Roof Rack Options (1 Viewer)

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You don't have any latches from me. My latches will not come off when the lock bolt is in. I would put them against the latches above any day. They are the main reason I started this business.
 
I try to keep my mouth shut on threads like these because we are fortunate to have options for accessories and I won't bash my competitors. Everyone here is smart enough to do their homework with their hard earned money. If there is a better part from another vendor or a style that is different because that vendor believes in their design then they have worked hard to earn it and I am glad.
It is just hard to hold my tongue when I see a statement about my parts that is just not true.

Pardon the interruption
 
Just curious, Would a stock FJ rack fit on the 80? I have someone selling one for 60 bucks on FB, and would love to slap it on the 80.

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Just thought I'd contribute a bit of info to the thread. First and foremost it's awesome that there are several really good rack options for the 80 series on the market now. Whether you like platforms, basket style racks or whatever, there is something out there that should work and match anyone's style.

I have a Prinsu rack on my truck, in fact I have the very first Prinsu for the 80 series. I got my rack when Prinsu was still owned by the creator of the brand. He was local to me and I couldn't find a rack that I liked and I had seen his racks for tacomas and asked him to make me one for my 80. So I had some input on the design of the Prinsu and the end result was more or less what I had asked him for. That all worked for what I needed. It's been a fantastic rack for me. It wasn't long after I got my rack that Prinsu was sold to CBI. To my knowledge CBI really never made any alterations to the design.

My rack does have a few differences from the rest of the production Prinsu racks. First off, my rack is 1" closer to the roof than the production versions. I asked for a low profile rack and that's what I got and I love it. However, it can be a little tricky to get to the hardware when mounting a Rooftop Tent. It's tight and hard to reach under the rack to tighten mounting bolts. This was the reason for making the production version 1" taller.
Second difference, I asked for a TEQ logo to be cut into the rails. In order to avoid any trademark issues with Toyota, the production versions got the Prinsu logo cut into the rails in place of the TEQ which I had.

There are a couple shortcomings with the Prinsu after using mine for a few years now. One of those shortcomings is that the crossbars do not have a slot cut into them that would allow a t-nut to be dropped into the groove in the crossbar. This means that in order to slide a t-nut into the crossbar you need to undo the end of the crossbar from the rail and lift the crossbar up just enough to slide the t-nut in. It's inconvenient but not the end of the world.
The other shortcoming is the mounting brackets. Some have complained about the design not being sturdy enough. From what I have seen the people that had problems had over tightened the brackets and they bent. I have never had a single problem with my rack or brackets. The brackets are plenty strong to keep the rack secure without issue. I've had a lot of weight on my rack during a lot of hard driving. I've even jumped the truck with the rooftop tent mounted and other gear on the rack. The rack never moved. So while there are some people that don't like the design of the brackets, I can assure you they are more than adequate.
That being said, I do believe that the latches that are used on the very similar Bowfin rack are a nicer mounting solution.

I've heard of some complaints that people had about the mounting brackets interfering with the doors. I've never had any clearance issues with the doors so I believe that those that had issues did not have the brackets positioned correctly.

In the end, I LOVE this rack. It has done everything I hoped for and more. It's super light, and super strong. I've had 5 adult men standing on top of the rack to watch a desert race. I've had my 200+ lb rooftop tent mounted to it with 4 adult men sleeping inside. I have lights mounted to it and it's very versatile. I have notched a couple of the crossbars to allow my to slide t-nuts in so that shortcoming is no longer an issue for me. But it would be better if that feature was included from the start.

Here's some of the original photos I took of the Prinsu rack during development and from the day I got it installed.
IMG_2540 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

IMG_2541 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

IMG_7225 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

IMG_7229 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

IMG_7231 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

IMG_7232 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

IMG_7233 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

IMG_7244 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr

IMG_7246 by Adam Tolman, on Flickr
 
My Prinsu rack was an "upsell" when I purchased my 80 from a Mud member. I didn't really need it, but it seemed useful. Since then I've really begun to appreciate just how useful it is, especially since this vehicle was replacing my Tacoma and I had owned pickups for the last 15 years.

I love that I can strap down full sheets of plywood, ladders, lumber, gutters, furniture, whatever comes up. It was especially handy when I was building my porch. It was almost every day that I had some long material I needed to haul.
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You guys are lucky. My Prinsu is still sitting in the garage because I don't have the lower half of the gutter hardware yet. The rack came in last Thursday but was missing hardware. Supposedly the hardware was overnighted Friday for Saturday delivery but it still has not shipped as of today, I am thinking of buying Bowfin and returning the Prinsu. Bowfin's mounting hardware is pretty slick. Aside from that, can either of you provide any compelling reason not to switch?
 
The hardest thing is removing snow from a roof with a low rack like that. But a person could cover the rack with some sheets of wood or such for winter making snow removal easier...
 

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