Roof rack for JKU

[ECloud89]

I also have the defender rack by smittybilt. I ended up cutting 4 holes in my soft top and mounting it to my roll bar frame for summertime use. I used YJ spring bushings and spacers to raise it and the poly bushings sandwich the top material and seal it.

Sent from my XT1585 using OB Talk mobile app

 

[TerryD]

I'm hoping to get a JKUR soon, and the idea of a rack sounds great, but do racks like the Gavin and Gobi allow removal of the tops without having to pull the entire rack off? Part of wanting a Jeep for me is taking the top off on a whim.

 

[Anchor Mtn]

I'm hoping to get a JKUR soon, and the idea of a rack sounds great, but do racks like the Gavin and Gobi allow removal of the tops without having to pull the entire rack off? Part of wanting a Jeep for me is taking the top off on a whim.

Removing the hardtop on a JKU isnt really a "whim" item anyway.

 

[Jeepney]

A gobi rack has like 6 bolts (or 2) if you have quick disconnects. Doing this by yourself, you can get a hardtop hoist and use that to first remove the rack, set it down and move it aside, then remove the hardtop, reinstall rack (or leave it off). If you plan to do this only on occasion then it shouldn't be too much of a bother.

 

[TerryD]

Removing the hardtop on a JKU isnt really a "whim" item anyway.

Well, it would be a soft top in the summer. Swapping between them at the season changes and possibly sticking the hard top back on for a longer trip.

It seems like that would be a lot of hassle in general though, to remove the rack each time I wanted to swap tops. Although I can't imagine the Jeep top weighs nearly as much as my K5's top does.

 

[9Mike2]

I'm hoping to get a JKUR soon, and the idea of a rack sounds great, but do racks like the Gavin and Gobi allow removal of the tops without having to pull the entire rack off? Part of wanting a Jeep for me is taking the top off on a whim.

Check the LOD rack too, it slides back, A friend has one and really likes it....I like the Gobi, but couldn't afford it..

 

[stoney126]

Well, it would be a soft top in the summer. Swapping between them at the season changes and possibly sticking the hard top back on for a longer trip.

It seems like that would be a lot of hassle in general though, to remove the rack each time I wanted to swap tops. Although I can't imagine the Jeep top weighs nearly as much as my K5's top does.

I can say its doesnt lol. Removing the rack isnt horribly difficult at least not with the garvin and two people.

 

[Kris Erlenbusch]

Hey Shawn,
I also run the warrior rack. Have you had any offroading issues with the rack? I had some paddleboards on top and the rocking and rolling split one of the welds at the top. Warrior sent me a new rack that was upgraded i guess but the rack still wants to shift. Have you done anything to stiffen it up?

Thanks,
Ebusch

I run a Warrior Products Renegade roof rack. Really like it for tossing camping gear and stuff up there. It's completely bolt on and doesn't take very long to remove. Mine is the fastback version.

I put the air dam on it because it's noisy as hell.

 

[titicaca]

Roof rack on a Jeep is a PITA. Have you considered getting rid of the need for one? I was going to spend big money on rhino-rack but conceived the idea of strapping waterproof duffel bags to the roll bars.

Keeping it light is the key. What I have up there is tent, sleeping bags, pads, and hiking gear for the family in 3 bags (120L) at around 33lb in each, so total of 100lb sitting on the hard top fibreglass canopy, bit much, but it is spread across a surface area.
Reconsider what is on the roof and what is inside: Maxtrax can strap to spare tire, recovery gear inside, and the awning is only thing you can't have, but you could have a stand-alone tarp or shelter which, arguably, is preferable.

 

[Nickzero]

GOBI rack! Mine was bought second hand from a local guy who had one laying around. I am the 3rd owner of this Ranger rack from GOBi and besides the hardware replacements it has taken the beating of 2 kayaks and 2 major cross country trips.

 

[Rolando]

Hey Shawn,
I also run the warrior rack. Have you had any offroading issues with the rack? I had some paddleboards on top and the rocking and rolling split one of the welds at the top. Warrior sent me a new rack that was upgraded i guess but the rack still wants to shift. Have you done anything to stiffen it up?

Thanks,
Ebusch

I have the same roof rack for a few years now. No major concerns / problems, but what i did was to caulk the gaps that were around the welds (in the brackets), because I saw water pooling there - this cannot be good in the long run.

I lost one of the stabilization bolts in the back though. How it fell out is a miracle ... But overall I can recommend it, and it looks very good with a fastback soft top.