Ram box compatible bed rack

[AnthonyD1978]

If you have ram boxes then your options for a bed rack are limited. I ended up with the Front Runner bed rack. They have a great mounting system (just uses 13mm head bolts) and tons of accessories.

I did not want a full height rack. For accessibility and also the fact I did not want my gear above the roof line. This will mostly be used for camping/overlanding for items that will pretty much stay on the rack and not be taken on/off. The rack itself is rated at 650lb (static weight probably), but I may have some gussets welded into the legs as those would be the "weak" part of the rack. Also I may find a way to support the rack with some bracing that goes along the side and to the floor of the bed since I'm not sure how much load the bed rails will support.

 

[pdavey]

If you have ram boxes then your options for a bed rack are limited. I ended up with the Front Runner bed rack. They have a great mounting system (just uses 13mm head bolts) and tons of accessories.

I did not want a full height rack. For accessibility and also the fact I did not want my gear above the roof line. This will mostly be used for camping/overlanding for items that will pretty much stay on the rack and not be taken on/off. The rack itself is rated at 650lb (static weight probably), but I may have some gussets welded into the legs as those would be the "weak" part of the rack. Also I may find a way to support the rack with some bracing that goes along the side and to the floor of the bed since I'm not sure how much load the bed rails will support.

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Clean looking and great install. Well done!

I put Yakima tracks on my DiamondBack cover made to fit the RamBoxes to solve my issue of carrying gear.

It is really amazing that manufacturers haven't created cleats for their systems that fit the rails on these trucks. The rail system has been out for a number of years with very little support from the aftermarket community.

Sent from my SM-G998U using Tapatalk

 

[AnthonyD1978]

Clean looking and great install. Well done!

I put Yakima tracks on my DiamondBack cover made to fit the RamBoxes to solve my issue of carrying gear.

It is really amazing that manufacturers haven't created cleats for their systems that fit the rails on these trucks. The rail system has been out for a number of years with very little support from the aftermarket community.

Sent from my SM-G998U using Tapatalk

I agree, the rail system offers so many possibilities to mount and configure gear. I know Tacoma's have a similar option and I'm surprised there are not more aftermarket gear that utilizes these. The bed rack I installed is actually for the Tacoma with bed rails. The width of the Tacoma bed is the same as ours with the ram boxes.

 

[Desertfox73]

If you have ram boxes then your options for a bed rack are limited. I ended up with the Front Runner bed rack. They have a great mounting system (just uses 13mm head bolts) and tons of accessories.

I did not want a full height rack. For accessibility and also the fact I did not want my gear above the roof line. This will mostly be used for camping/overlanding for items that will pretty much stay on the rack and not be taken on/off. The rack itself is rated at 650lb (static weight probably), but I may have some gussets welded into the legs as those would be the "weak" part of the rack. Also I may find a way to support the rack with some bracing that goes along the side and to the floor of the bed since I'm not sure how much load the bed rails will support.

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Curious to know how this system is holding up, and if you’ve done anything to add to the structural integrity? I am looking at this exact same system, compared with a Nuthouse Industries rack. I’d go with Nuthouse in a heartbeat except they’re telling me the shortest height they can make for a Rambox-compatible rack is 17”, and I really don’t want to go over 10”.

I will be running an iKamper Skycamp 2.0 on this, so it’s also important to me to figure out what the rails can hold. I need the rack to comfortably hold 600 lbs.

 

[AnthonyD1978]

Curious to know how this system is holding up, and if you’ve done anything to add to the structural integrity? I am looking at this exact same system, compared with a Nuthouse Industries rack. I’d go with Nuthouse in a heartbeat except they’re telling me the shortest height they can make for a Rambox-compatible rack is 17”, and I really don’t want to go over 10”.

I will be running an iKamper Skycamp 2.0 on this, so it’s also important to me to figure out what the rails can hold. I need the rack to comfortably hold 600 lbs.

It's been holding up great. I have not added any extra support. I've ran this this pretty hard with some big bumps at speed and I've very confident with it now with both vertical and horizontal G's. I'm at around 350-400 pounds on the rack right now. I've stood on it many times as well so I think it should handle the 650 pounds of advertised static weight.

650 pounds of dynamic weight is where you have to be careful. It's a different ball game when you have that much weight/mass "moving" up and down at speed and off-road. On pavement it should be a non-issue.

The only drawback to the Front Runner is that it lowers your cargo height in the bed. It's been a non-issue for me since I haven't needed the space yet. That is the only drawback over the taller ones. Here are the advantages over the taller racks:

• Secures cargo under the rack from being stolen out of the bed. As long it the item doesn't fit through the rails it can't be taken out of the bed without dropping the tailgate. I leave my storage bin with all my cooking stuff in the bed 24/7.
• Cargo stays under the roofline (better MPG)
• Lower center of gravity
• Easier to reach items on the rack
• Tons of front runner accessories
• Very easy to make your own mounts and tie downs for the rails. (I made my own mounting plate for the spare tire)
• Well known company with great support (I've contacted them twice). It's a professional company and not some guy(s) working out of a garage that get to your email/phone call between doing shop work.

I also run it with a bedslide. Which to me is almost required when running any kind of bed rack or topper.

 

[Desertfox73]

It's been holding up great. I have not added any extra support. I've ran this this pretty hard with some big bumps at speed and I've very confident with it now with both vertical and horizontal G's. I'm at around 350-400 pounds on the rack right now. I've stood on it many times as well so I think it should handle the 650 pounds of advertised static weight.

650 pounds of dynamic weight is where you have to be careful. It's a different ball game when you have that much weight "moving" up and down at speed and off-road. On pavement it should be a non-issue.

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Awesome. Thanks for the quick response. My dynamic load would basically only be a RTT, and the ikamper weighs under 200 pounds.

Do you ever re-torque the hardware during or after off-road travel?

 

[AnthonyD1978]

Awesome. Thanks for the quick response. My dynamic load would basically only be a RTT, and the ikamper weighs under 200 pounds.

Do you ever re-torque the hardware during or after off-road travel?

Added some more notes to my previous post.

I checked the torque on everything after the first 2 or 3 times I went of off-roading. I haven't checked it in quite awhile after that though. I probably will today just because you reminded me, but I've forgotten because I've grown more confident in the system.

One thing I also did was, I made sure to install the RAM tiedown pieces (the plastic hook things) in front of and up against the front runner legs. This will provide more support so the rack doesn't slide forward on the bed rails and into the rear window. Just something I thought of when installing as an extra precaution.

 

[Desertfox73]

One thing I also did was, I made sure to install the RAM tiedown pieces (the plastic hook things) in front of and up against the front runner legs. This will provide more support so the rack doesn't slide forward on the bed rails and into the rear window. Just something I thought of when installing as an extra precaution.

Seems like a good idea. Thanks for all of your input, I appreciate it. And, nice truck. I'm picking up mine at AEV on Friday.

PS - agree about the bed slide. I've used Nuthouse slides in the past and love them. Aluminum, full extension, 1000# capacity. Already ordered the new one.