Cap And Ladder Rack Info Please

davidanbess

http://www.4are.com/product/cx/ Hi guys, looking for some info here, will be buying this cap it's from A.R.E.
soon for my truck and would like to fit this ladder rack
http://www.tracrac.com/caprac/caprac.asp

thing is I'm a bit wary of the position of the track-rac I'm assuming whoever I get to fit the cap will know exactly where the rack should go for the best hold.
Anyone got a similar set up and do you like it, would like to hear from you

Regards David

Wolfgang

Used to have a similar setup on an F250 I owned. Usually the roof of the topper/cap will have plywood sandwiched in between the fibreglass. If you are going to carry any sort of weight, make sure the mounting brackets are bolted through the plywood and not just the fibreglass. The cross pieces can still extend further out the sides, but you'll have the weight bearing part of the mounts in the right place.

Be sure to check with the topper manufacturer's warranty to see if they say where to mount and even if mounting a cap nullifies the warranty.

One thing I did notice on the pics of the rack is that there isnt much hiegth on the cross members which can effect what you'll carry on top.

jarhead0531

Never saw that caprac before, looks interesting as I had a trac rac for a long time and loved it but took it off when I put my dcu on. Anyone on here put the caprac on a ARE DCU?

Greg Di

I had a DCU on my old F150 and it was a great cap in all respects. The ARE rack is useable, but it's not the sturdiest rack I've ever used. It will carry ladders and such, and even lumber, but you can't pile it on excessively.

I have seen System One racks retrofit to a DCU cap with extension mounts. Looks weird but I guess it's functional.

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jarhead0531

That is what I have on the DCU now, and your right it works fine for lighter lumber loads (trim and whatnot) and ladders but I really miss the sliding stop with tie down. I just feel like the load was much more secure on my tracrac than the DCU stock rack. A call into ARE may be in order for me. I'll let everyone know what I find out.

Barry

davidanbess

Thanx for the replies still undecided about the rack definitely going with the fibreglass a.r.e. top though, waiting for a reply from a.r.e. about the make up of the cap and where the strongest points are to fit the rack whatever one I decide to get, will keep you posted.
Regards David

commonpeople

I have a Tacoma with a Thule 342 cap rack on a newer model ARE. Your deal is well similar, but check out the Thule. It has great tie down points, and proper accessories. Had a Yakima rack rack on my previous ARE, and will never look back. Trust Sweden. Much Respect.

jarhead0531

For any that might be interested I talked to both my local ARE dealer and TracRac customer service today. The mounting option for the caprac on the DCU isn't ideal as it would be mounted on the AL support bars that run front to back inside of the dcu, which from my inspection couldn't hold the same weight as a rack fastened in the corners.

I'm going to investigate some home brewed options using just the cross bars from tracrac bolted down to the current crossbars of the ARE standard rack. I'll report back what I find.