get chicken coop flooring at any farm supply store and then just strap it down with some black zip ties.

 

http://www.farmtek.com/farm/supplies...;pgha2215.html

 

SD stopped making the racks because they went out if business. However I heard they're planning to come back and produce a limited run of their classic roof rack. But this was ~6 mths ago and I have yet to see or hear anything about these new racks.

I think one of the reasons why people 'romanticize' the SD racks is because they were used in Camel trophy and G4 competitions. However I plan to make my own history with the BajaRack when I cross the Darien Gap.... j/k.

Another thing to mention, the low-profile BajaRack roof rack I have lists for $850. So I'd think very hard about spending $1200 for a Rover Rack Voyager rack. And I wouldn't spend more than $400 for a clean SD rack if you can get new for $850.

.

 

Just want to mention that when I first placed the BajaRack on my roof, the mount pads all sat flush against the gutter. And the mounting brackets are designed to apply vertical tension against the bottom surface of the gutter for a tight and strong grip.

But I do like the look of the SD mounting brackets, they're wide and solid. However I looked at one used SD rack that didn't lay flush against the garage floor, it was warped. And seeing that several of the SD racks have cracked and all in the same area, I think there's a design flaw.

Only time will tell about BajaRack but the racks are CAD designed and the people behind the company have backgrounds in Industrial Design in the Medical field. So I don't expect to experience any cracks....

 

well let us know how it works out for you... what do you use the rack for?

 

On reflection, hilltoppers is right; I'm not sure I'm all that happy that the forward pair of brackets is *centered* on the door apertures; from an engineering standpoint, that would seem the weakest part of the sill.

I wonder what the Baja people say about that.

 

I definitely plan to test the rack out on the washboard roads in Death Valley, Saline Valley and on the Mojave Road.

My main reason for getting a roof rack is to store jerry cans. I don't feel safe carrying them inside the vehicle nor on the rear bumper. I also want to put light but bulky items on the rack. When I was in DV, I almost ran out of gas but fortunately my friend with a rack had additional gas.

Attached are pictures of a some trips we took this year. I didn't have a rack at the time but saw how useful they can be. The first photo is at Trona Pinnacles, the 2nd photo is going up Goler Wash in DV, on our way looking for Charlie Manson's hideout. The 3rd photo is at Ubehebe Crater.

The last two(2) photos are from New Mexico. My friend, his wife and I all piled into his D1 to drop him off at the NM/Mexico border with his bike. He was doing the Great Divide trail from Mexico to Canada on bike. Without the rack, we could never have fit everything.

BTW, my friend is a commercial photographer and uses his rack as a platform for taking pictures when in the outdoors. His rack is an SD rack but he hates it. He said he could take much better photos if he just had a BajaRack (just joking about that last part!).

 

If you remove your headliner, you'll see the rain gutter is a boxed channel that about the same size all along the entire width of the vehicle. So having the mounts centered over the B- and C-pillar or in between won't much of a difference.

On the other hand, if you look at the number of vertical support bars on the foundation layer, SD has 4 and BajaRack has 6, that's counting the front and back support bars. In any case, empirical evidence has shown SD racks tend to crack is the back. Only time will tell on BajaRacks but they designed their racks using CAD for stress analysis.

BajaRack also makes racks for the FJ Cruiser, the Xterra Gen1 and Gen2, the LC80, etc. So their racks are getting plenty of use by the Toyota an Nissan communities. So far there hasn't been any complaints.

 

What do you suppose *holds that channel up in the air*?

 

I just got the baja rack for the D2, standard model, and their ladder.

Very well made, fit like a glove. Ladder lined up..you need to have one person hold the top while you clamp down on the bolts.

Rack welds are superb. Service on their end is superb.

I had one small area of powdercoat get rubbed off due to transplort on the driver side front foot...I just did some auto primer and engine epoxy flat black...in a place you would never see and that does not get any wear...about 5 minutes. I plan to use the think and cause a lot of wear, .


Anyway, been looking for a good rack for years and this one fit the bill.



At about 50 you hear a slight rumble sound, like your tires are bigger, but it is not a wind storm. Mileage is off 0.5mpg for me...from 14 to 13.5 ...I can live with that.



Pictures to follow later tonight.


Jeff