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Job's done !
Thanks Roger, and everyone else who was able to offer up the requested info and pictures.
After getting all my ducks in a row, I ended up going with the RL210 legs (and 2x 10mm spacers per leg), and re-radiused them to suite the roofs curvature. It all came together really well ! :) 1.8m between front & back bars.
Overall, I can JUST squeeze in under 2.0m if I had to (about 1.99m to top edge of Foxwing + the extra bit the bag ends stick up) ... so we're under 2.1m for carparks ... happy wife, happy life :p (with room for a 50mm lift in the future and room for a flat tray on he bars), and easily clear my 2.16m in the driveway .... and I get a minimum 1,8m under the Foxwing at the passengers side, with an extra 50mm available by engaging the SLS to offroad height. Don'tcha just love it when a plan comes together ? :)
Got the Rhino racks from Roof Rack City, Castle Hill, as refurbished items. 6x legs & 3x Bars (1650mm) cost me $360. Wanted black bars but only silver available ... so be it! ... plus an extra $140 for delivery, a second Foxwing mounting kit, extra spacers, longer bolts, etc, etc, etc .... $500 all up. The bars and legs as you'll see in the photo's look new.
So, here's a few pics of the final product .... phase 1 .... the racks and awning will be moved inboard about 3"/75mm so the Foxwing hugs the roof closer, and I'll trim the bars down for phase 2 .... after I've worked out the roof bag & the flat roof tray setup we want to use. Have to fit an Oztent RV-5 up there as well, and I'll need a 1/2 or full width tray of round 2.1m to span the bars. Can't shrink the leg spacings as the Oztent is 2.0m when packed.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/780.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/781.jpg
At this height with 2x 10mm spacers, the bars will just fit over the roof rails at the B pillar.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/782.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...016/05/614.jpg
The ends of the Foxwing HD brackets will come in to meet the spacers ontop of the legs.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...016/05/612.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/783.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/784.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/785.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...016/05/613.jpg
Here's a point for future reference .... you cannot get a spanner onto the bolt that holds the bars to the legs once it's mounted on the roof, as the bolt head sits too close to the roof, and the legs alongside the bolt are to narrow to get any swing with a spanner .... I even tried a ratcheting ring spanner ... nope! AND the back of the roof rails interfere even more with access to this bolt.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/786.jpg
And there you have it ! It's extremley sturdy (especially since all the bars are tied together with the Foxwing). Now to find a flat roof tray / mesh platform that will cover all 3 bars.
It all looks easy, but it actually took ages to get it all sized, measured and mounted. To move the rails across, I'll have to dismount the whole assy as there's no access to those 4x back leg bar bolts ... going to look at a lift mech' under the driveway roof so I can undo the 6 legs and lift the whole lot off in 1 go.
Edit ..... I forgot to mention .... so far, at speeds up to 120km/hr, with Foxwing mounted, or not, there is absolutley NO wind noise from the HD bars (even with the end caps not fitted to the bar ends) ... and that's been confirmed by swmbo so you can believe it's true! :p The front bar is roughly centred between the A & B pillars. I'm really happy about that! No noise!!! :)
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Great post Kev and the rest of you guys. I've been thinking about an awning for over the rear for a while but rejected the idea of the rectangular type as being too limited and I also didn't want to have something mounted on top of the already high roof. I've not seen the foxwing before - what a fantastic idea! Looks like it'll cost about $1300 all up; $500 for the brackets and bars and $800 for the foxwing. I'd all but talked SWMBO into a rear locker but I think I'll get better value out of the awning and might swap.
Kev, any chance of you putting up a few pics of the foxwing extended? I'd like to see how it clears the rear door and the sideways and lengthways overlap with the rear roof, if any. I've also seen some forum chat suggesting the foxwing doesn't always open out the full 270deg, which would affect these overlaps.
Mal
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No worries Mal. This is a work in progress. I've only opened it up once so far .... 10.30pm on the way home from Hogs Breath Cafe ... on the local football oval :)
I'll try and get it opened up again over the weekend & post up a few more pic's for you.
