Some People Say I Have a Nice Rack
Having chosen to build my Samurai for expedition use one of the most pressing issues I had to deal with was that of storage space. The obvious solution to this dilemma was to get a roof rack. After looking at the available racks on the market for the Samurai I decided to have one custom built.
The man I turned to for this project was the venerable Carl Whitmore. I envisioned a very simple rack made out of 1″ DOM tubing. The only thing special that I wanted was a way to secure two Scepter cans. Carl’s imagination led him to build a much more exciting rack than I had hoped. With dimpled side braces and a raked front it reminds me of an updated Con-Ferr rack.
For mounting the rack we picked up some Kargo Master gutter mounts for Cherokee’s rather than trying to build custom gutter mounts for the Samurai. They are a little big, but I think that they look fine.
The most unique aspect of the whole rack is the Scepter can holder. It’s basically just a box, but with the dimpled bottom and the way that it mounts with the two hooks on the back and tabbed mounts on the front it is pretty clever.
I’m very pleased with it and can’t wait to use it on my trip to the Arizona Strip next week. If you want to check it out up close and personal it will be at the Expedition Utah booth during the TeraFlex show at Miller Motorsports Park this Saturday.
More pictures:
I have to agree with those who say you have a nice rack! Of course I say that in the way of not talking about… Well, you know what. Me likey.
Hi Stephen,
Long time reader, fourth time poster here. I like seeing your rack and all, but how ’bout some pictures of it in action? Rumor has it you put it to good use recently, and we’d all like to see that.
Thank you for your interest long time reader. And yes, a trip was taken and my rack was heavily laden. A report on thatnis forthcoming.
I will look forward to the new content Stephen. I must say that I like your rack better than the comparable Con-Ferr product. This really is a nice piece.