Looking for a roof box that fits rockered skis plus

I have been looking at various boxes for the new 4R and was wondering what folks on here are using?

My basic requirements would be it should hold 4 pair of rocker skis and maybe poles. Right now the biggest skis I have are 184 Billy Goats. Lockable is nice as is ambidextrous.

In the next couple weeks I will have to get out to the shops with boxes, skis in hand, to test fit various units.

The old box I have, a no-name brand, has padded metal cross bars inside the unit for the skis to be strapped onto allowing the poles and such to lay in the bottom. This box goes on my VW Jetta wagon. Would be nice to find a box with this feature.

This one looks good. http://www.amazon.com/Thule-605-Asce...=3T6FSVJCFDJ2G

Thx in advance for your input.

Um. A box that's big enough should fit your skis. I like my Thule Spirit. I liked it more before my wife backed out of the garage while it was open.

On a related note, I need a 2x4 that's 12 feet long. Any ideas?

been happy with a Thule Spirit 1600.

+ Low pro, ambidextrous, nice finish, tooless removal,meets your carrying capacity

- cost, no ski shelf as you describe.

when i was researching boxes over a year ago cant say i remember seeing any with a shelf. seems like you could make one for whatever box you end up with.

I put 4 pairs in my Thule 1100. 188 megawatts included

if they are cambered skis, they will not work in this______ brand box......

With careful packing I've fit up to 6 pairs of skis and a couple sets of poles in this one:

http://www.thule.com/en-US/US/Produc...02-Ascent-1100

The material seems a little flimsy (to cut down weight I'd assume) but I haven't had any durability issues with it so far and the locks are kinda tricky and take some getting used to, but they work ok once you figure them out. I've heard similar gripes with other boxes, so don't know if you're going to find much better...

It's also got the nice little adjustable claw clamps to attach it if you already have rails on the roof, which make putting in on and off super easy even if you're by yourself.


Lots of good info here too: http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...es-suck-so-bad

I've been using a Thule 685XT (Atlantis I believe), and can get 4-5 pairs plus poles in there, including 195 S7s and 188 Ninthward CVPs. That said, the S7s barely fit, and I don't think I could get even 2 pairs of them in there. But if the biggest pair you have is the BGs, you'd be golden. I generally stack them upright as opposed to on their side (so I have 4 pairs side by side instead of on top of one another), and seem to be able to fit more that way. YMMV

Downsides are that it's a bit pricey, not super low profile...and didn't survive without harm when my hungover ass tried to back out of my garage before the door was finished opening. Upsides are it's lockable, ambidextrous, and you can get it open with big ass mitts on.

Yea,
I have to agree with the above. I have a Thule Atlantis 1800 for 3 years now...and its the best box thule has put out to date. (use to have a frontier on the 4runner) The biggest improvement is the inside volume, while still maintaining a some what low profile. The locks are also really improved, and installation and removal with the quick grip clamps is really easy. It holds up great too...took it cross country through I-80 a few times and it really doesn't show as much wear as the older boxes did.

I can fit my pair of 197 SS7's and 188 Rc's w/o issue....plus the gf's skis and the occasional buddies skis/boards...with room for some boxes of food and beer.

my box:

http://www.thule.com/en-US/US/Produc...Atlantis-1800#

I have a Yakima Skybox16 and it works great. I've fit a bunch of skis and snowboards in it. Probably the most I've fit has been about 4 pairs of skis with three snowboards. It fits really nice on top of my WRX Wagon.

http://yakima.com/shop/cargo/skybox-series/skybox-16

It has an awesome mounting system which once dialed in takes 2 minutes to put on the car or take off, by myself.

When switching cars with different cross bar distances it takes about 20 minutes.

With a 4R you could probably go a big longer with the Skybox18.

As far as the boxes go I would go with the rough black plastic which is what I have as it holds up really well to all weather conditions and doesn't really show wear. I throw it on and off of the car a lot and don't have to worry about it at all. My brother-in-law bought the same box, except got the silver one with the "automotive" like shiny finish and you he does the same thing and regrets the color (He has a silver Jetta Wagon) because you can see all the scratches.

My 177 Mantras fit with room to spare, without having to be on a diagonal. A buddy of mine has a Thule Atlatis 1600 which is roughly the same square footage and is a little less tall. I like the extra inch or two in height as I can throw all my gear on top of my skis and have a bunch of room for my dog in the back of my wagon.

Anybody have any experience with a really low-profile box like the Yakima LoPro?

http://yakima.com/shop/cargo/skybox-series/skybox-lopro

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Originally Posted by Daikon

Anybody have any experience with a really low-profile box like the Yakima LoPro?

http://yakima.com/shop/cargo/skybox-series/skybox-lopro

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Hey, did you get any of those low profile boxes? I'm looking into either the lopro or one of the alpine boxes from thule... like the sonic alpine.

