Short version: My roof rack on the van is nearing completion. It will have 5/4 PT deck boards running lengthwise on top for a walkable platform, each one separated about 1".
I want to run something along the leading edge of the boards to A) tie them together and give a nice, finished appearance, and B) possibly take the wind noise from F-16 on afterburner to just A-10 Warthog.
What I want doesn't seem to exist as a raw material. I was thinking about a 1" aluminum U channel that I could slip over the boards and screw in place. Like so:
or this zoomed in: 
I thought about aluminum stair nose, but first, that isn't very sturdy, and second, I think the it might make the F-16 into a B-12:
I tried searching for 1" aluminum half-round and didn't find any.
I feel like what I want is out there somewhere - a spare piece off of an RV awning, a trim piece from a golf cart roof, or an old home movie projector screen roll. Have any ideas? I would love to brag that my roof rack includes the most GRM upcycling part, like a support beam from a commercial washing machine, a chunk of a 911 Targa bar, or a P1800 bumper.
Inside channel can be anywhere from 3/4" to 1". 1" would fit over the boards, 3/4" I could rabbet the boards so it's flush (actually preferred that way)
I can't see a suitable profile in my local catalogue ...
With your theatre work I assume (dangerous that 
) that you have access to a band saw and a router so have you considered slitting a piece of suitable diameter tube in half on the saw and then rounding over the planks on the router to provide a suitable fixing profile?
just call me the wood butcher...
Richard
Or slice this up the middle on a table saw.....TACO Marine | 1-7/8” Oval Tube TACO Marine
SV reX
MegaDork
2/14/24 3:11 p.m.
How about 1" electrical PVC conduit run through the table saw?
You could miter the corners, and neatly countersink the screws around the perimeter.
What about just cutting a 45 on the top and bottom of the front edge of each board, then screwing a piece of aluminum angle across all of them?
In reply to DeadSkunk (Warren) :
I can get 3/4" or 1" channel and skip the router part, but I don't think it will be strong enough, and I don't think the square profile will be ideal.
RichardNZ said:
I can't see a suitable profile in my local catalogue ...
With your theatre work I assume (dangerous that ) that you have access to a band saw and a router so have you considered slitting a piece of suitable diameter tube in half on the saw and then rounding over the planks on the router to provide a suitable fixing profile?
just call me the wood butcher...
Richard
I have a [hideously terrible] band saw, and a couple good routers.
I did think of that, and have tried it before with not much success due to the limitations of the band saw. I've had some success screwing a pipe to a 1x4 to hold it plumb, then running it through the table saw and just removing the screws before you saw through them.
I think the problem with sawing it in half is that I won't have any "legs" to screw to the boards.
SV reX said:
How about 1" electrical PVC conduit run through the table saw?
You could miter the corners, and neatly countersink the screws around the perimeter.
Not a bad idea, but I'm not sure how durable it would be when I slide a 16' 2x10 on the rack and catch the corner on the PVC.
gsettle said:
What about just cutting a 45 on the top and bottom of the front edge of each board, then screwing a piece of aluminum angle across all of them?
That's actually a pretty good idea... if it's strong enough. For a 1" thick board, (carry the 5, sine, cosine, tangent) that means only about 11/16" x 11/16" angle
I think the problem with sawing it in half is that I won't have any "legs" to screw to the boards.
That was the idea of rounding over the leading edge of the boards - lots of gluing area and you can use small screws either into the end grain or diagonally
Been digging through my scrap metal.
I found a 6' section of what maybe appears to be the bottom track for a sliding door. It wouldn't wrap around the top and bottom of the board (and wouldn't be very durable), but it does have a cool channel in which I could put some amber LED tape.
Bummer is that it's about 1-1/2" wide. I could make that work, but it also gives me an idea to maybe look for something like this
RichardNZ said:
I think the problem with sawing it in half is that I won't have any "legs" to screw to the boards.
That was the idea of rounding over the leading edge of the boards - lots of gluing area and you can use small screws either into the end grain or diagonally
Ahh.... I missed the part about rounding the boards. I like it.
I also think I'll be less concerned about durability once I actually visualize the spacing of the deck boards.
This is a wardrobe profile that might work with a little butchery They are actually half rounds of about 30 mm, iPad cameras have a little parallax error ...
SV reX
MegaDork
2/14/24 4:36 p.m.
In reply to Curtis73 (Forum Supporter) :
Cut the PVC snug and glue the crap out of it with some good stuff like M1. I think it should stand up really well, be easy to slide over, and easy to replace if I'm wrong!
What you are looking for is called "architectural channel"
Problem is it is made for plywoods and things that are slightly under nominal not slightly over nominal.
93gsxturbo said:
What you are looking for is called "architectural channel"
Problem is it is made for plywoods and things that are slightly under nominal not slightly over nominal.
What I'm looking for is just that, but the bottom is round. Like this:
Or, I suppose it could be some other profile, but just not something that will induce greater wind noise or whistles.
The nominal size of the channel is flexible, since I could dado/rabbet the ends of the boards to fit the channel. In fact, it's kinda preferable so that the channel is flush with the top of the boards. More like this:
But the profile of the front could take any form as long as it's modestly aerodynamic. I know I'm splitting hairs, and it likely won't make a bit of difference, but something like below: These are just representative examples of something in my head that might work, not actual profiles I'm looking for. Just giving you and idea.
SV reX said:
In reply to Curtis73 (Forum Supporter) :
Cut the PVC snug and glue the crap out of it with some good stuff like M1. I think it should stand up really well, be easy to slide over, and easy to replace if I'm wrong!
I'm pickin up what you're putting down. I like it.
New rabbit hole.
Boat rub rail. So far all I'm finding is stuff that is 1-5/8" up to 2" tall.
Maybe a piece of top coping off of an old above ground pool? Lots of interesting aluminum shapes are used in pool framing.
Whitey
New Reader
2/14/24 5:48 p.m.
Try looking up toilet partition top rail. I think you might find a profile that works.
Whitey said:
Try looking up toilet partition top rail. I think you might find a profile that works.
This is even better and wouldn't have the CRL tax. Stuff is expensive.
Trent
PowerDork
2/14/24 6:57 p.m.
So, why can't you do this with the second link I posted? TACO Marine | 3" Oval Tube TACO Marine. The oval sections come in multiple widths, so you could wrap it quite a piece around 5/4 decking. Available in 1&7/8" or 3". A 20 foot length would be enough to do all four sides of the rack, a nice finished look.
