Roof rack clamp damage

corks finest

Hi in a bit of a quandary roof rack clamp ( one that grips the roof G shape under the sill) scratched my last roof,rubber backing disintegrated.
I used an inner tube cut up to fit last time but obviously not great any suggestions? All gratefully received, thanks.

biko

What was wrong with the inner tube?
Would be a great thing I'd say.
Thin and rubber.

conor2469

What if you doubled up on the inner tube, or maybe even tripled up? Should act as a decent buffer then

corks finest

conor2469 wrote: »

What if you doubled up on the inner tube, or maybe even tripled up? Should act as a decent buffer then

Thanks I'll give it a go,was really looking to source something thicker( like myself) again thank you

Bikerman2019

Sponge?

corks finest

biko wrote: »

What was wrong with the inner tube?
Would be a great thing I'd say.
Thin and rubber.

As I've ladders on/ off,drive a hybrid ,and removing roof bars regularly c,they wore/ and as do thin frayed etc

corks finest

Bikerman2019 wrote: »

Sponge?

Good idea

Melodeon

Try calling in to a tyre shop that deals with commercial/agricultural stuff, they'll have scrap inner tubes that'll be much thicker and tougher that car or bicycle tubes.

listermint

Rubber shouldn't really be disintegrating unless your leaving the rack on and it's caught out in all weather's.

I'd suggest not leaving the rack on unless your carrying ladders for work
If not only put them on when using them.

Never had this problem myself despite having multiple racks on multiple vehicles.

CJhaughey

Post a pic, it might help.

corks finest

CJhaughey wrote: »

Post a pic, it might help.

Can't as I've changed cars and am.on the process of changing back to the original ones,all rubber ( what was left is gone)!TBH I also don't know how to post a pic here,,,,and I do leave them on for weeks at a time ,( outdoor ladder work) but if interior decorating I whip them off ( Mick's garage provided me with extensions to enable me to use my old roof bars on my last car( Suzuki swift zc72s);for e18/e26 , instead of buying a whole rack, anyone on WhatsApp / messenger I can post there no problem

corks finest

Melodeon wrote: »

Try calling in to a tyre shop that deals with commercial/agricultural stuff, they'll have scrap inner tubes that'll be much thicker and tougher that car or bicycle tubes.

FFS I just passed one on the way home ,great idea

tphase

alternatively, a chunk of neoprene from an old wetsuit might do the job for you

gctest50

Garden hose split along one side

corks finest

gctest50 wrote: »

Garden hose split along one side

Outside the box I like it,thank you

corks finest

tphase wrote: »

alternatively, a chunk of neoprene from an old wetsuit might do the job for you

That type of material would be just brilliant,face away my smallies one last year,must go into the charity shops at the weekend never know what I'd find

corks finest

corks finest wrote: »

tphase wrote: »

alternatively, a chunk of neoprene from an old wetsuit might do the job for you

That type of material would be just brilliant,face away my smallies one last year,must go into the charity shops at the weekend never know what I'd find

Thanks

corks finest

OSI wrote: »

Maybe take a trip to woodies and have a look at some pipe insulation?

That's fairly hardy stuff alright thank you

GreeBo

corks finest wrote: »

That's fairly hardy stuff alright thank you

Not sure that does well being outside.. goes brittle.

Can you just use a bead of silicone on the bracket and let it dry?

tphase

GreeBo wrote: »

Not sure that does well being outside.. goes brittle.

Can you just use a bead of silicone on the bracket and let it dry?

polyethylene foam won't last pissing time outdoors, just disintegrates into dust. It's typically used for indoor pipe insulation. The stuff pictured looks like neoprene foam which will do better, typically used on A/C pipework. Silicone and paintwork - not necessarily a good idea, depending on the solvent in the silicone

corks finest

GreeBo wrote: »

corks finest wrote: »

That's fairly hardy stuff alright thank you

Not sure that does well being outside.. goes brittle.

Can you just use a bead of silicone on the bracket and let it dry?

Think it might mark the paintwork,well I'd be afraid it would

corks finest

tphase wrote: »

GreeBo wrote: »

Not sure that does well being outside.. goes brittle.

Can you just use a bead of silicone on the bracket and let it dry?

polyethylene foam won't last pissing time outdoors, just disintegrates into dust. It's typically used for indoor pipe insulation. The stuff pictured looks like neoprene foam which will do better, typically used on A/C pipework. Silicone and paintwork - not necessarily a good idea, depending on the solvent in the silicone

Thanks for the advice,last thing I want is a damaged roof ( again) last car was silver ,this is bright red so no hiding the marks

CJhaughey

Sugru is ideal for this , mould it around the clamp and let it harden. Very tough stuff

GreeBo

CJhaughey wrote: »

Sugru is ideal for this , mould it around the clamp and let it harden. Very tough stuff

Do you want it hard though?

corks finest wrote: »

Think it might mark the paintwork,well I'd be afraid it would

Dry silicone on the bracket shouldn't do anything to the paintwork.
Its rubber so wont scratch and should actually grip the paint.
If worried, use red silicone

CJhaughey

Sugru isn’t hard it’s flexible but much firmer than RTV silicone. It won’t scratch the paint.

corks finest

CJhaughey wrote: »

Sugru isn’t hard it’s flexible but much firmer than RTV silicone. It won’t scratch the paint.

Thanks boy,TBH I never heard of sugru until this thread

corks finest

CJhaughey wrote: »

Sugru is ideal for this , mould it around the clamp and let it harden. Very tough stuff

Sugru stuff looks good for it - sending for it on eBay

corks finest

Thanks to everyone who have me advice regarding my problem - board's.ie is a fantastic forum for such- sending for sugru and while waiting going to the tyre shop to ask them for an old tube that' they're dumping,again many thanks to all