Problem is, for whatever reason those boxes are not supposed to work on anything other then the biggest suvs like yukon! Does anyone have any of those low profile on anything not huge? Like an explorer or a jeep gc? they are low profile but usually longer than the xl/18 boxes...

have anyone tried a box on a car that yakima/thule says it won't work! The feedback I got from thule is something like "it won't work, but actually you can try, it might work" when I asked about the thule sonic alpine to fit a jeep gc without any hatch interference! It's even worse when they said it would work on my wife's kia sportage which is much smaller than a gc

^^^what vehicle do you have? when thule/yakima says it won't fit, 99% of the time it means the trunk won't fully open, but it does fit.

I had a thule spirit (discontinued now and most similar to the sonic) on a 2006 Prius. Now I have an even bigger box, the Thule Boxter, on the Prius.

We just put a sonic XL on a Audi Q5 (medium sized SUV) with the Audi crossbars and it fit perfectly.

If you have questions, don't hesitate to call the shop.

Travis
406.532.7225
www.backcountryracks.com

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mtskier

^^^what vehicle do you have? when thule/yakima says it won't fit, 99% of the time it means the trunk won't fully open, but it does fit.

I had a thule spirit (discontinued now and most similar to the sonic) on a 2006 Prius. Now I have an even bigger box, the Thule Boxter, on the Prius.

We just put a sonic XL on a Audi Q5 (medium sized SUV) with the Audi crossbars and it fit perfectly.

If you have questions, don't hesitate to call the shop.

Travis
406.532.7225
www.backcountryracks.com

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it's a grand cherokee and I was looking for either the yakima lopro or thule sonic alpine, the thule XL will fit just fine but I was hoping to get some low profile since I will use only for ski trips

I see the alpine is a few inches longer than the xl, 6" if I'm not mistaken

I have a Thule ascent 1200 - which I think they renamed to a Thule Force Alpine. I have fit 2 pairs of skis, poles, boots, extra crap and other junk. I will all but guarantee that you can fit 4 pairs in their without other junk... I just lay an old, thick quilt down in the bottom half and wrap it between the skis so they don't rub.

If you had to go bigger - to the force XXL - that's really a ton of space, but $$$

Find out the next time the local REI is having a garage sale. Go buy the roof box that you like for >50% off. It might have a small ding or scratch on it.

you have the atlantis 1200 and I guarantee it will fit 4 pairs of skis + poles. I have one of those too.

you could drill a couple holes in your old box to match up with the 4runner cross bars then throw some DIY mounts to secure the box to the bars. cheapest idea i have.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mfa81

it's a grand cherokee and I was looking for either the yakima lopro or thule sonic alpine, the thule XL will fit just fine but I was hoping to get some low profile since I will use only for ski trips

I see the alpine is a few inches longer than the xl, 6" if I'm not mistaken

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Both will definitely fit your rig. The longer sonic may extend over your windshield a few inches but you will not be able to see it in your field of view.

Thule box/racks on sale at LLBean - http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/51306...id=00215409674

Update

Been getting good use out of my Thule 1700, I can cram 4 sets of skis on the bottom(2 sets being rockered) with enough room on top for more skis or gear. The rack fit on my factory racks is ok, could be better if the rails went the full length of the roof. If I play with it I can get it forward enough to have the tail gate open fully and the spoiler just touches the box.

Its off now for boating/biking season.

I can fit four or five pairs of big, fat, rockered skis in my Yakima Skybox 12.

I'm an aggressive, level 9 driver, and need a roof box that will work for fast driving on both smooth pavement and dirt roads. Also need recs on a mounting point. I'm thinking of mounting ahead of the line to get more weight on the front wheels. But will this affect the handling on harder surfaces?

If you mount at +57 you will get plenty of bite on the front, its really good on the groomers.

I have a Thule Atlantis 1800 for my jeep Gc. I get some trunk interference, apparently you need to mount the box with thule's cross rails and attachment pieces to bit get any interference with the trunk, stock cross rails sit too close to the roof. I just deal with it now cause I'm too cheap to buy more parts. I live the box, I can cram like 4 pairs of skis and two maybe three boards and boots. They fit my buddy's 192mantras?( not 100% on the length but I know they are def over 190. Haven't had any problems

Not a box, but this roof rack is perfect for rockered skis...


http://www.zumografx.com/files/ZumoBeetle.jpg

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Originally Posted by NmbrdDays

I have a Thule Atlantis 1800 for my jeep Gc. I get some trunk interference, apparently you need to mount the box with thule's cross rails and attachment pieces to bit get any interference with the trunk, stock cross rails sit too close to the roof. I just deal with it now cause I'm too cheap to buy more parts. I live the box, I can cram like 4 pairs of skis and two maybe three boards and boots. They fit my buddy's 192mantras?( not 100% on the length but I know they are def over 190. Haven't had any problems

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It's not that the stock crossbars sit too close to the roof, but that the side rails stop at the rear of the sunroof so you aren't able to mount it far enough forward to let the hatch clear. Another 6 fucking inches and it would be golden. Grr!

