Roof rack restore

[Fatboy005]

the roof rack on my Expy has obviously been used, to the point where the rubberized coating is down to bare metal. This seems like something I should be able to fix myself, but i need some opinions. Has anybody been down this road?

1. What is the best way to strip the remaining coating?

2. What did you use to resurface? I was thinking just rattle can Rustoleum rubberized paint.

3. I want to do the mounting rails too so they look the same, can anybody give a brief tutorial on removing them?

 

[Captain Morgan]

Plastidip is popular here. If it were me, I would just rough and clean the old areas and use the Rustoleum rubberized paint. I have 4 cans of that I haven't made use of yet on my X, but the RR was one of the targets.

 

[robbieg]

The two cross bars are just on with 1 thumb screw on each side, i'm sure you already know that if you've used it for storage before. The two mounting bars/tracks that run front to back are held in with a hand full of torn head screws. Very easy to remove. I'm not sure what paint would hold up the best since you actually use it, I think anything short of line-x will rub off again.

 

[DF5.4]

I'm not sure how to clean it up. What about using the do it yourself spray on bed liner?

 

[robbieg]

I'm not sure how to clean it up. What about using the do it yourself spray on bed liner?

If you have any really rough areas I would sand them smooth then then go over the whole thing either wet sand it with some emery cloth or a green scotch bright pad. You just want to scuff the surface a little so whatever you apply sticks good. After that I would wash it with some dish soap to remove the dirt, wax, grease, etc. Do not use car wash soap it will not remove wax residue. I think the do it yourself stuff would be ok but I don't know how small a kit you can get because it won't take much. You might call or go by your local Line-x dealer and just ask what they would charge if you bring those pieces to them, it might not be too bad.

 

[Fatboy005]

I will only rarely actually use the rack, maybe once a year for vacation. So Line-x probably isn't worth the effort for me.

I've heard that removing the mounting rails can lead to roof leaks, so its best to shoot some silicone in the holes before replacing the torx screws. Any truth to that?

 

[robbieg]

I will only rarely actually use the rack, maybe once a year for vacation. So Line-x probably isn't worth the effort for me.

I've heard that removing the mounting rails can lead to roof leaks, so its best to shoot some silicone in the holes before replacing the torx screws. Any truth to that?

I have heard of that to but have not experienced it first hand. It certainly couldn't hurt to put some in there when you put it back together.

 

[Captain Morgan]

ditto

 

[DF5.4]

I was talking about using the do it yourself bed liner. I used the Duplicolor in the spray can on the door sills of my F-150. With the kids climbing in and out it held up really good. If ther is a problem you can always touch it up yourself.

 

[ChasinTheDragon]

600 grit sand paper, acetone to clean for prep, prime, paint.. Im actually going to do mine with black gloss rustoleum and a 3" foam brush!