Yakima tracks only- best crossbars?

[steve whiteside]

Gents, I'm waiting for my Grandby to be delivered and then leaving within days on a 3 week tour. I bought the tracks only option. I want to order the crossbars in advance.

Two questions. 1) is the distance between the tracks critical? ie do you have to buy he right length of crossbars or are they adjustable? 2) I want something wind friendly (oval?) for surfboards and then later perhaps some solar panels. Best value out there? I don't need to go cheap but I don't need gold plated either. I was thinking of the Rhino ones although also I saw the REI gave me a 20% coupon and they carry Yakima.

I would appreciate any help. I also have some left over 80/20 in the 1.5" square profile but even though that is now free - it does not seem aerodynamic. And I would have to figure out the towers.

Steve

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

Steve, the bars are fixed length, so get the widest bar you can. For the weights on the roof, I don’t believe track distance is an issue. All my bars and racks are the old round style because I’ve had some of it for forty-ish years, so no recommendation on which oval is best.

If buying new, I’d look at either Thule or Yakima gear. You’ll need landing pads and towers that accommodate the bars you choose. Get a bunch of matching key lock cores, too. It helps honest people stay that way

 

[Fielding.dots]

If you go the Yakima route you can go new or used.

The cheapest bar option for Yakima is the round bar. And it pairs with the older style control towers (search eBay and CL) or the new skyline towers.

Yakima landing pads #1 pair with either of these towers.

I have the 78" round bars and like wandering sagebrush, went this route because I already had the all the accessories to match.

 

[Vic Harder]

"Best value out there" would be 1" alum square tubing from your local metals shop.

 

[steve whiteside]

Hey Vic, yes that is probably true. Buuuut...im going to have this for a while and the racks will probably be up there full time.

Steve

 

[veryactivelife]

The aero style bars come in a few sizes base on how far apart the towers are and each has a small amount of adjustment ( not sure about Rhino). So best to confirm the size (distance between tracks) with FWC. I would prefer as long a bar as possible to make loading easier. The older round and square bars can be cut to size. Rhino, Thule and Yakima are all solid brands.

Since the camper, solar panels, and other loads on the roof are not aerodynamic I don’t see any advantage other than cosmetic. The solar panels will be mounted directly to the tracks using aluminum L bar or Z bar and not to the rack crossbars.

As you have seen all the systems are pricey, All appear to be $500+ to $600+ range. I worked as an installer for Yakima and Thule and have some rack parts I would sell at what I think is a good price (below wholesale). The old round bar Control Tower ( new) with a set of used locks for $120 including shipping. You’ll still need the Landing Pad #1 which seems to be selling at $126 for two sets (4 pads) and of course the round bars +/- $100 depending on length. Let me know if you are interested.

Dean

 

[Phyatt]

I want to build a rack system on a 2018 Hawk but it’s very difficult to determine where I can drill into the roof. Does anybody have experience drilling into a newer Hawk?
A drawing or photo of the roof structure would be super helpful.

 

[Jon R]

This video shows the roof construction starting at about 7:30. Not sure if it will help, but the shot where the roof frame is up against the wall maybe could be scaled if you know the overall width. Apparently I'm too new to be allowed to post links, but you can paste this into a full youtube address. Its a FWC factory tour video.

 

[Phyatt]

This video shows the roof construction starting at about 7:30. Not sure if it will help, but the shot where the roof frame is up against the wall maybe could be scaled if you know the overall width. Apparently I'm too new to be allowed to post links, but you can paste this into a full youtube address. Its a FWC factory tour video.

youtube.com/watch?v=CZObB1ZofQE

 

[Phyatt]

Great video Jon. That was EXACTLY what I was looking for.

 

[Jon R]

I suspect if you call or email FWC they would provide precise information for locating the frame.

I believe I remember the camper sales person at my local dealer saying that an advantage of ordering the tracks installed by the factory was that they inserted material into the affected square aluminum frame stringers to increase the fastener holding capability. FWC may have valuable fastening advice as well as location advice if you contact them.

 

[Adventurebound]

I just installed tracks on mine. The center of the frame rail is 11 1/2 inches from the side of the camper. If you tap on the roof you can feel it, and see the bend of the roof skin.

