Enthusiast III
Last month I purchased a very nice older roof top box from the local Goodwill for a meager $25 in preparation for the next family camping trip. I tried out the factory strap down points, but after being flagged down on an off ramp and told that the box was flying up off the roof like a parachute I decided I was going to need a set of crossbars.
After I bit of research I found that Ford roof rack bars are taller and narrower than most and universal crossbars were not going to fit well. To make them a harder sell, a quick search found even cheap Harbor Freight bars were $60 and I would have to drill holes in the box and use U bolts to mount to the crossbars. Plus I wanted this thing to remove easily.
I found the answer to all of my problems with Superstrut and these neat U bolt clamps which are designed to hang the Superstrut from an exposed I beam roof. Turns out they work great to clamp the Superstrut into the channels of a roof rack. The solution was cheap and sturdy and the wifey appreciated that it didn't look ugly (only the section of U bolt is visible, she's not as firm of a believer in function over form as I am)
I purchased a 10' section of Superstrut for $25 and 4 clamps at $5 each, plus some nylock nuts and additional hardware for a grand total of around what the harbor freight bars cost. I cut two 3 and a half foot sections and bolted through existing holes in the roof box into the strut channel nuts. Added some adhesive foam to the strut and set it on the roof rack and applied the clamps.
First impressions is that it is ridiculously sturdy, and my wind noise from the box is completely gone. With the crossbars in place I now took the leftover 3 foot section of Superstrut and bolted it to the channel as a place to mount my recovery boards. Some hardware and sections of aluminum angle and in a couple hours the night before our trip we are good to go. After our trip I swapped the whole setup over to my Jimmy and slid the recovery board brackets backwards to clear the door. This superstrut stuff is great!
Overall very happy with how things turned out and it fits the bill well. We survived a pretty rough and rocky trail with @bawesomfels and close to 1000 highway miles and all hardware is tight as when it was installed. Eventually I might pull it off and paint it black for extra stealth, but it works for now. Best part about this setup is that when I'm ready to remove the roof top box I just buzz out four bolts from the inside of the box and leave the captured nuts in place in the channel for next time.
Happy budget overlanding everyone!
After I bit of research I found that Ford roof rack bars are taller and narrower than most and universal crossbars were not going to fit well. To make them a harder sell, a quick search found even cheap Harbor Freight bars were $60 and I would have to drill holes in the box and use U bolts to mount to the crossbars. Plus I wanted this thing to remove easily.
I found the answer to all of my problems with Superstrut and these neat U bolt clamps which are designed to hang the Superstrut from an exposed I beam roof. Turns out they work great to clamp the Superstrut into the channels of a roof rack. The solution was cheap and sturdy and the wifey appreciated that it didn't look ugly (only the section of U bolt is visible, she's not as firm of a believer in function over form as I am)
Superstrut 3-3/16 in. Channel to Beam Strut Clamp with U-Bolt - Gold Galvanized (Strut Fitting) ZU501-10 - The Home Depot
The 3-3/16 in. U-Bolt Beam Clamp is crafted of hot rolled carbon steel and coated with an electroplated steel finish. The clamp is designed for use with A, B and C-series metal framing channels. This item has a load capacity of 2150 lbs.
www.homedepot.com
I purchased a 10' section of Superstrut for $25 and 4 clamps at $5 each, plus some nylock nuts and additional hardware for a grand total of around what the harbor freight bars cost. I cut two 3 and a half foot sections and bolted through existing holes in the roof box into the strut channel nuts. Added some adhesive foam to the strut and set it on the roof rack and applied the clamps.
First impressions is that it is ridiculously sturdy, and my wind noise from the box is completely gone. With the crossbars in place I now took the leftover 3 foot section of Superstrut and bolted it to the channel as a place to mount my recovery boards. Some hardware and sections of aluminum angle and in a couple hours the night before our trip we are good to go. After our trip I swapped the whole setup over to my Jimmy and slid the recovery board brackets backwards to clear the door. This superstrut stuff is great!
Overall very happy with how things turned out and it fits the bill well. We survived a pretty rough and rocky trail with @bawesomfels and close to 1000 highway miles and all hardware is tight as when it was installed. Eventually I might pull it off and paint it black for extra stealth, but it works for now. Best part about this setup is that when I'm ready to remove the roof top box I just buzz out four bolts from the inside of the box and leave the captured nuts in place in the channel for next time.
Happy budget overlanding everyone!
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