Has anybody carried a box of siding (12' 6") on top of a car? If so , have you got any tricks or advice? I need to take a nearly full box on a trip of about 100 miles.
Since this is one-time only, I don't want to buy any rooftop carrier and hope I can just use some padding (like blankets) to protect the car and then use rope to securely tie it on.
In a word No. It takes very little forece to distort the panels on current vehicles. You can dent a fender or door panel just by a thumb push. A full box of siding is going to dish your roof.
Harry K
Rent a truck, borrow a trailer.
Use the right tool for the job. Be a mature adult with common sense.
oh, never mind. I need the laugh. Always like seeing fools going down the road trying to hold material on their roof with one hand and steer with the other.
Jack wrote:
Not to mention what it is gonna do to the siding, flapping up and down in the wind like that.
Must be pretty fancy siding to be worth hauling that far.
As to to haul it- does uhaul, etc, still rent roof racks? Or have modern gutterless cars made that go away? You lash it to roof, as long as it is stiff enough, or you put a stiff board under it and lace it all up so it moves and flexes as a unit. You also need to tie off both ends to the bumpers, assuming you can find something solid in the bumper area to tie to. Yes, it will probably dish the roof a little, if the car is nice enough that you care. It'll likely pop back out with a solid whack, or by sitting upside down in back seat, bracing both feet on center bar of roof, and pushing. (don't ask how I know this...)
But having said all that- I'd still recommend against it. It'll act like a big wing, and handling will suck. Going slow on back roads, maybe. Highway speed on the big road, forget it. I did a lot of crazy hauls like that as a kid, and thinking back with the painfully gained wisdom of middle age, I am amazed I didn't kill my fool self multiple times.
aem sends....
If you don't want to pop for a rooftop carrier, you might get by using the foam block/ nylon web strap arrangement sold in sporting goods stores for catopping canoes and kayaks.
For about $30US, you can buy a "universal" roof-rack. Put those on the damn car, and if the siding isn't stiff enough by itself, get 12' 2x10 to strap it to to prevent flapping.
If you have a SUV, you can get most of it in the SUV and have about 4 foot hanging out the back. To keep it from flopping around you may want to tie it to an equal lenght 2x4 to keep it firm and straight.
I have carried a 12 ft roll of carpet in my Honda CR-v without a problem about 3 - 4 feet hanging out.
c_kubie
We used to carry pole vaulting poles back when I was a track stud... here is how we did it.
Carry alongside the passenger side of the car, not on roof of car. Take 2 towels, knot 2 ends of one, shut hood of car, with both knots inside hood, with loop or sling of towel hanging out. Do same in trunk, then just run poles through 2 "slings" of towel, and drive on. Of course we were just driving across town for a meet, so we just had a passenger reach out window and hold poles to prevent sliding forward or back... but it was effective.
Obviously you could alter/improve the trunk/hood/sling method to meet your needs. Obviously you would want it more secure, and of course use red flags if sticks out behind, but this way you are leveraging the relative straightness of the side of vehicle to stabilize load. Also, make sure passenger gets in car before rig is mounted, as once it is on, you can't use the passenger door. Of course we were just stupid kids, we would just climb through the car window...back in the day.
Follow this link to see how your idea will probably turn out:
I love that one... It really amazes me!!!!!
As for the siding, heck if you can borrow someones boat trailer to get it that would be perfect!!!!
Just do NOT slap it on the ol' roof. You'll be lucky if its on there for 10 - 15 mintues.
Tom
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