Adding your own roofracks to pop top camper?

[Throbbinhood]

We are looking at a Jayco Swan outback that's in our budget, around a 2005 model. It doesn't have roof racks though, which I wanted to carry the kids bikes and maybe ours if we bring them along.

Are these difficult to fit? I found some on ebay for sub 400 which isn't too bad?

[chester ver2.0]

No they are not hard to fit just a couple of screw
Of course make sure you hit the solid support wood and use plenty of sealant so you have no leaks

Some food for thought however is that we had them on the goldstream but hardly used them as anything put up there has to be taken off every time you set up

[Craig Tomkinson]

Hi TBH, I have worked on a fair few Jaycos pop ups of around this age and a lot older, They all have the same winching gear that is strong and does a good job,  but just check its all in good condition all the wire cables are not fraid and the pulleys are in good nick, and check the eye blots that bolt up to the 75 x 75 x 5mm plate that hooks to the winch cable in the front left corner are not opened up as the wires will drop off them, when you wind it right down and make them slack, Craig

[Throbbinhood]

Thanks guys, good to know it's not too big of a job.

Yep cables is one of my concerns mate, I think there's a few youtube videos on how to get at them etc.

I noticed in one of the pictures the roof looks a bit funny. I can't tell if these are just strips that cover the joiners and just need to be reglued, or if there's no strips then the roof itself maybe has an issue?

[edz]

Might need the photobucket fix link to veiw them http://www.myswag.org/index.php?topic=26657.msg447152#msg447152   ....   
http://www.myswag.org/index.php?topic=24199.msg376579#msg376579

[Throbbinhood]

Might need the photobucket fix link to veiw them http://www.myswag.org/index.php?topic=26657.msg447152#msg447152   ....   
http://www.myswag.org/index.php?topic=24199.msg376579#msg376579

Changed the link

[Wazza999]

Hi TBH, I have worked on a fair few Jaycos pop ups of around this age and a lot older, They all have the same winching gear that is strong and does a good job,  but just check its all in good condition all the wire cables are not fraid and the pulleys are in good nick, and check the eye blots that bolt up to the 75 x 75 x 5mm plate that hooks to the winch cable in the front left corner are not opened up as the wires will drop off them, when you wind it right down and make them slack, Craig

You might also want to check out this service and repair manual. It has lots of useful information on checking and maintaining the winding system.

http://nissanpatrol.com.au/Jayco-Book2-k8g7.pdf

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[nab]

If the weight isn’t too bad you may not have to take things off each time you wind it up. I have 22kg of solar panels on the roof of my 2005 Dove been up and down many times with no issue. But you have to make sure the winching system is in good order.

[Pete79]

In addition to the photos in Kylarama's thread that Edz has linked, this is basically the structure that you're connecting to;







As long as you mount the roof racks to the side pieces (like in the link) you'll be fine.
After seeing the snaped knotted piece of pine in my roof structure I wouldn't be putting any extra weight on the flat surface of the roof.

[jfella]

Thanks guys, good to know it's not too big of a job.

Yep cables is one of my concerns mate, I think there's a few youtube videos on how to get at them etc.

I noticed in one of the pictures the roof looks a bit funny. I can't tell if these are just strips that cover the joiners and just need to be reglued, or if there's no strips then the roof itself maybe has an issue?

That roof looks ok to me as appears flat.  The plastic strips can be glued back but the big thing with that era is water ingress through the split roof.  Mine had some water damage when I got it so has sagged a bit but since redoing the roof seal with Sikas it does not leak a drop now.  The other thing with the lift mechanism is that the pulleys are only tek screwed and I have had 2 go me (now bolted and all good).  They don’t have the hard core look a lot want but they will get most places if you look after them and keep the speed down and they are really spacious and airy when set up.  We have a Dove which is the  second smallest and it has been awesome with young kids.

[rags]

It’s been a while since we owned our 1998 model Finch but when we did have it I welded up a bike roof rack to carry 4 mountain bikes on the roof. Simple design that had 3 cross bars ( side to side L to R); one located at the front end that had bike axle skewers to lock the front forks onto ( front wheels removed). Further back I had 2 rails that were space to  support real wheels which had fixed to each bar supporting frames that ran parallel to the rear wheels ( a bit like you might see on a bike rack at a park or school) that supported and held bikes upright.
The racks on the edges had a bit of angle welded that provided fixing points. These were simply trek screwed to the side of the roof structure.
We successfully ran this set up without trouble for many years. We usually only took the bikes on trips to van parks and campgrounds so never ventured too far off the black top with bikes on board. We also always removed the bikes when setting up the camper.

[jfella]

Thanks guys, good to know it's not too big of a job.

Yep cables is one of my concerns mate, I think there's a few youtube videos on how to get at them etc.

I noticed in one of the pictures the roof looks a bit funny. I can't tell if these are just strips that cover the joiners and just need to be reglued, or if there's no strips then the roof itself maybe has an issue?

That roof looks ok to me as appears flat.  The plastic strips can be glued back but the big thing with that era is water ingress through the split roof.  Mine had some water damage when I got it so has sagged a bit but since redoing the roof seal with Sikas it does not leak a drop now.  The other thing with the lift mechanism is that the pulleys are only tek screwed and I have had 2 go me (now bolted and all good).  They don’t have the hard core look a lot want but they will get most places if you look after them and keep the speed down and they are really spacious and airy when set up.  We have a Dove which is the  second smallest and it has been awesome with young kids.

[hainess]

My sister has a 2010 Eagle Outback.
The roof racks were put on by Jayco.
All the screws are thru the side of the roof. Nothing thru the top.
I u-bolted 2 60 watt panels to the racks before our last trip.
Rod
.

[BC66]

We own a 2005 Hawk with racks on the roof for the solar panels and basket

That’s the only decent ish photo I have on my phone sorry


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