Looking for JT style front half rack for the JLU

[nomadjay]

Anyone know of a front half rack for the JLU (as in it sits above the freedom tops)? I’ve found 2 for the JT but no luck on the JL. I contacted TrailRax today and they say the JT won’t fit on a JL as the specs are slightly different. Sherpa makes the other JT rack so going to try calling them, but not hopeful.

I have the Rhino backbone system with my roof tent on it. Looking to gain a bit more storage on the roof.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

here’s a pic and link for the Sherpa JT front rack so you can see what I mean: https://sherpaec.com/products/moonlight

Sponsored

 

[AndySpill]

It's a kludge, I'll give you that, but with rain gutter rails, or maybe mounts like these , and a section from a full size rack designed to just cover the Freedom Panels e.g. Gobi Sunroof Insert maybe you could make things work.

 

[nomadjay]

It's a kludge, I'll give you that, but with rain gutter rails, or maybe mounts like these , and a section from a full size rack designed to just cover the Freedom Panels e.g. Gobi Sunroof Insert maybe you could make things work.

Thanks Andy! Hoping I can find something, but if not this might be a good way to go!

 

[nomadjay]

In case it helps anyone else in the future, here’s what I’ve found so far:
- Sherpa’s Moonlight rack will fit the JL. This is the one on the gladiator in the pic from my original post. It comes in 25, 33, and 40 inch lengths. Really helpful customer service. They even double checked with their engineers to make sure.
- Motobilt also makes a half rack for the JT. When I called I was told it would fit the JL, but then I noticed on their site it says specifically not to mount it above the freedom tops. So I think maybe we were just misunderstanding each other on the phone. Either way, theirs is a little too long for my specific build.
- Trailrax has one for the JT but when I called they told me it will not fit on the JL.
I’m going to go with the Sherpa Moonlight. Will post some pics once I have it installed.

 

[Boatbuilder88]

Shouldn't the JT rack that you found (or any JT rack) also fit the JLU?

 

[nomadjay]

Shouldn't the JT rack that you found (or any JT rack) also fit the JLU?

That's what I thought, but weirdly, when I started contacting the brands, it wasn't that straightforward. However, I did find one that worked! I'll add an update post below in case anyone else is searching.

 

[nomadjay]

In case anyone is searching in the future, here is what I found:

1. Sherpa Moonlight fits perfectly. Excellent customer service, and their engineers confirmed it would fit before I ordered. I'm using the 25-inch model, and the last couple of inches of the Moonlight rack fit under my RTT, which is mounted on the Rhino Rack Recon Deck Bars. Here's a link to it: https://sherpaec.com/products/moonlight

2. Trail Rax told me their JT rack won't fit the JL due to some slight differences. To be fair, I think I was the first person to ask about this, so they probably didn't want to agree to something they weren't 100% sure about. Great customer service team as well!

3. Motobilt said their half-cab JT rack would fit the JL. However, after checking on their site, I noticed it says the half-cab rack can NOT be mounted above the Freedom Panels. So this one wouldn't work for my specific use case, and it was definitely my fault for not being clearer with the customer service person I spoke with—who was also super nice.

I've included a quick pic below of the Sherpa Moonlight installed on my JLUR. I'll take some more pics as soon as I get a chance, but I'm really happy with it. It's super sturdy and fits perfectly.

Sponsored