And yes a stud finder worked. And also as someone else has mentioned, I did have wood in a few of the holes, 2017 Hawk. Maybe they use it as a filler inside the aluminum frame rails?

Don't be afraid to drill a few holes...if you think about it you already have two huge ones where the skylights are at...lol

 

[mcfarty]

What type of screws or fasteners did you go with? Doing this myself and have seen a few options out there, 1" #8 self tapping, Plusnuts, bolts and washers... etc... any help would be greatly appreciated!

I just installed tracks on mine. The center of the frame rail is 11 1/2 inches from the side of the camper. If you tap on the roof you can feel it, and see the bend of the roof skin.

And yes a stud finder worked. And also as someone else has mentioned, I did have wood in a few of the holes, 2017 Hawk. Maybe they use it as a filler inside the aluminum frame rails?

Don't be afraid to drill a few holes...if you think about it you already have two huge ones where the skylights are at...lol

 

[nico]

i beleive there is a bar that has a built in extension inside the bar. I was planning on going with that as is will allow one person to load large items such as paddle baords and kayaks. You can extend the bar temporarily beyond the width of the camper so you are down on the ground and getting the item up on the roof area. It can then be slid over to the top and the extension can be retracted.

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

i beleive there is a bar that has a built in extension inside the bar. I was planning on going with that as is will allow one person to load large items such as paddle baords and kayaks. You can extend the bar temporarily beyond the width of the camper so you are down on the ground and getting the item up on the roof area. It can then be slid over to the top and the extension can be retracted.

I don’t believe it is still being made.

 

[camelracer]

i beleive there is a bar that has a built in extension inside the bar. I was planning on going with that as is will allow one person to load large items such as paddle baords and kayaks. You can extend the bar temporarily beyond the width of the camper so you are down on the ground and getting the item up on the roof area. It can then be slid over to the top and the extension can be retracted.

I've got one of those slide out bars. It is also great for hanging a solar shower bag. I'm thinking getting rid of my kayak and Yakima bars so PM me if you're interested. Located in Goleta

 

[goinoregon]

I want to build a rack system on a 2018 Hawk but it’s very difficult to determine where I can drill into the roof. Does anybody have experience drilling into a newer Hawk?
A drawing or photo of the roof structure would be super helpful.

my atc has screws through roof into internal framing, so just by looking at them, you can tell where the internal frames are.

 

[Flyfisher]

My used camper came with Yakima round bars on the tracks. When I had problems lifting the roof, I took them off and now it is much easier. They are heavy - 6 ft bars weigh over 9 lbs each with track attachments. I am looking at the Aero Aluminum bars because they seem lighter. Length of bars would also affect weight slightly.

 

[Wandering Sagebrush]

My used camper came with Yakima round bars on the tracks. When I had problems lifting the roof, I took them off and now it is much easier. They are heavy - 6 ft bars weigh over 9 lbs each with track attachments. I am looking at the Aero Aluminum bars because they seem lighter. Length of bars would also affect weight slightly.

Somewhere in the threads is a post from Ski3pin about the round aluminum bars they use. If I find it, I’ll post a link.

 

[J D]

I'm new to this forum. Hi.

I just received my new Granby shell model about 3 weeks ago. Amongst other options I chose to get the camper with the Yakima tracks only.

In measuring to install my own sourced solar panel(s) I discovered the tracks on my camper aren't parallel to one another. That is, they vary from 60 inches (O.D.) at front to 59.5 at rear. While that's not end of world stuff it does eliminate some of the functionality that parallel tracks would provide.

I called the dealer/installer we used. He explained the tracks are mounted to the roof framing and if roof framing is crooked - so are the tracks. He continued saying that 1/2" isn't uncommon and sometimes it's more.

I did feel around the tracks, pressing on both sides out of curiosity if the framing was really crooked or did the track simply get screwed down wrong. Seems the framing is indeed crooked.

I'm disappointed that the actual framing isn't square, true, parallel. I've no idea where or if this will be an issue as I build this out.

The crooked frame/track is one of three issues I've had so far. Every problem I've had could have been evaded with simple attention to detail at the manufacturer.