Mounting Spare on Back of T@B

AnOldUR

Had to fix it. Tire is now centered on T@B. Can you tell? Also a close up picture of the mounting plate to show the 3 degrees per side that was milled in to account for the radius in the roof. In that view you can see the nuCamp bracket is now offset to the left about 11/16" to center the tire.

AnOldUR

@4ncar ... Don't go out your way to find that dimension. Next time you're in there, if you think of it. I just wanted to compare nuCamps method to mine. Just a reassurance thing.

Sharon_is_SAM

Very nice job!  A first on the forum!

DougH

@AnOldUR Excellent work.

Bayliss

Very clean install, @AnOldUR.  And, for what it is worth, the slight off-set is not noticeable.  Hopefully, your tire cover is tight so that you do not lose it from wind blowing it off.  If slightly loose fitting, it could probably be secured with a small bungee cord strung from each side of the cover from the rear (hidden from view.)  Anyway, looks great!

AnOldUR

@Bayliss ... The cover was an Amazon purchase. It has a draw string the snugs it up around the back of the tire. Material is pretty light weight, so like you said, if wind whips it around it might not last long.

Slackers

Nicely done!  Smart use of I-bolts for additional utility.  

ScottG

Very impressive, sir. Between this and your bed project, you might be on your way to a T@B University professorship in Most Aggressive Mods!  

Tabaz

Wow. What gravitas it took to do this mod - assuming you already loved your T@B as is (think wedding vows). As one of many who follow our beloved DaleH, welcome, welcome, welcome to the fold.  Look forward to your future posts with anticipation.

gulfarea

@AnOldUR Great job! Art

Tabaz

For the benefit of those around us - yes you can see the offset of the tire mount. It does not line up on center. But here’s the message.  Was in a courthouse in a rural county in Arizona. Noticed an obvious error in the tile floor of the courthouse. Then, to my surprise, saw a plaque stating that the “error” was an acknowledgement by the native Americans of the imperfection of man. Let that sink in.

Dalehelman

Tabaz said:

Wow. What gravitas it took to do this mod - assuming you already loved your T@B as is (think wedding vows). As one of many who follow our beloved DaleH, welcome, welcome, welcome to the fold.  Look forward to your future posts with anticipation.

Me to.

AnOldUR

Thanks for all the complements and insight that helped me through this modification. It took a lot of convincing for my wife to give me the OK. (Not sure she actually ever did, just got tired of me trying to persuade her.) Still have my fingers crossed that it won't cause problems down the road, but if it does, no coverups, I'll let you know.

AnOldUR

Tabaz said:

Was in a courthouse in a rural county in Arizona. Noticed an obvious error in the tile floor of the courthouse. Then, to my surprise, saw a plaque stating that the “error” was an acknowledgement by the native Americans of the imperfection of man. Let that sink in.

Not to doubt legitimacy that plaque, but it made me think of a story from my past. I worked closely with one of the leading experts in the world of twin-screw extrusion. Brilliant guy. He'd come up with crazy designs for elements and I'd write code to machine them. One time my skills fell a little short. Very close, but I was having trouble with the exact geometry he had in mind. I was very anxious when he came to the shop to review my work, but after seeing the part, he looked at me and said, "It's great, I can write a paper on how this design will benefit the industry." Like those native Americans, he knew how to look at the positive side of imperfections.

YanniLazarus

AnOldUR said:

Had to fix it. Tire is now centered on T@B. Can you tell? Also a close up picture of the mounting plate to show the 3 degrees per side that was milled in to account for the radius in the roof. In that view you can see the nuCamp bracket is now offset to the left about 11/16" to center the tire.

Great job... I have exactly the same issues and desires,  but not quite the same skill set.   I want to simplify and build on your work,  and I'm looking for advice on this alternate approach: 

1.  Big first move... take the spare and move it to one side instead of center mounting. The side edge of the spare could be +/- 2 to 4 inches from the side edge of the T@B. (...I am not offended by asymmetry)

2.  Eliminate the horizontal rails completely.

3.  Make a plate similar to your aluminum plate with NuCamp spare bracket and direct mount (by thru- bolting as you suggest, with spacers to accommodate for the slight curve) with four bolts spaced in an 8 inch square pattern to catch aluminum.

4.  Hold the bolts close to the speaker enclosure to keep the load toward the ends of the two aluminum factory struts. 

5.  The rest is details... a bit of waterproofing.

Nothing is visible outside of the tire cover.   There are just 4 penetrations, and all are hidden bolts.  The water flow down the T@B rear slope is uninterrupted by rails. The load is still close to one side. 

Comments?  I'll have a bunch of questions if this seems ok.

AnOldUR

@YanniLazarus ...  When I started this thread there were a lot of valid concerns brought up about the support system. My plans changed to accommodate some of these. My first thought about you offsetting the spare to one side with no cross supports is that the edge of the tire 4" from the side puts the center about 15" in. I'd question if that is close enough the the vertical wall to keep the thin walled, aluminum cross supports from flexing or bending from the weight. Unlike the nuCamp aluminum tubing, my horizontal bars are steel and much more rigid. The two rectangular tubes sandwiched tightly together build a strong system. They are much better at distributing the load to both of the side walls and also prevent flexing. I'm not saying that your idea wouldn't work, but as @Dalehelman told me, "time would tell if it is strong enough to support the weight as it bounces down the road". It's a risk you have to be willing to take.

