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Builtright & Rotopax, An Exercise in Humility

Clendennan

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I thought I'd expose myself(no pun intended) and transmit my ignorance and lack of thought to the world regarding the latest install.

Last weekend I finished the BuiltRight Racks all around the bed.

Today at lunch I figured I would install(even if temporarily) the Rotopax 2G Fuel container to the rack. Simple enough, I also did not use the Rotopax mount, I used the BuiltRight Mount sold through their site because it looked better.

Let me preface that admittedly this is mostly my fault. Probably all my fault. Whatever. But I did learn from it, so there's that.

Challenges and Humbling Experiences

The Mount

1. I like the mount from Builtright because it continues the look of the branding and its silver against the rack. Nevermind that this was a pointless quality, since the gas container will cover it 99% of the time, and nobody will see it but me. So it was a waste of money.

2. The orientation of the mount is such that for the branding to be rightside up, the gas container will sit above the bedrail, which isn't good with a tonneau cover, that's the second blow.

3. So I mount it, or try to, and realize rather quickly that i need to either mount it with the nuts facing me(which is ugly) or i need to completely remove the panel in order to hold the nuts for fastening from the other side. This is a major pain in the ass since one corner of the rack (lower left in photo below) is held by a bolt which inserts into a nut underneath and up into the bed. This is a pain in the ass to take off and put back on. The ugly wins, and the nuts are facing outward, blow number 3, but the mount is on.

4. Without the proper nut driver extension, its impossible for me to get to the nut at the correct angle, so because of this the mount slipped and is slightly wobbly. Blow number 4, but I figure this is temporary anyway at this point because Ill have to take the panel off later to do it properly, so Ill see this through to see how it looks and fits.

The Rotopax Fuel Container
5. This thing goes on tight, which is good. Its a proper fit. The problem is I tested the fit to the mount prior to putting it on, it got wedged in there, and without being at home I had to improvise tools to knock it back out, chipping away the black paint in the process. Blow number , but not in the correct order if youre keeping track.

6. I put the fuel container on, and the minor slantedness is now way more apparent in the photo below. Blow number 6.

7. In reviewing my work, I now see that in order to have the spout upward and toward the back of the bed, I need to have it mounted on the completely opposite bedrail. Blow Number 7.

8. To add insult to injury, the shelf for the tonneau clampdown is now blocked(as shown in photo) so the entire thing needs to shift toward the cab two inches. Blow number 8.

Im sure there are more problems, but I will say for a test run(which was supposed to be a final run) its really secure. So I got that going for me.

Jeep Gladiator Builtright & Rotopax, An Exercise in Humility 1


Jeep Gladiator Builtright & Rotopax, An Exercise in Humility 2
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hjdca

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Note : I had to put lots and lots stainless nylon locking nuts on the back of my molle panels to mount my quick fists. The easiest way to do this very fast is to take a small piece of black tape or gorilla tape and wrap it into an inside out circle and put it on your finger tip. Now put the nylon locking nut on your sticky finger tip and reach in there and push it against the stainless screw as you turn. Piece of cake, otherwise, it is practically impossible.
 
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Clendennan

Clendennan

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Note : I had to put lots and lots stainless nylon locking nuts on the back of my molle panels to mount my quick fists. The easiest way to do this very fast is to take a small piece of black tape or gorilla tape and wrap it into an inside out circle and put it on your finger tip. Now put the nylon locking nut on your sticky finger tip and reach in there and push it against the stainless screw as you turn. Piece of cake, otherwise, it is practically impossible.
That would work except on this side the bolts supplied have smooth heads. So I need to completely remove the panels to get a tool on the nut for this specific mount ... supplied by Builtright themselves. The bolts have square collars which is nice, but then theres no way to turn them, so it has to be done from the nut. Frustrating
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