Homebrew Con-Ferr Style Porthole Roof Rack Build

[97CargoCrawler]

I forgot to post up pix of the inside:



Keep in mind I used stainless steel hardware. It is not rated for strength. As you can see that wasn't really a concern of mine. Both the top and bottom side of each bolt has a rubber cushion. With 40 bolts snugged down just enough to lightly compress the rubber this rack isn't gonna move. If you take a wrench to any of those bolts they will rotate. The rubber provides a seal, acts as a shock absorber and quiets any rubbing.

The gap between the roof and cross member is wedge shaped. I didn't want any part of the bolt to protrude past the surface of the member. Someday I may want to attach a headliner and I will want it to sit flush. I bought two different sized bolts to accomplish this. I used 35mm bolts for the thick side of the wedge and 30mm for the thin side. Even with all the varying wedge thicknesses across the roof those two size bolts worked for every mount.

[97CargoCrawler]

Plugs for the tent pole mounts:





You pull and either it pops out right away or the string pulls through until the knot hits the washer and hopefully then it comes out.

[krsowles]

=D> =D> =D> =D>

[97CargoCrawler]

102" CB antenna installed. Of course I will only have it up when I'm out in the middle of nowhere. I think I should probably add a capped length of pipe to stash the antenna in for storage. Better to have it with me in an emergency instead of sitting in the garage. I'll probably hit the spring with some flat black paint, or black rubberized paint:







I also plugged up the tent mounts:





Now I don't have to worry about them rusting from the inside out.

[97CargoCrawler]

Tonight I have been prepping for installation of the PIAA lights on the rack and the clearance lights for the cab.

The light covers are glossy black with white lettering. Yuck.





I think they will look better flat black:





I might paint the PIAA lamps and clearance lights flat too.



This weekend I hope to get the PIAAs installed, the clearance light holes drilled and lights bolted down, scanner antenna mounted and the wiring feedthru's finished. I'm also hoping to work on the ladder.

[krsowles]

You are correct, sir! They look much better repainted!

[97CargoCrawler]

It's been a pretty productive weekend!

Here's a shot of the top of the rack in case you were wondering how long it was. I purposely left space in front for the clearance lights and so as to not look crowded:



Holey Roof!



PIAA's installed:





So about them holes....some were for the clearance lights. Three holes per light, the center hole for the wires. I used grommets for the wiring holes:



Each lamp comes with a foam pad for the weather seal. I used polyurethane to seal better around the screw holes since there isn't any protection there. I also sealed under the heads of the screws.



Lights installed:



NMO style scanner antenna mount:



I used electrical varnish to keep the coax connection pristine:



All tidied up:





Only me and Hercules could have pushed this 6" section of silicone hose down the wire bundle. I used a generous amount of Dawn and strength to get that sucker on there.





Here you can see the BNC antenna feeds too:





That's a pretty gnarly bend with stiff wire. That is why I used a steel plate under the elbow to reinforce the roofs sheet metal. Here's the view from the inside:





I did a quickie test of the clearance lights just to see what they will look like:







I had bought 6 clearance lights but I'm not sure if that would have landed me in hot water with the Highway Patrol. Clearance lights are generally sold in packs of 5. The idea is the two outermost are for clearance. They show the width of the vehicle while the inner three are for identification. Not sure what the ID is for. I think interstate traveling commercial vehicles have three inner, while single state trucks don't need them. Passenger vehicles are NOT supposed to have these lights. My van however is registered as a commercial vehicle. It is also more than 80" wide now. I went with 5 lights. Some trucks also group the inner three but I thought it looked better equally distributed. I don't think there are any laws regarding the spacing.

I still need to feed the wiring through on the drivers side. After that is done I think this thread will have to move on to my "Custom Overhead Console" thread, soon to come...

[97CargoCrawler]

Tonight I finished up the wiring feed on the drivers side:





Rear tractor light test:

[97CargoCrawler]

Corner lights:







They shine where the headlights don't:

[LiftedAWDAstro]

Nice. I like the roof markers too.

[astroturf]

Kewl Zombie Spotters...

[leadtrombone]

Now all you need is a turret up there... Lol


Looks great. I wish i had the concentration to pull off a project like that.

[97CargoCrawler]

Today we had our first real nasty rain storm since I drilled 69 holes in my roof. Of course I was annoyed to find that I had two separate leaks in the roof today, one of them extremely annoying. I figured I would probably have a few.

This one is no surprise:



But this one I was like WTF? WTF!!?



I went to great lengths to seal the clearance lights even though they should have already been water tight. Made in China and looking at the design I didn't trust them. The foam seal under the lens was tweaked inward and needed to be glued in place so it would sit directly beneath the edges of the lens. Also, notice the screw hole for the lens doesn't have any sort of seal.



Once assembled I put silicone over the head of the screw:



I sealed the grommets coming into the roof for the wires. For water to be entering from this hole it must be coming from inside the light housing. I guess I will be pulling those lenses off and sealing them better as soon as the rain subsides.

I don't know why the other spot is leaking yet.

[wkastro]

I am at a loss for words. Splendid comes close.

[Smiliesafari]

69 holes and only 2 leaks.........I'd say you did good. The lights work well. I'm impressed. Over all it's a superb job. You should be pleased.