Mounting high lift jack to alloy roof cage
Submitted: Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 11:35
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rb30e
Hi everybody,
I've got one of those no name eBay alloy roof cages fitted to my troopy. It's a knock off of the ARB ones that's full length (2.2m) fully enclosed and with four legs on either side.
I had a similar set up on my old patrol except it was steel.
I bought a bracket that clamps onto the two horizontal bars that run the length of the cage. This allowed me to mount my high lift jack and shovel.
I want the same setup on the troopy but not sure if the alloy frame will be strong enough considering the weight of the jack and prolonged driving on rough roads.
Any ideas?
Reply By: Member - Fab72 (Paradise SA) - Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 13:17
Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 13:17
Not sure of the exact one you have there rb30e, but my immitation Rhino alloy ebay special fell apart on me during my Simpson Crossing.
Not saying this will happen to yours, but I'd certainly take a good look at how the rack is held together and how thick the alloy is.....in other words, how
well engineered it is.
As a rule of thumb, most people people I have spoken to reckon alloy roof racks are prone to falling apart over corrugations.
I can't comment for every type there is on the market.
I have now got a real Rhino one in steel.
Fab-io
AnswerID:
524553
Follow Up By: Member - Fab72 (Paradise SA) - Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 13:19
Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 13:19
Forgot to add.... (before anyone does), the weight I had stowed was
well under the manufacturers recommended maximum and all items were lashed down to the roof cross over bars, not the rack itself.
Fab-io
FollowupID:
806236
Reply By: John and Regina M - Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 14:27
Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 14:27
Had a cheapy on a previous 4by. Rubbish. Destroyed itself carrying a light load.
Replaced it with an ARB one and never looked back.
You get what you pay for, as always.
AnswerID:
524556
Follow Up By: Member -Ted (Vic) - Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 16:06
Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 16:06
Yep have to agree.
Get rid of the alloy and get a steel one, if it does break at least you can repair it with a "bush" welder (if you carry one). I have had a steel ARB full length on my previous vehicle (Nissan patrol with 6.5 chev) and have travelled 1000's of Km with no problems. Agree with
John & Regina. To me alloy in the bush ??????????
Just my 2 bobs(20c) worth.
cheers
Ted
FollowupID:
806251
Follow Up By: Hairy (NT) - Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 22:47
Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 22:47
Gday,
It has nothing to do with price or wether its steel or alloy.......its about choosing the right material and design for the job.
Cheers
FollowupID:
806285
Reply By: Kyle H - Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 17:15
Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 17:15
G'day
I have an alloy Black Widow 2 meter alloy rack which carries a high lift jack in a purpose built BW jack holder, shovel, 2 jerry cans and a whole swag of camping gear. Never as yet had an issue, spent a total of around 3 months in the high country, been to the Cape, been through
Innamincka through to Burnsville, still looks new. R&D on off road accessories costs a little more than the cheapies on EBay, you get what you pay for.
If they are
well engineered alloy bars will do the job just as
well as steel.
AnswerID:
524565
Reply By: rb30e - Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 17:46
Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 17:46
Dam! Didn't realise the alloy cages were so crap. Only went with alloy because the troopy is so tall and narrow, wanna try and keep it from being to top heavy. As I said before I had a knock off steel one on my last car and did the Simpson twice, cape and across the gulf. Never had a problem with it. Therefore Figured the alloy knock off ones wouldn't be too bad. The one I bought apparently has extra thick walls on the tubes, its also got 8 steel feet. We did the vic highlands recently and the thing still looks fine, mind you we didn't have a hole lot of weight in there.
Guess mounting a high lift jack off the side is a no no then.
AnswerID:
524568
Follow Up By: Echucan Bob - Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 18:14
Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 18:14
Keep the aluminium rack, ditch the Hi lift. Save yourself a whole lot of weight and grief.
FollowupID:
806259
Follow Up By: Hairy (NT) - Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 22:54
Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 22:54
They're not crap mate and neither are hi-lifts, but at a guess Id say, if you need to ask the question you need to get someone to have a look at it for you....its about design more than material.
FollowupID:
806287
Reply By: Member - Rosco from way back - Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 20:34
Wednesday, Jan 15, 2014 at 20:34
For what it's worth, I had a genuine Rhino alloy rack (3 bar type) complete with shovel and Hi-Lift brackets on my previous Landy which was still in excellent, unbroken condition after 10 years. Desert, 3 trips to the Cape etc etc. Never a problem.
As has been said, you get what you pay for, but don't discount a quality alloy job. The weight saving alone is a factor to be seriously borne in mind.
AnswerID:
524577
Reply By: rb30e - Thursday, Jan 16, 2014 at 08:18
Thursday, Jan 16, 2014 at 08:18
Yeah I'll have to have a decent look at it and decide. I've just finished a diploma of mech engineering so should have half an idea of the stresses and forces involved. Problem is I'm in a wheelchair and the thing may as
well be 20m off the bloody ground n wouldn't make much of a difference.
We are actually planning on driving from London to Cape Town via central asia with this vehicle, setting off in April. It needs to be in it for the long haul as there are going to be some treacherous roads along the way, 10's of thousands of km of them.
Spent so much time and money virtually rebuilding this car and the trip already and we haven't even left. For the most part I've only used genuine and top quality aftermarket components. After previously having a no name steel cage which stood the
test of time I thought it was something I could go with rather than a brand name one that's like four times the price.
I think I will play it safe and find somewhere else to mount the high lift, they are bloody heavy, if its questionable I don't want to risk it.
If you want to
check out our blog for the trip which we are doing to raise funds for spinal cord injuries Australia. Click on the link bellow. It's pretty much been the build of the troopy and some trip planing up til when we leave in April.
Http://lostabound.wordpress.com
Cheers
Jerome.
AnswerID:
524593
Follow Up By: Rod W - Thursday, Jan 16, 2014 at 22:31
Thursday, Jan 16, 2014 at 22:31
I have a Troopy with an aluminium roof rack to which I've contemplated fitting the hilift jack to the same as you but steered away from. The reason being I traverse tracks (here In Western Australia) that are overgrown/closed in and with the Troopy being high vehicle this vegetation comes in contact with the vehicle and poses a problem at roof level. To which my concern is having/catching a branch in between the roof rack and the jack thus causing vehicle damage, which leads me to my next bit.
I have an Ostrich Wing awning (bit stronger and more expensive than the Foxwing) fixed to the roof rack, I have to be very vigilant on not getting trees/branches caught between the awning and the and the lead into the vehicle roof (thus the potential to dislodge/damage the awning/roof rack/vehicle. On my last bush trip I wasn't paying attention and got a 60mm (approx.) sapling caught pulling the out of the ground. My next problem is rain coming in between the large gap of awning and the vehicle roof particularly above the rear doors (you have the same problem) which when raining makes things uncomfortable, and then there ponding of water on the top the awning and condensation dripping from the under side of the awning again all designed to make things uncomfortable when camping. I know what I'm going to do to hopefully fix this problem.
FollowupID:
806372
Reply By: rb30e - Friday, Jan 17, 2014 at 04:56
Friday, Jan 17, 2014 at 04:56
Yeah I actually have the fox wing but haven't experience any rain yet. From what your saying this may make things difficult for me being in a wheelchair it takes time to transfer in and out the car and in most cases the wheelchair cops the rain hard. Guess nothing my missis with an umbrella can't fix.
I know what you mean about watchin out for branches, the troopy is higher enough already the. With a 2" lift and roof cage it's right up there.
I've found a spot for the jack where it should be pretty secure and not on the roof cage, ill get some pics up when I get the job done.
AnswerID:
524638