Attaching Surboards To Westy Roof

[TakeLifeEasy]

Running out of room on the inside of the van (not hard I know!) so we now need to put the surfboards on the roof of our 71 Westy when traveling down on holiday. How are people "safely" strapping them to the top of their westy roofs? I would rather not drill holes in the roof structure unless I need to :?

 

[justcruzin]

Here's a pic of mine. I used pipe insulators for cushion.



I put my bike up there too for shows.



]

 

[slow-lane-Matt]

...Strange to see AA badges on a Californian bus....!

Surf board looks right at home though...

 

[TakeLifeEasy]

Are they drilled into the Westy roof?

 

[justcruzin]

Are they drilled into the Westy roof?

Yes, we just drilled holes and used bolts and nuts. We double nutted them and also used a metal plate on the backside.

Here you can see the bolts.



Slow-lane Matt, yah, it's strange to see AA badges on a CA bus, but it is also very different here. Not many CA people collect and display the badges so my bus will stand out in a crowd. I did it to be different. That and I like the badges.

 

[TakeLifeEasy]

Thanks, I was hoping I could attach something to the rain rails but I am beggining to think this is not going to be possible.

 

[creationblue]

R73 uses straps, you can just about see here





PM him for more info

 

[justcruzin]

Thanks, I was hoping I could attach something to the rain rails but I am beggining to think this is not going to be possible.

I have seen pics of buses that have king size rain gutter mounts for Yakima or that other rack company. They do make them. The reason I went with something attached to the top is I wanted to be able to pop my top and not take off the roof rack each time. This way my board and bike go up with the top. Course if the bike is up there I need help pushing the top up! LOL I need to invest in those hydraulic shock type things to assist me in the top going up.

 

[TakeLifeEasy]

Thanks for teh details. I was just wondering if one of those soft roof rack would work by folding it around the very front and back of the westy roof itself (above the main roof)? I am really trying to avoid drilling my roof (although I can understand the benefits in doing so) so maybe straping the boards around to the westy roof itself maybe the solution? I am going to email Yakima and ask them if they have a solution that could be adapted.

 

[TakeLifeEasy]

I think I have found a solution -
http://www.rackwarehouse.com/thule-...992-complete-thule-rain-gutter-roof-rack.html
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Thule-Roof-Rack-Gutter-Mount/dp/B0092K3QMI

I will contact them to confirm they definitly fit. I would not be able to lift the roof when the boards are on top but I will only put them on the roof when traveling from home to the coast and back. The rest of the time the boards will be in the awning or in the van themselves.