Racks on top of TM??

[jquarles]

I have seen many times people permanently mounting Thule or Yakima rack systems to the top of pop-up tent trailers. Is this feasible for TMs? I would think at minimum you would take the gear off before setting the TM up so the additional weight wouldn't hurt.

Just saw a thread about this- do a search on "roof rack" and you should see it. One guy had said he contacted the factory and aftermarket racks could be done(not at factory) safely.

(My family name is Quarles, btw, good to meet you. There are many Quarles out west - my dad had told me when I was a teenager many family members were sent away in the Cherokee Trail of Tears.)

I have considered building a rack for kayaks.

My thought was to weld up some pipe attached to the tongue just in font of the front shell. Then use the rear receiver hitch. This would carry the wight on the frame, not on the shell.

I would also need to add some supports o prevent rocking.

[jquarles]

Thanks for your inputs. We get our trailer this weekend so I am thinking ahead. We often carry road bikes and mountains bikes places. We also have a road racing tandem and kid bikes and trailers. Too many. So I was thinking what to do. hmmm still need some research to co.

jrai57...Family name is Quarles. WOW. I have never met another Quarles in person in my whole life. Just my nuclear family. Never even interneted a Quarles. This is a breakthrough! We'll have to chit chat on that. My dad and his family were generation in Georgia.

It looks like you have a crew cab truck. I have seen bike racks on the roof of the cab.

You don't want my solution. We take two crew cab trucks, 1500HD and 2500HD. But my son and daughter are both old enough to drive.

We take 2 ATVs, 2 motorcycles, 5 mountain bikes.

Kayaks are on the list of toys to acquire. Looks like I will have to put some lumber racks on one of the trucks.

Thinking about buying a vacation home in the mountains, but then we are stuck going to the same place all the time. With the TM we go to a lot of different places.

We carry one or two canoes or kayaks on top of the F150 cab and shell. We don't need to worry about drilling holes in the TM with attendant possibility of leaks, weight issues, need to remove the canoes before setup, etc. Additionally, unless you plan to limit your paddling to the body of water around a campsite, chances are you'll need to reload any boats on to the TV in any event. Similar considerations would apply to carrying bikes on the TM.

Bikes we carry on a Yakima tray type rack which fits in a front receiver we had added to the front of the truck. Mounted up front the bikes are always visible, you don't need to worry about backing them in to anything and weight is not an issue on the front end. You can set up the TM without taking the bikes off and have access to the stuff in the back of the camper shell. A front bumper hitch might be another option IF you can even get one on to these modern plastic bumpers. The front reciever has other advantages as well. It is great for close quarters manuvering of the TM or any other trailer you might be towing - especially if you don't have a spotter. You can see both sides of the trailer as well as both sides of the garage door frame, campsite trees, etc. You can make much sharper turns and more precise steering inputs as the pivot point is closer to the TV's steering wheels. Just my $0.02 worth on taking toys along on TM trips. - camp2canoe

I would worry that the internal structure of the TM would not be strong enough to anchor a rack. No specific knowledge on this, just a gut feeling. When contemplating purchasing kayaks last year, I found a truck rack made by Thule which carried the kayaks above the level of the truck roof. Using this, the truck bed would remain useful for carrying all of the various important items (including bicycles, we have a racing tandem and singles) we NEED while roughing it! Possible problem could be with a long kayak which could hit the front of the TM. Let us know what you figure out...

Originally Posted by jquarles

Thanks for your inputs. We get our trailer this weekend so I am thinking ahead. We often carry road bikes and mountains bikes places. We also have a road racing tandem and kid bikes and trailers. Too many. So I was thinking what to do. hmmm still need some research to co.

I used some old Yak Rack gear I had from previous vehicles and came up with this:



A couple of extra dollars for some aluminum flat bar and screws, and it slides onto my Trac Rack rails. It could also be attached by clamps to the bed rails.

I can get to everything in the bed of the truck, but do have to step over the racks to get stuff out of the front of the bed.

[jquarles]

It seems like most people have had the most success carrying the bikes and kayaks on the TV. Another point that I did not think of was that if my racks are on the TM, if I decide to take the gear somewhere else and leave the TM at camp, I would have to do it without the racks since they are mounted on the TM.

Mtnguy. I like what you have done. hmmmm (hear the hamster spinning the wheel in my head).

Originally Posted by jquarles

Mtnguy. I like what you have done. hmmmm (hear the hamster spinning the wheel in my head).

You know, something woke me up last nite that sounded like that.

Let's try to keep that deep thinking stuff to daylite hours, and remember the time difference between Colorado and Virginia.

PM me if you have questions, or keep it public if you think it could help others.