Prinsu load panel rattle

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stickel

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Last fall I bought a Prinsu rack and a couple load panels. Pretty happy with them so far but the load panels rattle like crazy at highway speeds. I tried putting some weather stripping on the panel but it's too thick and won't fit in the grooves on the rack. So I found some thinner all purpose silicon gasket but that's too thin, still leaves room for a little rattling.

Wondering if anyone has any other ideas out there for how to stop this thing from rattling.
 

Boort

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@stickel
Last fall I bought a Prinsu rack and a couple load panels. Pretty happy with them so far but the load panels rattle like crazy at highway speeds. I tried putting some weather stripping on the panel but it's too thick and won't fit in the grooves on the rack. So I found some thinner all purpose silicon gasket but that's too thin, still leaves room for a little rattling.
Wondering if anyone has any other ideas out there for how to stop this thing from rattling.
In woodworking I've used "Space Balls" ( https://www.rockler.com/space-balls-raised-panel-door-spacers )

While these might be a bit small for your load panels (common dado's are 1/4" - 3/8" wide) and I'd guess the tracks the panels on your rack ride in are likely 1/2"; Many shops make their own using dabs of Silicone caulking doled out on wax paper. Once Dry they insert in the same fashon as the Commercial space balls.


If the rattle is more up and down you could dab yours out as coins instead of balls and insert so they wrap around the panels upon insert to the rails.

Boort
 

stickel

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Oooo! Now that's an interesting idea @Boort. It's an up/down spacing issue which is causing the rattle. Going to have to see if I have any silicon caulking lying around. Thanks!
 

Boort

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@smritte
That's interesting.
I have a prinsu rack and my cross bars are tight. I would have assumed, both of ours would be almost the same. Now I'm going to have to crawl up there and check.
Scott
I based @stickel's post and reading the instructions for the load panels it's not the cross bars that are loose but the panel that fits in the grooves between 2 cross bars. Not a bad idea to check that the load bars have not come loose from day to day use though.

Boort
 

stickel

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@smritteI based @stickel's post and reading the instructions for the load panels it's not the cross bars that are loose but the panel that fits in the grooves between 2 cross bars. Not a bad idea to check that the load bars have not come loose from day to day use though.
Yup, that's the case. The crossbars are tight and secure, the load panels are loose and have play in the grooves when it's installed in the side slots of the crossbars.
 

smritte

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Yup, that's the case. The crossbars are tight and secure, the load panels are loose and have play in the grooves when it's installed in the side slots of the crossbars.
Got it (I think). I have side supports along the gutters, cross bars and a deflector up front. I don't have what you mentioned unless I'm being totally stupid.

Edit: Googled the load panels. Didn't know those existed. I can see what you were talking about now.
 
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Airpirate

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Just had Prinsu installed by the guys at Prinsu Design in Idaho Falls. I have two load panels and they definately vibrate loudly at highway speed. Anyone find a solution? I'm guessing that when something is attached they will be quieter, but gotta figure this one out, because it is pretty annoying.
 

stickel

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The solution I ended up going with was this. I grabbed some rubber gasket weather stripping from Home Depot, the kind with the hollow center, not the solid foamy stuff. On the bottom side of the load panels I stuck the stripping where they insert into the crossbars. That helped a bit, but there was still some space to move around. So I took more of the weather stripping, cut it in half and stuck it to the top of the load panels like I did with the bottom side. It's a tight fit so I did all this off of the truck, then installed the panels and crossbars to the rack together.

I've only tested on the interstates going through the city at 70mph, but there doesn't seem to be any noticeable rattling noise or vibration.
 
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Airpirate

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We are on the road, so I needed to find the load panel rattle to maintain our sanity for the next three weeks. I FOUND IT! The panels are secure in the crossbars, but there is a little slack where the panels slide into the slot in each backbone rail. I grabbed a zip tie and ran it through the available holes and cinched it down. Load panel rattle is stopped. I'll figure out a more professional looking fix when I get home.
 

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