I've wanted to lose the roof top basket and all of the weighty crap up there for a while. But that meant finding a new way to carry what I needed. I cooked up an idea and thanks to Kenny (TheKing on the boards), we got it welded up. What made it happen was switching from Nato fuel cans to the Rotopax ones. They're slim, relatively light and carry either four or two gallons. The new "eco" spouts actually work and haven't leaked yet, unlike every carb-compliant spout I've seen.
Using some scrap steel, Kenny and I reworked the Shrock rear swingaway to carry the Rotopax'. We had to space the tire away using an extra wheel spacer. It now can easily and safely carry the wheel, two locked four gallon fuel or, as shown in the pics, one locked fuel and one 2 gallon water, shovel and CB antenna. An extra 2 gallon water can be snapped onto the existing one. The CB antenna was moved to snug between the containers, and the shovel attaches using quick fists. It tucks above the bumper so if a mount fails, it can't fall below the bumper and out.
So far, so good. Everything carries well loaded and tucks in out of the way. No rattles or shakes. I think it came out pretty good. Now it's off to get it powdercoated.
Hard to see in this pic, but we altered the top piece on the high lift to cover the fuel can opening. Since the piece was just flat steel, it wasn't too hard and looks good. A discreet solution to help keep the honest person honest. The holder on the water jug side was cut shorter to allow a spout to be installed so I could wash hands, get water in camp, etc.
Had to space out the bottle opener as well, 'natch.
