I recently bought a 2004 F-150. It was brand new; a great deal!! But had no roof racks. I did not think that getting them put on was going to be such a drag.
The Yakima Q-towers seem like a good choice, but my gut tells me that they are not right for me.
I am just 5’5" tall and getting the yak on my ranger was tough enough. It was suited with Yakima 1-A rain gutter towers. I never hurt my back getting the yak on or off, but well I am getting older!
The Thule XSPORTERS seem like a good choice because the height of the rear racks seem like they can be adjusted to a lower height for loading and unloading. I just do not see any opinions about it and was wondering if anybody uses them?
Please also comment to me about any pros/cons about your set-up on your F-150.
Regards,
The Mighty Anchove
You are welcome to my home made
F-150 racks, but I am 6’6" tall and sometimes had trouble getting a boat on that truck. Now I have a Tacoma and it isn’t much easier. A rack that drops down in the back souds like a good thing.
I have them on my 04 F-150
I bought the shorter version which I believe fits better on the F-150 because the box is higher than other full size trucks. I have the short bed super crew so the spread is about 48 inches between the crossbars. They will compress the plastic bed rail some when tightened but not a big deal. Alignment is critical and takes a lot of measuring and adjustment to get right so they elevate smoothly. To load a boat I use a 20 inch high step platform to step up to the tailgate, then swing the boat around into the cradles. Works like a charm.
pickup truck
For sure go the Xsporter route as it’s a zillion times more versitile and gives better cross bar spread. That means your boat and any other items are better supported with less torque. My neighbor has one and uses for boats and ladders and lumber every day. The Thule is very well made and they have a wide range of access kits for bikes and boxes etc
Tacoma
I use the xsporter racks on my small toyota tacoma prerunner. They work well for me. My only concern is when the rack is in it’s lowered position, it hinders your vision out the back. I have gotten used to looking over or under the lowered rack, but still it’s somewhat of an inconvenience. Take this into consideration when purchasing this particular rack.
me 2
Got the Xsporter 422 on a dbl cab toyota tundra. Works great, and yes when lowered you see the cross bar in your rearview mirror