DIY Tire carrier design ideas? (1 Viewer)

[Jstawgn]

looking for ideas to build my own tire carrier.
Ideally door mounted would be good but concern with door strength makes it out of the question.
List of things that I like to improve from:
1. Hard to use latch
2. Extend to far
3. Back up camera

What it must have:
1. Passenger side Offset. I don't like centered as it make it look like a Jeep/Bronco.
2. Can attach high lift jack, recovery board, rotopax, shovel and axe if needed.
3. Maintain access to the OEM hitch.

Some ideas off the internet.
Greg Friesen's GX

 

[Jstawgn]

This is a JL spare tire carrier

I like the combo with tube protector like this.

 

[drowzyGX]

I dig a lot of these, but wish more designs had the swing out open to the driver side. Want to be able to have the door open while cooking / at camp and also use a table on the swing out.

 

[Jstawgn]

I dig a lot of these, but wish more designs had the swing out open to the driver side. Want to be able to have the door open while cooking / at camp and also use a table on the swing out.

That is just a matter of relocating the hinge.

Drivers side hinge does not work for me. It would make it unusable for city use when I need to open the rear barn door. It does work very well to be used for full time Overlander.

There are so many hinge supplier. It range from $50 to $140 just for the hinge.
So far I still like 4x4 innovation hinge the best. Not sold on the latch yet. Although very nice it still requires two hand operation.

 

[drowzyGX]

That is just a matter of relocating the hinge.

Drivers side hinge does not work for me. It would make it unusable for city use when I need to open the rear barn door. It does work very well to be used for full time Overlander.

There are so many hinge supplier. It range from $50 to $140 just for the hinge.
So far I still like 4x4 innovation hinge the best. Not sold on the latch yet. Although very nice it still requires two hand operation.

Definitely inconvenient for city use, and adds a fair bit of risk / danger in the event you have to open the rear door while on the side of the road or highway. The barn door on this thing does not make bumper + table setups convenient at all.

For re-locating the hinge…that seems easy enough with a custom build, but I imagine it wouldn’t work with, say, a kit bumper like coastal or true north. Is that fair? I know nothing when it comes to welding or fabricating.

 

[Jstawgn]

The barn door on this thing does not make bumper + table setups convenient at all.

I have my table on the back side of the door and I kinda like it. It automatically become wind break when open.

a kit bumper like coastal or true north. Is that fair? I know nothing when it comes to welding or fabricating.

Coastal seem to split in the middle

True north you can request driver or passenger side hinge.

In this example, the spare are mounted backward and very tight to the body. Might not be a good idea for wide tires.

Combined with this might afford some additional storage.

 

[Jstawgn]

Started working on mine last weekend.
Decided to make it bolt on.

Still undecided on how to mount the tire. I know I want offset to passenger side and ability to attach hi-lift jack, rotopax, traction board, license plate and backup camera.

 

[drowzyGX]

seems like there’s a fair amount of specialized tools requires to diy a bumper like this. Did you handle everything from bending the tube to fit the frame? Or is there a “kit” that you’re working from?

Love the look of what you’re making. It looks similar to the picture of the silver GX with Washington tags in this thread. Really dig the true north bumper, but prefer the tire offset like you’ve got.

 

[drowzyGX]

May have answered my own question: looks like a lot of folks start with the 4xinnovations kit and modify to their needs.

 

[Jstawgn]

I got a local fabricator make the tube protector. I don't have a tubing bender to do it.

I did get the hinge and tire carrier plate from 4x4 innovation. Did not buy their latch as I want to try rockhard4x4 tire carrier latch. This is basically a hot rod door latch. Being a slam latch, hopefully it can be used much easier just like normal door handle.

As specialized tools:
1. 110 MIG welder. It's more than enough as I only use 3/16 thick steel at the most. Most are 1/8 thick.
2. Klein digital angle gauge. Used to measure car angle and adjust the weldment.
3. Cheap 14" chopsaw. Very unprecise and I have to use digital angle gauge to make sure the blade and the work piece are right angle to each other.
4. Angle grinder
5. Adjustable angle magnet and right angle magnet.
6. 2-3/8 hole saw to notch the tubing precisely for the hinge. I have to ask my friend to help with a mill/drill press. It would be very hard to use hand drill for cutting partial circle and no pilot holes.

 

[drowzyGX]

Ha well I am about 1 for 6 on those tools, lol.

Excited to see how your swing out build progresses.

There’s a maker space here in Atlanta with some welders who do weekend classes. May shoot them an email to see if anyone is down to help me weld up the 4xinnovations kit.

 

[Jstawgn]

Make some progress but still far from finish.
Decide to make the spare tire reverse mounted. The idea is to use the wheel to store dirty recovery gear. I am thinking to mount jeep tailgate table as the door for the storage and also gain table to use if needed. License plate would be relocated right below center of tire.

The other advantages of reverse mounted is the tire can be much closer to the body and maintain much better departure angle. The downside is the carrier are not flexible with tire width change. Mone is specifically fitted for 35x10.50r17 Kenda.

 

[NudeLobster]

I
In this example, the spare are mounted backward and very tight to the body. Might not be a good idea for wide tires.
View attachment 3000433

Make some progress but still far from finish.
Decide to make the spare tire reverse mounted. The idea is to use the wheel to store dirty recovery gear. I am thinking to mount jeep tailgate table as the door for the storage and also gain table to use if needed. License plate would be relocated right below center of tire.



The other advantages of reverse mounted is the tire can be much closer to the body and maintain much better departure angle. The downside is the carrier are not flexible with tire width change. Mone is specifically fitted for 35x10.50r17 Kenda.

Great progress!
That reverse mount you found is my truck. the reverse mount there is actually driven by a hinge-down design of the tire hoop. It hinges down 90* so that the tire is face up at waist height so you can lift oversized tires on and off using more of a squat rather than over-head shoulders. The inboard CG is a nice bonus!

 

[Jstawgn]

Great progress!
That reverse mount you found is my truck. the reverse mount there is actually driven by a hinge-down design of the tire hoop. It hinges down 90* so that the tire is face up at waist height so you can lift oversized tires on and off using more of a squat rather than over-head shoulders. The inboard CG is a nice bonus!

That is good idea to be able to swing down. I am afraid to add more complexity. I think mine are already a bit above what I can chew. Not having access to variety of material is the most frustrating part. I have to keep ordering more stuff and wait for it to get delivered.

 

[Jstawgn]

Makes a few mistakes along the way and slow down progress quite a bit. Finally it start taking shape worthy to update.
The backward tire and tailgate table is a great idea but really complicate the build process.
Need to take a break before buying the rotopax stuff. I need to re think what I need to put in there since I am also working on DIY Aux tank.

 

[Jstawgn]

Got the hi lift jack mounted. Also added weboost antenna and aux light.

With full gear on, everything is tight and rattle free. Most off the time jack and traction board would be off. Same as antenna as it's mounted on a quick release bracket.

 

[drowzyGX]

Dude, this looks phenomenal!

 

[aztoytec]

That is awesome!