I did notice when opened up, that it maybe goes 260-265deg ... but it was dark, and it was a rush open it, set up poles & ropes ... grin & go hmmmmm ... then packed it away ... swmbo was impressed! :) I've lined up the hinges to sit just behind (in front) of the rain gutter so the back is covered, AND the door JUST opens and clears the underside of the Foxwing .... it will come in about 3"/75mm closer to the passengers side of the disco when I'm finished.
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Hi, Sorry I didn't answer your PM regarding this. My Disco is parked elsewhere and I put off replying until I could measure it then.... I forgot.
Seems to have worked out well for you though.
Cheers
Ian.
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Here you go Mal. A few pic's as requested ...
We start like this. It all sits nice and close to the roof line for transport.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...10/12/1679.jpg
... and it opens out into this ...
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/520.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/521.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/522.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/523.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/524.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/525.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/526.jpg
In the next shot/s you can see there's enough (just) clearance above the back door when opened. It (the door) just touches the underside of the awning as it's gets to the full open position.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/527.jpg
When I'm finished, the awning will sit approx' 3"/75mm closer to the disco's roof, which will take up the gap almost.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/528.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/529.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/530.jpg
Mal, as you suggested, here's the rear awning clearance situation ... it's not quiet a full 270deg opening. I'd need to slide the foxwing forward on its mounts approx' 50-100mm to get the back spar to cover the back door. As it is now it's OK, but heavy rain might pose a slight issue. Also, when I move the awning inboard the extra 75mm the point that the back spar crosses over the back door will move across towards the drivers side, offering better cover.
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/531.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/532.jpg
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...010/10/533.jpg
I'm really pleased with the result. Enough headroom for me to walk around under the awning without having to take the Akubra off ! :) It fits (just) under 2.0M, and the heights worked out just right for attaching the awning to the Oztent RV-5 (see next post).
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That looks fantastic Kev!
Well done on getting it to fit so close to the roof too. The old man has a spare Foxwing. Might have to "Borrow" it I think.:D
Thomas
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Thanks, Kev, for the effort on the photos. Fantastic setup. How important is it to use the poles to support the foxwing? I realise in any sort of breeze it would be compulsory but for light rain or a zephyr, is it strong enough? I'm thinking of a short stop somewhere in the rain and I want a cover over the back and to sit under to eat lunch for 20minutes. How long does it take to set up, excluding the tent?
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Thanks Thomas! ... credit also goes to the others in this post who had the required info that I did not have.
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Mal. You're welcome.
It's imperitive that you use the poles & ropes ALL the time. It wouldn't take too much breeze to get under the awning and turn it into a bag of cats! :p If it was deathly still with NO wind, it would just open out and stay put, but that seems to put alot of force on the hinge assy with 8ft spars hanging out off the hinge.
My Foxwing photo's show 4x poles & 4x ropes ... but look at the shots with the Oztenet attached ... 4x poles & 8x ropes (an extra rope in between each pole). These get added for heavier winds &/or rain to assist with proper run-off. It's quiet stable with just 4x poles & ropes, and solid as a rock with 8x ropes.
Setup time, whilst I didn't time it, isn't very long. Open the poles & ropes/pegs bag. Drop a pole/peg/rope at approx' the 4x pole locations around the vehicle. Unzip the Foxwing cover. Unclip the 4x spars. Walk the awning out around the back of the vehicle and clip the tension strap to your roof rack on the drivers side. Setup 4x poles, ropes & pegs ... 3-4min maybe ? Not very long.
In heavier winds, it takes 2x people. 1 to setup poles/ropes/pegs whilst person 2 holds all the spars/awning material to prevent the wind getting hold of it. I did it in heavier wind single handed using a hockey strap to keep the spars bundled while I put each pole/rope/peg in (with ropes run 45deg out of alignment to keep the awning tensioned until the final spar is tensioned to the vehicle ... then go back and re-set the ropes to be inline with the spars). Maybe 5-6min ?
