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Everyone knows that cargo space in a short wheelbase Jeep is at a premium.  And when you're carrying 2 passengers, an ice chest, picnic basket, tools, recovery gear, etc, etc, you quickly run out of room!   I thought for a long time how to add additional cargo space without sacrificing trail performance.  There are companies who make trail racks that bolt onto the tailgate.  But Jeep tailgates are flimsy enough as it is; which is why these racks are small and have a very limited cargo capacity.  There are also those cargo baskets ("hitch haulers") that mount into a 2" receiver hitch.  They hold a lot of weight, but significantly decrease your departure angle; and you can't open the tailgate while they're loaded.  A  similar product uses an extension tube which angles upward, placing the cargo basket up and behind the spare tire.  That solves the departure angle problem, but now you can't open the tail gate at all with the rack installed.  A few  companies include trail racks as part of their rear bumper "systems".   The rack sits above the spare tire and mounts to the rear bumper, solving both problems of departure angle and adding extra weight to the tailgate.  But guess what, you still can't open the tailgate with some of these systems!  In addition, they are extremely expensive, ranging from $500.00 to over $1,000.00 for the entire set up!  My solution to all of these pesky problems?  I designed and built my own trail rack!

Actually, I didn't build the whole thing (although I could have).  I already had one of those hitch haulers which I purchased from J.C. Whitney several years ago for another vehicle.  The rack is 60 inches long (which is a perfect fit for the width of a TJ), by 19 inches front-to-back.  What I designed and made was the mounting system.   With my system, the hitch hauler bolts to the top of two upside down "L" brackets (made out of 2" square steel) which mount into two vertically-mounted receiver hitches that I welded to each end of the rear bumper (see important note at the bottom of this page).    The two "L" brackets simply sit in the receivers, and are secured using a couple of hitch pins.  The whole thing takes only about 5 minutes to install (or remove).  I have no idea what the actual capacity is (I'm not an engineer), but I've been told that it will hold more that I could possibly load onto it!   The advantages of my system are that all of the weight is borne by the rear bumper, the rack doesn't affect my departure angle, and (the part I like best), I can open my tailgate regardless of the configuration (installed, uninstalled, loaded, or unloaded)!  Good ole American ingenuity at its finest!

The pictures below shows the vertical receivers which I made up to weld to each end of the rear bumper.  The picture on the left (below) shows the pieces just after I welded them (the left one has been grinded and primed).  The picture on the right is a close-up of the vertical receiver welded to rear bumper (passenger side). 

   

The two pictures below show the rack installed;  loaded (left-to-right) with one Rubbermaid 15.5-gallon Action Packer®, a 16-quart ice chest, and an 8-gallon Action Packer®.  And as you can see, the tailgate opens with the rack installed and loaded, without any unnecessary stress on the tailgate itself.  For more info on packing for trail rides or camping trips, please see my packing list on the "Before the Ride" page under Trail Rides.

Important Note:  My trail rack is mounted on a heavy- duty aftermarket rear bumper, which I further reinforced with 3/16 steel plate.  This rack will not work with a stock bumper!!

Update (May 01):  Although my trail rack has served me extremely well over the past few years, I just finished a complete rebuild the entire rear system.  Read all about it on my
Bumpers Page!

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