Another consideration with the expo bar is you can add the gusseting which provides another location for a ratchet strap or even a place to hard mount items like shovels/traction boards/lights on the edge of the rack.
Your dream Gamiviti rack
- Thread starter Bigherm22
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For me the gussets have been useless. Every ratchet strap hook I try ends doesn't really sit right. Same for all the light tabs, had to open them all up to get aux lighting mounted. Not trying to complain, just if I could go back I probably would do without them.
Can use the expo bar or rack to wrap a strap around and keep everything just as secure.
But hey that's just me, the beauty of these racks is you can custom design it to meet your needs.
This rack really doesn't stick up more than the stock rack so your garage concern should be fine, if you currently fit.
I was super into the side rail / basket concept for a while as well but it just isn't needed. On the flipside I didn't want a rack made up of that T-slot material ,like prinsu. Those seem more ideal for flat mounting roof top tents.
The expo bar isn't necessary if your a big guy. I just always use them to huck myself up onto the tire and get to the cargo. I forget how much more expensive it is but if you don't see a need for it then you can do without.
We'll see what Tim says on the basket, but yeah if the basket and expo bar weren't there I could drop the rack down a few inches. The mounts on the side have a few different height options so you can dial it in just right. Personally I like to have a few inches under there to clean sunroof and debris that can build up in there.
If I could do it all again, I'd keep the same setup. It has served me well and has a lot of different functionality.
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The drop basket might require the rack to raise 1/2" at most, compared to without it. In most setups the middle set of towers are as low as they can go, which provides about a 1" gap between the cross bar and roof in the center... agreed with @Mike NXP that if it were any lower it would be less useful. But that drop basket only hangs about 1" below the rack surface, so you set it up just high enough that it can't deflect & rattle against the roof. If you want the lowest setup possible then yes forgo the drop basket. You could also do the non-tapered Expo bar and that would allow the front to be maybe 1/2" lower also. Not going down a few inches though, every variant is about the same height, and in general within 1" of the factory cross bars.
As for the gussets I also rarely put a strap into them- they're more for quickfist clamps, so adding shovels, hi lift standards, etc. But on those occasions where I have a wide mattress or something it's nice to reach under and put the hook in the gusset. All other times I just wrap the strap around the bar then hook it to itself.
As for the gussets I also rarely put a strap into them- they're more for quickfist clamps, so adding shovels, hi lift standards, etc. But on those occasions where I have a wide mattress or something it's nice to reach under and put the hook in the gusset. All other times I just wrap the strap around the bar then hook it to itself.
You can get that sucker pretty low even with the middle drop basket =]
I've since raised mine an inch or so because this was too close for comfort but pic below just for reference. At this setup I had no wind noise at all which was nice but when hammering down washboard roads I was worried it would start to damage the roof there.
I've since raised mine an inch or so because this was too close for comfort but pic below just for reference. At this setup I had no wind noise at all which was nice but when hammering down washboard roads I was worried it would start to damage the roof there.
Locked and loaded . There are endless ways to configure this rack . This is our setup for longer trips.
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Mike, you sir are a next level rack loader... nice work! and thanks again for all the support! 
Now I need a rack on top of all that gear for double decker status.I think you left the kitchen sink
/jk looks great!
Anyone out there have bike mounts on their Gamiviti rack ? Curious to see pics on how it all syncs up with the rack
** disregard , found this thread. But still hoping to see some pics of the bike mounted up . Tims dark garage pics leave a bit to be desired =]
Either way, awesome to know it's possible.
forum.ih8mud.com
** disregard , found this thread. But still hoping to see some pics of the bike mounted up . Tims dark garage pics leave a bit to be desired =]
Either way, awesome to know it's possible.
Roof rack with the most Thule/Yakima compatibility
forum.ih8mud.com
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Now that is classy, I sort of wish I had a trailer hitch for stuff like this but I don't really ever want to remove my rear bump bolts again . One of two of the welded nuts in the frame may be on the fritz.
Looking forward to throwing a bike or two on the roof. Might just lay em down, strap em up, and gopher it.
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Hey, that was like 12 years ago! you just need bike racks that sit on top of the bars, then clamp them down. Older Yakima stuff seems to work well for this.
also, welcome to Utah
=]
Will the drop down basket be an issue, I feel like you may have warned me about that when I first decided on it.
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Yeah, you may wish you had one of the bars that were removed for the drop basket for location... as not all bike racks are long enough to span it. the work around is moving the bike rack outside of the basket, or forward/behind it, or putting the bike rack up on bolt-on cross bars above it.
ah yeah, that's right....or, I just throw my bike up there strap it down and move on =] All this fancy crap is taking over.