correctly it has 1500 pound static load capacity. It has two brackets up front and then the roll bar support loop in the back. All anchor points are to the roll bar and not the roof. I had the cage one on my other Jeep and it drove me crazy at times. Was not a fan.

 

[TTEPHOTOS]

Front Runner guy here. Fits the massive Expedtion III by AluCab like a glove. I can say I would be happy running a GOBI as they are full coverage as well. The Rhino rack is fantastic but doesn't offer as much real estate as mine or the gobi so keep that in mind if that could be an issue.

 

[406to417]

thank you for the reply. do you have any wind noise? also does it interfere with the freedom panel removal?

I don't have any rails on mine and I noticed zero increase in noise. Doesn't interfere at all with the freedom panels.

 

[TheThom]

Great responses. I am weighing the same decision regarding a JK roof rack.

 

[dstock]

I chose kargo Master because I did not want a tubular cage around my Jeep and when not in use I wanted something stealth. Hate wind noise as well. Not a whisper comes from this rack. I Couldn’t be happier. Easy to take roof off as well only 4 extra bolts.

I hadn't see this rack from Kargo Master either, very cool design.

I have the Gobi Stealth on my JK, very sturdy, works great. The trick with the RTT on the Gobi is to get a pair of the accessory bars that attach at the outer edge of the rack. Bolt your RTT to the bars and then just drop RTT bars and all on the rack and it takes less then a minute to tighten them down. No more fumbling under the rack.

The 2 biggest questions when choosing a rack is:
1) Do you want to be able to remove your hardtop?

Racks like the AEV and the Frontrunner, really aren't designed to be taken on and off easily which has been brought up in many threads.

2) Are you ok with drilling holes in your roof and if so, how many and how large?

The Frontrunner I believe requires 16 x 22mm holes in your roof! That's a lot of large holes if you ask me.

The downside to the Gobi is the weight, and while not noisy, it does cut down on mpg's a bit.

Since I picked built my Expo trailer, the Gobi hasn't been seeing much use. In fact, I put it back on recently to hold a couple Rotopax and to see if I want to keep it. Frankly, it's now overkill for my needs and I can't use my Throwback top with the Gobi, which is why I find this Kargo Master mod-rak lo-pro very interesting especially with only 4 holes to drill! Thanks for posting it.

 

[Uncle O]

between all the information on the racks and the incredible photos of each rig, this is making it even hard to pick a direction. might have to go to the old dart board method. updates will be coming soon on which direction I go. thanks again and please keep the images and info coming. all of this is inspiring and making my list grow for future mods.

 

[AEV]

thank you for the reply. do you have any wind noise? also does it interfere with the freedom panel removal?

With the AEV Roof Rack, you will not experience any additional wind noise if you are just running the rack. If you add the half rail or full rail kit you will begin to have some wing noise.

It does not interfere with the freedom tops at all.

 

[Uncle O]

I really don't think I could go wrong with any of the ones being discussed. thanks for all the info. going to go to see all of them in person one more time.