Truck rack completed (except for the whistle)

[scott-n-montana]

Thanks for all the replies on my previous post about the noise from my rack. I have to make a fairing for the front of it yet. Anyway thought I would post a few pic's. Just got it back from the powdercoaters. It's a two piece design. Mainly the extension will probably hang in the garage. I rigged up a little deal to hang it from the trusses. Scott

[Bert]

Scott,
looks very nice, but on the 3rd picture, the horizontal bar doesn't look fully welded...???

[Wacko Welder]

Very nice rack . . .

Thanks for all the replies on my previous post about the noise from my rack. I have to make a fairing for the front of it yet.

"Very nice rack" . . . well designed and constructed . . . as to the whistle, here in Louisiana we just strap the wife in real good on top, then go for a drive . . . . she will then be able to locate the source of the whistle.

"Why, women are far better at locating the source of a whistle" Not to mention all the guys yelling to her that she has a "Really Nice Rack"

[EdZep]

That's quite a rack. Seems well conceived and executed. The two-piece, the low front/rear attachment with with angled braces, the tiedowns... I'll remember this if I get a bug to make a rack one day.

[Mr Bill]

I'll add to the chorus - Nice Rack! I do however have a question, not just about this one but about all racks that carry pipe and tubing. Why isn't there a law requiring a shield on the front to keep the pipe or tubing from spearing a vehicle in front of them in a crash? I have seen pipe sticking through the rear window of a car when struck from behind by a truck with a rack on top. Don't know the outcome as I was on a trip, but it's a ghastly thought. Any ideas?

[DSW]

Please don't give them any ideas about a law like that. From a practical standpoint you could only carry something as long as your rack + a bit hanging off the rear. Try and put a long extension ladder or a 20' or 24' scaffold pick on a rack let alone a full length of material. The 24' one is longer than my whole F250 super cab with an 8' bed. I know I tried today to figure out how to get 4 pieces of 25' long alum channel home without paying to have it cut. Didn't happen, cut them to 16' max to fit on the rack. How would you transport it if it had to have a front grid attached to the rack. That said, if you notice the racks that generally go to the front bumpers generally have one. BTW it is generally illegal to mount a rack to the front bumper as it is considered an obstruction of the drivers view. You will find very few of these commercially made for this reason. It's not generally enforced but I have seen tickets written for this.

I am more worried about the rear overhang than the front. I have seen several drivers run into things hanging out back windows and roof racks even when they are flagged. You have a small area to see and most drivers are looking at your bumper to see how close they can pull up. It's somewhat automatic. Think about it next time you pull behind some one and stop. Did you really look at the roof of their vehicle?

If you really strap something down properly it will not move. This is one reason I will not use bungee cords or let anyone working with me use them. I don't even want them on the truck. By its design bungee cords are designed to stretch. they do it when you want them to and when you don't. I don't even like friction straps to tie things to the rack. I use them for some things like the ladder that I can pass the strap thru the rungs to prevent movement if the strap loosens a bit.

I always try to use ratchet straps. They are a pain to set up some times any I hate to cut a 15' strap so I can have a 4' one. If you crank down with a ratchet strap and have loaded it properly it will not move.

I also try and have at least 1 strap per 8' of length. That usually means at least 3 if something goes up top. If a strap fails or gets loose you still have 2 others.

[DSW]

Got so busy I forgot to comment on the rack you made! Very nice. I wish my truck fit in the garage so I could do something like that. It would solve a bunch of problems on the rack for the new truck. How is it attached to the uprights? I can't tell if it was bolted or not.

Do you need suggestions for a whistle for the top? If you look around you should be able to find a nice surplus air raid siren to mount up there and have it run as you drive.

[scott-n-montana]

If you are asking how it is fastened to the truck - I welded bolts on to the Angle that sits on the bed rails and then welded the uprights over the top of the bolt heads so they are not visible. Just have to put a nut underneath. Hope that answers your Question. The top part connects to the bottom using clevis pins. Speaking of loads on top. I just seen a car going down the highway tonight with a couch on top of it and half the living room packed on the couch. I suppose they had ropes going through the windows. Anyway thats what you see in Montana I guess.

[DSW]

I was curious about the top rack to the bottom. The clevis pin explains why I dont see a plate and bolts as I had expected.

I went back and looked closer at the picts. I see the angle on the underside of the top rack now and the holes on the back bar of the truck portion. Nice idea but I would use bolts rather than pull pins to attach it. I'm thinking that the rack could shift and unpin itself if the angles are both on the back of the bars. If they are on the back on the rear and front of the front, just be careful not to knock the uprights out of vertical or it will be a PITA to install the top rack.

The closer I look at it the better the workmanship looks.