michael1963

I've been searching for 2 hours now and can't find any pictures. I just picked up a new roof basket for my 4Runner. I don't have the factory installed roof rack or rails. Does anyone have any pictures on how they 'directly' mounted their basket to their roof? Any help would be appreciated.

flecker

Alot of people I have seen used bolts and nuts.

michael1963

Thanks for replying. I remember seeing that done somewhere on here but I just can't find the pictures to see how he/she did it. He must have just drilled up through the cross member do you think?

And I love your 'location' note...even I didn't think you ever saw snow.

aa1911

iTrader: (1)

I just ordered a basket (yakima load warrior) for my runner, should show up thursday; I have the roof rack system which is just 2 rails bolted into the roof w/ 2 cross members. previous owner had ski racks on them, anyone want old beat up ski racks with no key??

Get out the power drill I guess, I would be pretty leary of drilling holes in the roof though, let us know what you end up with

michael1963

I really wish I had at least what you have. So is the load warrior going to be mounted on rails or how do you plan on mounting them without the ski racks?

E-ROC

this is what i did.



i put reinforcement plates on the inside and siliconed it and have no leaks. looking back i should have run the roof mounts all together down each side for better weight distribution on top.

Ron Helmuth

c'mon one project at a time! ....just messing with ya

Personally I would install the roof rails and then go from there, but that's me... and you're a 2nd gen.

Some of us with 3rd gens are messing with Unistrut-electrical conduit but again to mount to the factory rails but skipping use of the cross bar.

GO_BLUE!

I'd hate to drill into my roof for fear of leaks.

I bought a Thule basket off Craigslist for about $80 and the clamps that came with it fit my luggage rack perfectly. Have you thought about just going to the junkyard and picking up a luggage rack?

Also I Yakima makes crossbars that fit in the rain gutters of your 2nd gen...

michael1963

Now see, this is sort of the idea I am looking at right now. The brackets that come with my basket are for if you already have a roof rack system on the truck.
What do you mean when you say that you should have ran the roof mounts all together down each side? You only have 4 mounts? That is what I was going to do, only use 4.

michael1963

I have gone to the junkyard and nobody has a luggage rack.
I think I'm not understanding something here, I don't have rain gutters, it is a smooth top. The only place I could mount something forward would be at my 4 doors and, I can't do that because this is where my light-bar is located.

E-ROC

i have six mounting points (three per side). what i meant was that i should have run flat stock from the rear mount to the front similar to the way the factory mounts/slider things do, however i have not had any problems yet and its been LOADED a time or two. just remember to silicone the mounts liberaly for leak prevention, then trim off the excess. if you need any more detailed pics or help with ideas concocting let me know. by the way you know you can always incorporate your lights into the rack as i did and sell your light bar to cheapen the project. $.02

michael1963

Thanks E-ROC, I get you now. What I have decided to do is, I have 2 bars that I had on a 'mushroom' style luggage rack that I use to have mounted forward on the roof prior to having my lightbar. I plan on hard mounting them through my roof and then I will be able to quickly mount/dismount my basket when ever I need to.
I just finished making up 4 4in long x 2in wide (because that was an old piece of flat stock I had laying around) brackets for the inside to help support the roof. I'll be running back into town tomorrow to get some good silicone for the 4 holes. What I thought was silicone was only that clear caulking for the eves....won't do!
I would really appreciate anyother pic's you might have of what you did on the inside (if you have them, if not, no worries) and/or your whole rack.

The one I just bought is called 'Sportsrack', which I picked up at a local automotive store for $275.00cdn. Nice thing about it is that it is 61/2in tall and pretty lightweight, approx 40lbs give or take. It almost looks exactly like a BajaRack

SpecialScottie

Heres mine bolted through the roof

michael1963

Thanks buddy, that looks good too. On the inside, do you have a headliner?

SpecialScottie

Yup. I ran 1 inch metal strap across the inside so the bolts wouldnt pull through. I drive through alot of low hanging trees

michael1963

Right on...at least I'm on the right track for the inside support brace's.

E-ROC

i dont have pics of the inside mounting, but make sure you plan out before you drill due to roof supports, sun roofs, and whatnot. one more pic for now.

michael1963

Hey, nice looking rig you've got there. Thanks for that pic. Yep, everything is planned out and now completed. I just got in from my garage now and downloading all my pics so that I can make my 'buildup thread'.

aa1911

iTrader: (1)

yeah, that looks pretty cool mounted to the roof; I guess it would be the same as mounting rails for a universal rack anyway... just mounted my new yakima load warrior up and tested it out this weekend in the cascades, love it. it really frees up a lot of space inside; the only issue is overhead clearance but not too bad really; the direct roof mount will give you about 4" of extra clearance vs. mounting to a stock rack system. lets see some pics when you get 'em loaded! thanks

michael1963

Thanks man. It turned out exactly how I was HOPING it would and only took a few hours to complete. Yeah I will have to load it outside of my garage because the top of the basket is only 2in shorter that the top of my lights which I only have about 3in clearance getting into my garage door. When I had the garage built, I had them put in an extra door panel for that very purpose, I should have went 12in higher, oh well, no worries, it's not like I'm going to be loading 3 feet of kit in the basket.

As soon as I get it loaded, I'll take a pic to show you how it looks. Thanks for your reply.