For what it's worth, I emailed nuCamp earlier today with a description of what I did along with pictures and asked if they thought it was a sound modification. I'll report back if/when I get a reply.

YanniLazarus

Thanks,  anOldUR, for your reaction.   Us tinkerers work ourselves into corners "fine tuning"... AGM golf cart batteries in the front tub have me happy and a little concerned at the same time. 

 I really would like to reduce my tongue weight by getting the spare off my tongue jack, and my TV (RAV4 adventure) is small enough to make carrying the spare in the car undesirable.  Thirty five pounds of spare tire in that trailer back location, thru bolted through two aluminum tubes and reinforced by the rear cabinetry, seems like a reasonable bet.  Might still end up copying your approach.  Please keep me posted on NuCamp's response.

Still chewing this over! 

AnOldUR

YanniLazarus said:

Still chewing this over! 

Some good ideas. Whatever you decide, please report back to keep anyone following this informed of options.

YanniLazarus

Mostly I need to understand your screen name!!!  ... and thanks.   Now thinking of making the plate asymmetrical so one edge is closer to T@B side,  but still hidden by tire. 

AnOldUR

YanniLazarus said:

Mostly I need to understand your screen name!!!

An Old Ultra Runner ... In another life, before knee replacement, my obsession was ultrarunning. I haven’t lost the passion, just the ability. We use to go to an event at least once a month and camp out, but that was mostly tent camping. Now that we’re older, camping  in our T@B and hiking at different inspiring locations is the best substitute I could find.

edit to add:
Life is good. No regrets.

YanniLazarus

And I am an old long distance hiker.   Still at it,  at a slower pace,  and finding my T@B time with beloved to be as satisfying. 

CharlieRN

AnOldUR said:

. . .  I was under the impression that the Yakima rails only used sheet metal screws that went through one wall of the T@B’s rectangular tubing. . .

I think this assumption is correct. A parts shortage at nuCamp resulted in our new 2021 320 BD to arrive at the dealer without its Yakima racks. They will be shipped next month and installed by the dealer, who I assume will be limited to using sheet metal screws. While this doesn't necessarily mean that this is what's done at the factory, I suspect that the mounting procedure is the same. If it's not, I at least hope that nuCamp did some trial installations and testing on the alternate method . . .

Your solution is really solid and looks great, except for the slight offset of the tire (just kidding - it's not noticeable).  Best of luck and hope to see you on the road.

tteam

Very nice.  What did you use for the cross pieces?  I have a 2020, but not so sure I am sufficiently brave to try something like that.  Good job.

AnOldUR

@tteam ... The rectangular tubing I used is 1" x 1-1/2" steel with a .070 wall thickness. The nuCamp inner cross bracing is 3/4" x 1-1/2" aluminum with a .056 wall.

The long story is, I bought a roof rack kit for extra storage on the roof of my Jeep. Instead of using the cross bars that came with it, I purchased a cargo basket and mounted the basket directly to the roof brackets that came with the kit. This installation was a lower profile solution that is stronger than putting the basket on the bars. So, those two black pieces of tubing found a home on the back of my T@B. Waste not ......

sqrpeg

Awesome job, @AnOldUR!  I'm curious about the 3-D render of the wall and roof framing - can you tell me where it came from? or did you create it yourself?

Ramon (also an old ultrarunner)

AnOldUR

@sqrpeg ... Here's a link to the page with the framing and metal support straps information.
https://us.v-cdn.net/5021717/uploads/editor/q3/4qx15h7ekele.pdf

Still active in ultrarunning? Curious if we've done any of the same events. Where are you located?

sqrpeg

Thanks for the document link @AnOldUR - I see now that this PDF is also referenced on the forum under User Manuals/PDF Files/Videos & Resources->Structural Information for anyone's future searches. And thanks also to all who contributed to that document.

My interest in the framing stems from a current issue I’m working on – the diagram seems to confirm my question/hope about a metal cross-member at the bottom leading edge of the trailer body.

Regarding ultras, I’ve only done a couple 50Ks (Dirty 30 in CO and Dead Horse in UT) and am strictly back-of-the-pack. Hoping to do the Never Summer 60K in July if I can rehab this $*(&^! Achilles.

YanniLazarus

Next idea...  I believe I've read somewhere that the rear round pull handles are pretty strongly mounted.   Bear with me here... I'm working on an idea to use them as part of a spare tire carrier.  Are they strong enough to attach anything to?   If so,  details to follow! 

Dalehelman

@YanniLazarus
I think the handle are mounted secure enough. We use to carry a roll of Astro turf on our front handles. It probably weighed about the same as the spare.

YanniLazarus

The "fasten the spare to an aluminum tube clamped to the rear pull handles with top and bottom bracing" idea is dead.   The spare is too big to mount with the lower part hanging between the license plate and the tail light.