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Cartopping thin sheets of plywood
By:Dan Ruff
Date: 9/24/2001, 8:46 am
In Response To: More on Wood World (Paul G. Jacobson)

: How do you plan to get your wood home? I've tried cartop carriers and the
: panels are so flexible that they bend back in the wind at any speed than
: 20-25 mph. You'll probably need either a pickup with a clear 4x8 foot area
: or a full size van. A 4x8 trailer will work.

I had to chuckle when I read this. On Saturday I got a sheet of 3mm and drove for an hour on the highway to get home. I knew in advance that it would be very flexible on my car's roof rack, so I brought two full length 2x4s with me. My rack has 4 foot wide bars, so I tied the 2x4's to the ends of the bars. Each long edge of the plywood sheet rested on a 2x4. I strapped it all down using 4 tiedown straps. Even with that much to hold it, it still scooped up a bunch of wind and really arched up in the front. It didn't budge, but it was still a nervous hour ride home. I drove 50mph. All the traffic was passing me like I was standing still.

If I were to do it again, I would still use the two 2x4s along the long edges of the plywood, but I would add a 4 foot long board to the front edge of the plywood and use a couple of large c-clamps to hold that board to the 2x4's. This would stiffen the front of the thin sheet and eliminate the air scoop effect.

If you have the lumber laying around at home, a little planning ahead can make this doable.

Messages In This Thread

Plywood sources near Chicago?
Dan St. Gean -- 9/21/2001, 9:27 am
More on Wood World
Paul G. Jacobson -- 9/23/2001, 6:29 pm
Cartopping thin sheets of plywood
Dan Ruff -- 9/24/2001, 8:46 am
Re: Cartopping thin sheets of plywood
Paul G. Jacobson -- 9/24/2001, 5:24 pm
Re: Cartopping thin sheets of plywood
Joe -- 9/24/2001, 2:23 pm
Good points
Dan Ruff -- 9/24/2001, 3:12 pm
Re: Cartopping thin sheets of plywood *NM*
Joe -- 9/24/2001, 2:06 pm
More on Wood World
Paul G. Jacobson -- 9/23/2001, 6:25 pm
Re:Wood World
Ed K. -- 9/21/2001, 12:45 pm
Re: Plywood sources near Chicago?
Jim Eisenmenger -- 9/21/2001, 12:09 pm
Re: Plywood sources near Chicago?
Dick L. -- 9/21/2001, 3:08 pm