To rack or not to rack - that is the question

My JK rig is used primarily as a DD, but I do make some 500 to 700-mile trips that require me to find a spot for my dogs, wife and all their junk when we travel. I can fit things inside and on my hitch carrier with some effort, but would like to bring things I just can't fit at times and make it more comfortable for all.

I also occasionally run a Hobie tandem kayak on top with the assitance of my Thule rain gutter set up. So, how many of you have purchased a Garvin, Gobi or other rack to only depart with it after a year's use? I don't mind spending the cash on a decent rack, but I'm also cautious of the issues a rack can bring once installed.

Irishone said:

My JK rig is used primarily as a DD, but I do make some 500 to 700-mile trips that require me to find a spot for my dogs, wife and all their junk when we travel. I can fit things inside and on my hitch carrier with some effort, but would like to bring things I just can't fit at times and make it more comfortable for all.

I also occasionally run a Hobie tandem kayak on top with the assitance of my Thule rain gutter set up. So, how many of you have purchased a Garvin, Gobi or other rack to only depart with it after a year's use? I don't mind spending the cash on a decent rack, but I'm also cautious of the issues a rack can bring once installed.

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Only issues I can think of is if you have some serious weight on it and take it off camber you might flop. Now i didn't think you were hinting at taking all this stuff on some serious trail so the only issue I see is that your taking making the terrible aerodynamics of the jeep worse. Over a 700 mile trip I'm sure that could really make a difference. Other than that I don't see anything wrong with those racks. I prefer the hitch mount but that's because I've never ran out if room on it but that's just me.

Another option you might consider would be a small trailer. The Mrs and I do a lot of camping in the summer and we've only got a 2dr. We bought a very small (36"X40" ) trailer from Harbor Freight to drag our gear with. The price was about $200 and so far it has served it's purpose very well.

We are Jeep..Resistance is futile..

ridg3runner said:

Another option you might consider would be a small trailer. The Mrs and I do a lot of camping in the summer and we've only got a 2dr. We bought a very small (36"X40" ) trailer from Harbor Freight to drag our gear with. The price was about $200 and so far it has served it's purpose very well.

We are Jeep..Resistance is futile..

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Plus 1 on the trailer. Over the 700-800 miles I bet it would help with fuel milage as well VS having it on the roof

We bought a Military Trailer about a year ago, they typically go at auction for around $150 plus paperwork. U.S. Govt. Liquidaters have auctions all over the country. Ours turns out to be a 1968 M101A that was used in Vietnam and returned. We love ours and with the pintle hookup it goes offroad pretty well.

We pulled ours up to Oregon and back last summer and I hardly knew I was pulling it.

We are Jeep..Resistance is futile..

ridg3runner said:

We pulled ours up to Oregon and back last summer and I hardly knew I was pulling it.

We are Jeep..Resistance is futile..

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Well, Military trailers are hardly light, I dragged it down to ORE in Fullerton to pick up my 37s and it was HEAVY!

I have a 1942 willys 1/4 ton trailer on 33" tires with the original pintle hitch and it works very well off-roading. It tows perfectly on the freeway at 65 mph. I needed to add an automatic transmission cooler that was electric fan powered by Derale. The trailer is small and follows the jeep everywhere you go on the trail without getting hung up because it is a little narrower than my TJ on 35's. The only issue is trying to back it up on the trail. It is very easy to jack knife. You can check out the pictures of it in my photo albums. This summer I purchase a roof rack to run the Rubicon and Dusy Ershim trails. I ended up flat towing the jeep and CHP won't let me have the trailer attached to the jeep while it is in tow. The weight on the roof rack does make it a little tippy. I purchased the Kargo Master Congo cage because it had the highest weight capacity at 500 lbs and I liked the way it mounted to the body. It doesn't mater if you have a body lift this way. My trailer is for sale at $1500.00 Located in Los Angeles area of So. Cal.