I see a lot of the cross bars sticking out past the factory supplied racks. To me that seems dangerous. Would something like this work? I was thinking of stainless steel pipe with a fabricated "U" welded on the ends. The "U" would be stainless as well as the bolts and nuts. All 4 sides could be level or you could drop the pipes down some.

Terry

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2011 Ford F-150 XLT 4X4

personally, i don't know if i'd trust the factory racks after being drilled through, but that's just my opinion. i'm always a little leery when it comes to plastics like that. however, if you extended the Us a bit and just used bolts to hold the the crossbar tight to the sides of the racks, i think it'd work just as well without comprimising the strength of the racks. again, i'm not sure on that, just my opinion.

That design would not appear as strong as the load would be put directly on the welds and top of the U whereas all designs: Mopar, Surco, Thule Yakima all the cross rails sit ontop of the side rails given it a stronger and more even weight distribution.

Call Surco as they did a custom mount on another vehicle for me and even consulted their engineers b4 fabrication. They are awesome and build a great basket.

Y do u think this is dangerous as the cross rails typically won't extend too far beyond the body of the vehicle let alone the side mirrors..

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Hare on my Chest

Pretty much anything that sticks out from the body of a vehicle is dangerous in that someone can get caught on it. Back in my younger days a lot of cars had hood ornaments. The manufacturers did away with them because they were dangerous. Just an example. Besides it would look cleaner, more finished. The idea of extending the "U" past the racks is a good one. Using good thick stock to make the "U"s I think there would be plenty of strength. Maybe yes, maybe no. I never was very good at math

Terry

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2011 Ford F-150 XLT 4X4

My Yakima bars are 48" I think and are never in the way. They do go past the roof rack but not the door openings. I had thought about getting wider bars but I already had the 48". The extension past the side rails actually often makes securing things to the cross bars a little easier because they become a point to fasten to. In retrospec I am glad I used the 48" because the longer ones would have been head bangers IMHO.

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Dave

'06 CRD Limited, Lt. Khaki, MOPAR Slush Mats/Skids, DrawTite Front Hitch, Mag Lite, Yakima Bars, Thule Bike Rack, Fumoto, ORM, 245/70 Revo 2

Wish list: Lift, Boulder Bars, Something Bigger in the Front and Back, More Lights