Has anybody here ever used/built their own rack to haul a UTV on the bed rails of a pickup? I've seen a few pictures, and think it may be a good idea to build one.

Wow, that would be one top heavy sucker. Surely nobody would try that with a 1/2 ton???

It would probably be pushing it with a 1/2 ton...I have seen several different designs though and am considering building one

I seen one a couple of years ago heading out IH-10 to West Texas. I guy had put a Rhino on a 3/4 4x4 Ton Ford with a flatbed. I was squatting a bit and looked a little top heavy due to height. I have also seen one with rails mounted a 4x4 1 ton Dodge Dually above the bed rails. It was getting pretty tall. To me the loading and unloading is what I would be worried about.

Loading would be nerve wracking as well, but doable.

This is the pic that got me thinking on it, I could build one of these for a very reasonable price:

The lifted trucks is what would be a concern to me. If I were to do it I would replace the rear shock with the air shocks so I could level the load much better. For what you will have it in labor and materials and engineering time you can buy a trailer and be on down the road.

This would appeal to those who don't want to always have to drag a trailer down the road. Anyone who has tried to stop anywhere in Dallas with one knows how much of a pain it usually is.

The rack would be too tale for me, but I've taken mine all over Texas in the bed of my pickup. I drive my front wheels over the wheel wells in my pickup. I've done it with 2 Gators and 3 different pickups. It'll work on the extended cab, but not on the crew cab. I have several pictures in my album. Here's one;

I used to see people haul snowmobiles that way during my stint in Massachusetts. In fact there are some commercially available rigs to do it.

Here's a few different models that are commercially sold, I think I could build one in the sub-$450 range

http://www.utvguide.net/utv_transport.htm

The Owner's Manual pictures them in a 8 ft bed with the tailgate up. I've pulled a dog trailer with mine loaded in my 6'6" bed. I never even had to unhook the trailer to unload it. I just jack-kinfed it and drove the Gator off. Here you go;

Considering the price of those machines, trailer it and don't stop in Dallas. If you just want to build for the sake of building it...I can see that. I've buildt and torn-up more stuff than I an remember just to see if I could build/fix it. $8-12K sitting top heavy on the rails of my truck...risky.

I used to haul my golf cart in my bed all the time. I don't know what the width difference is between a gc and a utv though.

I'm not sure about the numbers, but I think the tailgate opening is 51 inches and the wheels of the UTV are 50 inches to the outside. I know that I have an inch to spare. That makes it easy to load. I look only at the driver's side while driving onto the pickup, and allow 1/2 inch.

My first Gator did not have a front bumper. The one I now have does. That made it a little close to the tailgate. I cut the verticles off the bumper and it gave me a couple more inches. You might be able to see it in this picture;

Those dogs could make a fortune as models. You wouldn't have to worry about loading the gator. You could pay a couple of ol boys to carry it for you.

A lot of people don't have much choice on stopping in big cities, especially if they're leaving to the lease straight after work, etc. Having the load up on the bed rails should be a non issue as long as it is tied down properly.

Its no more top heavy than a in the bed camper!

I put between 2500 2700 lbs of feed in the bed of a half ton pretty regularly and drove from SA to Hebronville without any trouble at all.

My concern would be having it ride on the bed rails. With the quality of todays sheet metal, you may want to find a way for it to get to the frame.

matt

Sweet!

I think i would just pull a trailer. It cant be that hard to find a place to stop. Plus if headed to lease where do put the rest of your stuff. Also would think u would get way better gas mileage with a trailer. There is no way i would put my Proweler HDX in the bed of my 3/4 ton.

It can be extremely difficult if you're in the heart of Dallas or its immediate surroundings, I refuse to even attempt to get fuel if I'm pulling my trailer. As for storage, these racks leave the bed of the truck completely open except for 4 or 6 uprights that sit down in there, storage would be similar to having a bed cover on.

If you had a winch on the UTV you could put a winch anchor on the rack. Would make things alot less nerve racking probably quite a bit safer during transporting as far as having the vehicle secured.

Have hauled a Rhino around many times in the bed of a 2004 Ford F150 no issues.

I looked up some curb weights for UTV's, ranger, gator, and mule are all 1400 lbs or less, thats nothing for any of the 3/4 ton and up trucks, and I wouldnt hesitate to put it in a 1/2 ton as long as it fit.

That would be great if you wanted to pull a travel trailer and haul your utv in the bed. A better solution would be a flat bed on your truck so the utv would be lower. I just dont see the fueling problem if you plan ahead.

I wouldn't hesitate to put one in the bed but NOT on top of the bed! Thats about as unsafe as a person could get, just imagine if for some reason you have to swerve or slam on the brakes???