Date: Sun, 4 Aug 2002 13:35:26 -0500
Reply-To: Harmon Seaver <hseaver@CYBERSHAMANIX.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Harmon Seaver <hseaver@CYBERSHAMANIX.COM>
Subject: Re: The Great Roof Rack Debate
In-Reply-To: <B972B238.B9E4%jspeer@pobox.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
Haven't tried it yet on my new '82 westy, but I put Yakima racks on my '73
westy. And although I bought the "tall" version, I couldn't put the on the
raingutters, they wouldn't quite clear, I had to drill holes in the sides of the
poptop and put mounts. And I tried it both ways, with all four mounts on the
poptop, and then with two on the luggage rack part and two on the poptop -- so
ended up with 6 mounts screwed to the top. This let me make it longer when I put
on a canoe or shorter for my sailboards.
One thing to remember -- you can't raise the poptop with the racks on, even
with just a light load like a couple sailboards. The whole poptop hinge thing is
counterbalanced in such a way that even two people pushing up very hard from the
inside couldn't get the top up. A real drag -- you get to camp and have to take
everything off, lift the top, etc, meaning that if you make brief stops in a
wayside you really can't use the poptop.
So my wife says absolutely no to putting the racks on the new westy.
On Sun, Aug 04, 2002 at 10:28:08AM -0500, Jeremy Speer wrote:
> All,
>
> Now that the "mystery machine" is getting out of its own way, i'm pondering
> the roof rack question. In order of importance, the goals are to be able to
> carry my two sea kayaks with A) minimum risk to the vehicle, B) minimum risk
> to the kayaks, and C) lowest reasonable owner effort.
>
> I've already priced the two standard options: Thule and Yakima. The costs
> are comparable as is the quality. The difference is Thule offers artificial
> rain gutters that would be attached to the Westy fiberglass roof, whereas
> Yakima offers extra tall legs that would attach to the vehicle's rain
> gutters. Neither brand publicly supports carrying kayaks with either
> solution despite the fact the combined weight of my boats is below the
> published max capacity. I've seen both methods in use out in the world.
>
> As I see it my choices are drill eight holes through my roof and then
> subject the fiberglass to the stress and strain of carrying two +17' boats,
> or go with the Yakima tall legs but have to remove the boats and one, if not
> both, racks whenever i want to pop the top. If I go with the Thule rack i'd
> only have to remove the boats before popping the top. Once on Prince Edward
> Island, i saw a Westy in a roadside rest area with the top up with two sea
> kayaks still on the rack. Looked like a mobile missile launcher ready to
> fire. The owner told me it was easier to get kayaks on and off with the top
> up.
I don't know how they did that, unless there is a difference in the hinging
in different years -- there was absolutely no possiblity of getting the top up
on my '73, and two sailboards plus the sails and masts are a lot less weight
than two kayaks.
>
> I can't do a half 'n half (tall legs up front by the luggage rack, roof
> mount legs toward the rear) because the legs/artificial rain gutters are all
> sold in lots of four and i don't have enough $$$ to buy extra stuff.
>
> I'm leaning toward the Yakima racks since the thought of drilling through
> already old, and possibly brittle, fiberglass fills me with dread. Not to
> mention having bolt-ends menacing my canvas.
>
Make sure they are actually tall enough, maybe they sell taller ones now, at
the time I got the tallest and also the extensions, and they wouldn't clear the
top on my '73. In fact my Yakima racks are now on my pickup, without the
extensions, and they look ridiculous, stick way up too high.
> Anybody have experiences to share?
>
> Thanks,
>
> -jspeer
>
> '89 Westy GL, "Mystery Machine"
--
Harmon Seaver
CyberShamanix
http://www.cybershamanix.com
| 
