We've been traveling for a few months now. We've learned a ton and optimized our storage space, over and over working to perfect it. We've added some equipment and got rid of even more, but we really need a little more space inside the Jeep.
When we were up in Banff, Alberta we came across a Mercedes G-Class outfitted for overlanding. It was decked out and had some unique external storage containers that we thought were very cool! The vehicle had two storage containers, and had four jerry cans for extra fuel, and water. The design was elegant, and looked seamless. When I saw it, I knew I wanted to emulate the setup on our jeep.
Materials
The first thing I noticed about the setup was the way it was mounted to the G-Wagon. It was mounted using a rail system. After doing some research, it's the same kind of track used for aircraft cargo tie-downs, l-track aluminum. L-track aluminum is really strong, light and wont rust. The l-track system is also really extensible and gives us lots of options for attachments and accessories.
We ordered four '4-foot' sections for the back of the Jeep and some attachment bolts that get set inside the aluminum rails so we can affix our storage units to the rails after mounting the rails to the jeep.
The rails have indented, angled, holes to allow for flush bolts spaced every few inches away. Make sure you order the appropriate bolt heads! At first we had imperial bolts, but the heads wouldn't sit flush in our rails so we had to go find metric bolts instead and these heads were perfect.
US Cargo Control Powersports Aluminum 4' L Track Tie Down System
Materials List
- 4'Aluminum L Track Tie Down System
- Silicon Sealant
- Metric Flat Head Bolts
- Drill
- Drill Bits
Estimated Cost
We purchased all the materials for about $300.
Estimated Time
It took us about a day to do all 4 rails. Installing the first rail took the most time.
Planning
We're planning on mounting the rails on the outside wall of our Ursa Minor J30, on-top and below where the window cut out would go. We've seen some people put bars and Rotopax across this space, but we wanted more flexibility.
Our largest concern with adding rails is structural sturdiness of the Ursa Minor itself. We don't want to rip up the side walls by putting too much weight on them. The g-wagon above had a full steel body, the Ursa Minor is plastic.
To counter this, we'll be adding some support from the inside that will attach the rail directly to the body.
Installation
We wanted the rails to be parallel to the bottom lip of the Ursa Minor. Since the Jeep has some weight in the back, this doesn't necessarily make it parallel to the ground. So rather than leveling the rails to the ground, we measured the distance from the bottom of the Ursa Minor to the rails, which ensured we had a parallel measurement.
We lined up one hole, set a small notch, removed the rail and measured out where the next hole will lie. Once all holes were notched, we double checked our measurements against the holes in the rail, and started our first drill! Since the Ursa Minor is plastic, we didn't use a pilot hole and quickly punched through.
Lower Support Brace
With the holes drilled out, we got to work on our interior support braces, which the lower rails will attach to. We purchased a ~30 inch section of right angle steel support and then cut it into about six, 5" sections.
On the inside of your Jeep, you'll find three, or more, places the Ursa Minor attaches to the Jeep body itself. These are the stock holes any hardtop attaches to. We used some right angle steel to create support braces which bolt into these places, and get lined up with the rail holes.
Loosely bolt the support down, then, also loosely, attach the bolt which holds up the rail. Before you tighten the bolts down, add a liberal amount of clear Silicon around the bolts to prevent leaks. Tighten down the rail bolts one at a time and finally tighten the support brackets to the Jeep.
Finished Rails