Anyhow I have a Thule Cascade XT 1100 (the skinny one - I'm planning on getting the wider one at some point) and it easily fits 5 pair of 190+ skis. I can probably cram 7-8 pair in there if I didn't care about stuff getting chipped/scratched/etc. I do three pair on the bottom (staggering tip directions so the bindings kind of fit inside of the pair next to it) and two pair on top pretty much every weekend in the winter.

2nd the Skybox 16. I can fit 191 Caylors in there if I lay them flat with bases down; I can then fit 4-5 other pairs on top. Put in some rubber bottomed rugs in the bottom of the box, and protect stacked skis with towels, etc.

Reviving this old thread, instead of starting a new one.

Please tell me how I can improve my plan below to achieve this objective: Acquire a box that will fit a MINIMUM of 6 pairs of HUGE-ASS skis...the more ski capacity, the better...and high price is OK as long as my net loss after future resale isn't too bad:

Step1) This weekend, I buy a full price $799 Yakima Showcase 20, but eventually receive an effective 25% off (future dividend + immediate dividend matching + REI rewards credit card). That's an effective cost of $670 (after sales tax and everything).
Step2) With that price locked in, keep it in unopened box for possible return, and conduct a 2-month search to find a better deal (1-2 more REI Garage Sale dates, used on CL, or maybe even a better REI sale within 2 months, etc.)
Step3) Use box on a 7.5-month road-trip.
Step4) Sell my used box next summer to recover most of this cost back. Hoping for a net loss that will be less than maybe $200-250 between buying and re-selling??? Hmm..this box's crazy high price might be attributed mostly to its cosmetic glossy finish, which might get scratched to hell, which could drive down my resale price later to snobby cosmetic-loving customers???

Another Candidate:
Same REI plan, but the cost is $140 less for a Yakima SkyBox 21 . HOWEVER,
1.) This box requires an easy mod of a 3-inch slice in the plastic in order to fit onto my Outback 2006, which voids the warranty and maybe even the REI Return Policy.
2.) Even though 21>20, I'm thinking this shape might actually fit slightly FEWER huge-ass skis than the Showcase 20 shape, not sure though.
3.) Good that this box is not all about glossy cosmetics, so I think scratches won't kill the resale value later.

Another Candidate:
I'm rejecting Packasport, because they weigh like 120 lbs while empty, which seems too heavy for my 2006 Outback with factory crossbars.

Any thoughts on how to improve my plan here?

.

Yeah. Get a truck.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Norseman

Yeah. Get a truck.

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Damn, I know of a truck and camper that would almost be ideal for a cross the west ski road trip! You can fit 190+ in the backseat area no problem. An enterprising guy could even remove the backseat and install a rack system and fit dozens of pairs of skis. :fm:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Norseman

Yeah. Get a truck.

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The magic number for me is >=22 pairs of huge-ass skis at a time...with room to sleep in the car...which I think means >=6 pairs in the box on a 2006 Outback. :)

.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Norseman

Yeah. Get a truck.

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also they are really fucking manly

I’m experimenting with downsizing my vehicle so I have to buy my first roof box. I’m going to look for a used one, I just need to make sure I’m narrowing my search appropriately. A bunch of my skis are 195cm or so… am I good with the models that claim 200cm skis fit (Thule Motion XL as example) or do I want to upsize for ease of packing? Any reason to pass on a low model?

No reason to pass on low. My longest are 194 these days and no issues in a Thule motion alpine.

Motion Alpine looks good. It’s spec’d for 215cm skis, right?

Attachment 496654

These are my 194 sender squad by my motion alpine. Not anything precise, but you can see you’ll be fine with your 19x skis. Fattest skis are 145 tip. No problems there either.

Sportrack Horizon Alpine can sometimes be found cheap.

Good box (made by Thule I think) but cheap mounting system. Just u bolts rather than a fancy clamp setup.

But that doesn’t matter if you are gonna leave it on all season or if you’re like me and you throw out the mounting hardware and set it up for T-track mounting.

Is T-Track preferred over clamp? I have Thule Wingbar crossbars so either should work.

The clamps don't matter unless you are taking the box on an off a lot.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by TexasGortex

Is T-Track preferred over clamp? I have Thule Wingbar crossbars so either should work.

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If you want the sleekest looking install, t track is great.

The fancy clamp systems they have these days (tool free adjustment and install) are great if you go on and off often or swap between vehicles.

U bolts (even slotted quick release u bolts) are the most annoying.